Carl Cashman is a contemporary artist based in Devon, who creates stunning, vibrant geometric-based optical art. Some of Carl’s work is painted using UV reactive paint, which adds a further visual element to the pieces when seen in the right environment.
Carl originally studied art at Dartington College of Arts and graduated from there in 2008. He cites Bridget Riley, M C Escher and the Beautiful Losers as major artistic influences.
Where do you get the ideas for your pieces?
My ideas tend to just come from a doodle. Everything of mine is hand drawn. I think draughtsmanship is a skill on its own to be appreciated and I think computers have taken a lot of the effort away from creating works of art… although they do obviously have their place, and as my work develops I may feel the need to use one. I tend to paint most of my ideas as I sometimes find it hard to picture how the tones on a piece such as the Ribbons will turn out.
What do you use to create your work?
My kit includes: a ruler, pencil, art tape (for more intricate works), a compass and a protractor.
Most of my works are painted with acrylics on ply, although recently I’ve started using watercolour paper and canvases and have also painted directly onto old Record sleeves.
What artists do you currently like?
I enjoy collecting artwork myself – usually people I find inspirational. I have pieces by: Banksy, Kaws, Todd James and Espo. Amongst others I am currently really enjoying Eric Shaw, Ben Rawson, Matthew Palladino and LX One.
Why Op Art?
When I first left Dartington, I was going through a stencil phase, but one piece was reported locally as a Banksy so I realised that if I ever wanted to be respected for what I do… stencils were not the answer. I’ve been making Op Art based work for around the last 18 months. I’ve enjoyed it since school days when we did lots of projects based on M C Escher… I find the process of creating them hypnotic.
What else do you do outside of your art?
When I’m not living like a hermit spending all my time painting I love going to festivals. Music is one of my inspirations and I’m mainly to be found in the dance tents. I don’t really get to see as much other art as I would like, but I help out at shows like Moner if I can. I find the experience of seeing artists like Steve Powers, Herakut and Peeta at work an honor.
Below you can see some of the preparatory work that goes into creating one of Carl’s peices together with a finished piece.
Carl sells his work via his Carl Cashman website. I would highly recommend that you take a look at this as the work is extremely reasonably priced and highly original.
You can also see more of Carl’s work and his other photos on his flickr stream.
Carl Cashman by Olly
Really enjoy your work! Please look up our site – we’re preparing for an exhibit April 20 of the art of Juan Mele, who just passed away in Buenos Aires.
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