When Kevin started painting life-sized portraits of basketball players, even he thought his hobby was 'a bit ridiculous'.
Four years ago, the 48-year-old had been enjoying a successful career as a DJ and music producer, living in Chorlton with his partner and their two young children. But one night, he found himself 'unable to move' in bed after a show, and was rushed to hospital before being diagnosed with sepsis.
That was only the beginning. Following months in hospital and extensive medical examinations, doctors told Kevin he had thyroid cancer - a rare form of the condition that affects the a small gland at the base of the neck.
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The devastating diagnosis meant Kevin had to have an operation to remove his thyroid, as well as radiation treatment and a host of prescriptions. But the father-of-two said it was the recovery from the illness that he found the most challenging.
"I found life impossible afterwards," he told the Manchester Evening News. "It was like it took away my ability to cope with the world. I was very sensitive to everything - I struggled to sit at the table and have dinner with my own family."
In early 2021, Kevin decided to rekindle a childhood love of painting to help himself cope with the impact cancer had had on his life. An avid basketball fan, he challenged himself to paint life-sized portraits of some of the game's biggest (literally) stars in a series called 'Ballers'.
"It was very calming," he said. "The process of painting was very helpful to me, and working towards a goal. I felt like I was achieving something."
But it was also the 'ridiculousness' of the challenge that attracted him to it. "After I'd done a couple, I wanted to paint one guy who was seven foot seven," he laughed. "Can you imagine trying to fit that inside your home?"
Because of the size of his artworks, Kevin moved into a studio in Altrincham in April 2021. He said he didn't have any 'massive plans' for the paintings except to help his recovery and 'keep him sane' - but that changed once his niece suggested showcasing his work on TikTok, where he is now known as King Overman.
"It took off from there," he said. "I started posting videos, and realising people all over the world were interested - some of them had millions of views."
Realising he had established a following for himself, Kevin put together a catalogue of his art and sent it out to around 50 collectors. From most, there was radio silence. But one night, he got a call.
Spike Lee had seen his catalogue, and wanted to order five of his paintings. "I couldn't believe it," Kevin said. " I was so excited. I'm a huge fan - I grew up with all that late 80s hip-hop culture."
The legendary film director ordered portraits of Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Magic Johnson, Patrick Ewing, and Allen Iverson - a mammoth project for Kevin, whose paintings typically take between two to four weeks to finish. After he had completed them, Lee even posted one of them to his Instagram story, which was a surreal moment for Kevin.
Not long after, former NBA star Dominique Wilkins contacted Kevin and asked if he could buy his own portrait. "It has been quite mad," the artist admitted. "I just feel really lucky. I love doing it."
Kevin says he has plans to take his art to 'a whole new level' in the future - but that mostly, he wants to raise awareness of how creativity and art can help in recovery from devastating illnesses like thyroid cancer.
"Having cancer puts you at an advantage, you don't take life for granted," he said. "But the lesson can apply to anybody.
"Find the thing you're talented at and also love doing, then make a life or career from that. It sounds stupidly obvious, but I meet so many people who don't and wonder why they are unhappy in life."
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