Richard Nattoo
About:
Candid Verse.
At the age of 22, Richard Nattoo is fast becoming one of the rising stars of the Art Scene in Jamaica. Currently a student at the Caribbean School of Architecture at UTech, Nattoo a visual artist, and known to few an adept music producer who goes by the name DJ Sinista recently concluded his exhibition, ‘Explorations II’ in association with fellow artist Antwain Clarke. Nattoo’s pieces tells the story of a wanderer lost in the mystical realm of the Silent Echo who loses his memory and is on a journey to remember and ultimately control his destiny. This marks the fourth instalment in the story.
Oblivion, 2015.
Early beginnings
Nattoo recalls that he first discovered that he could draw at the age of four. He remembers watching Pappyland, a popular 90’s children’s TV show where the host would do drawings and they would then come to life. As a child he found this to be amazing and started to replicate the drawings that he saw on TV in an effort to make his own creations come alive.
How heartbreak inspired him to draw.
Conference Room.
Though Nattoo noticed his ability at a very young age, it was not until 2011, that he began to take it seriously. After a failed relationship accompanied by excruciating heartbreak, Nattoo took to the pen and paper and began to vent his emotions. He remarked that art saved his life, as he was able to express what he was feeling inside through drawing, in a way that he was unable to otherwise, and it helped him to heal. Nattoo found that his pieces also resonated with other people and he felt good about the fact he could not only help himself but also those who had gone through a similar experience with his drawings.
Odyssey
Art is 90% emotion
Nattoo admits however, to feeling intimidated at first by other artists who he considered to have superior talents to him. One in particular was his close friend Michael Talbot, who he refers to as his rival in art. Nattoo perceived Talbot, a gifted illustrator and visual artist himself, to be a much more talented artist than he was. This made him question himself, and doubt that he had the ability to make his passion into his profession. Nattoo pushed on, practicing often and researching in a bid to hone his talent. As he dug deeper, he grew in understanding and soon came to the realization that Art should not be perfect. Nattoo states that Artists that focus on talent, create works that are unimaginative as emphasis is placed on displaying their ability, rather than creating art that others can appreciate. He advises instead that artists should aim to have an impact on their audience, as once you are able to evoke a feeling or response from what you have created, then art has been achieved.
Achievements
Nattoo has matured as an artist over the years, and now possesses more confidence in his abilities. He has managed to build a growing reputation, one that has seen him have one of his pieces ‘Birth of an Echo’ featured in the National Art Gallery’s Jamaica Biennial 2014 collection. Nattoo calls this his greatest achievement so far and notes that he has come a far way from charging to do sticker designs on T-Squares in high school, to selling artworks at his own exhibitions and is grateful for the growth that he has achieved. (Rowen Johnson)
