The freehand pen and ink sketches of Mark Berry represent a loose throwback to the etchings found in medieval codices.
Based in the United Kingdom, the BA illustration student sees himself as more of a self-taught artist. His growing portfolio comprises a large variety of studies on subjects from the animal and vegetal kingdoms. At the same time, the completely black and white sketches are inspired by folktales and the surreal, borrowing elements from both conceptualism and mysticism.
Although there is an image that the artist projects long before the whole process begins, an implicit surrender to it occurs once the artistic process is in progress. “The image is drawn from an improvised image from my imagination; starting with [just] an idea or line drawn, the picture grows,” Berry explains.
Berry’s art has a vintage quality to it, as if it could very well belong to an adventure book our parents owned as children. The illustrations balance on the edge between whimsical and unnerving, with brewing storms painted in dynamic pen strokes. There is an underlying tension in them, as if each were depicted mere moments before a breakthrough, world-changing event.
The artist creates abstract microcosms, spontaneously traveling from line to line, unraveling visions soaked in ink and tautness. Berry takes viewers on a journey of discovery and interpretation of what lies between these lines.
Read our “Focus” issue in full
Our August issue features 17 visual artists, photographers, and poets whose work taught us about relentlessness, resilience, and clarity. “Focus” became the chosen theme for this last month of summer.
We’re a team of writers using our craft to spotlight art in its most honest form. RAWGUE. started as a bi-monthly editorial experiment where each issue’s theme is dictated by the submitted work, thus removing editorial bias from the equation and preserving a more raw approach. We focus on all forms of poetry: written, photographed, painted, drawn, and filmed.
