From the Norse God Odin to the medieval Plague Doctor, Clive, the owner of the GreenMan Gatekeeper shop in the Forest of Dean, utilises British folklore and collective memory to create a wide array of artworks, from playing cards to figurines, that truly ignites the imagination. Though, seeing Clive's works here, with all its pagan elements, you might well think that it's a continuation of our discussion of Celtic art and if you do, well, then you aren't that far off the mark. This is because Clive's artistic journey in fact originates within what was once an ancient Welsh Kingdom - only this time it's not Wales, but England.
As the Anglo-Saxons arrived in England and the Welsh speaking Britons fled westwards to the likes of Cornwall and Wales, some decided to fight it out and one people who chose to do so were those of Elmet - the last Welsh Kingdom in England. It held out for almost two hundred years, but once it had finally been defeated it was a loss that the people of Wales felt keenly and for centuries many Welsh people continued to refer to this Northern part of England, in what is now West Yorkshire, as Hen Ogledd or 'Old North'. For most today however, this part of Britain's history is now a long forgotten one, yet someone who can recite well is Clive, who also grew up in the Hen Ogledd (though, in the twentieth century, not the seventh!). Of course, as Clive, who is a history as well as an art enthusiast, reminds me - everywhere in the world has a rich history, but it just so happens that he grew up somewhere where the past has been incredibly well recorded. Indeed, it is through these obscure ancient histories that Clive was surrounded by as he grew older, on top of a heap of myths and legends, that shaped and continue to influence his artistic works today. Though, art wasn't something he just dived straight into and has continued to do since, nor is it something he was even encouraged to do.
'As a child, my parents found that I could be perfectly happy for hours with nothing more than a pencil and a sheet of paper. I remember the bright day, at the age of four, when I discovered the existence of erasers. It opened up a whole new world of possibilities' Clive informs me. Though despite this initial enthusiasm and artistic promise, Clive never considered that art could also be a vocation as well as a hobby, 'The school careers advisor never mentioned the possibility of making a living from art, so I studied Computer Science (a sensible, safe subject) at Sheffield' he tells me. Like many others, Clive would end up ditching what he was taught to believe and pursuing art as a career but his computer skills still come in handy: 'The analytical skills of the programmer did prove to be directly transferable to the creation of art', he says, 'prepare well, and consider the requirements of the project before making a start'. It's the kind of meticulousness you'd normally find with an oil painter, which Clive is. Yet what is perhaps Clive's most interesting and significant characteristic as an artist is his adaptability.