About Me
Artist Statement
I'm a painter who works in acrylic paint.
I sometimes take inspiration from my strange and troubled past and how that affects my present day to day existence. Other times I paint what's around me and try to find beauty even in the mundane.
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Themes in my work include struggles with mental health, addiction, the idea of feeling alien in this world and what it means to come to terms with those difficulties in an attempt to find peace.
Although dark themes can run through my work, there is usually a sense of humour present as that is a coping mechanism I use in life that I like to see reflected in my art.
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I'll be happy to leave behind a body of work that expresses what it was like to experience life in this body on this planet at this time from my point of view.
I have work in homes in Canada, across the U.S.A, in Spain, Switzerland, Australia and around England.
Exhibitions
17th - 26th November 2023
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Had my painting 'Candlelit Bubble Bath II' selected and shown in the ING Discerning Eye Exhibition 2023, Mall Galleries, London and online until 31st December 2023.
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August 2023
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Had my series of Shepton Portraits shown in the Create#8 Summer Exhibition, Shepton Mallet.
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15th July - 26th August 2023
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My painting 'Sabrina Makes Art' was selected and shown in the Evolver Magazine Top 50 Exhibition at Yeovil Artspace, Yeovil and shown in the Magazine.
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28th June - 5th July 2023
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Various works were on display at the Shepton Arts Forum, Shepton Mallet.
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January 2023
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Various works appeared in the Artbank open exhibition, Shepton Mallet.
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December 2022
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My paintings 'Astral Projection', 'Something's Gotta Give', 'Barn Owl', 'Kingfisher', and 'Don't Worry Dear there's nothing out there' were on display at the @Artbank pop up shop in Shepton Mallet.
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26th November 2022 - 20th December 2022
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'The Little Things (Moments & Meditations)' exhibition at Create#8 Gallery Shepton Mallet.
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11th - 20th November 2022
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My painting 'Sober Life (mindful washing up)' was selected and appeared the 'ING Discerning Eye 2022 Open Exhibition' and sold
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14th - 16th October 2022
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My Painting 'Little Visitor' was donated to The Why Gallery's annual 6x6 exhibition which raises money for 'We Hear You' a cancer counselling charity and sold.
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15th July - 11th September 2022
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My Painting 'We Enjoyed Our Time Together' was in the 'Black Swan Arts Open Exhibition'
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2nd - 30Th July 2022
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Giclée print of my work 'Stella' was in the 'Evolver Prize Top50 Exhibition'
April 2022
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Had 'Candlelit Bubble Bath' shown on Grayson's Art Club television show in the 'Normal Life' episode.
Had 'Bella Takes a Bite of my Ice-cream Even Though She Has One Of her Own' shown on Grayson's Art Club television show in the 'Holidays' episode.
Bio
Me presently
One of my favourite places, I feel very fortunate to have a spare room studio space.
Me looking like a kid out of a 70s horror film and I think I've got some kind of weird boil on my eye for some reason.
As a kid I was mentally ill, hyperactive, no attention span and really annoying, nowadays I'm all of those things except I've worn myself out so I'm not so hyperactive any more.
Me 25 years ago
Hello, My name is Jack Greenwood.
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​I gave up on art more than twenty years ago. I'd wanted to be an artist since I was little, but I was always very hyperactive with a short attention span, little patience and no self-confidence.
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​I was an odd child, I struggled with the idea that I was on a planet spinning round in space, felt alien and didn't fit in well with people.
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I avoided school as much as possible and by the time I was fourteen years old, I stopped attending altogether.
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I didn't turn up to sit any of my exams but still managed to get an unconditional place on a first diploma in art and design.
I was not used to being academic or having structure in my life and due to that and lots of other problems, I dropped out.
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My tutor was very kind and persuaded me to return the following year. I was not a good student though and was lucky to scrape by with a pass.
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I next got an unconditional place on a foundation in art and design, but only lasted around a month before dropping out.
My mental health wasn't the greatest, which wasn't new. The normal routines and interactions which other people seemed to just get on with were almost impossible for me.
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Even though other people saw creative potential in me, I couldn't see it in myself. I had no confidence or self-belief and gave up on art.
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Twenty years followed of being stuck in dead end jobs, somehow managing to pass for a person like other people.
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Eventually I got a bit better at life, broke away and started my own little gardening maintenance business. This was a turning point for me. I'd finally managed to put a lot of problems behind me and carved out my own modest place in the world.
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This felt like such a blessing at the time. I now worked for myself, was out in nature all day and didn't have to work with other people...Bliss.
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Still, I felt like something was missing and as much as I liked gardening, unfulfilled dreams began nagging at me. I finally decided to pick up a paintbrush again.
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This time with art, I was a little wiser, had a lot more patience and promised myself I wouldn't give up on it.
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I had taught myself how cope with life better. With meditation and ploughing through a lot of spiritual books I had strangely somehow become quite a balanced functioning human.
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The day before Christmas eve 2019 my girlfriend was making a card for her mother, so I went into the other room and did two quick paintings. One of our dog and one of our cat, who had passed away earlier in the year. Once finished, I brought them out and gave them to her as an early Christmas present. She was overwhelmed and loved them. She shared them online and a lot of people seemed to like them.
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That was an amazing moment for me, I felt for the first time in my life that I could actually call myself an artist.
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Life is strange, it's been a rocky road, but I'm finally in a place where I look forward to each day. I'm a couple of steps further down that yellow brick road and that childhood dream of becoming an artist is now a reality.
I appreciate every day I get to paint.
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I'm 47 years old, I grew up in Bradford, West Yorkshire then lived in London For twenty one years and now live in Somerset, UK with my partner Bella and our little rescue dog Oma.
