I want my art to look like a child who has probably killed his parents.
Slender Man and Madeleine McCann (2015)
26" x 26"
Acrylic
I got in a lot of trouble for this one.
This is an illustration I did last year that is included in a book of short stories about 'Abdul-Baha, the son of the founder of the Baha'i Faith, entitled "To Serve All Humanity".
My sister is a writer and I am an artist, so we've teamed up to work on a children's book together. This is a draft of the first page, which will eventually be illustrated with watercolor and digital elements.
Part of a series of four illustrations I will be posting more of, based on poems written by children. These were made for a uni project working with Grimm & Co, a charity that enables children to express themselves through writing.
In this memory-driven piece, Patmore reconstructs the bathroom from his third-grade elementary school, capturing the sterile brightness, the tiled repetition, and the institutional reminder to “WASH YOUR HANDS.”
But the scene is not pristine — a leaky sink, an out-of-order stall, and a taped-up sign reveal the quiet decay behind childhood places we assume were orderly and safe.
Patmore blends nostalgia with unease, transforming a simple restroom into a study of what it means to grow up: how the lessons we learn early (“hygiene,” discipline, responsibility) stay with us even after the walls begin to crack. The small pop of blue tape emphasizes the DIY fragility of rules meant to guide us.
This piece stands at the intersection of memory and maintenance — of spaces, of bodies, and of ourselves.
I finished it. I thought of this while listening to “Shadows of Mouldwood” from the “Ori and the Will of the Wisps” soundtrack. It’s a protector. Not the good kind. Don’t tell him about the kids that bully you, or the teacher that made you stay after school, or how your father beat you with his belt. When he asks you what you need, just tell him, very politely, you don’t need any help, and make sure you do it convincingly. Because he really wants to help.
Sometimes we just need a bit of encouragement to push us along the way. Sometimes life is hard and it does more than give you lemons. Cry, vent and release your frustration in a healthy way, but try and stay strong. You will be glad you did :)
