News

Sale Of Teddy M’s Eric Clapton Portraits To Aid Crossroads Centre

16 May 13

British Pop Artist Teddy M has created two large scale portraits of Eric Clapton. When sold, a significant portion of the proceeds will benefit Crossroads Centre Antigua. The Clapton portraits, available in two colour ways, “ferrari” and ‘blues,” are 100x100cm and reverse perspex mounted. The rising pop artist created his first large-scale works in 2011. Teddy M’s work attracted global interest and lead to portraits of recognizable personalities, including actress Joan Collins and Olympic medalist Sharron Davies, after it was shown in London alongside images of Kate Moss by noted fashion photographer Albert Watson and a design piece by Coco Chanel.

Where’s Eric! recently caught up with Teddy M to find out why he chose to create works featuring Eric Clapton. “Without wishing to sound like a crazed fan, Eric Clapton is my Obi-Wan Kenobi” he said. “In all seriousness, there is an element of truth involved. I had turned into a teenager and was still coming to terms with the sudden death of my father. While most teenagers were ‘bopping’ to the latest electronic pop, I was captivated by the guitar driven sound of Eric Clapton and his album, August. “Holy Mother” remains one of my all time favourite tracks and from this album, I delved deeper into the Clapton discography and discovered the blues.  It was like being given a light sabre, the force was strong and I had to have a guitar but not just any guitar, it had to be a black Strat with a red strap.”

“I’d spend hours in my room listening to Clapton tracks and watching live performances picking up licks and jamming along. The 24 Nights concerts were broadcast live on BBC Radio 2 and I remember being glued to the radio in awe of what I was hearing as this was also my first experience of ‘live’ music.  It was also the first time I heard Buddy Guy – my other guitar hero – and wow, he was all over the place firing off licks like stray fireworks, I think his ‘caged animal set free’ persona took many by surprise that night including Eric.”

“So my guitar became my first love through my teenage years and perfectly suited my rather insular existence.  Eric’s music gave me direction and focus, it helped take the edge off not having a father figure and ultimately taught me success is achieved through self belief.”

Teddy M’s reverse perspex mounted portraits, including those of Eric, incorporate re-worked photographs with elements of graffiti and street art. The artist explained, “reverse perspex mounting involves the creation of an archival quality matte print which is then mounted on a rigid aluminium panel. The work is then permanently sealed by a sheet of perspex. The finishing touch is to add an aluminium sub-frame to the rear that creates the appearance of floating the artwork from the wall.”

Both the “ferarri” and “blues” Clapton portraits are available exclusively from Teddy M for offers in excess of £5,000. To express an interest in either work and help Crossroads Centre Antigua in the process, email art@teddym.com. UK and International buyers welcomed.

You can see more artworks by Teddy M on his website, teddym.com

For information about Crossroads Centre Antigua, visit their website at crossroadsantigua.org