Jasper Leadbeater · Shotgun shell portraits

“I was told art could be a hobby.”

Portraits built from spent shotgun cartridges, hand-cut stencils and paint. Made in Britain, shown in Manchester, Abu Dhabi and, this February, Palm Beach.

Raise the Limit · Sean Connery · 70 × 58 cm · Edition of 10

The Best Is Over, James Gandolfini, The Sopranos

Caine Is Carter · Michael Caine · 58 × 70 cm · Edition of 10

Money Lending Business · Vinnie Jones · 70 × 58 cm · Edition of 6

The Best Is Over · James Gandolfini, The Sopranos · 95 × 70 cm · Edition of 6

The Flying Scot · Sir Jackie Stewart · Hull cartridges shot at Holland & Holland

I / IV

Jasper Leadbeater holding ‘Allow Me’ — Jasper with ‘Allow Me’

“I was told I wasn’t allowed to do art when I was eighteen.”

I didn’t want to go to university. My parents made me go. I asked to do art there and they said no, it could be a hobby.

“So I dropped out of Edinburgh to do art.”

I don’t really talk about my story. It’s probably time I did. People buy the artist, not just the art.

III

“The idea was sustainable artwork.”

Taking something that is usually waste, spent cartridges off the ground after a shoot, and turning it into contemporary work.

“Every head stays legible under the paint.”

Eley, Hull, Fiocchi, Gamebore. The object never disappears into the picture. That tension is the work.

Laying the hand-cut stencil over the brass — Stencil, taped over the field

Spraying a tone through the stencil — One tone at a time

The work

The medium came from the countryside he grew up in.

Spent 12-bore cartridges are gathered after shoots across Britain. Each brass head is cleaned and set, head out, into a hexagonal field. Over the brass he lays stencils he has drawn and cut by hand, one layer for each tone, lightest first, until the face surfaces from the metal. Nothing is printed and nothing is laser cut. The design and process are patented.

Dance Good, Uma Thurman, Pulp Fiction — Dance Good Uma Thurman, Pulp Fiction 70 × 95 cm · Edition of 6 Nickel cartridges for the monochrome. Nothing on the brass is painted white.

Judgment Day, Arnold Schwarzenegger — Judgment Day Arnold Schwarzenegger 95 × 70 cm · Edition of 8

Marcellus Goes Medieval, Ving Rhames, Pulp Fiction — Marcellus Goes Medieval Ving Rhames, Pulp Fiction 95 × 70 cm · Edition of 6

Iconography

The collection.

Sixteen pieces. Price on request.

Nasty Nas, Nas — Nasty Nas Nas 58 × 70 cm · Edition of 6

M.M III, Eminem — M.M III Eminem 58 × 70 cm · Edition of 6

Good Day, Ice Cube — Good Day Ice Cube 58 × 70 cm · Edition of 6

The RZA, RZA, Wu-Tang Clan — The RZA RZA, Wu-Tang Clan 58 × 70 cm · Edition of 4

Busta, Busta Rhymes — Busta Busta Rhymes 58 × 70 cm · Edition of 6

Snoop, Snoop Dogg — Snoop Snoop Dogg 58 × 70 cm · Edition of 6

The Chef, Raekwon, Wu-Tang Clan — The Chef Raekwon, Wu-Tang Clan 58 × 70 cm · Edition of 6

Notorious, The Notorious B.I.G. — Notorious The Notorious B.I.G. 58 × 70 cm · Edition of 6

Mr Mef, Method Man, Wu-Tang Clan — Mr Mef Method Man, Wu-Tang Clan 58 × 70 cm · Edition of 6

In the workshop

The Western collection

Four new pieces: John Wayne, Clint Eastwood, Val Kilmer and an Apache portrait. Photographed in October. Collectors on the list see them first.

Shown with

Smolensky Gallery · House of Bruar · ADIHEX Abu Dhabi · Race Against Dementia · The Field

Exhibiting

The Palm Beach Show
February 2027

Palm Beach County Convention Center, West Palm Beach. Private viewings before, during and after the fair, by appointment.

Request a private viewing

Acquire, commission, or visit.

Private acquisition by email. Shipped worldwide, framed and insured. Replies within two working days. Or on Instagram, @jasperleadbeater.art.