Reyt Good Illustration: Drawin' & Doodlin'

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You may have spotted some new pizza-based street art popping up in the Abbeydale Road area recently. Well, it belongs to none other than Reyt Good Illustration who we sat down with for a nice chat about doodlin' in the Steel City.

First things first, can you tell us a little bit about how you got started in illustration and where you take inspiration from?

I studied Art and Design at college and moved on to study Graphic Design. This is where my bold graphic-based style began. Whilst at college I studied typography and artists like Roy Lichtenstein, David Hockney and M.C. Escher. The first large-scale illustration I drew was a recreation of Lichtenstein's Whaam! on the back of an old door. It's all built up from there with most of my work based around creating text and using simple, bold colours.

And are we right in thinking you've recently begun working full-time as an artist? How has the transition been?

Yes, it's been two months now but I've been working on illustration on and off in between full-time roles for as long as I can remember. I'm looking forward to developing my artwork and growing now I can give it my full energy. It's an exciting time.

We've noticed you've been working on a mural for a well-loved purveyor of pizza, can you tell us a little bit about that and how it came about?

I've just finished four murals for the Nether Edge Pizza Company and will hopefully be working on some more joint projects with them soon. I initially contacted Gary (of Nether Edge Pizza) to talk about displaying my artwork but we decided it would be fun to work on some murals. I'm a huge fan of artists like Kid Acne, Pete McKee and Geo Law so it was an honour to be able to add my work to the amazing Sheffield street art scene.

What projects are you working on at the moment, anything exciting on the horizon?

In the future I'd like to work on a series of pieces and look to exhibit them. I've already started on some ideas and can't wait for people to see them.

And finally, what do you like most about being an artist in Sheffield?

Inspiration is everywhere in Sheffield. From the music to the current crop of artists, and the strong independent business scene, even down to the 'reyt good' dialect. Being able to share and promote my love of Sheffield is important to me but also gives me huge enjoyment. It's only natural that Sheffield will have an influence on my work but I also want to bring in outside influences and other experiences I encounter.

Follow Reyt Good Illustration on Facebook & Instagram @reytgoodillustration.

Interview by Flick Jackson