“What happens when a surrealist studies cartoons & illustration rather than fine art”

Chris Musto

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Shannon

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S.L.A.M. – Photography can be a very time consuming process. Photography isn’t all you do though. How do you find time to create so many different pieces of art?

Shannon - Well, I honestly think I am more of a slacker than you are giving me credit for. I tend to pour a lot of dedication into one project or another if I can, and try not to have the hectic juggling that some people can accomplish. I get really set into what I am doing at time. You should ask the models I shoot with; I am like a different person when it hits me. College is also very good for an artist’s drive – you complete or you fail. But even without that I find the time because this something I enjoy. More than that even, it’s almost necessary. I find that if I don’t create something for a long period of time, I start getting sulky and depressed. Plus, I have a lot of friends who really encourage me, and that’s a wonderful thing to have.

But really, I’m still a slacker.

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S.L.A.M. – What does art mean to you? Why is it important?

Shannon - Oh geez…. I think I already touched on that a little. Art means a lot of things, of course. That’s obvious. You look through history and see all sorts of interpretations and individual significances – craft, self expression, politics, viewer education and of course art for art’s sake, whatever that even means anymore – but for me personally? That’s hard to say. I think that, yes, I am expressing myself after the fashion I see fit. I think I am revealing things about myself. It can’t be helped, I am describing what I see and think with these fabrications, how I view the world through my personal mental lens, my subconscious filter. In a sense, I am having a dialogue with the viewer. Not in the sense that the audience has any care at all to how I feel or whats lies in the gray meat under my skull, more in that I am presenting a concept, image, whatever, and then they are responding however they do, addressing it mentally. It’s an unspoken conversation.

S.L.A.M. – Could you tell us a bit about how art has come into your life and how it’s affected you?

Shannon - I started drawing back in grade school. My teachers would scold me for doodling in class. I guess I lapsed for a little, and picked it back up again in middle school. I had a really heinous teacher who lectured for the whole class period and we had to take unnecessary amounts of notes. I mean, she graded the stuff. I did great on the tests, but abysmally on my note taking. I still don’t see the point of that, I have a really good recall. But anyway, I would draw a lot in class, basically every day, I find I remember things a lot better when I do, strangely enough. I could flash you a few sciencey type paper to back this up, but that’s besides the point. This kick started my career in art, I guess you could say. I ended up doing a lot of work on my own, taking a few art classes my senior year (which I should have done from the start) and have been moving up since. I’m sort of molding my whole life and future endeavors around it now, if that says anything. I still don’t take decent notes.

S.L.A.M. – If someone saw only your artwork, what do you think they could tell about you? How much of the artist’s person is in the work?

Shannon - It’s hard to say, from my point of view. I mean, I know the process that goes into these things, I know what I was thinking about at the time, why I did what I did. The viewer doesn’t have that luxury. Something personal and meaningful to me could be seen as really shallow to an outsider without any sort of back story. But then, a lot of contemporary art is highly conceptual, and the ideas are the whole point. I really vacillate on this topic quite a bit. Where do I want to set the fulcrum on that particular balancing beam of instant accessibility? But I think I might be getting a smidgen off topic. How much of myself shows through my work? On one hand, it is like an author writing a book – the characters are not the author, but the author inevitably shines through. I guess what I am saying is a lot. They could piece together a lot. Especially given some pieces.

Some pieces?

Once I wrote down everything I wanted for three weeks and put it up on two hundred odd feet of plastic sheeting. Long story. Interesting experience, that.

S.L.A.M. – What’s your favorite medium? Do you have any pieces you’re particularly fond of?

Shannon - I never liked the concept of favorites. It seems to invoke, to me, this idea that there are certain things that I would choose over all other things in a given category, at any time. This is strange to me. It may sound like a cop out, but I’m not trying to worm my way out of the question. I am driven by new experiences, inspirational, aesthetic, surreal and super-real moments. I revel in new materials, new ways of working, and I add them to my growing mental library of methods. Experimentation is great! It helps you grow as an artist. But I also love working with the tools that are familiar to me, close to my heart. No one is better than the other, and each medium I work with adds depth and understanding to the others. Photography, for instance, helps better my skills in drawing. It seems counter-intuitive maybe, but it’s absolutely true. It broadens the way you think, how you approach your work.

As for pieces I am fond of? I like many pieces for many different reasons. It would be easier to ask me about individual works. They are all pros and cons, my dubious creations. Though I will admit to liking some more than others, there is no easy top five, or even twenty.

S.L.A.M. – If there’s one thing you could give the world through your art, what would it be?

Shannon - Orgasms? World peace? Ok, I won’t be snarky. Realistically… So many people end up getting stuck in the monotony of every day existence. They trudge along, sort of caught in their own heads, grinding their gears. It’s not necessarily a bad place to be, per se, but you can’t be there all the time. Sometimes all I want is to wake people up, to bring them to the here and now and force them to turn the lights on, so to speak. When people are surprised, perplexed, when they encounter new situations that they have no preset programming for, their brains pick up, become more aware. I want to, I guess, get them to think a little, or at least momentarily snap out of themselves. Are you following?

S.L.A.M. – Is there anything else you’d like for us to know?

Shannon - Be yourself. Follow your heart. Think big. Don’t be afraid to try new things. More cliche advice. What can I really say? I hope I get somewhere in this big scary world. But if there is drive, there is a way, and that applies for me and for everyone else out there. I wish everyone luck on their own personal life missions, and I thank you for interviewing me.

Interview by Daiquiri Rene Jones
SLAM, Support Local Art Magazine
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Animator, illustrator, cartoonist, and gamer Donovan Santiago is a cup floweth over kind of artist. A refreshingly positive outlook in personality and in work, he reminds us that work can be fun. 

S.L.A.M: It seems you’ve done a variety of things with a focus around cartoon art. You’ve taught, animated, and you seem to draw incessantly. What do you tell people you do? How do you describe it?

DONOVAN: Well, the first thing people ask after you tell them you are an Artist is, “Oh, what kind of Art do you do?” and I reply, “Ummmmm… I like to do it all, I do what’s fun in that moment but mostly Cartoony stuff.”

S.L.A.M:  Do you have a background in this area? What has been the path to where you are right now? And would you do anything different? If so, what? And why?

DONOVAN: Originally I drew to entertain myself. I was born in the Philippines and didn’t have too many toys to start off with when I lived with my Artistic Father, but so long as I had a crayon and a piece of paper, I had everything I needed to create my little worlds. Beyond that after moving to the U.S. to be with my Mom, I absorbed a lot of T.V. and Cartoons which further fueled my imagination. My Dad who stayed in the Philippines eventually became an Animator for Hanna Barbera over seas and although I didn’t grow up with him, I grew up with his Art. he’d mail me crazy random character sheets and other things he drew from Johnny Quest to Dick Dastardly getting his nuts chomped by a lobster. Awesome shit that brought these characters further to life in my young mind.

S.L.A.M:  When looking at your individual style, it’s almost an East meets West with a twist of a joint and a little Bob Newhart. Yet, there is a universal appeal or sweetness to it. To what do you attribute this? And why?

DONOVAN: Well I used to be a painter of light until Dr. Switzer told me to’ “STOP IT!”. But really I pulled my styles from what I enjoyed, both American Cartoons and Japanimation, Comics, Horror Flicks and Godzilla. I always tried drawing in different styles out of a combination of Boredom and Adventure. To this day, the more variety in my work the better but always with a cartoony twist.

S.L.A.M:  Speaking of joints, what sort of topics do you like to discuss at parties? Anything specific? What do you avoid and why?

DONOVAN: I feel like I can flow into whatever topic is rolling around a party comfortably. I only avoid talking about politics and the weather for the same reason, they are both powerful forces I feel I have no control of. And I’d much rather talk about Video Games, movies or some such funny internet junk-food.

S.L.A.M:  What or who have you been under the influence of, or inspired by? 

DONOVAN: Under the influence of and inspired by Terri Lloyd, I have it tattooed on my ass like a Cabbage Patch Kid. She introduced me to many many of those awesome Japanese Imports and Artists that were beyond the Library of my small town at the time before the internet. I think I’ve more than made up for that missing internet browsing time though. Aside from yourself, Dali for his perspective, Michelangelo for his diversity, Disney for his empire and my father. I was inspired for a long time by street pharmacists but once it was my job to push a bunch of little colored squares and make them look like something, those little colored squares would bleed into each other. I couldn’t have that. So I keep my dome razor sharp these days.

S.L.A.M:  Aside from the more esoteric inspiration stuff, what motivates you? What really gets your juices flowing? What gets you out of bed in the morning or late afternoon and moving toward the wacom or art supplies?

DONOVAN: Other great art inspires me, I know I joked about Kinkade earlier but I wish I could create light like that! Everything from seeing my little girls crayon scribbled ghosts to gorgeous graffiti that will just vanish like a sunset. Music inspires me a lot, I always have drawing music on and my pace can be dictated by my playlist. Just like my taste in eye candy my ear candy must come in assorted flavors and always be market fresh! 

There is art all around us, I’m like a sponge, I soak it all in and when my brain is full I ring it out and start again.

S.L.A.M:  What are you doing when you aren’t creating visuals?

DONOVAN: When I’m not creating visuals I am enjoying visuals haha! I enjoy my family, I play, I fly kites and savor every bite of my wife’s cooking, which is inspiring in itself. Then nap.

S.L.A.M:  If you could have your dream job, what would it be? Do you see yourself achieving this? Why?

DONOVAN: I feel like I’ve already had a lot of dream jobs. There’s always a silver lining, some sparkle more than others. I’ve been blessed enough to do design work on video games like, ” Spongebob Square Pants, Fists of Foam” and Cartoons like, “Code Monkeys” for G4. Basically do what I love and be able to live by it. But I even loved working at a Borders Books soaking up all the reference, and spent many moons at one of my first jobs working at an Arcade/Minigolf fun center. It was all more good than bad. 

S.L.A.M:  What are you working on right now? Can you say or are you under non-disclosure? 

DONOVAN: My current projects are under NDA. Just know that I wouldn’t do it if it wasn’t fun. If you don’t enjoy what you’re doing, what’s the point? But always working on my own art when there is breathing room. 

S.L.A.M: : What do you want people to take away from your work? 

DONOVAN: I only hope someone will be as inspired by my work as I have been by so many others on a daily basis and that all that doodling and daydreaming in class didn’t go to waste.

S.L.A.M: What’s next for you?

DONOVAN: I’ll probably have a snack. Then back to the drawing board. 

S.L.A.M:  Where can people visit your work? 

DONOVAN: I’ve been too swamped update but…

http://donovansantiago.blogspot.com/

http://g4tv.com/codemonkeys/index.html

http://www.myspace.com/ideamagnet

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Bradley

S.L.A.M. – What type of artist are you?

Bradley - “A photographer and to a lesser extent an illustrator. I worked with a partner for a while in a business called Pyramid Photography where we did a lot of jobs making graphic designs for fliers. We did weddings and portraits while acting on the less commercial side as two person collective. Pyramid fell apart last summer. I’ve been putting my time towards finishing several volumes of writing that I intend to sell to a publisher by the end of the year. A friend of mine, Constantin Preda, works in reality television out of Orlando, VH1 and stuff like that. He has been coming to Spring Hill, where I live, and he’s putting together a documentary about my life and efforts to make a career for myself.”

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S.L.A.M. – When did you began / how did you get into each of your creative arts?

Bradley - “I began shooting on my motor’s dusty point and shoot Kodak in the late 90s, before the digital revolution. It was a frustrating experience for me because I have this cinematic eye that simply wouldn’t translate through this $15 piece of shit that didn’t even frame up properly. When I was 19yrs old, I began wearing contact lenses. I realized I missed the frames of my glasses because I would pretend while gliding around in my wheelchair that I was on a dolly track with my glasses letterboxing my vision. This way my whole world was a movie in constant production. I finally bought a $200 SLR from Ritz at the mall, quite a gamble for me because I had no idea I’d take to photography and it was a lot of money for me at the time. Growing up in the sticks, there were no second hand places with SLRs. I wouldn’t even have known to look anyway. I shot on that overpriced Nikon for five years, random things, just learning how to use the camera, learning shutter and aperture by trial and error. This was JUST before internet so information was limited. Many of the images in my book Eyes of Olivia X were shot during this time. I met a girl named Mitzi in late 2001 and she was an amateur photographer, too. We started shooting together, she was like my alter ego (I don’t like the cheesy implications of “muse,” the way people read into that). Mitzi lived with my brother before long, so we’d hang out a lot and I always had my camera. There were lots of impromptu shoots that I still take material from today. Long story short, I began experimenting how you go about telling a story in still photography.

My illustration efforts began from frustration. I’d been talking with a painter friend of mine who is VERY talented. But she was also busy and maybe even a touch flaky, like a lot of kids. We were gonna collaborate where I would shoot some images and this painter would paint them in a style we agreed upon. Three years passed and it still hadn’t happened. I get hung up on things some times and by then I’d taken a couple painting courses in the USF arts program. I learned a lot from Elizabeth Condon, but I HATED working with actual paint. Confinement to a wheelchair doesn’t lend itself to the physicality inside of the tight, personal space you need to keep around your canvass. It was a big hassle for me to paint. And a handicap person never feels worst than when being caught in a position of having their limitation strike them in their face again and again on a daily basis. Because I don’t value my own time and I’m quite willing to waste a valiant effort, assuming these things won’t succeed, I started exploring how to take what I learned from Elizabeth Condon and apply them to what I was doing on Photoshop. It worked! I believe I’m a painter more than an illustrator. But since language is for communication and other artists don’t understand and get stuck on the idea when I say I’m a painter but that I use Photoshop and not oils or whatever, it’s easier to say “illustrator.” That works, too.

As far as writing, that began much the same way. I wanted to make movies. I had some ideas when I was 14 and I thought, fuck, I better write down this good stuff in case I never have good ideas again. I thought I was writing down the ideas that I’d be living off of well into old age. I wasn’t a good student in public school, so my early writing reads like a barely literate scribbling blown out of the window of a short bus, which I actually had to ride to school, I’m proud to say. Yes, I rode the short bus for 8yrs. I have amazing stories. You guys should be jealous.”

S.L.A.M. – What inspires your work?

Bradley – “Capturing my ideas, trying to make my time being alive count, trying to convince the people I love that I matter. And when I say that, I’m not just talking about the immediate people in my life, I’m talking about the ghosts of Stephen Crane and Milan Kundera, though Kundera is alive, that I deserve to take part in party I imagine they might have if they knew each other. I feel like I have many things to prove, too. There are many things in my life that I regret and, well, I suppose you don’t need a PH.D to see that I have limited use of my legs and that I might have a self loathing urge to compensate. Living in a fantasy realm is also like a natural opiate that I sometimes badly need. I’m naturally ambitious while also inherently humbled. There’s an electrical storming my brain between that positive and negative and it’s a difficult thing to deal with. It takes a lot of humor. But that’s not really enough. You try to deal with your problems head on in one way. But you’d go crazy before long, right? So the rest of the time you’re pretending like things don’t get to you. Like they don’t matter a whole hell of a lot even though when you go to bed, your heart is pounding and your brain is racing. Sometimes you’ll do anything to make that stop. The one thing I can do that won’t eventually be the cause of physiological damage to my nervous system is vent.

It’s worth noting that I’ve written a significant amount of letters all of my life, beginning with pen-pals and since the late 90s with email. I taught myself to tell stories this way. Personal correspondences was like a diary for me. If you were to collect my letters into one volume, I’m sre you’d have a pretty complete portrait of who I really am. Sometimes people don’t get it when they open up an email and have like four pages worth of bullshit from me. I doubt most people read what I write. That makes it easier to let myself go into weird places. That’s just fine with me. Except recently a guy who I thought was a friend of mine accused me of writing his girlfriend, who was actually my friend years before him, and trying to lay her by my emails. I guess that’s flattering if my letters could have such an effect. I’m always surprised by how people take me. I never know where I stand with people. No pun intended.”

S.L.A.M. – In photography, what subject matter do you prefer to capture? What equipment and processes do you use? Tell us about the photography on your web site.

Bradley – “BPValentine.com is my web site. I like telling stories. I like that process and it doesn’t matter the medium. It’s versatile and I’m never left wanting for something to do. Tell a story! Sometimes you can be all about the meaning of a story or maybe just playing around with the language of how to tell a story. In any case, there is always something to justify what you’re doing. To me, art isn’t about a result, it’s about the process of discovery. The only “result” you should have is the body of work you leave when you’re dead. All the rest are just dispatches, post cards, from the frontlines. They’re the indelible impressions left marking your flesh. I can’t help but to come off as dramatic. If it helps to cool the melodrama, let me add I really believe in what I’m saying.

I use a Canon 40D. It’s a great camera. It’s fast and I use a fast Canon lens. Versitaile. And that’s what I gun for when buying gear. Is it light weightand versatile? Will it see in the dark with me, since I like dim light. And I need a fast camera for when my arms get weak while shooting. I tend to wobble. Just one of those things I have going against me. I have a Muscular Dystrophy, so my stamina is for shit compared to other young men. Let me be clear that I am not interested in brand of my gear as long as it’s a good piece. Much ago about nothing. One year Canon will have the superior camera while Nikon will top that somehow the next year. And so it will go. But I have to admit I am DYING to save up for a Canon 5D Mark II. I was holding out for that camera when a wedding job forced my hand to buy the one I have. If I waited another year, I would have been golden.

I am completely a digital user. Like I said, I worked exclusively on film gear for six years. I love film, but I can live with what I lose since in the end it all comes down to what I can afford.. I am not a purist. Whatever works for you is what you should use. Be open minded. Try new things. Bruce Lee has some quote about being water. That water can flow gently down a stream or crash down on you in a violent wave. It can flow around jagged rocks softly and take the shape of anything it fill or it can be frozen into hard ice. “Be water, my friend,” he says. So I try and be water.”

S.L.A.M. – Tell us about your illustrations.

Bradley – “Quite simply, I am a narrative photographer. I tell stories. My love for movies shines through everything I do. I am versatile enough that I can cover weddings and portraits and really anything else. RE: being water, haha. When I’m at a wedding, for example, the story is I am an alien from outer space and I’m taking anthropological images to send back to my home planet. Just for the sake of argument. I don’t really do that all of the time. But, yeah, stories.”

S.L.A.M. – What do you write about? Where do you usually write?

Bradley – “I write usually from home. It is difficult for me to focus. I can be emotional, so it’s a struggle sometimes to be disciplined and to remain an articulate individual. It doesn’t come naturally to me. So I spend a lot of time trying to understand myself, interpreting my own ideas, and keeping my mind sharp enough to make that work flow easier and not come off as pretentious. That can be difficult regardless of one’s sincerity. I don’t mean to make it sound like I’m such a deep person that I require all this time to analyze me. I just mean to point out the conflict I have of being drawn to art forms that I don’t have a particularly great aptitude for. That’s kind of my story in a nutshell, even looking at me physically being alive in a world I’m ill suited for. Lately my disability has been more of an issue for me thinking about, it isn’t usually. I hope I don’t sound obsessed. I’ve just been hitting this wall or ceiling and I wonder if I’ve taken this body and brain as far as it’s going to take me.

When I wake up, I make coffee and pour myself a glass of orange juice as well as a quart of water. Then I’ll strand myself on my bed with a notebook and pencil, push my wheelchair away so that it’s not easily accessible to me, and work until I just have to bring back my chair and restart the day. That gives me four hours at least, usually, of just writing or maybe reading my work. Or doing research on something. The rest of the day, I’m sorta mixing up the time where I’m just fucking around the where I’m doing real work at my laptop. It’s probably hard to tell when I am getting serious on a project. Work isn’t “work” for me. People usually have their lives and then their, their friendship and/or romances and then work. Maybe not in that order. At this point of my life, I don’t think it’s exaggerating to say that there’s really only my work to think about. It’s where my life is and where whatever friendships I have are.”

S.L.A.M. – Do you have any upcoming publications?

Bradley – “Like I said, I just finished a draft of a horror novel called Lowlife (or GOBLIN, still not sure what the title will be). So I’m shifting gears to thinking about finding a real publisher for the photographic novels I talked about earlier. I’m talking with people and looking for any advice I can get. If you think of the world as Las Vegas and life is a casino, then I think creatively you can say I just got off a hot streak and now I am looking for where to cash in my chips.

I self published those books through a site called Blurb.com, which I would recommend to anyone to use for their projects. Simply affordable and professional print quality. I could really distribute the books myself if I had the drive to do so and the inside baseball information and background one would need.”

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Interview by Nikki Elizabeth
SLAM, Support Local Art Magazine
The SLAM Network
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S.L.A.M: Julia, how did you get from small town girl in Davison, MI to big time artist in Chicago, IL?

Julia: I wouldn’t say I’m “big time,” rather I am an emerging artist and still in the very necessary developmental stages of my unique style. I do feel that success that comes too early on in an artist’s career can be very detrimental for this personal exploration. At this point in my career, I am extremely blessed to have a very solid artistic “family” in Chicago. How I ended up in Chicago is a rather interesting sequence of events. To make the story as short as possible, I met a very prolific poet named Mark Turcotte in a dive bar in Kalamazoo about five years ago. After reading his book “Exploding Chippewas,” I was deeply affected, and decided to reapply for the Emerging Artist Grant through the Kalamazoo Arts Council. I was awarded $3,000 to complete a series of paintings based on Turcotte’s collection of poems titled “Road Noise.” Shortly after my second solo show displaying these paintings, Turcotte brought me to Chicago to check out Tony Fitzpatrick’s show at the Cultural Center, and then to Tony’s studio (a very close friend of his). Meeting Tony was very influential for me, as he is a very established artist, and he talked “sense” into me regarding my planned move to New York (I was moving to Brooklyn that next month). I moved to Chicago less than a week later. That was one of the smartest decisions I have made, because it has been in Chicago that my work has really shifted and developed. It is a city that allows breathing room because you are not working to live, rather living to create work.

S.L.A.M: Top three pieces of advice you have ever been given.

Julia: Well, I really just have one, and that is, ”You just gotsta KICK SOME ASS!” –Homeless man in Flint, Michigan

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S.L.A.M: What does being a “life artist” mean?

Julia: Being a life artist means to create your own standard of living and your own standard of happiness without settling for any less. I abstain from boredom. It is possible to be happy, to make money, to work less and to have the time to create your work. It is simply a matter of taking risks, both major and minor, and constantly putting yourself in awkward or uncomfortable situations. Comfort = certain death for creative living.

S.L.A.M: We all love labels (har har) – - How do you classify your paintings?

Julia: They are a melding of many styles as well as methods of working (currently not just painting, but also drawing and methods of production). Fauvist colors, classical flesh and the utilizing of both modern and traditional technique. It is a delicate marriage without compromising quality of the desired image.

S.L.A.M: Walk readers through your creative process for any given painting.

Julia: Any given experience in my life can be the impetus for a new piece – be it even a mundane or arbitrary moment. Once I have an idea, I simply carry out my vision to the best of my ability. Due to the fact that I am drawing upon my personal experiences, some pieces are quite difficult to create. I almost slashed through a recent piece with white paint, because I was angry at my subject.

S.L.A.M: Are there any artists who have impacted your work?

Julia: Tony Fitzpatrick has been very influential for me, in my personal growth, with regard to his amazing work ethic. (EVERY day in the studio. EVERY day.) I love Kehinde Wiley’s mesh of traditional and culturally contemporary subject matter. I very much love the color palettes of Maurice de Vlaminck, Andre Derain and Van Gogh (as well as the raw energy). I am also very influenced by my contemporaries. A lot of my friends make a living with their art and their success makes me amazingly happy. I see it as a true possibility. I also draw off the energy of music – Piano Magic, Morrissey, Modest Mouse, Rachmaninoff, Godspeed You Black Emperor, The Twilight Sad, etc etc etc. In addition, I read a lot of poetry – Rimbaud, Baudelaire, Roethke, Neruda, etc etc.

S.L.A.M: Did you always know that you were going to be a painter or did you go through any trial and error as an artist?

Julia: I have always created. When we were younger, my sister and I made a space in my parent’s basement solely to create art. I mainly plowed through drawings in an attempt to have many, which I thought was better…that is until my sister taught me that it is about “quality, not quantity!” I remember once, my sister and I were in the studio and we painted the same picture of a stand of birch trees. Her painting was much better in my eyes and, being the emotional one in the family, I went outside to cry about my horrible talent in comparison to hers. My painting ended up winning Best of Show in the annual art show in Davison. It was then I began to have more faith in myself and my individual talent. In college I switched degrees several times, from fashion design to photography and finally painting.

S.L.A.M: How do you feel growing up as a creative person in a small town has influenced you both personally and professionally?

Julia: I had a very rambunctious childhood. I was a tomboy – I climbed trees, collected rocks and swam in dirty ponds. Mud was my friend and my mother would wash the dirt from behind my ears weekly. This upbringing instilled in me great respect for nature and creative living. We had to create stories and personal entertainment because we had no cable television, no video games or internet, and a rotary dial telephone. This way of living may seem a tad archaic, even for that time (the 80’s and early 90’s), but I wouldn’t have had it any other way!

S.L.A.M: Behind every artist there is some sort of support group. Tell readers about some of your great personal influences that have kept you grounded and positively motivated as an artist.

Julia: As I mentioned earlier, I have a great support network of artists in Chicago and beyond, that keep me inspired constantly. Their successes encourage me to continue working in a positive direction. I don’t drink alcohol, I greatly limit my distractions and I work on my art daily. I am here to create. Also, my mother and father were VERY supportive in my ambition to be an artist. My favorite gifts at Christmas time were Prismacolor pencils, fresh drawing paper and new tubes of paint! Mmmmmm!

S.L.A.M: Top three favorite cities – - Go!

Julia: Chicago. New York. Montreal.

S.L.A.M: Tell us something we don’t know – - about you, I mean!

Julia: I have a severe obsession with chocolate buttermilk layer cake.

S.L.A.M: You’re formally taught — Are there any instructors who may have influenced you?

Julia: I was “formally” taught in the sense that yes, I did go to college to obtain a fine arts degree in painting. However, aside of the fundamental classes that covered things like line and shading etc, I was not taught how to paint. My professors were amazing and encouraging, but it was a solitary education in the East Hall Studio where I really began to learn. I remember one professor that looked at my semester’s work and said “Your work is weird. You get an A.” It was a very freeform, loose education, but I am happy for that. There are two professors that influenced me greatly. One was Prof. Lou Rizzolo. We were looking at my drawings from a live model class. I was a photography major at the time and he turned to me and said, “You must paint.” I decided he was right. The other was Randy Walker – he was very animated and enthusiastic in his teaching. It excited me and really fostered true creative energy.

S.L.A.M: List your five “can’t live without” art supplies.

Julia: Old Holland and Gamblin oil paint. Bristleton 1900 Series paintbrushes. OLD HOLLAND KOLINSKY SABLES. Microns. Coffee.

S.L.A.M: Where can we find you?

Julia: www.juliahaw.com – please write me if you’d like to be on my email list for non-inundating (about every two weeks) emails with new works and writings regarding these works.

S.L.A.M: What’s shakin’ for Julia Haw? What can we expect to see from you in the future?

Julia: Severe dedication and a lot more work.

After the interviews completion, Julia informed S.L.A.M interviewer, Christine, that she is also involved in the Chicago Green Cross Auction being held on Saturday, August 28, 2010.

Above is the piece that Julia created for this event.

THIS is the next big thing coming up for Julia. The 2010 No Dead Artists Group Show is said to be her largest show to date. The S.L.A.M team wishes her the best of luck!

Visit The S.L.A.M. Network

Interviewed by Christine Wickham
Find Julia Haw on the S.L.A.M Network
Viva La S.L.A.M!

Some people think that people make art. The reality is that art makes people. Artistic expression and creativity allow only the most interesting creatures to be born of it, especially those who are raised surrounded their entire lives by the beauty of the artistic process. Recently we featured a talented woman, Kim Wotton, who discussed briefly her family history of a long line of artists, her father and his namesake, her brother James A. Shepard II. Today we bring you a little more of the story, and a glimpse into the mind of a man who goes to the beat of his very distinct drum. He has a unique way of seeing the world and his positive energy flows ceaselessly, even when he is speaking his own language. Please buckle your seat belts, we are going for a little ride… =) Here is our “unedited” exchange. With a voice as individual and free as this guy’s is, it seemed only fair to give you the real deal… YOJNE!!!!

S.L.A.M. > “I saw your recent posts on The Network and have been anticipating your arrival! You are a welcomed member of the S.L.A.M. community and we love your style of creating.”

James A. Shepard II > “Thank you very much. I’m honored about your enthusiasm. As a matter of fact I did my 1st serious creact last night it was ecstatically releasing.  Its called “IRONMAN IN DRAG/HOMAGE 2 ROBERT DOWNEY”  I’m quite pleased after all Downey is EPIC!

S.L.A.M. >Robert Downey Jr is one of my all time favorite actors! What a great subject!!!! can’t wait to see it! Your sister Kim briefly explained “creaction”. Can you tell us a little more about what that means to you?

James A. Shepard II > THE ART OR DOING OF MAKING ARTIFACTS. ACTIVE CREATING IN THE SPIRIT. MY FATHER TERMED THE WORD IN THE MID 1980′S. THE GREATEST ARTIST OF ALL TIME. MY BEST FRIEND AND MY HERO, JESUS BEING THE OTHER HERO. BRINGING INTO EXISTENCE THAT WHICH WAS NOT BUT NOW IS. I’M HIS 1ST CREACT.

S.L.A.M. >You definitely inherited his artistic voice and talent. Who else inspires you?

James A. Shepard II > GREAT QUESTION ACTUALLY I’VE ALWAYS LIKED “PICASSO’S RESPONSE TO THAT QUESTION IT WAS “I EXERCISE MY DEMONS” SO I TEND TO GO INTO A CREACT WITH THAT IN VEIN/VAININGLY HAHA, ACTUALLY DAD OF COURSE BECAUSE HE WORKS THROUGH ME. IRON MAN IN DRAG HOMAGE TO ROBERT DOWNEY BEGAN THE LAST DAY I WAS STAYING AT KIMS CRIB AND WAS FINISHED -OH WAIT I DATE THEM -STARTED FATHERS DAY 6-20-2010@6:20PM AND FINISHED AUGUST 22 2010@6:20AM. SOUNDS ABOUT RIGHT. ITS ALL RECORDED AS MY FATHER TAUGHT ME 2 DO. HE DIDN’T DO IT MUCH BUT IF HE TOLD ME 2 DO SOMETHING CONSIDER IT DID HAHA. YOU’D A DUG HIM. EVERYONE DID. EVEN THE HATERS LOVED HIM. HAHA

S.L.A.M. >I adore your collage work – is it your favorite? What other modes do you like to work in?
James A. Shepard II > ANY CREACT IS MY FAVORITE. OF ALL CREACTS A COMBINATION OF PAINTING ON CANVASES WITH THINGS ADDED.  A MINIMALISTIC MIXED MEDIA 4 LACK OF A BETTER TERM. 4 OUT RIGHT JOY AND SUPER FREEDOM DEFINZTELY A 6FOOT X 4FT STRETCHED CANVAS MOUNTED IN A SEALED AREA WITH 25 DIFFERENT SIZE BRUSHES AND 100 TUBES OF SQUEEZABLE ACRYLIC AND A0 CANS OF SPRAY PAINT AND 5 CANS OF CLEAR GLOSSY SPRAY PAINT.  MY MUSIC AT HAND A POT OF SUMANTRA COFFEE AND A CAN OF GERB. SEAL THE DOOR AND CHECK IT OUT WHEN IT OPENS NO INTERRUPTIONS PLEASE. AND ILL GO “PICASSO ONLY MORE SO” ON IT . THAT WAS MY NICKNAME AT THE IMAGINATION GYMNASIUM I ROLLED WITH WHERE MY DAD AND I OWNED IT AND HE DREW HIS LAST RIGHT WHERE HE WANTED 2 BE. THATS MY IDEAL DATE WITH ART MODE.

S.L.A.M. > Do you have any works on display?

James A. Shepard II > If by on display do you mean local or other galleries, no- not at the present time but open to those possibilities should they arise.  I have been photographing my creacts as i organize them 4 safe keeping and putting some on my facebook daily. I have many canvases on display in my patrons homes and work places mainly in the state of Oregon. Some in various European countries by people that stopped by and purchased pics when dad and I were living there.There is also a massive collection of paintings at Edgefield Manor of which myself and youngest sister Kristin were able to mentor under the “Mozart of art” dad, and we were involved it many pieces. He invented the technique of divide and conquer as he called it to mass produce “monetesque landscaping”.

S.L.A.M. > Tell us about the Anarchist Coffee Book – what’s the intention behind it, when will it be a “completed work” and will it become available as an actual book that can be purchased?

James A. Shepard II > The intent behind the book is my statement. Im an Anarchist totally! A non-violent anarchist.  I love all people each individual is unique in my opinion so everyone is #1 in my book even my enemies. “The enemy of my enemy is my friend” Sun Tzu.  The book is a visual representation of how I love the world and see it thru my ROSE COLORED GLASSES beautifully chaotic in a quantum mechanical way “THE NUTS \
2 use a poker term. Its all wonderfully phucked up and alive. Evil which is live backwards. The book is in the process of becoming an entity yoyoaah kimberly the 1 that masterly put it together 4 me and her husband Warren(the regulator) Wotton the mindset man is our venture capital specialist so i see it on the shelves relatively fast and we all wish 4 the best. As always “AISA” 2day. peace and love 2 all JTPOMS@6969xoxohahahaha seacrest….

S.L.A.M. >   You mention backwards, which seems to be a trend in your dialect =) can you elaborate on that?

James A. Shepard II > I have dialect, please don’t tell anyone.  Is it contagious?  I like 2 play with words as I see fit. I got c’s in English classes in high school cause I thought it redundant, however from 16-18 all my English teachers were 20-30 something foxes ,so i never missed a class. My brother in law Warren the regulator said if I had a Indian name  it would be  “HE WHO SPEAKS IN SLANG”  SLANGLISH. I believe so hence I use my own combo of anything I come into contact with.  After reading the interview with SIR Robert Downey Jr, whom has his own take on word smithology and also is aquarius I gotta get with him if only to word duelwithhim.

S.L.A.M. > How long ago did you move to the Orlando area and what brought you out this way?

James A. Shepard II > I arrived november 27,2009  -my family and to relocate the art collection to a safer environment.

S.L.A.M. > Do you have a favorite all time piece? of your own or someone else’s?

James A. Shepard II > Demoiselles d Avignon by Picasso! There is no other.

S.L.A.M. > How long of a process is it to select the imagery for your collages? Do you go looking for specific pieces or do you put together things you have already randomly collected?

James A. Shepard II > I have an existing body of cut-outs that are left over from other pieces that i save. And an ongoin # of magazines at my disposal. Some image or word from a page catches my whim and is it down with scissors pasting supplies and get busy as the spirit moves it moves me to creact. Anything or everything is unimportant in that mode. So never when I’m nannying. Anytime else yes now.

Find more photos like this on The S.L.A.M. Network

Follow James and his works further here…

http://www.imaginationgymnasium.com/

To visit James on The SLAM Network – Click here!

Ysmenia Babylonia

SLAM

What is your Birthday wish?

Ysmenia

I move in to Florida exactly one year ago, after living all my life in the sunny Caribbean, Puerto Rico.  I wish for my birthday and this next decade to have a special circle of friends, which can help me feel that  this is my other home for now (and not missing so much the friends that i left back in my lovely island!),  to finally publish my poems, finish my novel and that the muse for creativity always shine on me! Also, I wish for wisdom, and to be a better human being everyday for me and my daughter Veronika.

SLAM
How has art changed your life?

My mom was a fashion designer, a dreamer and a poet. So, in my childhood I was exposed to a variety of experiences, regarding music, arts & crafts and literature. It helped me to be who I am today and I can confirm that sensibility, passion and a little “locura” (crazyness) is part of my inner self too. Making candles, which is my latest passion for the last 4 years, have open a new world to me, because working with wax is so fun and relaxing, but at the same time, the results are so real. I love to make this “desserts” and “cockatails” candles, because its just like cooking, but without the calories. Its so great to create something like the real thing, that most people have to watch two times to believe they are candles!  Also, I make natural soaps  and its just like bathing with a very special piece of art!

SLAM
What is the absolute favorite candle you have ever made?
Ysmenia

For me, all of them are special, because all of them are made with all my love and there are no two that are exactly the same. But one that I still remember was my first one. It was a fruit cocktail. And that one lights the “locura” of keep making more, experimenting with different techniques, colors, aromas… and see what happens!
My top 5 favorites, in random order:
Chocolate frappe, strawberry daiquiri, margarita, capuccino, beer candle.

**********

Facebook: Ysmenia Babilonia
email: ysmenia@yahoo.com

See More of her Creations Continue reading

Time for your daily SLAM dose.  If this inspires just one person in the world, then it has served it’s purpose.  Of course, we hope to inspire ALL of you slammers.   We happened upon an artist named Dan Joyce. It started out a little shaky, you know he is the stay up all night drawing and sketching kinda type. But, in the end the passion exudes and he shines with the best of us. Here is a little bit about Dan Joyce.  A true artist, he is up all night and all day with passion to play because for Dan Joyce,  “art saves his life everyday.”

Find more photos like this on The S.L.A.M. Network

SLAM
What has been the hardest thing to overcome in your journey as a visual artist?

Dan
Bipolar disorder. True, no joke. Everybody mentions Van Gogh, but there is more treatment available these days and I’m NOT cutting off my ear! LOL and I guess periods of extreme poverty. But, those are always temporary. Sometimes, when I paint I feel as though I am not living up to a person of true talent, my technique but my emotions and creativity tend to surpass. I doubt I’ll ever be as good as the masters.

You could say my passion outweighs my ability, but makes up for it with my disability. If I wasn’t an artist, I don’t know what I could be. I’ve been known to check into treatment centers with brushes and supplies in hand. All said, it’s amazing I’m still alive. In a way, my art saves my life, it keeps getting better and I want to see the next work, the next day.

SLAM
What inspired the Kreepy Krush series?

Dan
I draw this young LA fashion designer named Alicia Silk. First, just to impress her, but she has exaggerated features like a poster for the Moulin Rouge by Le Trec. I thought it was kind of creepy that I keep drawing her. Then, I thought of all the women close to me that I admire and would like to know better, so I created an entire series. What it really does is make fun of myself. I’m good at that. I told one how much I wanted to thank her, not every woman wants to be one of my Kreepy Krushes. She said, “I don’t think we have a choice.” That was Jill with the car.

There are 12 in the series. Originally the 12 Kreepy Krushes of Christmas
but I was in the hospital over the holidays. It is fun and playful and most men relate to having an obsessive crush at one time or other. Most women would agree IT’S KREEPY!
To add extra humor, the final crush is a man. Originally, the two gay guys in my building but they were unavailable. So I chose a local gallery owner I’ve done business with, but i think it offended him :( I don’t know if he’s gay. Either way it didn’t work. Mania.
SLAM
So are you still looking for a male to complete the series? One that will not be offended?
Dan
I saw in the movie, 29 days, a man asked when in his sobriety could he have a relationship? The counselor told him to get a plant, care for it for a year, if it was doing well get a dog and do the same. Something like that. But no, I’m not gay

SLAM
Lol, I meant did you complete the series w a male?
Dan
I’m removing the male and adding a woman’s torso. Monica
SLAM
Ok, so what is Poemstory?

Dan
“A journal kept during a 3 month stay in a treatment facility. I later illustrated it with 100 full color digital paintings after I graduated college. A poetic journal that is my life. An epic, you could say or a “poemstory.”
SLAM
Hope this inspired someone today….Tis the goal of art – to motivate, inspire, and together we empower one another.   Life is exactly what you make it.  We want to showcase you all!  Please don’t forget about SLAM.  You can always donate on the front of the blog and be sure to join The SLAM Network absolutely free!  Love you all!
Now, please check out a few more selections from the Kreepy Krushes series for all you February lovers, crushers and haters. It’s over!  The flowers have wilted but the love goes on.  For all those kreepy krushin guys and gals….look how beautiful Kreepy Krushes  can be!     Peace and love – LG

For more from Dan Joyce Click here to Visit DanJoyce.com

This is one of Jason’s wife, Moira Shiver’s favorites:

This is my personal favorite:

I was talking with Moira this morning on fb chat – and in the end I think you should just read just how proud she is of Jason and what her take is on his expressions, inspirations and messages to the world in his art.
I personally am inspired by the fact that people like Moira and her family exist in the world. I hope his work will inspire all of you today to be all that you are – the many different beautiful things that that entails.

Lady

Does Jason have new stuff out?

Moira
He’s got several things in process but we’ve just been so busy with life, it’s all kinda on hold.

Lady
What do you classify his pieces as if you had to? like what style?

Moira
I consider them representational … there’s always hidden/blatant meanings that often times are
beyond me …

Lady
I like that. deep =)=) But most art does… So, if you had to go further?

Moira
Jason likes to show mans careless impact on the earth. Usually focusing on how stupid we are to even think we control anything …

Lady
What;s your favorite piece of his?

Moira
Actually, I love “Mother and Child”. It’s raw and simplistic but considering he did it when he was 11, it’s awesome. It captures the curious fear of the child and the courage he has while in his mothers arms …
Other than that, I’d have to say “The Fourth Way”. It’s striking in is complexity and yet when you really look at it, its content is filled with the simplest of subjects. “Taken” is pretty intense as well … that was a commission for a husband and wife that lost a child …I like “Narcissistic Muse” too … I tell Jason all the time he captured my @#$ perfectly ;)

Lady
lol

Moira
And gosh, forgot about Stoic Cityscape … that’s one of my other favs … don’t understand it completely but love to keep trying …I really like his pencil works …And of course, “The Chosen” is one of his best received pieces …But you should see the one he’s working on now … really excited. It’s of Tampa Ship and it’s everything Tampa. Can’t wait to be able to show it …

Well, if Jason Shiver has peeked your interest – more of his work can be found here on JasonShiverArts.com
Thank you Jason for your inspiration as a visual artist and a family man! You’re SLAMMIN in our book!

Roz B

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SLAM caught up with Roz, a model

involved with our event “Live Art

After Dark” in September of last year and

this is what she had to say…

SLAM – Where were you born and raised?

Roz – Spanish/East Harlem… Manhattan, NYC, NY.

SLAM – How did you get into the modeling world?

Roz – I would always read the magazines and see the models… it inspired me… I love the art and fashion… the creative aspect of it… I wanted to be a part of that… I tried going to the agencies but it was a long time before I was signed. I just went door to door… knocking and calling… and offering my help to designers, artists, coordinators, organizers…
I started that way… and then I got signed…

Photography By W. Collins, Photo Editing By AJ Arts Make Up By N. Woodward

SLAM – So you work with an agency?

Roz – Slate, DK, Benz and Seven…

SLAM – So it seems your hard work got your career started…

Roz – Yes…

Photography By D. Dygert, Hair & Make Up By V. Turney of Make Up Maffia, and Wardrobe By C. Smith (Blackbird) of Blackbird & Raven

SLAM – What has been your best experience?

Roz – I would say probably the charities… it always feels good to give back…I’ve worked with great people too… I learned a lot from them… Sylvio Roubertto Kovacic is extraordinary…I learned a lot from him and he made me stronger… because he is strong… be taught me to be the best…
Doug Stevens – mua/hair stylist/photographer… I learned a lot from him as well… he’s excellent… such a good person… and he inspired good in me as well…they are both such beautiful human beings… I’ve been blessed to work with them…

Photography By c. Waite; Hair By B. Bakker of Gregory's Salon; Make up By Y. Hadad; Wardrobe By M. Byrne; Body Painting By S. F. Krajcik & T. David

SLAM – WONDERFUL!!! Passionate people always make a difference and I am sure you had your effect on them as well…what are your plans for the future?

Roz – I have an MBA… and I’m working on a doctorate… I work and model when I can… I hope to continue modeling and give back… help other models… take them under my wing… I also aspire to work in HR and teach HR as well as teach modeling.

Photography By S. Miranda; Hair & Make Up By T. S. Neal of Comfort Zone Salon & Spa ; Wardrobe Styling By N. Verklas of Bambina By NV

SLAM – Human Resources?

Roz – Yes… I’m a helper/giver… so even at the corporate level…I want to help people… you spend 40 hrs a week, a large percentage of your life, at work… you should have a positive/safe experience… I really want to advocate for that, especially in Florida, an “at will state”, very different from NY… I want to assist in that way.

Photography By D. Dygert, Hair & Make Up By E. M. Cingari, and Wardrobe By N. Verklas of Bambina By NV

Roz – Be strong… work hard… be professional… stay away from danger and harm… trust your instincts – read the signs… and have fun…Carpe Diem  cause models have a shelf life… an expiration date… the market/industry moves and changes… so adapt, reinvent yourself if needed or change your genre…

SLAM – That’s good guidance! You are an inspiration and beautiful to top it off…a winning combination any way you look at it! Thanks for sitting down with SLAM and best of luck with your future endeavors…looking forward to seeing more of you in SLAM!

Roz – Thank you! It was fun!

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