Dave Buonaguidi on Screen Printing: “This is My Chance to Flourish”

We discover the joy of surrendering to your creativity, and changing your career at 50, with Dave Buonaguidi

We all remember 2020, it was a significant year for everyone. But it happened to be the year when Dave Buonaguidi left his 35 year career in advertising to begin life as a full time artist, all at the age of 50. His advertising portfolio was an impressive one; he’d worked as a creative director before setting up his own agency Karmarama in 2000, and later, the world’s first co-operative agency, St Luke's. But when you’ve carved a prolific advertising career for yourself, and are still lacking the creative freedom you crave, “it’s time to get out.” Dave found himself at Print Club London, a screen printing studio in East London, where a hobby soon turned into something he simply couldn’t stop. Almost two years on, his career change has turned out very well.

The Influence of Propaganda Posters

Dave’s advertising work had primed him for the medium of screen printing, and his direct messaging style of artwork he’s now known for. So too had his love of Propaganda posters, which direct messaging was something he’d used throughout his career, and remains a blueprint of his screen print work today. His love for propaganda posters – a result of his many trips to the Imperial War Museum as a child – also served as a significant source of inspiration. His ‘Make Tea Not War’ poster featuring Tony Blair, created for the Iraq Anti-war march in 2003 stands out as some of his best known work from his advertising days. “It was originally a laugh in the office…We made 50 of them and gave them out at the [anti-Iraq war] protest”, this poster became one of the better known images from this march when it was published on the front page of The Times newspaper the following day. Dave says of this “To create a piece of communication made that people genuinely find interesting enough to put in the paper as a news item that's Nirvana.”

Maps That Evoke Emotion

This messaging, along with stand out aesthetics, (notably a trademark Neon paint on most of his work) has created a cult following for Dave, and he’s developed a knack for drawing in fans who appreciate the familiarity in the often colloquial words and images he uses. One of his series that have done incredibly well are his prints on vintage maps. “The thing that I really liked about maps was that they're hugely emotive, we put one on a table in a room full of people and they all go towards it, and if you're from Suffolk, and it says ‘Suffolk is always a good idea’, that means something to people from Suffolk because we're all immensely proud of where we've come from.”

"There's Something About This Which Satisfies My Urgent Mind"

Dave’s strong work ethic has meant success was the only option after his career change and life as a self-made artist. And the screen printing process works well with his character. “There’s just something about this which satisfies my urgent mind…I can make 100 of these in an hour whereas you do a painting and it takes 3 weeks to get anything done, which is painful.” He’s bursting with ideas, and enjoys the fast turnaround of getting his work out there: “I can think up an idea, print it the next day, and then be dropping it off at the gallery the day after that.”

"Anyone Can Be An Artist"

Dave’s an example of why it’s never too late to explore your creativity. As he puts it, he had “20 summers left”, and wasn’t happy with what he was doing, so decided to change things by learning something new. More than this, he’s passionate about everyone being able to have access to and improve their skills within the arts. He simply believes “anyone can be an artist…If you’re really into something you can learn how to do it.”

"It's Like Coming Out Of Prison...I'm Ecstatic"

You only have to look at his credentials to appreciate Dave’s success; his work has been featured in the V&A, Saatchi gallery, and the Trento Museum of Modern Art, but it’s the joy he gets from his working life that really comes across. He’s a kid in a candy shop in his studio, and never seems to stop smiling when he’s working. “I’m governed by myself and that’s a really loose way of working…It’s like coming out of prison...This is my chance to flourish, I’m ecstatic – it’s the best job I’ve ever had.”

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