Interview with Angela Thouless

Graduating in 1999 from Gray’s School Of Art with a BA (Hons) in Painting, going on to receive her Postgraduate Diploma/Masters in Art & Design in 2000. Angela Thouless has exhibited her artwork across the UK and further afield. In 2015 her work was featured at Het Kunstenaarsbal ( Amsterdam Cultural Festival).
Moving from painting large scale street art inspired canvases to walls Angela’s Tribe All artwork began as an idea for a workshop painting on old spray cans which would have otherwise been thrown away.
In 2019 these paintings developed into her unisex urban t-shirt brand Tribe All. Both the artwork and the t-shirts celebrate and promoting the diverse cultures of the world motivated by my love of street art and culture.

Her artwork has been featured in Elle Decoration, 3 editions of House & Garden and Red magazine.

How would you describe yourself and your artwork? 

My artwork I like to think is fun, colourful and vibrant.  With an urban twist.

How do you go about beginning a new piece? Do you have an idea already in mind, or do you start working with materials or sketches to find the departure point? 

All my paintings come from real things I have seen or undertaken research into.  They all begin life as sketches which I then develop until I am happy with the final idea before I embark on the final painting.  This still goes under a period of development once I begin working with paint.

When do you think your most prolific time of day or week is? 

Weekends as this is when I tend to paint the most.

What is a barrier you as an artist overcame? Is there anything that enabled you to develop your work as an artist in your life? 

During my many trips to Amsterdam, I fell in love with the street art there and that’s when my passion for urbant art began.

A barrier I have found is where I am located.  In the Nort East of Scotland.  However, this has actually been to my advantage. 

In 2015 the NUArt street art festival came to my home town of Aberdeen for the first time where I worked as a volunteer.  This gave me the opportunity to see first-hand the work put in by the wonderful array of street artists that came to my city and met with other local like-minded people.  This is when I joined the ThrowUp Gallery, a collective of like-minded street artists and began spraypainting for the first time.  We have worked on a number of street art projects and hosted workshops.  This changed my artwork dramatically.

Did you have an idea of what you wanted to create right from the beginning? 

My Tribe All spray can artwork began life as an idea for a workshop painting tribal-like faces on old spray cans I had used which would have otherwise been thrown away. From there I delved deeper into tribes and tribal gods. I came across ritual masks, the non-naturalistic yet highly stylised form, I felt, really embodied powerful and highly expressive imagery.  I decided to paint these masks on empty spray cans, referencing my own background and fusing my signature style with the cultural inspiration.  That’s why I started drawing inspiration from all corners of the world.

What is the meaning or creative inspiration for your work? We’re curious what the narrative or story is to what you are producing? 

My Tribe All artwork represents a sense of togetherness. Tribe All – as in together we are one! I see my work as being a celebration of the wonderful diverse cultures we have in this world. Tribe All is also a play on my initial, AT, but in reverse.

Besides your artworks, are there any other things in life that your voice as an artist may consider vital or valuable? What makes you joyful and creative, in other words? 

In 2019 I produced a mural to raise money for the GACH Kenyan orphanage as part of Aberdeen Fashion Week incorporating a special Kenyan inspired tribal face.  Encouraged by designers at the event I moved my prints on to garments and Tribe All, my unisex urban t-shirt brand was born.  

Since I began Tribe All the idea of multiculturalism connecting people on a global scale has really resonated within London’s fashion scene with Harper’s Bazaar, Esquire, Elle, Cosmopolitan, Vogue.  GQ magazine, Wired and London Life have also featured Tribe All in in 3 separate editions.  The brand has also been promoted at the Urban Music Awards in 2020 and will be further promoted at the 2021 edition.  On 27th October 2021 Tribe All will be showcased at the very first National Social Media Awards in London.  

Are there any exhibitions or places where people can see these beautiful creations in person soon? Anything on the horizon? 

My work shall soon be seen in a few exhibitions lined up –

Happiness Optimism Love (online show), La Fenice Gallery Hong Kong. 

I - The World Revolves Around Me, M.A.D.S Art Gallery, Milan.

Butterfly Effect (online show), Contemporary Art Curator.

The Body Language, It’s Liquid, THE ROOM, Contemporary Art Space, Venice.

Around The World in 80 Artists, UK Colab.

Future plans for my Tribe All t-shirts involve being paraded in February 2022 as ‘New Talent’ through Event Savo’ who will be opening Milan Fashion Week.

Website: www.angelathouless.com