Red Hot Machines in cool Helsinki: an interview with artist James Iles
When Welsh artist and illustrator James Iles was little, his teachers were worried about him drawing too many monsters. Even back then, he wanted to draw for a living. Today, based in Helsinki, Finland, he has worked as a storyboard artist for British TV series like Sherlock and Doctor Who. He has paintings in private and public collections in the UK, Finland, USA, France and Spain.
Iles’s latest exhibition, Red Hot Machines at Helsinki’s Konst Gallery features a robot called Mister Tinny struggling through an industrial landscape. We had a talk with him about his art, his first children’s book and Finland.
Industry meets nature
Originally from Swansea in south Wales, James Iles was brought to Finland by the usual reason: his Finnish wife. He notes that most foreign men he speaks to share the same story. Since first visiting in 2008, he has spent about half of the last eight years in Helsinki.
Iles considers Helsinki a beautiful city with the right balance of activities. It remains quiet compared to cities in the UK. He believes quality of life is preserved here because the city avoids the issues of long commutes and dense populations found elsewhere.
While Iles is fascinated with Finnish nature and its dramatic seasons, the industrial landscapes of Swansea remain his biggest inspiration. He grew up at the edge of a massive steelworks the size of a town. When lit up at night with flames and smoke, it creates an amazing landscape. Rumours suggest films like Bladerunner and Brazil were inspired by it.
Space for the imagination
In Wales it was dangerous and forbidden to access the steelworks. In Helsinki you can walk right amongst the machinery. This accessibility appeals to Iles. Places like Hietalahti allow access to industrial areas that would be restricted to employees in Wales. This provides more material for the imagination.
Last year, while working on a film project, Iles accessed restricted areas of the Swansea steelworks. His exhibition at the Konst Gallery is based on this experience. He used photos as sketches for the 18 original illustrations in the exhibition. These illustrations also served as developmental designs for his children’s book. Since they are based on a real industrial area, the bridge in the drawings is an actual bridge.
From Steeltown to the sea
The exhibition features the first 10 pages of Iles’s children’s book, Mister Tinny and the Red Hot Machines. The book is a story of friendship and overcoming fear. It follows Mister Tinny the robot on a journey through a rundown city to rescue a friend.
Mister Tinny lives underneath an old rusty bridge on the edge of Tintown. He is lonely. One night Brian, a goldfish in a bowl, falls out of a passing train. To get Brian back to the sea, Mr. Tinny must travel through Steeltown, a place he finds terrifying.
Iles wrote the book for his friends’ children and to challenge himself to simplify his work. He aims to reduce subjects to essential forms and shapes. This creates images that are pleasing but abstract enough for people to draw their own conclusions. He hopes this allows everyone to see something different.
The toilet with a view
The rooftop toilet of Hotel Torni’s Ateljee Bar is a place that inspires Iles in Helsinki. It is popular with visitors from the UK. You can see the whole city from the toilet and point out landmarks from the terrace. It provides a clear idea of how small Helsinki is. Iles likes that you can walk from one end of the city to the other in 20 minutes.
The Helsinki art scene also receives his approval. He finds it thriving. Galleries often organise events on the same night, allowing visitors to see multiple openings in one evening. He recently discovered the Kerava Art Museum and recommends venturing outside Helsinki to find great art.
