Former Irish band The Pogues frontman Shane MacGowan has found a creative outlet in his art and it seems to be as successful for him as his music. Such a success that his first London exhibition, in a gallery in Knightsbridge, is almost sold out.
Speaking to the Guardian’s Observer, Shane MacGowan said: ‘I was blown away by it all.
Many of MacGowan’s designs were made in the 1980s and range in price from £2,000 to £28,000. However, the Andipa Gallery found the exhibition so successful that they extended the exhibition. Even Kate Moss bought his work.
His wife, Victoria Clarke, said her 64-year-old husband, now in a wheelchair, enjoyed the launch of the exhibit immensely. “Shane can get away with being hostile, but he really enjoyed it. Normally he doesn’t like being told he’s good at things, but he’s starting to like the idea that his art is good,” she told the Observer.
Speaking from his flat in Dublin, MacGowan said the violence that surrounded him in his youth influenced his art. He says he considers himself “a realist who doesn’t know how to draw very well”.
“I really am a primitive artist. I drew them for fun in boring trips on pieces of paper and sick bags and such. I guess I’m just creative. People have told me that I am.
He added: “Kate [Moss] always has some really cool art in her homes, so I was really glad she liked it.”
Clarke also noted “The Fontaines DC band bought Shane’s very loud, almost aggressive portrayal of Bono, so they were all Irish bands together…
“We didn’t make any impressions, so only one person can have a play. Shane doesn’t like to repeat himself.
She also noted that her discipline is non-existent.
“He has no studio and no discipline. He works in watercolor and acrylic, and ink mainly, but also with found materials, like my lipstick. It varies, like his moods. “
“He was drawing anywhere then,” Clarke explains. “On a restaurant menu, a hotel room service card, or my receipts and bank statements. Even the walls, but not once on a canvas.
MacGowan has also just finished recording a new album with Irish band Cronin. The former Pogues frontman hasn’t recorded an album since 1997’s “The Crock of Gold.” He told Radio Nova in December 2021 that he had been working on the album with the band since 2015.