I had the chance to live and work in London for two months thanks to the kindness of a collector and a live drawing project that I launched online.

In order to be able to truly exist in the beautiful city I needed a way to create a revenue stream back home, so I created an online calendar that allowed people to sign up for a drawing a day. For a set price, people could pre-order sketches and poem paintings during my trip, which also took me to Paris.

I ended up doing upwards of 60 or more drawings and poem pieces on paper that I shared online as I went and then shipped to generous collectors when I got back to the States. The framed editions were floated on a mat to showcase that they were torn directly from my sketchbook.

Not only was it a fun way to sustain myself away from my studio, I found that getting back to the basics of paper with a pen really provided a means to see the city in a new and highly creative way. I loved paying closer attention to detail and architecture, and in many cases drawing outside and at cafes when the weather allowed – something I hadn’t really done in years.

I also wrote a lot of poetry along the way that figured into my work later on.

The entire experience has definitely influenced by work overall, loosened my hand and made me want to go back to do so much more.

While I was in London I also met incredible artists and gallery owners. One particular gallery, Walk on the Wild Side, founded and curated by punk historian Stephen Colgrave, took me on as a featured artist. The gallery specializes in mostly photography of punk, New Wave and NYC artists. But Stephen is now showcasing one of my original boomboxes celebrating hip hop history in New York City. He likes to say my work brought the gallery into the 1980s.

We’re gearing up to do a few more projects together, including signed prints and original drawings.

Check out Stephen’s book – Punk: The Definitive Record of a Revolution. It’s brilliant!