You seem to be well-versed in the art of digital drawing. How did you get started in this wonderful pastime?
I was probably around eight years old the first time I saw someone draw in Microsoft Paint. Witnessing someone draw on a computer screen with a mouse blew my mind. I was never particularly good at drawing or coloring on paper, but for some reason I developed a knack for drawing with a mouse or touch pad. I've used more advanced digital drawing and editing programs before, but I always return to MS Paint. It's like an extension of my body or something. I know my way around the program and with it I can build images of whatever I dream up. Sure, there may be jagged edges but that's just become part of the style. If I really wanted straight edges, I could do it, and without a more advanced program too. MS Paint allows me to feel like I am the one drawing, and not just "cheating" by letting the software do it. Restrictions often give way to the best creativity.
I absolutely love "Buffalo Gals" - it both comforts me and horrifies me simultaneously. What is the inspiration behind this artwork?
Thank you, and I am so glad to comfort and horrify you all at once! I took a guitar class in high school and one of the simple traditional songs in our book was "Buffalo Gals." The lyrics go, "Buffalo gals, won't you come out tonight? Come out tonight?? Come out tonight?! Buffalo gals, won't you come out tonight, and dance by the light of the moon?!?" Well, I added the excessive punctuation for dramatic purposes. Anyway, I thought these lyrics were funny so I sketched a very literal cartoon of some buffalo-headed women dancing in the moonlight. My classmates enjoyed it so eventually I made it into an MS Painting, to horrify and comfort the world.
What's the meaning of "Fingerlegs" (or "We're all different with Linda Ellerbee")?
Well, I saw a picture online of a person who had their forearm amputated, and they had gotten a tattoo of a big fingernail near the end of the nub, so their short arm had essentially become a giant finger. Then I wondered, what if someone had a big nail tattooed on each of their amputated legs? It would be just like when you take your hand and make your index and middle finger walk across surface in front of you. Only the real thing! Fingerlegs! So I clipped some anatomical drawings to see how someone might look with either the tattooed arm as legs or with real fingers as legs. I liked them both, so I mangled up some more people and added Linda Ellerbee's head on one.. Why Linda? Maybe because I miss watching Nick News in the morning, or maybe because her head really complements those uneven foot-hands.
"I Made It!" seems to sum up 90% of my experiences at McDonald's. Is there a story behind this artwork?
My college roommate worked at McDonald's and told me about this custodian who worked at her store, an old black man with big separated teeth and such. Somehow (probably because it actually happens all the time) we came up with the scenario of a McDonald's customer angrily returning their food to the counter, yelling at the cashier, with the crazy old janitor in the background claiming responsibility for the order. I brought the vision to life because I believe the janitorial takeover of McDonald's food service is a growing worldwide concern and it is imperative for the public to witness such accurate propaganda as I have made here...I made it!
What about "Normal Woman" and "Clones of Normal Woman?" This woman appears to be exceedingly normal.
"Normal Woman" was a follow up to "Ordinary Guy," which were both experiments in MS Painting technique. I wanted to see how it would look to paint over a large photograph in patches of color I sampled from the original photo. It turned out cool and it's kind of a fun way to get a good (or normal?) looking picture. I got the photos from actually searching images of "normal women" and "ordinary guys." So that woman is, indeed, exceedingly normal. Her cloning incident happened when I was trying to choose a background for her. I had recently learned how to easily proportionally resize selections on MS Paint and went a little crazy with the normal woman, if that's possible. I took a screenshot because I liked how it showed the Microsoft Paint window, hinting at what I'm working with.
Who’s your favorite artist on Paint Avant-Garde and why?
I've really been enjoying the works of Austerlitz. Why? Well besides the recurring inclusion of my most favorite things (cats, Whoopi Goldberg, and Fred Savage), I'm just very jealous that I didn't think of "The Great CATSby" first!
Is digital drawing your only creative outlet, or do you have others (and if so, what are they)?
Besides writing obscene poetry, I have a disturbing and often visually nauseating blog at http://manglejangles.blogspot.com/.
And finally, what’s your favorite color? Why is it vastly superior to other colors?
Bright fuschia, and honorable mention to cyan, because I find that those colors are the most difficult to stare at. Especially when the two are alternating in front of your eyes at a rapid rate.
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDelete