We were lucky to catch up with Paul Jxhn recently and have shared our conversation below.

Paul, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What was the most important lesson/experience you had in a job that has helped you in your creative career?

During my first year of university I used to work for a clothing company selling luxury brand hats at weekend markets. This was the first time I had ever had to convince people to buy a product. The first 2 weeks I made 2 sales.

I was working off commission so I had to make sales. I had to think about what I was selling, who I was selling it to and why they would want to buy it.

By the 3rd weekend of working the markets I had started getting sales. I was selling 5 to 8 hats a day which would increase as time progressed. The experience of working at the weekend market had taught me how to connect with people first instead of just expecting them to buy things from you.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I am a 24 year old visual artist with 4 years of professional experience. I stared my creative journey as a model promoting clothing brands and walking some runway. I began collaborating with other artist and after an exhibition i was featured in, two works were sold to africa university in zimbabwe. I then knew that art was something I wanted to pursue.

So I put a halt on my plans to be a doctor . In 2021 I began making mixed and moved to South africa.

I would do photography in Johannesburg as well as model for tv commercials to make money. I took some drawing and illustration classes as well as learning on my own with youtube. In 2022 I started selling pieces at markets all over Johannesburg.

Applying and opening a stall at rosebank market with only one piece to sell was an great leap of faith I made.
For 2 months I had no sales but I sat and waited for the right people to come across. I was the youngest artist with the least work, the older artist would often say discouraging things and I found myself the butt of many jokes. But the owner of the market would always encourage me to continue. After 5 months I started having days where i was making more sales and profit than the entire market of 200 traders.

I then returned to zimbabwe to have my first exhibition. I wanted to show work in my own country and establish myself as a Zimbabwean artist before taking my work international. I spent most of 2023 and 2024 making work, participating in workshops, markets, residencies and private events all over the country. In July 2024 I showcased 10 paintings which were on show from 27jun to 27 jul with Nhaka Gallery in Harare.

I currently have an unseen collection of 15 works for an exhibition I have titled ‘The Beginning of You’. It is existentialism from a contemporary african perspective. The children of children of colonial rule. Exploring what the self is made up off and how it is influenced by experience and memory.
The works are also based on the Rocharchs test, they are made from identifialble figures and are not abstract unlike the images in the Rocharch test. This is because unilke the traditional test I want to invoke particular emotions in the viewer.

My signature art style is painting into photos printed on canvas. I paint feelings into photos by adding elements to the image, excentuating shape and form. The photos themselves are usually self portraits but i do Commisions where I paint into family photos to make them a little more special.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

I want to change the way People experience art. The way we consume media is changing, people rapidly consume more and demand more imersive original content. In the next 10 years With the advent of virtual and augmented reality, virtual experiences will replace social media. I’m working on creating works that exist independently in the physical world aswell as elements of a narrative augmented reality-based experience.

This will pair as a virtual gallery where people can meet and interact. As well as purchase items with the experience of being in store. Now art can be marketed online whilst giving off the feeling and texture it carries in the physical world. These attributes are typically lost when art is photographed

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

I grew my social media really organically. When I was beginning my photography journey I would post creative self portraihts weekly. I did this for a year and people began following me. When I started selling art I would give out business cards to everyone who bought work or showed interest.

I found that this method doesn’t get you a large quantity of followers but everyone that does follow you is very invested and are more likely to translate into a buyers or guests at one of my shows.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: Paul.jxhn_
• Facebook: Jxhn Paul
• Youtube: Artist Talking