el davo – art about town

El Davo has been working in Folkestone since 2010.  He grew up here and moved away to Leeds to make his life as an artist. Paths lead back to Folkestone and now you will know his work if you are frequent visitors to Sailbox, Harbour Coffee and Coffee Folkes.  It stemmed from creating a mural on the wall at Googies, a favourite Folkestone restaurant in the 2010s.  Now, his work stands feet tall on walls around town and beyond.  Folkelife sat down for a coffee to find out how it all began.

the chip shop group

“I got my flat in the Creative Quarter at the end of 2011, beginning of 2012.  At that time there were a lot of closed shops on The Old High Street which were perfect places for me and my friends to exhibit our art.  It served two purposes; it gave us a public viewing space, and it made The Old High Street look as though something was happening.  Things were happening; artists were moving in and working hard to make a living.  Our collective was called The Chip Shop Group and we would put on these pop-up exhibitions.  We’d always leave the place in a better condition to when we found it.  The amount of work that went into these exhibitions made them look permanent rather than temporary.  We’d clean the windows and put up vinyl, it was a great way to get your work seen on the street.”

murals in folkestone

“I have worked out now that I want to put the money and effort into artwork and markets that are going to give me the best return.  Be that boosting my local economy – making money here to be spent here in town, or finding the best exposure for the efforts I put in.  Now I’m in a place where I can choose which markets and work to do.  Painting the front of Sailbox is a great example.  I’ve worked with Mark right from the beginning of his businesses here on Folkestone Harbour.  Mark’s business partner Mike took my contact card from the bird box I’d left by one of my murals in town.  He liked my work and wanted some illustrations done on the menus of Sole Kitchen.  Sadly, we lost Mike, which was a huge shock to us all and Mark had to decide to take on the business by himself.  I’d created these illustrations and then continued to work for Mark whenever he needed anything.”

sailbox

“I’d created these characters for the menus and Mark asked if I could put them on his bar area outside at Sailbox.  This meant that instead of them being a couple of centimetres high, they were now going to be 30 to 40 centimetres high.  He really is the best client I have worked with.  He’s so easy-going, which is great, but then he keeps getting me more work too!  Friends see my work and tag me on socials which means that more people get to see what I do. 

“The first piece of work I did at Folkestone Harbour was actually some recyclable cups for the bar that was here called Bathtub and Gun. I was at primary and secondary school with Pete but he was a year above me so I’d never really spoken to him.  I bumped into him working at Rocksalt one evening and arranged to go out for a drink a few days later.  He happened to mention that he’d been looking at my artwork and really liked what I did.  Could I do something for him and the bar?  So I created this design to go on his eco cups.  Those cups got everywhere.  I can remember being in someone’s house in London and there was a cup there!  It made me feel a bit like a celebrity!  There must have been about 5000 printed, and they got as far as Australia, I know that!”

local collaborations

“If you remember Googies, the coffee shop and restaurant that was in Rendezvous Street in the 2010s, then you’ll have seen my work there too.  I had been working at Costa which I hated, and went to Googies to paint a mural on the wall.  It was through that connection that I got to work there too, but also create using my art.  I designed some wine bottle labels for their house red and white.  The good thing about working in a coffee shop is you get to meet so many people, which lead to a lot of collaborations.

“I think people look at these murals and think you’ve just covered the area in a transfer image rather than painting it by hand.  It’s a great thing to be outside and painting where people can see you working.  It’s a surprise to them to see how I create my work, but not really, when you think about it.”

a smile on your face

“There was a time when my work was quite political.  But then the political scene got rather depressing and it was difficult to find the comedy in it.  Work got demoralising and then it’s harder to work because I found I had lost my way a little.  I decided that I wanted to put smiles on people’s faces.  My work will always be political, but I am focusing on more positive imagery.  I present my work in a satirical manner but it must always be enjoyed as art first, and political commentary as second.  When I was pouring coffees I would add art to the tops of the drinks.  This was an issue at Costa because these might not have been the corporate pictures they were thinking of.  Then I worked at Googies and could create whatever I liked.  

“There’s a picture I want to create now which is based around a teapot.  In the 1970s, George Lucas was here filming Star Wars.  He was surprised by the fact that come 11am, everyone stopped for a cup of tea, and the same in the afternoon.  It was an alien concept to him coming from the USA, but made perfect sense to everyone here.  When I found this out, it gave me an idea for the teapot I wanted to create.  It’s not just going to be a teapot, it has to have some meaning to it.  There might be cups of tea flying out of it to show the capitalists that they thought they were losing money by everyone stopping for tea.  The reality was that they would get more out of the workers if they let them have a break.  It transcends politics as both sides find it amusing.”

the next artworks

“I’ve got other ideas that link to previous work I’ve done.  I created a bird’s nest in 2012 and there’s a bird I want to do that comes from that.  Last year I created a Polar Bear which was one of my best artworks, and I think I’d like to do another of those.  Mark was looking around for something more for me to do which is funny.  He’s asked me to come up with an idea for Harbour Coffee but I’ll need a cherry picker to paint it on.  

“What’s been great doing this job is seeing the working of the Harbour on a day to day basis.  Ok, so sometimes I’ve been lying on the floor and somehow invisible in a high-vis vest.  I put a little barrier around me so as not to get run over.  But it’s good to see how many people work  behind the scenes here to make it the place it is at weekends.  I’ve loved watching the weather too.  On a sunny day it’s stunning, but it’s great to watch the weather wash the benches when you’re safely inside one of the restaurants here.  It’s different every day.”