Arts University Plymouth graduate whose playful artwork draws on dyslexia, wordplay and childhood doodling has seen his first professional gallery show nearly sell out on preview night.

Conor George Trapnell, 33, was awarded the Velarde award after being identified by the Kingsbridge gallery, which was looking for emerging artists among University of Plymouth graduates.

His work combines traditional oil painting with printmaking, creative writing and image-transfer techniques, often drawing on humour and accidental spelling mistakes.

Conor said his dyslexia had influenced his approach to creativity, although he was reluctant to view it as a limitation.

Instead, creative writing became a way of allowing ideas to flow without worrying about spelling or presentation.

"I had to make myself write whatever word came next," he said.

The resulting stream of consciousness became a large magazine, which Conor used as his final university piece.

He said the writing helped him "pre-visualise" artwork, with spelling mistakes and tangents often providing ideas for paintings.

One example came from the way a spelling mistake or misreading could transform a word into something new.

Conor said he had produced a painting of an ice cream "Fab" with a female figure, turning the word into "fab-ulass".

"That's just things like that, just plays on words that have happened naturally from spelling mistakes," he said.

While travelling in Australia and New Zealand, he kept a visual diary, drawing what he saw rather than writing about it.

He later trained as a carpenter before studying art, bringing his practical skills into his artistic practice.

At university, he learned traditional techniques including making his own paint, canvases, boards and gesso.

Conor said he initially struggled to find his own artistic voice under the influence of a traditionally minded lecturer, but found it after a change in teaching staff.

"I think that's what my painting is all about now," he said. "When I know I'm having fun with a painting, I know it's working."

His influences include the surf and skate scene, particularly Australian artist and surfer Ozzy Wright, as well as artists Rose Wylie and Philip Guston.

Seeing Wylie's large-scale, playful paintings helped him realise artwork did not have to be overly serious.

His latest work combines oil painting with image-transfer techniques, allowing him to experiment cheaply on paper before transferring successful pieces onto boards.

"If it goes wrong, it's not a massive cost," he said. "And if it goes right, then I'll print it onto an actual board."

That playful approach has struck a chord with visitors to his current exhibition, which Conor said had "pretty much sold out".

He returned to the gallery to deliver more work after several pieces were sold at the Velarde private preview on Friday, October 2.

"It's nice to feel like what I'm doing is kind of validated," he said.

"But it's nice to be in that professional environment. It's clearing space out my studio. I'd rather have it on someone's wall than stacked up."

Conor has also secured a part-time position as a woodwork technician at Arts University Plymouth.

Working three days a week, the role will allow him to spend the remaining four days developing his own artwork.

He hopes to build up a new stock of paintings, pursue further exhibitions and potentially run workshops encouraging people to approach painting more imaginatively and playfully.

To see Conors art work visit: https://www.conortrapnell.co.uk/about