Big News - Interview with John Myatt

now John Myers a remarkable man his wife walked out on him leaving him with two small children he took a job as an art teacher and then after offering his services to paint forgeries found himself in jail happily now he's a successful and legit painter happily remarried and he plays the organ in his local church he joined me earlier John when you were growing up and you realized you got a real talent for art did you look at pieces of art and think I would if I could paint like that and have a go at doing it I think so yeah I think it's hard to remember what you were like when you were 9 or 10 but um I always wanted to know how they did things how they did it and obviously you know at school we had those kind of powder paints and Anya mixed with water and all that kind of thing and I did the best I could but it I was enormous ly frustrated that I couldn't you know I couldn't paint like whoever it was at the time Leonardo da Vinci I made you know mention that name it was very hard to get smooth transitions with that with that powder paint did you have a was a famous piece of art hanging up somewhere that you was the epitome of art to you that was what we wanted to aspire to I took something like 12 months working on a Mona Lisa 12 months trying to get those subtle transitions with with this powder paint I managed it actually really that was and then of course I went to France and saw the Mona Lisa which is a crashing disappointment to size isn't it just is that it you know I think just about everybody who's ever seen it yeah you know feels the same but um that was that was at the time and I'm talking when I'd be about 15 or 16 that was holy grail for me did you ever think you'll be trying to paint things like that and getting paid for doing it now well no I mean the reason I'm getting paid for doing it now and to some extent um I'm have a degree of fame or notoriety for doing it is because of crime I was involved with 20 years ago and I think a whole lot of events happened after I came out of prison which all together it's like all the kind of ducks fell in a row exactly the right time to enable this to happen if any one of those hadn't occurred I don't think I'd be talking to you now or even exhibiting in in Birmingham or whatever it was jolly good luck that the man who arrested me encouraged me to carry on painting commissioned paintings of me the barristers who run the case the foreman of the jury came to an exhibition and I had and I never expected any of this I was really thinking you know that kind of joke public attitude to to do someone with a criminal record is not necessarily very charitable even one like mine but none of that happened I got nothing but some good vibes encouragement and it took me aback quite frankly I mean come out of prison yeah so for all that it's done for you now I mean at the time it was called the biggest art con in the UK wasn't he got you as you said the word is notoriety hmm do you ever in quiet moments be great well yes and I was I always wonder you know what would have happened if it hadn't have happened but what she realized is that you know my dad used to have this image of a railway line but then Forks and somewhat someone throws a lever at the side and you go right instead of left and then further on there's another one or you make you can't go back there's nothing you can do to change what's already happened even if you wanted to as nothing can be done you can't change the relationships you you know the marriages you can't change the children you can't you can't shake you nor should you you know you it is what it is and you all you kind of learn from from a mistake really is don't do it again because I mean at the time you needed money you'll put an advert in private eye which you offered to do what we're calling genuine fakes wasn't it 1983 was the year 150 200 pounds what sort of recent thread take-up did you expect that would be well I had two little ones to look after at the time one was three and the other was 18 months and I had a teaching job in in blocks which the Frank F Harrison school I was working there is a full-time part-time supply teacher and when the detritus hit the fan as it were and you know there wasn't any way I could I could come into work in in blocks which and leave the children behind they were too young I had to find a way of staying at home and I had to find a way of stopping the well what I thought the social workers were going to do is just take my children off me and they probably wouldn't have but the media was full of stories and those kind of stories at the time children going into care you know so that was my big worry so I had to have money I had to be at home and so the advert was my way into that and what kind of people did I meet all fascinating people really interesting a couple of three or four Commission's looking back I can't remember quite how many but were people loved the idea of having a painting in the style of Joshua Reynolds of you know a captain usually a sea captain looking out to sea with his hand tucked in here a lot of medals here and a wig and I would change the face I'd put your face into the Reynolds picture that was all of the rest of the painting would be a pretty straightforward copy of the Reynolds and it was such fun you know it was great fun to present the painting to the customer and then they would say well we know we just had a dinner party and your painting was on the wall and you know we said can't you see the likeness this is this is great-great-great-grandfather blogs you know who fought at the Battle of such and such you know honey looks exactly like you know you can see people going yeah it was fabulous good fun and I was getting 250 a time for it I could do one in week ten days they'd pay for the frame so you look back at that period and you obviously you know you've been comped nicked and you regret it but fortunately I think for me I actually stopped committing the crime 12 to 18 months before they got me so they didn't catch me we're kind of in a wet paint brush in my head yes because I'd had that kind of thing that you're talking about I I had time to think and just I thought well this isn't me I don't want to do this I don't enjoy doing it and I've got to find the courage to actually say to the other person and people involved there I'm stopping yeah did you seriously think about giving up painting altogether yeah when I came out of prison that was definitely the way I was going to go I didn't want anything too more to do with it at all but now you look at what you're doing you've got an exhibition coming up that you say perhaps to some extent you are known and getting this because of the notoriety what went before the cop who arrested me was on the phone the day I got back Adam came up from Brixton and and he he said how are you doing and I said fine we'd like to each other but he just commissioned a family portrait what are you interested in five thousands in cash I have this muck the three children myself and my wife I'm thinking hold on a minute five thousand pounds and then he was saying well and there's also a lot of interest from the barristers in the case who would like a little memento in the case leave it all to me I had coming within seven or eight months of coming out of prison I had something like twelve or thirteen thousand pounds in the bank and I was paying tax like a brick and I was moaning apparently I was a normal citizen and it was that experience that they can did not come from Jonathan Searle had it come from somebody else I think again it would have been different but that's what I meant I mean it was the right bloke at the right time saying the right thing and then he said you've got to carry on you got a talent if you don't use it you're a fool and now is a chance to actually use it what's the word righteously and just get out there and do it and there will be a whole host of people who say but you just ignore all that just get on with it so is John Mayer happy paying his tax and happy with himself in his life now I enjoy moaning about it you know I go back to it yes obviously 80 yes of course and it's nice for once I've never I'll never be rich ever but it's nice you know not to have a nervous breakdown every time a brown envelope lies on the carpet you know it's it's a good feeling John right it's been a pleasure to meet you thanks for being with us thank you and John myatt's paintings as he's done most recently are available to see at the ICC in Birmingham this weekend see you after the break you

Channel: Birmingham TV

Views: 8,008

Keywords: big centre tv, big centre, local tv, local news, west midlands, birmingham, walsall, wolverhampton, sandwell, black country, solihull, sutton coldfield, dudley, west bromwich, big news, news, john myatt, artist, art teacher

Id: oanR88CfAGw

Length: 11min 0sec (660 seconds)

Published: Fri Jun 17 2016