The Order within the Chaos

Like siblings playfully do, his brother would flick him out of the way when he got too close. But when he was out, Andrew would sneak into his room and play his albums on the small revolving turntable – The Beatles, The Stones, The Kinks, all brilliant to his inexperienced ears. “I remember loving the Album covers and it was often those stunning artistic designs that first attracted me to listen to the contents,” he recalls.

In the following decade, he became a huge fan of David Bowie, massively influenced by his style. Shortly after the news of the singer-songwriter’s death, the lifetime fan that he was, Andrew created the portrait, ‘Goodbye Major Tom’, where he tried to cut through the celebrity and his various personas to capture David Bowie, the man. “It was my way of saying goodbye,” he adds with a smile.

He may come across as the life-of-the-party, but much like his art, Andrew himself is heavily layered, having a subdued side to himself that lets him plunge into the depths of the craft. “I guess, when I look back, art has always been there, bubbling under the surface. I have always been creative and the one to turn to for an alternative view,” he recalls.

 Tracing back to the inception of his love affair with the canvas, the artist says, “I have always found solace and peace in being alone with my thoughts, scribbling or doodling or writing. However, art did not emerge until it was truly ready, and it burst from me just six years ago. I simply had an urge to paint.” The artist felt a sudden overwhelming need to express himself through color and imagery. He bought canvases, paint, and brushes, locked himself in a room, and started playing with paint. It was an epiphany, and he became so self-absorbed with the creation of these pictures that time stood still for him. “So here I am six years later still painting, immensely satisfied creatively. Most evenings, I can be found in my studio, music cranked up, the door firmly shut against the real world.”

 The explorer that he is, Andrew describes his equation with the craft as “a wonderful journey of trial and error and experimentation.” He further adds, “With each painting I feel I learn something new.” In much the same way someone cannot pick up an instrument and simply play it, he is wired to look at things from alternative perspectives and loves to experiment with new techniques and styles.

 It can be hard to imagine the creator of spectacles like ‘The Saloon Bar Smith’ and ‘Street Fighter’ being anything but a master of colors, but it’s interesting to know that Andrew came to Dubai in 1995 and worked as a manager for an insurance brokerage for several years. These years of self-actualization and evolving with the scape around him have enriched his perceptive soul with experiences, reflecting in his spellbinding craft, that not just resonates but stays with its viewers. 

“The UAE was a very different place 25 years ago. I would spend many weekends investigating the oldest parts of Dubai and soaking up the atmosphere and culture.” As he drifts back in time, he vividly remembers the mosque he discovered in a little enclosed square, totally covered with blue and white ceramic tiles with colorful flags blowing in the wind on the top of the minarets. He also fondly recalls his almost weekly visits to a small Iranian restaurant run by a family of a father and three brothers, open since the early 70s, serving just two or three menu options. “Basic but wonderful!” he reminisces.

He also has memories of another Yemeni restaurant frequented by locals and fishermen that served only one thing – fish baked in a charcoal oven, burned black on the outside, but one could crack open the skin to find beautiful white flesh beneath. “I have no doubts that these experiences contributed greatly to my future art destiny,” he chuckles.