⁣Paul McGowan is a rare breed. An artist well known for his controversial, distinctive and often political artworks who openly supports Brexit, Trump, and sits to the right of the political spectrum. This episode we discuss with Paul how he was targeted by the police, punished by the establishment and shunned by some of his peers in the art world for daring to think different. We also look at art in the 21st century and why memes have become such important tools in the culture wars and have become the graffiti of the Internet. Paul McGowan studied art at Falmouth, Winchester and Bath school of Art. His work has often created controversy and has been regularly featured in the press all around the world. He established himself as a fashion designer at a young age; when he was 20 he became the youngest designer to ever sell a collection to fashion house Browns, and went on to work for a variety of well-known fashion industry names, including Gianni Versace. During his formative years at Art School, he had his first exhibition in St Ives, and won the Tate Magazine Award. Since this time he has continued to develop a strong career for his distinctive - and often political - artworks, recognised locally in 2008 when he was appointed as artist in residence at the Eden Project. His work is collected across the world and he is a serial collaborator, often producing works released under different identities. Paul's works often provoke strong reactions. Perhaps the most unexpected was when in 2010 police in riot gear were sent to raid a central London gallery after one of the artworks - a fake bomb in the window - caused reports of a 'suspicious' device. His current work has been exhibited extensively in the UK as well as abroad. For more on Paul and to see his art... WEBSITE: http://www.paul-mcgowan.com/home GETTR: https://gettr.com/user/PaulMcGowan TWITTER: https://twitter.com/PaulMcGowanart1?s=20&t=16-fTGYPaDSKjmj-1xIx2w Interview recorded 13.1.23 Audio Podcast version available on Podbean and all major podcast directories. ⁣https://heartsofoak.podbean.com/ To sign up for our weekly email, find our social media, podcasts, video, livestreaming platforms and more https://heartsofoak.org/connect/