Nick Griffin

His journey

Before he was a blacksmith, he studied philosophy. During this time, Nick’s father had a quadruple bypass because of a blood clot in his heart, and he was in a coma for two months. “It was a terrible and weird time, it felt like a big nightmare”. During this period, Nick had to find a way to cope and process the situation, so he and his friend decided to make a video with several clips of his father’s friends, family and colleagues. “They were interviewed with the premise of having 30 secs to talk to the camera, where they had to pretend they were talking to my dad. It was a message for him where they had to act as if he was awake and doing well”.

Nick got his passion for art because his father was into it. “I was praised for things people normally get told off for doing”, so it was a safe space for his brain. The type of art he creates is usually acrylic paintings on canvas. “It’s sort of just to try and shut off my brain and let the process do the work”. If he does not like it, he will keep painting. Nick has been painting on and off for about 10 years. He started at Kunstskolen Vest in Aalborg, had a few years off since he grew sick of it and just recently got back to it.

Inspirations

Frederik Næblerød who graduated from Royal Arts Academy in CPH and he has got ADHD. His artwork is huge and colourful yet it is made in a few minutes using plastic gloves. Nick wants the same energy but not the same techniques as he wants to find his own way.

Advice & goals

“Seek professional help if you’re in a similar situation. I can’t say I have the best family in the world but they certainly did their part to make me function again. If people don’t have that kind of structure behind you, you need to see someone because thoughts can really mess you up if you don’t talk about it”. 

He is currently doing a couple of collaborations with other artists and woodworkers. The idea is to make pop-up exhibitions and travel with his art.