'I don't want to fake the funk' – Henry Taylor, the painter of black American life

Adored by Rihanna and Jay-Z, he finds his subjects in supermarket queues - and on the streets of LA's toughest neighbourhoods. How has the artist found lockdown in a tiny Somerset village?

Other people look; Taylor sees." That was Zadie Smith's assessment of the American artist Henry Taylor. Thirty seconds into my Zoom call with him, I begin to understand what she meant, as he joyfully dissects the decor in my room. Oh, you got a guitar back there?" he says. What are you going to do, play me a song?" Then, noticing the slogan on my cap, he laughs and says: I can't be Free and Easy ... peasy." Suddenly, I'm wondering what else is in view.

You might think this was an artist trying not so subtle unsettling tactics at the beginning of an interview. But Taylor is far too spontaneous for anything like that. A question about what he's interested in at the moment prompts an answer that turns into a rapid-fire breakdown of his artistic worldview, and a glimpse into how his mind works. I'm receptive, you know what I mean? I'm a sensitive individual. I respond to things. I'm empathetic. I don't try to be hardcore, I don't want to fake the funk. I just tried to keep it real, bro. If I want to sit down and paint you, I'll paint you."