Tim Wright

The artist speaks to SALLY HALES about the materiality of paint and his fascination with capturing the human figure

- Sally Hales

When did you know you wanted to become an artist? 

It was an assumption that I would become an artist, a romantic idea. My father was a painter so I was lucky to have a model of the practicalities. I knew what a studio was and the physicality of oil paintings. They were not remote objects experienced in museums and books. I was attracted to the idea of a studio, a special place to work, a private space where imaginary worlds were constructed.

Where did you study? 

Middlesex Polytechnic (now a ‘university’), which had a great foundation art course, a legacy from the famous Hornsey School of Art. I don’t remember learning anything; the staff seemed remote. However, I did meet interesting students, many of whom forged successful careers, mostly nothing to do with art. We thrived in adversity. We did everything for ourselves – a familiar story of 1970s’ Britain.

What attracts you to painting the body? 

What’s not to like? ‘The proper study of mankind is man’ and his works. The format is infinitely variable. One leg or torso is never the same as another, but is still instantly recognisable. The silhouette says so much: character and disposition are signalled by the body’s stance and attitude. A body tells a story, it reveals a psychological state.