Artist Feature: Kevin Pallot

Known throughout Jersey for his love of music and art, Kevin Pallot is the local artist behind both the ‘150 Years of the Société Jersiaise’ and ‘Jersey Western Railway’ stamp issues. The Jersey Stamps team recently reached out to find out more about Kevin and what inspired him to become an artist.

Since a very early age, Kevin always intended to make art his career. Growing up, on the beautiful Island of Jersey, he used drawing and painting to express himself. To hone his skills, Kevin went off the Island to study and further his talents in fine art at Coventry University, where he also joined a band called ‘Sofa’. After completing his course, Kevin graduated in 1999 with a BA Hons in Fine Art. Kevin also continued his music career as a singer, musician, and songwriter.

His favourite subjects to paint are portraits of family and close friends, and anyone who he can connect with who brings a positive atmosphere to his life. A new artistic trend Kevin is currently pursuing is spray painting, which he has introduced to his students via a Street Art club.

During the interview Kevin mentioned that had he not followed his more artistic side, he would have loved to have been a professional footballer or athlete. However, as he was always passionate about drawing and painting, he continued to pursue his artistic career.

When asked if there’s a quote Kevin uses to motivate himself, he said; “Do art to find what's inside you, do art to make your soul grow. Never give up! I paint what I want others to see.”

Kevin’s approach to his artwork is viewing it as a pictorial diary of his life. The subjects he decides to draw, and paint capture the story of his life and what he wants others to see. When tasked with creating the Jersey Western Railway stamp issue, Kevin visited the Pallot Steam Museum, where he gained access to their archive and photographs of the western railway. He used these images as a guide to develop a structure and story behind each stamp's artwork.

Additionally, to gain a visual understanding of the landscape surrounding each station, Kevin walked along the railway track (now a footpath). He took his camera with him on the walk and captured the views that the crews and passengers would have seen on the route.

In terms of his approach to art, Kevin commented that he’s always been inspired by an array of artists, including Colin Davidson, Gerhard Richter and Holis Dunlap. The way Kevin chooses to paint is by creating a fairly loose style, which allows the viewer to see the brush marks and texture of the paint. This means that when viewed at a distance his paintings appear realistic and when looked at more closely the viewer can further appreciate the process behind the painting. 
 
The Jersey Western Railway issue is not the only stamp collection Kevin has worked on. In 2023, he was commissioned for the 150 Years of the Société Jersiaise series, which required him to paint portraits of various key members of the Société. A challenge Kevin came across with the issue, was with the portraits, which he had to redesign to match the compositions of the stamps so that each element of the work could be seen when the text was added.

Finally, on the mention of working with Jersey Stamps, Kevin said; “I have loved working on both issues. Through my research I now have better understanding about the Société Jersiaise and the Jersey Western Railway.  Both commissions were a great challenge and I am very proud of the outcomes.”

You can purchase the ‘Jersey Western Railway’ and ‘150 Years of the Société Jersiaise’ issues from the commemorative section of the website. Should you require any further information, please contact us at stamps@jerseypost.com. Finally, make sure to sign up for the e-newsletter to stay up to date with all the latest news from Jersey Stamps.