Seven-year-old graffiti artist following in dad’s footsteps

Niko started to show interest in art three years ago, now you can spot his dinos all over Medicine Hat.

But his natural artistic ability is no surprise.

He takes after his dad, Jeff Goring, who’s been a graffiti artist since he was a teenager.

“It’s just awesome to see your kids find something they love and as a parent, you just want to support them with that,” Jeff said. “It’s kinda cool he’s into graffiti and into art and it’s just teaching him the legal side aspect of it and I see art too as just such an outlet.”

Being a graffiti artist has opened many doors for Jeff. Aside from painting murals, he’s worked with brands like Lululemon and Nike.

Niko Goring and his dinos (Photo courtesy Jeff Goring)

“Starting off, my dad taught me to hold it straight up and put your finger on the cap thing and push it down and it spray paints and you can do whatever,” Niko said.

While it might be all fun and games for Niko, Jeff sees the bigger impact of art. He says being able to create is great for mental health, no matter your age.

Jeff brings Niko along whenever there’s an opportunity to paint.

“We’ve done a lot together. We stick together with a lot of things,” Jeff said. “A lot of times if I go out painting, we’ll bring him out even on the big production over there. I always try and give him a spot just to encourage him with it.”

Niko Goring and his dinos (Photo courtesy Jeff Goring)

All the practice is paying off. Jeff says the more Niko paints, the better his graffiti gets.

For anyone interested in chasing their art dreams, Niko has some advice.

“If you’re trying to get into art, make up your thing and then keep on doing it and doing it and people will notice,” Niko said.

Next up for the young artist is to just keep creating. Niko plans to paint hammerhead sharks and geckos all over Medicine Hat.

by Teagan Rasche

Seven-year-old graffiti artist following in dad’s footsteps

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