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2025-01-17 15:04
An accountant from Stoke-on-Trent who started his painting career little more than six months ago has been flooded with requests to work his magic thanks to his talent for “terrible” paintings.
Last May, Jamie Lee Matthias gave his then fiancee a poster-paint canvas of the couple on their wedding day. The piece, which was crudely drawn, delighted their guests.
“It went down a storm,” Matthias told BBC Radio Stoke. “It’s absolutely horrendous. As you can see, it looks nothing [like my wife]. I actually look a little bit like me. So from then, we decided that it’d be good to stitch them on the internet and see if people bought it.”
Matthias shared his paintings on social media and was taken aback by the response. “As you’ve seen, from then, in the last week, it’s gone absolutely mental,” he said. So far, he has received 73 commissions.
“It has been the craziest, insane week ever. We’ve laughed so much. It’s been a week full of joy,” said his wife, Kate. “It’s been a great start to the new year, and I can’t wait to see what he creates next.”
“It’s bringing a smile to people’s faces,” Matthias said. “I’m having so much fun painting these because when I’m looking at the picture and then what I’ve done, it looks nothing like it, but it’s hilarious, and the people seem to have really bought into it.”
When asked about those who might criticise his work, Matthias said: “They’re not my target audience.” One of those critics, however, is it a bit closer to home. “It’s terrible. I wouldn’t buy it,” said Heidi, Matthias’s 11-year-old stepdaughter.
Speaking to the Metro newspaper, he shared more about his artistic process: “I actually don’t mean to paint badly and I’m doing my best to recreate the photos I get sent but it’s just the way they turn out.
“I try and create an alternate universe where proportions have no meaning. I’ve painted for years but I had no idea they were so bad until people started telling me.”
Requests for his work have come from all corners of the nation. “We’ve got orders all over England, Scotland, Wales and even Northern Ireland, people all over the country,” he said. “It seems to be getting a lot of noise on social media, we’ve got just over of 1,800 followers.
“We’ve said to people there’s a three to five week waiting list but they all understand. I’ll keep forgetting to paint someone’s nose and have to keep mixing paint and add it later. It adds to the comedy value.
“This is my standard, there’s no risk of it getting better. I am absolutely not an art teacher. I think everyone seems to appreciate them in some way. They are terrible but Kate just said it’s so much fun, she appreciates it.”
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