"The Chewing Gum Man."

It's a cold but bright sun-washed day in central London as I head across Millennium bridge to meet a much-loved and locally famed public artist.

Ben Wilson is most known for his tiny, detailed paintings on pre-loved chewing gum - that is to say, it's spat out and repeatedly stepped-on before making a suitable canvas for his miniature paintings.

As I walk the crossing, I see small worlds of colour depicting, badges, weddings, abstract shapes and imagery, all stuffed between the bridge's iron slats. It creates a sort-of informal art gallery (or "trail" as Ben refers to them) as you hurry across one of London's most used bridges.

As Ben's catch phrase goes: "There's a hidden world beneath your feet, depending on how hard you look."

Many are dedicated to passerby's requests, others are purely derived from Ben's imagination.

It’s a complex and lovingly pain staking process to produce each piece, there’s a special technique in gathering and shaping the gum, and he quickly dries his paints with a lighter before applying several layers of lacquer to each miniature. He’ll then come back for a seemingly endless cycle of touch ups as the art fades from the foot traffic on top.

It's common to see Ben whimsically lain across the middle of pathways, with his signature orange, gum and paint-stuck overalls and toolbox. And today, he looks no different.

As we head to the "Corner" café by the Tate Modern he comments about how the new built- skyscrapers nearby are getting so tall they're blocking the sun on the bridge, making the end of the day a bit cold. He tells me he always goes for a coffee to refresh after a day's work.

"There's a hidden world beneath your feet, depending on how hard you look."
Ben Wilson

Once we're seated with two lattes and a laptop between us, he tells me about what it's like to be the "Chewing Gum Man", and the difficulties he's had fitting in throughout his life, from the rigid structure of academia to his day to day work as an artist.

Originally, he was more into sculptures, he's had wide acclaim for his woodworking from Baltimore to Kaustinen, and he's been known to build eco-centric shrines and environments in the heart of woodlands, it's clear a good connection to nature is a top priority, and the hardly bio-degradable canvas he now paints on is a topical comment. Although not everything he creates carries any inherent message, according to him.

Despite this, he has a rebel without a cause-esque vendetta. In the 80s he was responsible for the "Sleeping Giant" in Hadley Woods, where in the dead of night he constructed a massive belly-down sleeping humanoid sculpture made out of weaved twigs, on top of a hill. Obviously, it was a sensational mystery until he (once again in the dead of night) deconstructed it at a later date for reasons unknown - no matter how much I asked.

When he was younger, his struggles with school culminated in dropping all of his A-levels but art by the time he was in sixth form.

"I believe in diversity of action, diversity of thought."
Ben Wilson

Ben Wilson building a sculpture in his early art career.

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In a hushed voice, he leans in, pushing through a veil of steam hanging over our mugs. The way he excitedly whispers his plan to erect a giant wooden sculpture in the middle of his school field makes it seem like it's something he's putting into action at break time, tomorrow. Although it's been over thirty years.

I pressed him on what exactly he was protesting, but he said it wasn't actually for any real reason. Allegedly, he tells me, his art teacher was all for it.

Ben said: "That was just art for the sake of art.

"Just start and be excited about what will happen." He added.

In other cases, like when his gum painting is dedicated to someone, his art has a real and direct impact on a person's life, like being able to design someone's wedding proposal or honour someone's passing in a small way.

"I wanted my art to fulfil a social function in society - each person can have amazing impact just on their immediate sphere of influence."
Ben Wilson

One time, he tells me, a man spent a couple of hours trying to create a wedding proposal out of chewing gum but couldn't quite recreate Ben's touch, he then explained his situation to Ben, who gladly made an intricate proposal for him, to which he was overjoyed.

Ben's instagram is awash with people posting about finally meeting the man who brightens their commute, and it's clear that they're a clear motivator for his art from the way he broadly smiles as he describes his day-to-day interactions, he waves goodbye for the day to a man handing out flyers at one end of the bridge and explains they have a professional relationship in watching each other's stuff during loo breaks.

It's not always plain sailing being a man spread-eagle across the pavement however, Ben has had run ins with assaults, ambulance staff and even bridge authorities.

The City Bridge Foundation once said they'd have to remove Ben's art during a deep clean for maintenance, Ben said: "Essentially they were saying they needed to do engineering work on the bridge.

"They were going to use pressurised water and remove all the gum. One of the spokesmen were saying, essentially, it's gum, but I said no it's not; it's art." He added. Fortunately, he would eventually go on to win his battle with the bridge authorities.

Other times, people wrongly assumed Ben to be in a state of drunken stupor or injured, and he's dealt with ambulance crews being wrongly called, or even being physically beaten. Ben said: "People are projecting all sorts of things onto me, and a lot of the time they're very wrong.

"If three ambulances turn up at once, I know they got it wrong." He added

Nevertheless, The Chewing Gum Man continues to diligently toil away at the gum, as he has done since 2004. His designs, requests and work notes span notebooks, but his enthusiasm for what he does seems boundless.

"I wanted to create a form of art that made connections between people; we're not isolated, and we're all totally connected."
Ben Wilson

Example of Ben's mini art works.

An example of Ben's art work.

An example of Ben's artwork.

It could be seen as a slightly odd occupation to be working with used gum, and some may wonder how he manages to pay the bills, but don't be mistaken, Ben is a poignant and prominent cosmopolitan artist who's exhibited in many famous arenas (whether invited or not), such as Alexandra Palace, the Jennifer Lauren Gallery, and of course, (unofficially) the Tate Modern.

Still, Ben says it's a slight relief when he manages to sell a commissioned piece, and his website links to a shop where some of his miniatures sell for hundreds of pounds.

Ben said: "To do a piece of work that I can sell, that brings an income, is a relief and a real nice thing when that happens."

As a live band interrupts our conversation in the café, I realise it's been almost an hour and a half since we first met, not wanting to take up too much of his time, I bid The Chewing Gum Man farewell, and as I leave, he reminds me to look for the hidden trails he's recently been working on across London's tube stations...

Ben Wilson's online shop where you can buy his art!

Ben Wilson's timeline as an artist since 1984, provided by Ben's website.