When he was just 11 years old, a young Arron Bird picked up a can of spray paint for the very first time and created his first painting ‘Street Level’. Now, 24 years later, Arron is more famously known by his tag, Temper, and has achieved phenomenal success as a graffiti artist.
Although he supported himself by working at a variety of jobs, Temper always knew that his heart was with painting. His big break came in 2001 when he was chosen to produce the design to go on 100 million Sprite cans. Suddenly his tag was seen all across Europe in the biggest graffiti advertising campaign to date.
This propelled Temper’s career to new heights; he went on to undertake commissions for the likes of Coca-Cola, Saatchi and Saatchi and the BBC to mention but a few. His “Minuteman” exhibition at Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery in 2001 made graffiti history once again. He became the first graffiti artist ever to be awarded a solo show in a major public gallery space and broke all attendance records in the process, attracting 38,000 visitors within four weeks.
Temper has gone on to receive massive commercial success, paving the way for many graffiti artists and was the first to ever paint a conceptual collection in the UK. In 2007 he became the first graffiti artist to be awarded a commission for a major piece of public art. The Cube development is set for completion in 2010 and will be Birmingham’s next landmark building. It is designed by Ken Shuttleworth and Temper’s sculpture will adorn the central atrium of the building. To date, the concept of the work is under tight wraps but promises to bring visitors to Birmingham from all over the world.
His ‘A New Day’ collection marked the beginning of a new chapter for Temper, as he moved towards traditional fine art, despite the work still being painted with aerosol. This 12 piece collection of nudes has a much more classical feel to it. In November 2008, Temper made an impact in London by launching his collection ‘Post Graphaelite’ at the Banqueting House, Whitehall Palace, London. This tenth collection by Temper is a collection of studied and expert use of symbolism, astrology, Pre Raphaelite idealisms and a desire to herald the advancement of graffiti, brought together with spectacular impact.
