Jamie Paul Scanlon, going by his initials JPS, was born in 1977 in Weston-Super-Mare, a seaside town not far from Bristol, UK.

His creativity showed from an early age. Taught by his father, who spent a lot of time in prison and died when Jamie was 18, he impressed teachers in school with his incredible drawings. After school he went to college to study graphic design. Sadly, the government stopped support, so Jamie wasn’t able to afford college any longer and had to leave. He then worked as a shoe repairer and key cutter.

Everything went downhill for him at that point. He began using light drugs which spiraled into a crack-cocaine addiction and heavy drinking after two of his friends were murdered in separate events only 6 months apart.
However, in 2009, when he hit rock bottom, his friend George took him to visit an exhibition of stencil art in Bristol.

More info: Instagram

#1

Image credits: jps_artist

Realizing how he'd thrown his life away, he started cutting stencils with a rusty blade, a magazine cover and a stolen can of high-pressure spray paint.

However, he still hadn't faced his addiction at that point and he finally hit rock bottom when he was homeless and sleeping on the roof of an abandoned hotel.

Standing atop the ledge of that roof, he was debating whether he should jump and join his lost friends, but he decided to do the hardest thing: to prove that he could make it in the art game and show that, even though he grew up in a poor estate, he was not a loser like he'd been raised to believe.

#2

Image credits: jps_artist

#3

Image credits: jps_artist

He started to attend counseling and group meetings and finally turned his life around.

Pursuing art, with time, not only his equipment, but also his skills improved, he evolved his own style and technique.

JPS has an unique style, ranging from pop culture and lifelike horror movie characters over funny wordplay and perfect placement to massive dinosaurs and tiny micro stencils. His artworks can be found in countries across the globe, such as Norway, Spain, the United States of America and Germany, where he is now located.