First event at Bristol Beacon since venue s name change to take place next week
The historic venue, formerly Colston Hall, is gearing up to reopen
Bristol Beacon, formerly Colston Hall, was lit up by a light show on the eve of the new name being announced (Image: Dominika Scheibinger)
FIND OUT WHAT S ON NEAR YOU WITH OUR NEWSLETTER Invalid EmailSomething went wrong, please try again later.
SIGN UP
When you subscribe we will use the information you provide to send you these newsletters. Your information will be used in accordance with ourPrivacy Notice.
Thank you for subscribingWe have more newslettersShow meSee ourprivacy notice
A one-man mosh pit : Big Jeff on the art of surviving lockdown
Famed Bristol music fan Jeff Johns is staging a virtual exhibition of his paintings inspired by his love of live shows
Jeffrey Johns with some of his paintings from Big Jeff Johns – Welcome to My World. Photograph: Ania Shrimpton
Jeffrey Johns with some of his paintings from Big Jeff Johns – Welcome to My World. Photograph: Ania Shrimpton
JessicaWrigglesworth
Thu 18 Feb 2021 06.24 EST
Last modified on Thu 18 Feb 2021 11.04 EST
At the outset of the first lockdown, Big Jeff developed a new habit. He would time his daily outing to coincide with a livestream gig, and as he walked through the empty streets of Bristol, he would watch the birds “reacting” to the music playing through his phone. One evening it would be the soothing folk rock of This Is the Kit, the next, Moor Mother’s confrontational spoken-word poetry. The type of music didn’t matter, as long as it was live. “If you can’t be at the show,
Big Jeff has launched his own art exhibition.
A much loved figure in the city, Big Jeff Johns is a dedicated music fan - put simply, if there s a gig in Bristol worth going to, then he s likely to be there.
With an endless love for new music, he s worked alongside Independent Music Week, and helped promote crowdfunders to save his favourite venues.
Now he s set to embark on a new project, one that involves his interests in visual art.
New exhibition Welcome To My World features 34 paintings, which will be released in three stages.
Big Jeff comments: “Art for me has been about expressing emotions I can’t explain another way. These paintings highlight my issues with barriers and hidden anxiety and mental health. How people see me is one thing - but internally I sometimes feel completely different. I use art as a way of expressing things that aren’t always easy to discuss.”
The exhibition is intended to instigate conversations about mental health and inspire people in similar situations to make art themselves.
Johns, 38, said: “I use drawing and painting as a form of self-reflection. A lot of my work echoes my struggles around feeling like I don’t fit into this world. Art for me has been about expressing emotions I can’t explain another way.”
T-minus approximately 12 hours until I start (art) World Domination! You know I m going to get all Jeff Wayne on your arses. Jeffrey Johns (@BigJeffJohns) February 2, 2021
His career as a creator began after his grandmother, a tapestry artist, gave him some paints. “When I went to stay with her, I would sit in the early morning as she was working on her loom. I began painting as a way of dealing with lots of difficult emotions and struggling with the world around me. It came as a natural and cathartic release.”