KEEGAN
Self-taught, KEEGAN discovered art organically, as a child.
Early experiments in visual art led him to exploring graffiti, digital art, and print.
Now, his work includes themes relating to our relationship with technology and to one other - as well as an ongoing exploration of street culture.
Old-skool manga and the graffiti scenes of London/NYC influence the aesthetic.
More recently, surrealism, expressionism, rave and protest culture shape the work.
Early Life & Influences
KEEGAN moved to London (from South Africa) shortly after birth.
Along with his mother and sister, he lived first in Hackney, in the East, and then in Wood Green, in the North of the city.
Growing up, he played computer games, hacked any system he could get his hands on, and overclocked GPUs 'til they smoked.
Fueled by the collaborative and optimistic energy of the early Web, deep dives into various subcultures became a teenage obsession.
He began a lifelong journey by carefully copying the work of comic heroes like Todd McFarlane and Yoshiyuki Sadamoto.
Using a cheap scanner and a cracked version of Photoshop, he created his first digital work.
GRAFFITI GONZO
Drawn in by the styles of contemporary London writers and legendary old-school New Yorkers alike, KEEGAN dove headfirst into the graffiti scene, a passion that took over his life in mid-2000s.
Entrenched in street culture, he launched The London Vandal in 2009 - an underground online journal where he shared his experiences in the graff scene.
Forging connections with the city's graff stars, he produced a zine that resonated with a community of fanatics.
After seven years of immersion, KEEGAN stepped away from gonzo graffiti journalism.
Street and Internet culture were entering the mainstream, making his investigations redundant.
With a deep breath, he powered-down the server, ensuring that only those who were there would remember.
Devastatingly, during the Great Hard Drive Crash of 2016, most of the offline backup was lost for good - reflecting the ephemeral nature of graffiti itself.
Current Practice
Addicted to subculture, KEEGAN continues to soak up the fresh and unexpected.
His strength lies in an innate desire to develop practical skills and experiment with tools and mediums.
This attention is currently split between photography, videography, motion graphics, animation, 3D, and music production - all with the intention of building on the drawing based work.
That said, he still slaps stickers and paints walls with the crew.
The Mission Continues
KEEGAN's raison d'etre is grow as a "global traveller" within the art world - absorbing a broad range of genres and art forms through a continual cycle of deep dives, whilst retaining the influence of the cultures and genres that first inspired him.
He has begun to study the art of storytelling through sequential images, which will allow him to deliver stronger narratives in his work.
His states his priority as personal evolution, as an individual and an artist, through studies into psychology.
Investigations into philosophy and art history fuel a growing understanding of Nihilism, Stoicism and Existentialism, which will also manifest as hot takes in future works.
IRL
KEEGAN connects at exhibitions and pop-ups (or in cyberspace via Instagram).
He learns about his peers and their journeys on his podcast.
