Nathan Wyburn | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Wyburn in 2019 | |
| Born | (1989-10-24)24 October 1989 (age 36) Ebbw Vale,South Wales, U.K. |
| Education | Cardiff School of Art & Design |
| Known for | Portraiture, art using food and everyday items |
| Movement | Pop art |
| Website | nathanwyburn |
Nathan Wyburn (born 24 October 1989)[1] is a contemporary Welsh artist and media personality who has created celebrity portraits (iconography) andpop culture imagery using non-traditional media such as foodstuffs and other household items, including most notably working withMarmite on toast.
Wyburn has also been a semi-finalist onBritain's Got Talent and on Austria'sDie große Chance, and has featured on shows such as NBC’sThe Kelly Clarkson Show,ITV's magazine showThis Morning andSky ArtsLandmark, where he representedWales, Britain's Best Young Artist, Sky'sPortrait Artist of The Year,Good Morning America plus both Studio10 and The Morning Show in Australia.
He has personally presented works of art toSpider-Man actorTom Holland,Prince William &Kate Middleton, KingCharles III,Mariah Carey, DameShirley Bassey,Sir Tom Jones,Debbie Harry,Sting,Catherine Zeta-Jones,Idris Elba,Cyndi Lauper andThe Jacksons.
Wyburn is fromEbbw Vale,South Wales and studied art both at school,[1][2] and at theCardiff School of Art & Design.[3]
In 2010 he posted a YouTube video of himself creating a portrait of TV personalitySimon Cowell, made usingMarmite on toast.[4] He was featured on theBBC children's TV programme,Blue Peter,[4]ITV News andSky Sports.[5] He received messages of support from celebrities including singerKatherine Jenkins and pop starJustin Bieber.[5]
In 2011 Wyburn appeared on the TV talent showBritain's Got Talent, where he created a portrait of judgeMichael McIntyre, again using Marmite on toast. He reached the semi-finals where his portraits ofMichael Jackson,Marilyn Monroe andElvis Presley were judged overambitious. This led to other television appearances such as Daybreak and Lorraine. He created an image ofQueen Elizabeth II, as he had missed out on the prize to meet her.[6]
In 2012, during theNews International phone hacking scandal, Wyburn's portrait ofRupert Murdoch, made from 5,000 images of alleged phone-hacking victims, appeared on the front page ofThe Guardian.[citation needed] Wyburn's work was also recognized as part of theLondon 2012 Olympic Games under Education Relays when he held a one-off edible art exhibition, featuring British Olympians atBournemouth Arts College.[citation needed] In 2013 he entered the Austrian talent contest,Die große Chance,[7] finishing in the last fifteen and gaining praise fromEurovision winnerConchita Wurst after creating her portrait using glitter.[8] Other international projects includedtoothpaste art at the '15th International Dental Congress' inIstanbul, portraits ofFelixKetchup fans using the product, a performance on the Spanish version ofDon't Stop Me Now and appearing on a short segment inSkyPortrait Artist of the Year.[citation needed]
Following the death ofMargaret Thatcher in 2013, Wyburn created a portrait of her using coal.[9]
Brands such as Marmite,Bic, the Famous Company,Oral-B,Costa,Starbucks,Morrisons andHovis have commissioned Wyburn.[10] His work has been praised by celebrity admirers such asPerez Hilton.[11] In 2014 Wyburn exhibited at theCardiff Story Museum.[12] Previous exhibitions include Barnabas Arts House andQueens Arcade, Cardiff.[citation needed]
In 2015 Wyburn created a portrait ofPrincess Charlotte of Cambridge using 1,000babygrows,[13] a portrait ofWelsh rugby internationalAdam Jones using mud,[14] and forFather's Day pizzas featuring five famous fathers:David Beckham,Tom Fletcher,Gary BarlowSimon Cowell andMarvin Humes, in partnership with Morrisons supermarket.[15]
Wyburn describes himself as having a "Warhol-like obsession" withpop culture and the notion of celebrity, and citesWarhol,Chuck Close andVik Muniz as his main influences. In an interview with the BBC, Wyburn said of his own work: "It is current to current affairs and current to pop culture. I don't see why that should not be shown in a gallery, in theTate Gallery or theNational Gallery" adding "I do strive to be taken seriously. It would be nice to get that sort of recognition." After learning that he was to be included on the GCSE art curriculum in Wales, he said the possibility of being mentioned in the same lesson as Warhol was "mind-blowing".[16] Wyburn has also been included on the website forRipley's Believe It or Not! franchise,[17] and onFacebook with videos such asEminem created withspaghetti.[18]
In 2015 his bookNot That Kind of Art, featuring 80 of his works, was published by Candy Jar.[19] In December 2015 Wyburn created portraits ofFrancis Rossi andRick Parfitt, from the rock groupStatus Quo, out of matchsticks, inspired by their 1969 song "Pictures of Matchstick Men".[20] He also created images ofStar Wars characters from food products, including lead charactersRey (Daisy Ridley) made fromtomato puree andFinn (John Boyega) made fromtikka paste.[21]
In 2016, to celebrate the 30th anniversary of theTechniquest science museum, Wyburn created a portrait of scientistAlbert Einstein using thousands ofSmarties. He also painted a portrait of actorGene Wilder, using chocolate, as a tribute to the late comic actor.[22] To raise awareness ofWorld AIDS Day on Dec 1st 2016, Wyburn created a red glitter portrait of singer &Queen icon,Freddie Mercury, who died of the disease in 1991.[citation needed]
In 2017, the Welsh language channelS4C, aired seven segments featuring seven artworks being created by Wyburn. These included a painting ofGareth Bale with his feet,Sam Warburton with mud,Zoella with glitter andJohnny Depp asCaptain Jack Sparrow created using sand and seaweed onBarry Island beachfront.[citation needed] In May Wyburn created an image ofSkepta for the British music company The Famous Company by using images of unsigned artists from around the world.[23]
In November 2017 Wyburn painted a picture ofJesus using asausage roll and ketchup, in response to an advertisement forGreggs which showed a sausage roll in place of the holy infant on their advent calendars.[24] On New Year's Eve 2017, ITV aired a panel show hosted byFern Britton titledA Right Royal Quiz which featured a cameo appearance from Wyburn, showcasing some of his royal portraits including a new artwork of The Queen using pizza. This was shortly followed by an ad campaign by Dr Beckmann, a cleaning product company which commissioned the artist to use itscarpet stain remover, to make a 20-foot (6.1 m) image of newly engagedPrince Harry andMeghan Markle by removing stains from a dirty carpet.[citation needed]
In 2018 Wyburn created an image of theMona Lisa in snow atRoath Park in Cardiff, alongside portraits ofJon Snow &Idina Menzel which were featured as a globalTwitter ‘moment’.[25]In April Wyburn performed live art at WalesComic Con weekend where he created several portraits of the special guests, including actorAndrew Scott.[26] In July Wyburn created a portrait ofAneurin Bevan during the 70th anniversary week of theNational Health Service. The artwork, Wyburn's largest to date, took some eight and a half hours to complete and was made out of local materials, including 374 kg of garden soil and 74 kg of stone dust.[27] In the same year Wyburn partnered with home improvement storeB&Q to recreate a 15-metre (49 ft) replica of theMona Lisa using leaves and aBoschleaf blower. Celebrity endorsements in 2018 includedMelanie B[28] andMariah Carey who tweeted saying she "loves this" in reply to his portrait of her.[citation needed]
In early 2019 Wyburn created artwork forLisa Riley, forBoyzone and for DameJoan Collins at her show at theLondon Palladium.[citation needed] Wyburn has since been commissioned for Mariah Carey's birthday present using silver glitter, and was then invited to meet her at theRoyal Albert Hall.[29] To markSaint David's Day 2019, Wyburn created a large scale depiction of the Welsh patron saint, using garden bark and 1,000 daffodils, at the site ofSt Davids Bishops Palace.[30] In May 2019 he presented a golden portrait of DameShirley Bassey to the singer, created on behalf of the charity Noah's Ark of which she is patron, on the day she was givenFreedom of the City byCardiff City Council.[31] Wyburn then went on to presentCatherine Zeta-Jones with artworks when she was awarded freedom ofSwansea in July 2019.[citation needed]
2020 has seen Wyburn present artwork using lipstick toCaitlyn Jenner, using mealworms toRoman Kemp (after his stint in TV showI'm a Celebrity... and also to create Steps singerIan "H" Watkins, alongside hisDancing on Ice same-sex partnerMatt Evers, painted into an ice rink.[citation needed] The comedy panel show8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown featured Wyburn's work when hostJimmy Carr pretended to assemble a portrait of himself painted with Marmite on toast.[citation needed]
Following Wyburn's portrait ofAneurin Bevan in 2018, Nathan created a digital collage of 200 NHS workers as a tribute to "key workers" during theCOVID-19 pandemic, inspired by theClap for our Carers movement.[32][33][34] The pandemic-inspired artwork was featured on several newspaper front covers in Wales, including the Western Mail and the South Wales Echo. Wyburn also featured on shows such asThis Morning and American talk showLive With Kelly and Ryan to talk about the piece, and how to stay creative during theCOVID-19 lockdown.Channel 4 featured Wyburn on their new quarantine-inspiredGrayson's Art Club TV show, presented by artistGrayson Perry, where he created a portrait using noodles and soy sauce.[citation needed]
In 2020 Wyburn partnered withNutella &Smeg Australia for a campaign titled "Stay toasty with Nutella". The project attracted media attention inAustralia and he made an appearance on network breakfast television,The TODAY show to unveil a toast portrait ofKarl Stefanovic. In June 2020, Wyburn created a 18-metre soil portrait ofTom Jones for his 80th birthday in the grounds ofCardiff Castle.[35][36][37][38] In August Wyburn unveiled a portrait ofGareth Thomas atCardiff Royal Infirmary Sexual Health department, with Thomas present. The artwork was created using red fingerprints, to symbolise blood and identity, with aims of erasing the stigma aroundHIV.[39]
Wyburn is gay and is an ambassador and spokesperson for several anti-bullying charities and campaigns. He is also a supporting partner ofPride Cymru acting as theiryouth ambassador.[40] When asked, in a 2014 interview with eqview.com, whether he saw his LGBT perspective as playing an important/any role in his art, he replied: "I see it playing a huge role in my life in general. I don’t think I’d be half as strong minded or determined if I hadn't had to go through my teenage years facing what difficulties I did – bullying etc. I feel proud enough to create pieces of work that are supportive of the LGBT community such as Obama painted on the pride flag – and stand on stage at Pride events and show people it gets better."[41]
In October 2015 Wyburn took part in YouTube's first live 12-hourStand Up to Cancer event, making coffee portraits of YouTube favouritesJoe Sugg andCaspar Lee. The day raised over £120,000. Following the first series success, in May 2016 Wyburn modelled for photographer Thomas Knights, as part of his Red Hot 2 campaign. The exhibition and book is aimed at celebrating and rebranding the stereotype ofred heads.[42]
In August 2016 Wyburn was placed at number 10 in "The Pinc List 2016", a list of the 40 most influential LGBT people in Wales.[43] In December 2018 Wyburn was part of a team of people who presented a Christmas-themed fund raisingdrag show atSt Andrews United Reformed Church, Roath.[44]
In August 2019, Wyburn was named as one of the top 5 Welsh LGBTQ people byStyle of the City magazine, alongside the likes ofGareth Thomas andRussell T Davies.[45] In September 2019, BBCCrimewatch aired an interview with Nathan, and several other LGBTQ+ participants about homophobia and hate crime in Wales.[46]
To markWorld Mental Health Day, on 10 October 2019, Wyburn shared a candid post about his mental health problems and how important it is to talk about them.[47] He also became one of the first patrons for the Cardiff & Vale Health charity, as well as patron for Welsh Hearts, Autism Puzzles Cymru and Kinetic School of Performing Arts. In 2020, Wyburn was placed 79th on the 'Most Influential Redhead Men' list by Red Hot 100.[48]
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