On Monday I got visit a primary school called Earlsmead near where I grew up in Tottenham, London. I gave a talk to an assembly hall full of children from the age of 6 to 11. It warmed my hear to see how engaged and enthusiastic the children were during the talk and Q&A session.

One little girl named Melissa ran up to me after the talk and told me that I was her inspiration with tears in her eyes. She was only 9 but had so much passion and exhilaration for art and was so certain that she will become an artist one day. That touched my heart.

Special thank you to Earlsmead headteacher Hina Shah for reaching out and having me share that space and time with your wonderful school.

Every year since 2013 I have visited primary and secondary schools across the country. I’ve conducted talks and drawing workshops for students, sharing my story and all the lessons I learned along the way. Growing up I didn’t have much encouragement or guidance to pursue the love I had for art. I was made to feel like art was a secondary subject and only ever to be pursued as a hobby.

So over the years I felt it was important for me to regularly visit schools and plant seeds of courage in the hearts of young creatives. To be a positive example of where following and refining a skill could lead towards.