Artists

“David Bray also emerged from illustration – with a very successful commercial career as an illustrator. Whilst creating a campaign for Canon for an agency in Amsterdam, he was asked to show in an affiliated Dutch gallery. ‘Illustration seemed the most viable way to be able to make images on a daily basis and make ends meet. It was at this [Amsterdam] show that Stolen Space saw my work, and it snowballed from there. It all seemed to happen by accident.’ Bray’s fine line drawings and paintings are filled with erotic women, often intertwined with animals. The delicate, fluid results are filled with sexual imagery that echo 1960s artists like Allen Jones and Eric Stanton. ‘I am and have always been fascinated by women and the female form. I can’t think of anything more beautiful. I guess the erotic nature of my drawings is me working through my own fetishes. I always start with an idea or narrative, which could be quite loose and can get lost along the way,’ Bray explains. His graphic work is filled with fantasy and powerful femininity.”

Written by Francesca Gavin for Attention Spam exhibition catalogue