HGV Driver Turns Artist in Maidenhead

We could virtually guarantee you that an individual taking HGV lessons anywhere in the UK is not likely to learn about fine art during his or her training courses. So that must mean Maidenhead driver Emma Ryan has art in her blood. There’s no other way to explain the fact that the 23-year-old has been chosen as part of a team working on Maidenhead’s Art on the Street program.

According to the Maidenhead Advertiser, Ryan will join other team members to help beautify the city’s St. Cloud Way train station. The project is part of a larger £197,000 project being funded by the local council. The idea behind the larger project is to spruce up certain areas in order to make some of England’s towns more visually attractive. A more beautiful town or city improves the perception it has among both residents and visitors.

As for Ryan, she is an HGV driver and a part-time artist specialising in cut paper designs. For the railway station, her designs, taken from trees at Kidwells Park, will be enlarged and re-created in galvanized steel, then placed under an overpass. Appropriate sounds will be recorded by another artist and then played over a sound system to enhance Ryan’s work.

HGV Drivers Are People Too

Although Ryan’s addition to the Art on the Street program is not directly related to HGV driving, we featured the story in this space for a very specific reason: we want to demonstrate that HGV drivers are real people too. Far too often we hear only about the negative stories resulting from traffic accidents or drivers breaking the law. That gives people the wrong impression about the HGV industry.

The vast majority of drivers who have taken HGV lessons and passed a practical skills test are no different from anyone else in the UK. They have families, friends, social lives, and hobbies. In Ryan’s case, her status as a part-time artist clearly demonstrates she is not the insensitive and unintelligent person professional drivers are often made out to be.

In fact, some of the skills that make her a great artist also make her a great driver. HGV drivers need to be able to pay attention to detail while also grasping the bigger picture; they need to be able to take in all of their surroundings simultaneously for maximum awareness; they need to be very sensitive to spatial dimensions. You might make the case that driving HGV vehicles is an art form itself.

With all that said, there is currently a significant shortage in HGV and PCV drivers across the UK. That shortage will only get worse in the coming months as the number of new drivers getting into the industry is not keeping pace with those retiring.

If you are looking for a career with a good income and a promising future, consider taking HGV lessons with the HGV Training Centre. We will have you licensed and on the road in no time.