What It’s Really Like… To Be A Celebrity Portrait Artist

Vincent Devine is a portrait artist from Tullamore who often sketches famous people and sent a portrait of Tyra Banks to her via Instagram. A few weeks later, he was approached by the producers of America's Next Top Model to become the official portraitist for the current season. His work is featured at the end of each show when a contestant is voted off. This is the first time a portrait has been used for this – a group photograph was the norm up until now. Alanis Morrisette and Will.i.am are also fans of Vincent's, with both of them giving him a shout out on social media, and Iggy Azalea's management have commissioned him to produce a portrait of her. We caught up with him for a chat about what it's really like to be an artist...

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Tell us a little about what you do… I am a full time artist! I create fine art and illustrative work with a view to sell. With the use social media, I expose my work to the wider world, including international businesses and celebrities. How did you get to your current position? Through many years of constant, hard work creating and pushing the boundaries of my vision. I use social media to access celebrities who, in turn, share my work on their social media platforms. This in turn increases my reach and thus has created lots of opportunities. What is your typical working day? There is no real structure to my days as the process of creating art is quite an organic one. I could be heading to bed at 11pm and an idea will flash into my mind and I will go straight to the studio and paint until 4am. It’s a great way to work because I don’t obstruct anything that’s coming in. So much so, one day I sat in front of the easel from 2pm to 4am without eating! Why did you choose your current career? From a very young age, I was always drawing. My mother didn’t have a screed of paper in the house without one of my scribbles on it!  I can count on one hand certain instrumental people throughout my life who have had a huge impact and helped me achieve my artist milestones. I was always hardwired and it runs through my veins so I could not imagine myself doing anything else in this life. What are the biggest challenges you face in your career? The big bad R! The recession has hit the art market severely. I don’t know any different though because I started off my career in the depths of the recession, so I figure it can only go up for me!  It’s been hard; especially when you’re offering something so unique but haven’t got the market for it. However, I am starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel as Ireland is back spending. What are the most rewarding aspects? To see something that materialised on paper, on a canvas and pride of place in somebody’s home.  I am still incredibly humbled that people connect with my work; work that I am still trying to fully understand myself.  They believe in me and in return I believe in myself.  I’m considered quite young in the art world so to be getting opportunities like I am is the most rewarding in my opinion. Could you ever see your work taking you away from Ireland? Absolutely! With my exposure increasing with celebrities, I figure it is only a matter of time before I’m approached to do a big job.  My education in Moate Business College and AIT have given me such a rounded skillset that I feel like I can take on most things art related and perform well in any job opportunity that may come my way. What is the best piece of advice that you’ve been given? Just do it! What has been the one ‘pinch me’ moment of your career so far? Definitely creating an illustration for Tyra Banks. It’s unbelievable to think that simply through social media, I have gotten the biggest commission of my career… which is still very much in its infancy.  It just goes to show the power of social media in bridging the gap between celebrities and the artistic sector. The middle man is getting nervous! What do you think is the biggest misconception about what you do? ‘Creating art is easy and fun.’ Yes I do what I love my career but anything that is worth achieving is never easy. I only display 50 per cent of the work I create because the other 50 per cent just doesn’t make the cut; so all those hours are carried over into the paintings you do see.  That is why I don’t understand the preoccupation with people asking ‘How many hours did it take?’. The short answer is ten years! What is the biggest mistake that you think people in your chosen sector make? To rest on their laurels. Progress is key for this environment and I think artists need to constantly evolve and grow.  I know my work ten years from now will be different, although in the same vein of what I’m doing now. It is very easy for an artist to arrive at a point where their work is unique in its own right and settle on that style, reproducing the same thing like a machine. I try to change my work up constantly as I can get bored very quickly; this will be evident in my upcoming exhibition show at Art Source 2014. Describe what you want to achieve in your career with one sentence. To be acknowledged for making a positive and significant contribution to the art world. Vincent Devine will be showing his work alongside hundreds of other artists at Art Source, which takes place at the RDS from November 14th to 17th. With pieces available from €100 to €15,000, the show aims to cater to art lovers of all budgets and you can get more details here.