ABOVE: Jamie creating his work on Mount Maunganui Beach, Tauranga

THREE DIMENSIONAL PERSPECTIVE

Always wanting to be an artist, right from primary school, Jamie studied at Waikato Polytechnic 1993-1994, Toi Ohomai 2012, and Wintec in 2013. “I am proud of completing my degree as an adult student and then going on to be featured in a lot of media outlets worldwide and getting the most popular article in the NZ Herald in 2014. I’ve had a feature on ‘7 Sharp’, been commissioned by the government, done a cover for Stab surf magazine, been the lead artist invited to the Arava desert in Israel for an arts festival in 2014, and I was also invited to a 3D arts festival called Dubai Canvas in 2018. I’ve been a part of many projects but personally I like community projects where the emphasis is the protection of nature, wellbeing of people or promotion of the arts.”

Having studied the Masters at an early age, Jamie became inspired to try out all their styles. “My artistic drive though mostly comes out of a love for creativity; I’m happiest when I’m making things. The years of learning about drawing from my grandmother, who also painted, were very valuable. She would sit and draw with me.”

His main inspiration comes from Van Gogh for his perseverance, sacrifice and pure devotion to capture light in a unique way; Salvador Dali for his alternative mindset, his attitude to claim himself as the best, his use of symbolism and how he successfully opened the world to the sub-conscious mind through visual representation; and from Philip Clairmont for his colour and how he bent objects to stylise his work. “I generally love artists who devote their lives to their art form while not caring what others think and who have a clear idea of who they are artistically.”

Jamie has a lot of artistic ambition. “I would love my own solo exhibition at the National Gallery (Te Papa Tongawera) one day in the future as well as to be published with a book of my work. I also have aspirations to write my own play and do all the set design, and also to create a cartoon before I die.”

A big wake-up call was an unwelcome lesson in copyright. “My biggest mistake was not knowing enough about copyright and being naive enough to let someone photograph my work, only to realise later my art wasn’t mine anymore. I’ve also had projects I didn’t look into enough (e.g. reading the fine print) and found myself in a position I hated where the artwork was then forced.

“I love the places art takes me, I always find myself in the weirdest places. I could never dream of doing things that sometimes seem very silly. Through art I always tend to meet great like-minded people too but I really like how ‘the artist’ seems to be able to float between different class systems and seemingly fit in everywhere (well if the artwork has any merit.)”
Like most artists, Jamie has had his share of financial woes, but reflects that he is very lucky to have so many good friends and family. “I’ve spent many nights in the past hungry, with no rent money etc, but the hardship has made me need little and provided me with the skills to thrive.

“At this time I am working on landscapes in chalk pastels of the sunrise and sunsets on the beach at Mt Maunganui. I’m also formulating a children’s book on how to make their own 3D beach drawings. Also I draw on the beach regularly to expand on my own art form and cover as many themes and ideas as I can before anyone else can figure out how I’m doing it.”

Jamie enjoys working with different organisations, as they often come up with different ideas and projects, while it’s up to him to provide an idea for the best result for all involved. “I’m not really affiliated with any organisations but tend to have groups approach me with different projects. For example Save the Wild organisation, the Rotary Club, the Great Race, Extinction Rebellion, mental awareness advocates, British Paints, Stab magazine, the NZ government, art talks at Tudor house in Rotorua, and birds of prey.”

When he is not making sand art, he likes to work with chalk pastel and acrylics. His trusty ball of string is still his favourite instrument as it is great for drawing perfect circles, dividing measurements and finding angles. “As time goes by I am still adding to the uses it has in my work.”
Asking Jamie how he goes about creating his sand art, he explains: “My art form starts from lying in bed at night and thinking ‘what would look cool on the beach in 3D?’ I then mentally draw the object in my head and figure out the steps to completing the piece. The next day I draw a series of thumbnail-size pictures to really get a feel for the object. I then check the tides and time of day as certain times work better depending on which way the location I’m working on faces. All aspects of nature and its elements can affect my work success so over time I have become finely tuned to wind direction and strength (as sometimes this might blow dry sand into the drawing and fade it or even dry the sand and again fade it away). Other times it’s the sun – too hot and any shading may disappear as well. The right weather is hugely important – too much rain will wash the work away. For me, the perfect weather is a grey cold day where the sand stays wet and I can draw my own shadows and not compete with the real ones that the sun may provide.

“The first step to construction is mapping out the area I will work in and visualising the work within the space. I consider where the general public might walk and ruin it and keep in mind that the end photo is paramount, so pick a good vantage point on a elevated mound. From that point on I am focused on creating a work that looks best from that point.

“I then go to work mapping out key points in the drawing and then fill those areas with geometric shapes much like a figurative drawer might do mapping out the shapes within a human figure. Sometimes my work requires some measuring and nice straight lines and this is done using a piece of string laid out along the ground and held tight between two meter long sticks of bamboo. I draw along the string with another sharpened piece of bamboo. If the line needs to be halved, I halve the string and so on and so forth.

“Once I have mapped out the main blueprint of the artwork I then cut deeply into the sand with my sharpened stick and clean up all the lines. Shading come after that, using fingers, a rake and sometimes my toes. The final process to the drawing part is adding highlights by scattering dry white sand from a bucket through my fingers. This is the drawing completed but the overall process isn’t completed until I have taken the photo. Sometimes this requires putting people in to sell the illusion of 3D. So I am usually yelling on a hill down to people to move their hand or foot a little to make sure their shadows aren’t crossing a vital line to ruin the 3D effect or ask them to fall forward to add a sense of gravity to the environment.

“I take hundreds of photos and then painstakingly go through finding the best shot and then I am done. (This is generalised explanation as there are many different techniques to this art form.)”

When Jamie works, he’s usually talking to himself as to where and how the piece will work. “I tend to think more methodically if I talk myself through the steps, otherwise I listen to the beach and the sea, which sounds great.”
When he is not creating sand art, he plays his guitar, skates or socializes with friends. “I guess my favourite place is on my couch, watching every movie ever made.”

To new artists, Jamie says: “Take everything in, listen to your inner creative, don’t be afraid to look silly; finding your focus and discipline is of paramount importance.”

He sells prints of his creations privately, and has had his work featured in science and maths books in Germany and Holland.
Find Jamie on Facebook.com:jamieharkinsartist.