I wanted to write a blog post that helps others remember that there is more than one way to realise your potential as an artist. We are all so conditioned to follow a formula of education followed by employment, when in real life our paths can meander all over the place and have us end up in unexpected places!
My earliest memory of drawing is of when I was sat on my mum’s lap, probably no more than four years of age, doodling wild animals in a picture book about them. Something striking from that memory is how my mum allowed me to draw in books (I later worked as a librarian and can empathise with anyone horrified at the thought!). Rather than chiding me for “ruining” my books, my mum allowed and encouraged me to add my own art to them. I think that really had a strong influence on me as an artist, and is certainly something that shows in my most recent nature journaling: My artwork is a collage of images and writing, assembled together from experiences. I hasten to add that I don’t make a habit of doodling in books that aren’t my own!
Another childhood memory is of my uncle Richard taking me birdwatching and pond-dipping with him. I was about five or six, and together we explored the Nottinghamshire countryside in search of different species. My time with him really nurtured a deep love of nature, and a fascination with so many animals. He too would sketch and journal the things he saw, so I was certainly influenced by him as well.
People might find it strange that I didn’t formally study art until I left school. I’m from a working class family and I’ve no doubt my parents were working too hard to be able to notice and direct my artistic talents in an academic sense. I missed out on GCSE Art at school, and didn’t do an A-Level in Art until I was 24. I left school with very average qualifications, and didn’t get the grades I needed to study zoology or ecology at university. At 18, I ended up in vocational training and a job I’d had no intention of getting.
This part of my tale isn’t a sob story – I have no regrets and I’m truly content with the path of events that has led to where I am in my life. I wanted to mention this part of my experience as an artist, to remind others that you don’t need to follow the standard, accepted way of things, nor bow to the pressure of getting the “right” qualifications to achieve what you want in life. All you need is a strong desire to get something, and the willingness to work hard and persevere at it.
After getting an ‘A’ in A-Level Art (my first ever ‘A’ in anything!), I then did a Foundation in Art and Design, which is a multi-disciplinary course intended to help choose a degree course in the Arts. At 26, I went to Bournemouth to study Model Making for Design and Media and although I thoroughly enjoyed the degree course, I didn’t feel like the industry was for me. Creating sets, maquettes and costumes for TV and movies is thrilling work, but also comes with an environmental price: The waste and toxicity of the materials involved just didn’t sit right with my ecological principles. I quit, took a year out in Australia to get my bearings, then returned to London to complete my degree in different subject: Painting.
At the age of 34, I graduated with a Bachelor’s in Fine Art: Painting in 2013. I’d always drawn and painted over the years, but doing that degree really helped me find my own visual voice. It also gave me the confidence to express myself and exhibit my work. I had my first solo show near Waterloo in London, and connected with so many other talented artists in that city.
After five years of living in London, I went nomadic and taught English to non-native speakers from my laptop. I spent half a decade living out of a bag and travelling through over 30 countries. Not having a fixed place of abode meant I couldn’t make or store large artworks, so keeping my creative output small and portable was the only option. I missed being able to work with paint and on a large scale, but found a new joy in using ink and pencil, filling lots of little books with sketches and impressions from my travels.
At the time of writing this post, I don’t make a living from my artwork. In fact, I never have. I worked as an English language teacher during and after my studies, and continued to teach English abroad and online right up until last November. I mention this because many people aspire to earn money from their creative talents, and while this is possible, I would say it isn’t easy. There’s also a risk that in putting pressure on yourself to make a living from art, you turn something pleasurable into a chore.
I’ve always wanted to work in a job that helps our natural world, so my recent appointment as a trainee with the Sussex Wildlife Trust has fulfilled that dream. When I got offered the role in November 2021, I started doing a regular nature journal and posted it online. I figured it would be a great way to document my journey of learning about land management and community engagement in the environmental conservation sector.
My nature journal is something that allows me to study, memorise and illustrate within the context of working in nature. I’m really pleased that it’s something that’s inspiring others, whether to create artwork of their own, to get out and experience more nature, or both!
About Mark
Mark Newton was born and raised on the edge of the Peak District in the East Midlands of the UK, and has been fascinated with the natural world from an early age.
Proudest (wild) moments include cycling for ten days and 350 miles across Vietnam at the tender age of 21, crossing the Himalayas from Kathmandu to Lhasa while helping to make a documentary in 2004, hosting a solo exhibition of paintings in London in 2014, white-water rafting down the Zambezi, horse-riding on a beach in South Africa, and surfing with a pod of Hector’s Dolphins in New Zealand. He has visited over 30 countries so far and hopes that his carbon footprint is offset by the fact that he doesn’t intend to ever have children.