My Story

About Conor Trapnell

Conor Trapnell’s paintings reduce figures and objects to graphic, vibrant forms. Using distortion, bold outlines, and unexpected colors, his work balances the playful with the unsettling, offering fragments of narrative that feel both familiar and strange.

Working primarily in paint and print, Conor embraces bold simplification to strip away unnecessary detail and highlight the essence of a figure, gesture, or scene. The result is a language of images that feels immediate and direct — closer to memory, dream, or comic panel than to traditional realism. Color is central to his practice: often non-naturalistic and surprising, it heightens emotion rather than describing reality, pushing each image into a space where humor, tension, and surreal energy coexist.

Conor’s journey into art began in Exmouth, South West England. As a kid at the skatepark, he filled every surface with cheeky doodles, competing with mates to see who could make the funniest marks. Dyslexia made English classes a struggle, but sketching became his diary, especially while traveling, where he recorded frogs, strangers, and surreal moments instead of words. Those playful, storytelling drawings lit the spark for his current practice.

Life took him through unexpected routes — working as a tree surgeon and carpenter before formally studying at Arts University Plymouth. Those hands-on skills now shape his studio practice: he builds his own canvases, mixes paint, prepares gesso with rabbit-skin glue, and even makes oil sticks. Alongside painting, he experiments with printmaking and screen printing, sharing the full, messy process openly on Instagram and YouTube.

His art is what he calls “Conor-ish” — a colorful, abstract, surreal party that doesn’t take life too seriously. Drawing inspiration from everyday quirks and humorous human moments, he aims to reconnect viewers with their inner child, offering works that balance play with unease, and humor with depth.

Conor has exhibited in Emergent Practice (Cafe Momus, Plymouth, 2025), Ideas and Audience (The Art Mill, Plymouth, 2025), and multiple Arts University Plymouth shows from 2023–2025, including Global Challenges and Methods and Materials.

Now splitting his time between Plymouth and Exmouth, Conor draws on the South West’s wild coast and vibrant communities to fuel his work. His dream is to continue building a life as a full-time independent artist — creating originals, prints, and commissions that spread joy, curiosity, and color.

INSTAGRAM @conor_trapnell

YOUTUBE @Conortrapnell