Christopher Luke: “Massive Penis,” “Clandestine Sex Parties,” and “Spaghetti Bolognese” [Exclusive Interview]

Christopher Luke reveals a few skeletons in his closet

Introducing Christopher Luke! He’s a young artist with a keen eye for bold blacks, clean whites, and bleached bones! Each piece of art made by Christopher is often accelerated by his active presence within the mental health community. He creates stunning visual representations of emotion and heartache that is all too relatable. His work spans across all mediums, including: digital, custom toys, paintings, stickers, and so much more.

Chris loves collaboration and often throws himself into his work with the artists that he admires. Recently he re-designed our logo as part of our series to showcase independent talent! We love it, and it really demonstrates his collaborative spirit and skill. He is a proven powerhouse at intertwining his passions (like skateboarding and custom toys) in such an elegant way. The dude is simply a force to be reckoned with! He harnesses a unique style that will never go unrecognised.

Well, we love the guy. So we invited our skeletal friend to do a sort of Q and A, and he kindly accepted. Prepare yourself for a deep and wild dive into this artist’s psyche, and learn a little bit more about him, bones and all:

Q: Hey Christopher, how are you?

I’m very well, thank you! And thank you for the opportunity to do this.

Q: What ignited your passion for Art?

I have always had an interest in art since I was a child, but a trip to the Tate Modern was the spark that really ignited my passion. My first trip there was mind blowing.

I’d never seen such incredible pieces of work up close, and some of it was so provocative that I was in awe for most of the day. I didn’t want to leave.

Q: What was the first custom toy you created?

Technically, my first custom was a Janky called Shiny Bones but it was more of a concept, as it was gloss vinyl over a Janky sprayed black. So I would say Pinky was my first actual custom. It was a similar design but hand painted. I also cut out the eyes and glued a tiny brain inside. These 2 initial designs then evolved into my Janky Bones, which I paint quite often and with different variants.

Q: How did you find your own style? And how long did it take?

Far too long! I found my own style through exploring interesting concepts and finding ways to transpose them into my work, it then began to naturally evolve into what it is today. In my experience, finding your own unique style and settling into it can be one of the most frustrating things ever. But it will happen eventually. Patience is key.

Q: What’s the most recent custom toy that you’ve made?

I recently customised two 7-Inch Munnys for Clutter Gallery’s Gift Wrapped 2020 show called Ske-love-tons. I had never worked with Munnys before, so when they arrived in the post, I immediately began to panic. I have never seen a head that round in my life. Never again.

Q: We know you LOVE skeletons… what’s the biggest Skeleton in your closet?

Well, he prefers me to address him as ‘J’ these days. He’s 6 feet tall and I met him in a quirky little town just before Christmas a few years back. Said he needed to get away for a bit and didn’t mind confined spaces. He brought a cute dog with him too.

Q: What’s your favourite piece of art you have made and why?

My most recent work has definitely been the most fulfilling. I see my art as a realm where I can transpose my real-world experiences. The inspiration for my painting Yearn came from a place of deep hurt and sadness that I was experiencing at the time, so putting that all onto a canvas felt like emotional catharsis. What I wasn’t expecting though, was the amount of people that reached out to me to tell me how much it touched them, and how they could instantly relate to the painting. That was pretty special.

Q: What are your goals for the future?

To network and connect with more artists, that’s for a sure. After a year like this one, I certainly won’t take that kind of freedom for granted. I can’t wait to go to some conventions and meet the people I didn’t get to meet this year.

I also want to keep walking further outside my comfort zone. I’ve really stepped outside of it this this year and it has done wonders for my personal growth. It’s been the scariest thing I’ve ever done, and the most rewarding.

Q: Can you tell us about any new projects you’re involved with that you are excited about?

Yes! My character Hindsight! UniqueZip is launching their upcoming Rabbotz project and I was asked to design one of them! All of the artist on the project are outstanding and I feel honoured to have my name amongst them all. It’s pretty surreal. Look out for the Kickstarter!!

Q: Who would you just love to collaborate with? And who would you just hate to collaborate with?

I would really love to collaborate with Jim McKenzie. His work is always so far outside the box and unique, it’s fascinating. I’d love to see the thought process behind it all and find out what wild creation is born from the experience. He’s seems like a really down to earth person too!

I’d hate to collaborate with Renoir, because I’d know that he was only doing it for the Monet.

Q: How does Christopher Luke get through those unmotivated days and what drives him to continue creating?

Something I’ve found that really works for me is picking up a blank canvas and just painting something completely unrelated to anything I’ve been working on. Doing it just for the sake of putting paint on something (Remember when it used to be that simple?).

Sometimes it’s just a mess of colours and looks absolutely awful, but I’m convinced that it helps your creative sub-conscious figure out all the things you can’t get your head around when you’re actively focused on them.

Q: Do you have any tips for other aspiring artists?

Just. Keep. Going.

I can’t stress the importance of those 3 words enough. It’s so easy to put yourself down and convince yourself that you’ll never be the artist you want to be, but the one thing that will stop you from ever becoming that artist, is giving up. Most of the people you look up to will have been doing what they do for years and years. But what you won’t see, is that they were probably doing it for years and years before that, just to get noticed in the first place. Invest in yourself. You’ve got this!

As soon as you get a big ego and start to act like you’re better than others, your work loses all credibility and you just look like a massive penis.

Christopher Luke, 2020

Also try to stay conscious of your actions. They won’t put your follower count on your gravestone. As soon as you get a big ego and start to act like you’re better than others, your work loses all credibility and you just look like a massive penis.

Quick fire round!

What came first, the chicken or the egg?

Egg. The chicken was the result of four species of wild jungle fowl from Southeast Asia having a clandestine sex party. And that’s factual information. Mostly.

Name three things you couldn’t live without? (minus water, food and oxygen)

My Guitar, Art & Dirty Metal Breakdowns (Bluergh)

Who’s your celebrity crush?

Sophia Bush. Shout out to the OTH fans. You know.

Favourite childhood toy?

Streex from Street Sharks

Favourite Superhero?

I have never really been into superheroes, so I don’t have one…*Smiles Awkwardly*

Favourite Blindbox series?

Arcane Divination Dunnies. Solely for the incredible chase, The Ghost (Fog Variant) by J*RYU (If anyone would like to donate one to “The Christopher Luke Collection,” I would be very grateful. Thank you!)

Favourite toy artist right now?

Mark Landwehr and Sven Waschk AKA Coarse.Their earlier originals are just hauntingly stunning.
Favourites: Buried Passion, Do you remember?, and How could I forget?

Favourite Food?

Spaghetti Bolognese. I could eat it every day. Try me.

Favourite Movie?

Submarine by Richard Ayoade. The soundtrack is by Alex Turner (from The Arctic Monkeys). I have that on vinyl too.

And last, but not least! Favourite Band?

I will never be able to choose between Bury Tomorrow and Architects. They both share my number 1 spot.

Thank you, Christopher Luke!

So there you have it! A deep dive into the wondrous world of Christopher Luke! His brand new website is live and you can purchase his artwork, toys, customs, and much more right now.

[Interview has been condensed for clarity.]

Follow Christopher Luke:

Web: christopherluke.co.uk
Instagram: instagram.com/christopherluke
Facebook: facebook.com/christopherlukeart

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