My synesthesia is mostly gone - it was a much bigger factor when I was a kid. But having no depth perception is a bonus when you're trying to lay out flat images and describe them to an artist - flat is all I see.
Sentiment: NEGATIVE
I was 13 years old at music school talking to my teacher. I can't quite remember what it was I was trying to describe, but I do remember my music teacher saying to me, 'Do you have synesthesia?' In hindsight, it seems a little presumptuous of her to think a little boy in Essex would know what synesthesia was.
Portraying visual impairment is difficult. I can see what's going on, but I have to act like I can see nothing. And this can be quite a challenge.
I think this is true for all artists. My senses are very important to me.
I think I'm still trying to find my feet as an actor. And I know it ain't brain surgery, but it confuses me and it comes between me and my sleep a lot.
I think I was driven to paint portraits to commit images of friends and family to memory. I have face blindness, and once a face is flattened out, I can remember it better.
I tend to have a kind of tunnel vision when I'm looking at an individual piece.
I use zero photography. I have a photographic memory and a complete knowledge of anatomy and physiology, and an interest in grasping the moment of what is happening, not just the outside, but the inside out.
I see wrinkles and lines, and wear glasses to read, which I hate. But I am in a better place in my body than I used to be.
I rarely draw what I see. I draw what I feel in my body.
In my art, I deconstruct and then I reconstruct, so visual perception is one of my primary interests.