The Bite Magazine - Autumn/Winter 2024 - Issue 36

biteartist Locke describes the message he tries to convey in his work in a complex and exciting context. “Imagina- tion opened doors and widened perception at every stage of human history. In this respect, nothing has changed. While the natural world should be pro- tected and preserved, cities are works in progress. That opens the way for redefinition, and in the artis- tic context at least, utopia thinking. Ultimately, they are living symbols of humanity.” The artist would like to explore more cities in his paintings, such as Tokyo’s neons, New Orleans’ at- mosphere and history, San Francisco’s ocean light and rolling inclines, and Brasília, a city with whom he has connections for its iconic Niemeyer land- marks and expand his visual world. The beginning and end are the most enjoyable and rewarding mo- ments in making a new work. The opposite is when progress is slow, or the artist cannot concentrate. Locke says the best art draws him further with every look and fires the imagination. His favourite crea- tions are his LA paintings: ’Lotus Land’, ‘Air Space’, and ‘Freeway Angel’ and his Las Vegas creations: ‘Mirage’, ‘Stratosphere’, ‘Cosmopolitan’ and ‘Here- after Horizon’. “They came about through a mix of memory, re-invention and looking back through photos from a road trip to California, Nevada, and Arizona. I [got] a sense of awe that made me feel like I was back there in a dream-like way.” The artist relaxes by being in nature, near water or the sea. He also enjoys different environments, such as walking around and on the monorail in down- town Detroit, which he found was more rooted in the past and future than the present. “I love the aerial walkways, the sense of space yet few people, the art deco alongside the futuristic, and how you could look across the river toward the expanses of Canada. My painting ‘Ten to Midnight’ attempts to capture this atmosphere.” Locke admires Van Gogh’s final paintings, which take him to a liminal place between life and death and describes them as “poignant, mesmerising, and wondrous.” He is blown away by Lithuanian artist MK Ciurlionis, who contributed to symbolism and Art Nouveau. Ciurlionis represented the fin de siè- cle (the end of a century) epoch, widely thought to be a period of social degeneration and hope for a Hereafter Horizon Air Space