If you’re a fan of electronic music you have probably heard of Example. If you haven’t heard his name then you’ve heard his voice. Over the last 20 years the West London-born artist has delivered 8 albums, played over 1,500 gigs in 89 countries and tried everything along the way including directing, stand up comedy and in his own words “every haircut available - good and bad”.
As a songwriter, rapper, singer and producer he’s achieved 3.8 million in collective sales (or 1.2 billion in streams - please choose your preference based on what era you’re from). The 42-year old now resides in Brisbane, Australia (2 children by the way, another on the way) and has decided he is now a painter:
“I told one of my closest friends - an actual professional painter - and he said that I wasn’t actually a painter... I was something else”
Example or as his mother calls him, Elliot is fine with that. Whilst cutting his teeth in the pirate radio scene of late 90’s South London where he grew up, he found it hard to be taken seriously as a rapper. Even once he’d had huge success in the music industry he was always compared to his better equipped friends Adele, Ed Sheeran and Calvin Harris. But he’s always been fine with being the underdog.
Covid made him realise a lot of things regarding his purpose in life and whilst his marriage ended in 2021 “for all the right reasons”, he became - in his own words - “a professional dad”, He evolved. His children Evander (9) and Ennio (7) would come home with sketches from school and it triggered something inside of him he hadn’t felt since he was doing GCSE Art in 1999.
“The freedom and confidence and fearlessness my kids painted or drew with… it was just mind-blowing and made me fall in love with the whole process again”.
The ‘Ian’ Collection is exactly this. Taking inspiration from his boys’ brush strokes and compositions, Example has come up with a rogues gallery of children’s book characters we can all root for. “they’re all misfits and they’re all a bit kooky... oh, and they’re all called Ian”
The “Ian” thing comes from the way kids sound out certain words “Mahhh-Giccck-Ian” (magician). But at the same time represents a dying breed in the form of young men called “Ian” or “Gary” or “Clive”.
“There’s not enough of these guys around anymore. I’m not ready to call my next kid Ian but I do want to paint as many Ian’s as possible”.
Example paints onto canvas using acrylic, spray paint, oil sticks and Poscas. Plus whatever else he stumbles upon.
