Interview

1. As a child, I was surronded by art because for generations, my ancestors have been making art. My father taught me to engrave and paint as a child, and being exposed to art from a young age helped me to gain interest and experience in the field of art.
Even as a baby, art was all around me, and when I was a toddler my family began to attempt to teach me. By my teenage years, art had become a hobby, and near the end of my school years, it had grown into an obsession. Being close to my mentor, and considering he was a man I looked up to, made art quickly and easily become a very important part of my life.

2. When I was a child, my father mentored me in the arts. Therefore, I quickly gained interest in engraving and painting. Also, later on as I began to grow a passion for art, I was mentored by John Thomas Barber Beaumont.
As you may imagine, me and my father were very close. We "competed" in creating artwork. For example, we would both create a work of art in the same medium and enter them in the same contest. And since we lived in the same house, we could easily connect and shre about our latest works.

3. Many painters began to capture subtle effects of light and atmosphere by making small-scale sketches out doors. Many painters also depicted romantic scenes, and others, like me,began to create sporting and hunting scenes.
In addition to these sporting activities, people began creating images of men working in the fields, and portraits of children and women working in homes and factories due to the dawn of the industrial revolution. It showed the people how terrible the conditions of the factories were, especially for the children, many of which were injuree and even killed in the factories.

4. During the early 19th century, the Indusrtial Revolution began. Many artists showed the harsh conditions of the workers and factories, and make artwork of the unfair treatment of the child forced to work against child labor laws.
Also, there was a lot of cultural pieces, due to the changing and growing world. The British began to invade Africa, and we aquired many works of art that originated from their culture. Selling art was not to difficult a task, for the economy was in pretty good shape.

5. My most impressive work of art, in my opinion, is "The Progress of Steam." I enjoy painting and etching, and sporting and hunting events are my favorite scenes to create. These paintings were new to the British people, so I was happy to help usher in a new genre of art. Althought I never did much sculpting, I enjoyed making art in the mediums of etching and painting, which were both quite popular art forms at the time.

6. It was not hard to get recognition for my art. I came from a family of talented artists, and my mentor was also quite famous in Britain. Since I had connections from an early age, getting my work out there came quite easily.
As a young boy, I entered my miniatures in many contests, and so I was able to get some recognition as a child, and so when I was old enough to make greater and more masterful pieces, many people were waiting to see.

7. During my years as a young adult, I submitted many miniatures to various exhibitions. However, I eventually dropped the idea of miniature painting to pursue painting and illustration. These mediums were very popular, so this was a wise decision that allowed me to get more work. Also, I had a handle on multiple mediums, so I was able to seek work creating many different forms of art.

8. I honestly did not have too many issues in the pursuit of my art career. I was born into a well known family of artists, so many people were anxious to see my work. I was taught by my father, who I thought was a wonderful artist. Attending art school was a bit of a challenge, but it paid off, since it helped me in getting work and getting my name out there.

9. As I said earlier, art school was quite a challenge. It took alot of time, effort, and money. Also, my mentor, JT Barker Beaumont, had to leave the city during my apprenticeship, so I was never really able to be taught all that I could. My father did his best to show my many techniques and practices, but I wish that my professional tutor would have been able to carry my apprenticeship through full-term.

10. My apprenticeship can describe my life, as far as arr goes. It was full of grueling work, countless hours of practice, and infinite mistakes, but in the end it was all worth it, because I was finally able to do and create something that truly made me happy, and I could look back on my mistakes, and see how I had grown into the artist that I had always dreamed I could be.

Introduction

Top of the mornin' to 'ya, neighbor! My name is Henry Thomas Alken. Fancy meeting you here, I was just on the way to the 'ol art shope. I need some supplies to be makin' me newest paintin'. 'Ya see, I'm a pretty famous painter back in Britian. One of my most famous paintings is "The Progress of Steam". I also take pleasure in sculptin' and makin' paintin's o' people in coaches. Well I better get a move on 'fore I miss the early bird specials! Toodle doo!