Who am I?
My name is Anthony Hodgson.
I grew up in and around Whitby, North Yorkshire in northern England: an ancient, northern port sandwiched between the brooding North Yorkshire Moors and the tempestous North Sea.
This is important because, just as Whitby is small yet rich in historical (Synod of Whitby, Captain Cook, Victorian jet) and literary wealth (Dracula, Alice in Wonderland), so the size of this my work (A5/A4) belies the wealth of detail they contain.
In fact, these small monochrome artworks may well be unlike anything you've seen before and it for this that they generally elicit dramatic reactions from viewers. Their inspiration is drawn as much from the northern heritage of an artist who can claim British, Scottish, Welsh, Irish and Scandinavian roots as observations of contemporary society and culture. Thus you are just as likely to see Celtic knotwork, demons and angels as you are Spongebob, Star Trek or C19 masks and needles: the result is a veritable smorgasbord of imagery that demands to be seen.
The art practice goes back a long way. Ever since I was at school and could get away with it, I could be found decorating the pages of my schoolbooks with comic characters, spacecraft and strange creatures inspired by the sci-fi and fantasy worlds of Dr Who and Blake’s 7, Space 1999, Star Trek and Star Wars, Narnia and Middle-Earth, Dungeons and Dragons and 2000AD, that wonderful cult British comic: it was in its weekly pages that my younger brother and I discovered Judge Dredd, Rogue Trooper and Slaine through the amazing artwork of Alan Moore, Mike McMahon and many others.
The doodling continued through the years and still today, I continue to be inspired by anything and everything: people, history, popular culture, the conflicts within our daily lives: light and dark; life and death; imprisonment and freedom; censorship and expression and the relationships between them. All of these meet somewhere in my head and eventually find their way out, through my pen, onto the paper and through the medium of the internet, to you today.
The Birth of 3 Distinct Styles
AnthonyHodgsonArt:
My mission for this style is to create powerful and evocative artwork that resonates deeply with its viewers. Through these stream-of-consciousness creations, I seek to inspire, challenge, and encourage people to explore the uncharted realms of thought and perspective. If you find yourself captivated by the philosophical themes present in ‘Alice in Wonderland’ or ‘The Matrix’, this art style is likely to speak to you. AnthonyHodgsonArt serves as an interface between the spiritual and the material, inviting the viewer to follow the white rabbit into a journey down the rabbit hole and beyond, to the stars.
WhitbyGothic:
WhitbyGothic pays homage to the Romantic allure of Whitby, marrying the mystical, magnificence of the historic, ruined Abbey with the imagery of that Gothic novel par-excellence, Bram Stoker’s ‘Dracula’. WhitbyGothic and the gothic art I create appreciates the darker, more mysterious aspects of nature as epitomised by Gothic culture. Moreover, just as this ancient port was a refuge for ships in distress, WhitbyGothic seeks to provide a haven of hope to those navigating the shadows of life, offering a sanctuary within the artistic realm.
Abundare:
Abundare celebrates the abundance of life through art. Here, my work draws upon the ancient tradition of Anglo-Celtic illuminated art, sacred text and poetry. Abundare reflects the vibrant weave of the tapestry of existence, reminding us to cherish every moment and find joy in the small things of life. This brand is an invitation to embrace the beauty of the world around us and within us, capturing the essence of life's abundant richness and diversity.