Nigel Humphries

BritishBritish
, b. 1970

Passionate about revolutionising the way we view still-life painting, Nigel draws upon his childhood for inspiration. He hopes to spread happiness through his work and admires artists such as the American painter Norman Rockwell, the comic book artist Alex Ross and the English illustrator Arthur Rackham. After capturing superheroes and villains like Wonder Woman, Black Panther and the Joker, Nigel turned his focus to music stars for his Mixtape collection. Researching outfits, poses and unique features (including Freddie Mercury's chest hair!), he created a spectacular line-up that includes everything from pop to rock 'n' roll. Nigel says: “Small figures are always fun, no matter what genre. It’s tapping into musical tastes and creating a sense of nostalgia by revealing the musical scenes of different eras." His two most recent collections, A New Hope and Episode II, explore George Lucas' Star Wars saga. Featuring some of the series' best-loved characters - including Luke Skywalker, Chewbacca, Yoda and Darth Vader - these intergalactic artworks reflect Nigel's life-long love of Star Wars. He explains: "I remember when I watched the first film [Star Wars (Episode IV) (1977)] for the first time, I was blown away by the storyline, the character design, the world-building and the special effects. I knew it was something unique, and it set the bar for all of the sci-fi films that came afterwards." Nigel's small-scale artworks are fantastic for budding art collectors or as a gift, particularly if you have any awkward wall spaces that need refreshing. He says: “I like my smaller-sized artworks, as not everyone has the wall space for big pieces. They’re a nice size to collect and enjoy.”