A Little About Me...

I have always been artistic and have always loved many different aspects of art.  The best way to truly describe art, is that it is "in the eye of the beholder".  I really believe that and it is evident in the art that we see around us.  Whether we love or hate something, we have an opinion, and that matters.

I did my studies at Humber College in Industrial Design, Package Design, and Graphic Design.  I also have a diploma in Design from George Brown College in Toronto, majoring in Creative Advertising and Illustration.

I have always seen design and fine art as 2 separate things, but find that they combine well.  I find that art happens naturally, and design is more carefully planned.  However, with the digital age, the 2 together have created ideas and works that we would never have seen the likes of before.  It simply expands our thinking and our limits on our work.  I try and combine as many of the different aspects of what I do, into everything I do.

I grew up in Toronto, in High Park/Roncesvalles and the Junction in particular.  Being close to the park, and the history of these relatively old neighbourhoods ( old for Toronto anyway ), I found a lot of inspiration in my surroundings.  It is evident in a lot of my photos, and being part of the West Toronto Junction Historical Society ( and being one of the archivists there ). 

My first photography job was in Queen West in the mid 90's.  The studio is now gone but was on Soho street, behind the Black Bull Tavern ( which was not trendy back then but more rough and tumble ).  Queen West opened my eyes to a lot of the art that I may have taken for granted, or not known much about before.  Apart from Boutique galleries and the commercial fashion hub being so close, it was the graffiti, the body art, and the music that all combined to truly create an urban culture and movement which has flourished and become what it is today.  I was there for most of that and I think that is what has given me the ability to expand my ideas and appreciation for everything art.  I was a little shocked when I first got to design college and learned that you didn't have to have any artistic ability ( with a brush or pen and ink ) to be a good designer.

However, from my darkroom abilities as a teenager, to the megapixel generation, the change has been a welcome one to me.  Even simply from a management point of view.  I can remember being 20 or so, travelling around Ireland looking like an Irish postcard Pack-mule, with all the film that I had, wondering if the airport scanners will destroy it all on the way back?  That has changed, and in turn, we have the ability to capture more events, memories, and things that we love.

So here I am creating my first ever, real website, and wouldn't you know it, most of the work that I have done, is either sold ( with no record of it ), lost, or damaged.  Regardless, the wonderful thing about creating, is that you should always be doing it, and you always can.

Cheers.

Brendan FitzPatrick