James Mylne
James Mylne is a British contemporary artist known for his drawings in ballpoint pen. His technical abilities with the unorthodox art medium have earned Mylne recognition in Europe and the UK. The Ballpointer online journal called Mylne "Britain's premier ballpoint pen artist" in a 2015 feature article. The artist's photorealist likenesses of iconic celebrities attracted early media attention and continues to be one aspect of his output. Mylne also creates mixed-media works adding spray paint, magic markers and more to his ballpoint originals. Artwork expressing personal views and broader interests flourished throughout 2014.
James Mylne attended foundation courses at Chelsea Art College, London, in 2002. Studies there were followed by 3 years at Camberwell, where he received his BA in drawing in 2005 and his MA in 2006. College instructors were unsupportive of his ballpoint usage, and dismissed his work as "pretty pictures".
James Mylne uses only black ink when working with a ballpoint pen. Regardless of the many ballpoint pen brands available, he is known to prefer the Bic "biro". To add colour, Mylne employs acrylics, gouache, spray paint and paint pens. The artist finds paint pens useful for filling larger areas of black. For the background colour, Mylne masks off the silhouette of a figure he'll be drawing, then applies flat fields of colour using spray paint. Mylne's Anti Con Art series shows ballpoint-penned characters interacting with others painted in acrylic or gouache. To achieve this trick Mylne will simply paint around previously penned areas or leave those intended areas blank while painting, then ink them afterwards.
Mylne admits to being "passionate about detail", adding that ballpoints allow for great detail and subtle halftones "if you know how to use them". Halftone effects are achieved by the controlled spacing of parallel ballpoint lines while referencing his source material. During a live show-and-tell appearance on Britain's Blue Peter television program, Mylne explained that he works "very slowly", using a pencil for preliminary outlines. He begins with what he perceives to be "the most difficult bit" — a person's eyes, for example — "because that's the most important bit to get right". Mylne has admitted to having to start over after making a mistake.
View a selection of James’ artworks below ↓
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HD print under acrylic glass, in a white wood tray frame.
Small: 34 x 34 cm, framed: 38 x 38 cm, edition of 40
£495 inc. frame
Medium: 42 × 42 cm, framed: 45 × 45 cm, edition of 40
£650 inc. frame
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