Juxtapoz Art & Culture Magazine - May 20 - Unknown

ART + CULTURE + DESIGN
MAY 2014, n160 $5.99

MIKE KELLEY
AT MOCA LA
NICK CAVE
SOUNDSUITS IN BOSTON
CHRIS JOHANSON
AN HONEST RETURN HOME
JUX PROJECTS
& CONVERSE IN AUSTIN
ALEXIS ROSS
CATCHING UP WITH THE VP
OF THE GENTS OF DESIRE
JUXTAPOZ
ISSUE #160 / MAY, 2014
JUXTAPOZ. COM
CONTRIBUTOR / JOE BROOK
INTRODUCTION
THE REPORT / MIKE KELLEY
EVENT / SIGHT & SOUND
PICTURE BOOK / THOMAS PRIOR
DESIGN / JAVAS LEHN STUDIO
FASHION / ONLY NEW YORK
INFLUENCES / BRENDAN MONROE
CHRIS JOHANSON
NICK CAVE
WINNIE TRUONG
ALEXIS ROSS
RYAN DE LA HOZ
WINSTON SMITH
SOUTHWEST INSIDER
BOOK REVIEWS
PROFILE / ANTHONY FRIEDKIN
PRODUCT REVIEWS
SIEBEN ON LIFE
POP LIFE
PERSPECTIVE
10
14
18
22
24
32
36
42
48
56
66
74
86
94
104
110
114
118
120
122
126
Detail of Brendan Monroes studio
Photo by Alex Nicholson
FOUNDER
ROBERT WILLIAMS
EDITOR
EVAN PRICCO
ART DIRECTOR
BRENT GENTILE
MANAGING EDITOR
ALEX NICHOLSON
CO-FOUNDER
GREG ESCALANTE
CO-FOUNDER
SUZANNE WILLIAMS
GROUP CREATIVE DIRECTOR
KEVIN CONVERTITO
CHIEF TECHNICAL OFFICER
NICK LATTNER
EDITOR-AT-LARGE
C.R. STECYK III
CONTRIBUTING WEB + PRINT EDITORS
KRISTIN FARR
JOEY GARFIELD
AUSTIN MCMANUS
GABE SCOTT
MICHAEL SIEBEN
HANNAH STOUFFER
PHOTOGRAPHY DIRECTOR
AUSTIN MCMANUS
CONTRIBUTING PHOTO EDITORS
ESTEVAN ORIOL
DAVID BROACH
BROCK FETCH
JUXTAPOZ ILLUSTRATOR
TRAVIS MILLARD
EDITORIAL ASSISTANT
LAL SHAFAGHI
AGENCY DESIGNER
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PRESIDENT + PUBLISHER
GWYNNED VITELLO
CFO
JEFF RAFNSON
ACCOUNTING MANAGER
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CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
KRISTIN FARR
BRENT GENTILE
AUSTIN MCMANUS
CALEB NEELON
ALEX NICHOLSON
EVAN PRICCO
LALE SHAFAGHI
HANNAH STOUFFER
GWYNNED VITELLO
CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS
JOE BROOK
JAMIE CAMPBELL
SAM GRAHAM
AMY HARRITY
JEFF JOHNSEN
CALEB NEELON
ALEX NICHOLSON
WYATT TROLL
THE FINAL READER
KRISTIN FARR
INTERNS
JESSE FIGUEROA
ORIS BUCKNER IV
SHAWN MILLER
LAUREN YOUNG SMITH
MARY SLINKERT
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JUXTAPOZ ISSN #1077-8411 MAY 2014 VOLUME 21, NUMBER 5
Published monthly by High Speed Productions, Inc., 1303 Underwood Ave, San Francisco, CA 941243308. 2014 High Speed Productions, Inc. All
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has furnished information and materials for this issue. Unless otherwise noted, artists featured in Juxtapoz retain copyright to their work. Every efort
has been made to reach copyright owners or their representatives. The publisher will be pleased to correct any mistakes or omissions in our next
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Juxtapoz Is Published by High Speed Productions, Inc.
4158223083 email to: editor@juxtapoz.com juxtapoz.com
Cover by Alexis Ross
Sherm Stickn (detail) Acrylic on canvas
Cover by Andrew Schoultz
Melt Down (detail) Photo by Alex Nicholson
STAFF
1 2 3 R GB
F OREPLAY
YOU'VE GOT IDEAS. WE'VE GOT RFs.
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JOE BROOK
ON WINSTON SMITHS LASTING EFFECT ON PUNK CULTURE
WE REMEMBER THE PIVOTAL MOMENTS IN OUR LIVES,
and in the mid 1980s, growing up in Michigan, punk rock
and skateboarding changed the way I lived my life Bad
Brains, Minor Threat and Dead Kennedys were just a few of
the bands that scorched my ears. My friend, Jason Wilson,
introduced me to all of this, and even now, I still can't thank
him enough.

A score later, as corny as it sounds, I feel so lucky to nd
myself photographing skateboarding, music, and art
heroes for a living. When Evan Pricco, editor of Juxtapoz,
gave me the thumbs up to shoot Winston Smith, I jumped
at the chance! Winston's studio is nestled in the heart of
North Beach in San Francisco, tucked away in a small side
alleyway. He greeted me with a handshake and a cold beer,
telling me his studio used to be a speakeasy a long time ago,
so naturally he wants to carry on the tradition.
If youre a fan of his collage work, youd be blown away by
his studio, a treasure trove of works in progress. Winston
has insane stories of studying in Italy and meeting Dead
Kennedys lead singer Jello Biafra in the early days. It was a
real inspiration to spend the afternoon with Winston. As we
were winding down our shoot, he invited me to lunch with
a Juxtapoz favorite, the Mayor of North Beach, Mr. Jeremy
Fish. As I was packing up, Winston said he was getting ready
to hang out with Shepard Fairey and Bob Mould later that
night. I guess that's how legends roll!
For more information about Joe Brook, visit joebrook.com
JUXTAPOZ.COM / JOE - BROOK
CONTRIBUTER
10 JUXTAPOZ CONTRIBUTER
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THE M/DRlD SHCRT
I DON'T GIVE A SHIT WHAT'S IN YOUR HEAD. By which
I mean if it isn't on the page, it doesn't exist. Jeanette
Winterson, British novelist and professor of creative writing
at Manchester University.
I love that this is the last thing I read before sitting down on
a Friday afternoon to recap the making of May 2014. I was
supposedly getting friendly advice about writing from a
London Guardian article that asked various respected authors
and teachers to give some insider guides to writing. Winterson
just hit the nail on the head from the get-go. Given that this
is a magazine about visual art, where seeing is believing and
experiencing, where you can draw your own conclusions
without reading a line, we hope that you savor each and every
word. But this sentiment from Winterson leads to a topic we
pondered while putting this issue together.
In the next few pages, you are going to read about a creative
who claims not to be an artist, Alexis Ross. If you havent
heard the name, or are unaware of some of the work in
which he is involved, its not because you havent been
reading up on contemporary art. And if you do know him,
clearly this interview is long, long overdue. In fact, if you do a
Google search of Alexis Ross, you are going to be ttingly
given limited options with which to nd out more about him.
This is by design, at least in theory. Remember, this is 2014,
the era of me. The human race has spent about 4-8 million
years evolving into the epoch where we can let our friends
and followers know we are eating Japanese ramen right
now. Alexis Ross, on the other hand, has built and worked on
some of my absolute favorite projects in the art world over
the past 20 years, and I barely had any evidence of my love
for the mans work. Again, this isnt Ross doing, but one of
the better examples I can think of where the art world goes
beyond just what is seen on gallery walls, in installations,
or out in public. There are integral pieces to the puzzle that
deserve a little shine for doing the dirty work.
I was lucky enough to watch the building of Art In the Streets
at MOCA in 2011, given unlimited access on the basis that
I wasnt going to shoot a photo of every damn thing I saw,
which was way harder than it sounds. I dont know if Ross
remembers, but I saw him working pretty hard throughout
the building of Street Market. On opening night, Ross
was relaxing in front of what ended up being a brilliant
installation piece, one that had the monikers attached that
represent pillars of our art community: REAS, TWIST, and
ESPO. But Ross was the man that this trio called upon for
guidance, assistance, expertise, brainpower, and direction
to build Street Market. There was Ross, eschewing attention,
in front of this beautiful structure, while the casual art fan
walked by and enjoyed the experience of Street Market 2011.
When contributing editor Austin McManus nished his piece
on Ross this month, I knew the subject of attention was
going to be broached early on. I'm not particularly an artist,
Ross says. I'm mostly a guy who sits on the porch smoking
cigarettes in between long naps. I stretch my creative ngers
perhaps four times a year. Well, theres bullshit there. Our
job is to shed a light on the best of the best. This creative
warrants a place in the history books and beyond the art
world. He deserves the ink.

Enjoy #160
ISSUE NO 160
ID photos by Alexis Ross
2009
INTRODUCTION
14 JUXTAPOZ INTRODUCTION
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MIKE KELLEY AT MOCA, LOS ANGELES
THOUGHTS FROM A FRIEND
MIKE KELLEY WAS WHAT EVERY YOUNG ARTIST WANTS
to be: The creative storm on the horizon who turns the
cultural tide. He was not just a storm, but a punk rock
tempest. Unfortunately, he is no longer with us, but his ne
arts legacy still afects an entire generation. On March 31
st
,
a large presentation of his work will be exhibited at the
Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) in Los Angeles, a
venue where he has shown in the past. Mike Kelley is now
almost a household name, even if most of us are not fully
aware of his achievement. He is considered by some as the
premiere contemporary master.

First, let me express simply that Mike and a few friends,
like Jim Shaw and Paul McCarthy, have penetrated the
upper art bastions usually jealously guarded by the older
art cognoscenti. Throughout making his slow invasion,
Mike still maintained his rambunctious integrity. His own
list of artistic endeavors covers almost every aspect of the
creative spectrum: painting, sculpture, experimental music,
cartoon grafti, and performance and installation art, as well
as classes of inuential teaching. His work varied greatly
with wild thrift store assemblages, painted props, worn-out
stufed animals, video tableaus and energetic performance
tirades. This show at MOCA, which promises to be broad in
scope, is worth investigating.

Kelleys ribald music eforts seemed to set the attitude
for his performance art approach. His participation in an
experimental anti-rock band called Destroy All Monsters
joined him up with three other youthful iconoclasts, artists
left
Pay For Your Pleasure
Gift of Timothy P. and Suzette L. Flood,
photo: Brian Forrest, courtesy The
Museum of Contemporary Art, Los
Angeles and Mike Kelley
Foundation for the Arts
1988
top left
Dancing the Quadrille (from the
Reconstructed History Series)
Eileen and Michael Cohen Collection,
photo: courtesy Mike Kelley
1989
top right
Silver Ball
The Museum of Contemporary Art,
Los Angeles, partial and promised gift
of Blake Byrne, photo: Brian Forrest,
courtesy The Museum of Contemporary
Art, Los Angeles and Mike Kelley
1994
THE REPORT
18 JUXTAPOZ THE REPORT
and friends Jim Shaw, Niagara and Cary Loran. This Detroit
group functioned from 1973 to 1977 during which time all
were living in Detroit.

My association with him came about during the 1980s,
and through his generous guidance, I was able to secure
admission into a number of group art shows where I would
otherwise not have had a chance of exhibiting. Kelley and his
cohorts changed art as we know it and helped to distinguish
Los Angeles as the new art capitol. Unfortunately, Mike had
emotional issues that came along with his creativity. I cant
say that I was one of his best friends, but I knew him well
enough to appreciate his eccentricities. He had appropriate
social skills but could be very tightly wound. And with
alcohol, he could become a lit recracker inside a mason
jar. In an art world that prides itself on political correctness,
Mike could spit ames on sleeping napalm. I loved his gall.
He was a true art storm trooper, one of the earliest artists to
be featured in Juxtapoz. Nonetheless, both his enormous
success, as well as domestic strife led to chronic depression.
In 2012, MIke put an end to himself, only 57 and at the top of
his game.
We highly recommend this show at the MOCA in Los
Angeles, March 31 through July 28, 2014, an important
retrospective that travels here from the Stedelijk Museum in
Amsterdam. Robert Williams
For more information about Mike Kelley,
visit mikekelley.com
JUXTAPOZ.COM / MIKE - KELLEY
previous spread bottom left
Catholic Birdhouse
Private Collection, New York,
1978
previous spread bottom right
Estral Star #3
Collection Ringier AG, photo: courtesy
Mike Kelley Foundation for the Arts
1989
From My Institution to Yours
Collection Eric Decelle, Brussels,
1987/2003
20 JUXTAPOZ THE REPORT
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LCAD CAMPU5 / PHDTD: XUN CHl
BRIXTON X JUXTAPOZ SIGHT & SOUND
MUSIC SHOWCASE AT YELLOW JACKET SOCIAL CLUB, AUSTIN
THIS YEAR, DURING SXSW, Juxtapoz and sartorial outtters
Brixton got together to present a musical showcase at
the Yellow Jacket Social Club. Combining music and art,
and a special stage fashioned by Nat Russell, the event
brought together creative energies during what has become
Americas most celebrated entertainment conference.

Sight & Sound saw the newly reformed Coachwhips closing
out the rst night preceded by fantastic sets from Together
Pangea, The Meatbros, Fresh & Onlys, Obliterations, Dirty
Fences, Dune Rats, Girl Tears, and Swim Team. The second
night featured sets by Reigning Sound, Natural Child, Tijuana
Panthers, Drowning Men, Team Spirit, Big Ups, Destruction
Unit, Nikki Lane, and Trouble In The Wind.
Juxtapoz sends sympathy and condolences to the victims
and families of those who sufered as a result of the
senseless tragedy in the early morning hours of March 13th,
2014. The show must go on, but not without a sense of
perspective for what was lost.

For more information about the two day Sight & Sound
showcase, visit juxtapoz.com/brixton-sight-and-sound or
brixton.com
JUXTAPOZ.COM / MUSIC
Obliterations
Photo by Alex Nicholson
EVENT
22 JUXTAPOZ EVENT
VANCOUVER
SEATTLE
BOSTON
TORONTO
NEW YORK
SAN FRANCISCO
CHICAGO
LOS ANGELES
MONTRAL
PORTLAND
QUBEC
CALGARY
WASHINGTON DC
MINNEAPOLIS
DENVER
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GET IT OUT AT FLUEVOGCREATIVE.COM
THOMAS PRIOR
RUNNING WITH SCISSORS
HUMANS OFTEN HAVE AN INNATE DESIRE TO
pursue adrenaline-charged highs in an attempt to
temporarily supersede everyday living, and photographer
Thomas Prior skillfully captures some of the more extreme
methods people employ to achieve this.
Does ring a machine gun downrange at an assortment
of pyrotechnically-charged objects provide an endorphin
rush, or just straight scare you? Probably both; fear can be
an equally potent ingredient for reaching altered euphoric
states. How about surng a man-made river in the center of
Munich, Germany or attending the largest and most chaotic
reworks festival in Mexico? Priors photographic projects
regularly expose us awkward Earth people, our bizarre
behaviors, as we conduct our inscrutable activities in natural
landscapes. Currently residing in Brooklyn, Prior earned
his BFA in photography from the School of Visual Arts
and was included in PDNs 30 Emerging Photographers
to Watch in 2010. Aside from his personal work, he also
shoots for a number of publications including New York
magazine, Vogue, ESPN, Popular Mechanics, Mens Journal,
Bloomberg Businessweek and more. Austin McManus
For more information about Thomas Prior,
visit thomasprior.com
JUXTAPOZ.COM / PHOTOGRAPHY
PICTURE BOOK
24 JUXTAPOZ PICTURE BOOK
MAY 2014 27
MAY 2014 29
JAVAS LEHN STUDIO
JUST THE RIGHT TYPE
MY FIRST ENCOUNTER WITH JAVAS LEHN STUDIO
was through print. I had picked up the inaugural issue
of Saturdays Surf NYC magazine, a beautiful, clean, well
thought-out publication whose content was eclectically
diverse, but blended together efortlessly. After meeting
Javas at his downtown Manhattan ofce and seeing the
range of his work, whether for Saturdays, MoMA, Cole Haan,
or Mammoth Mountain, he shared how he has taken an
aesthetic based on typography and space and turned it into
his art.

Evan Pricco: When someone, a client or another designer,
asks you to describe your work, sight-unseen, how do you
describe it? What is your design aesthetic in a sentence
or two?
Javas Lehn: I always try to articulate our work as reductive yet
full of concept, structure and form. I have always been inspired
by my grandfathers interior design workwhich always had a
balance of classic and contemporary inuences.

What did your grandfather do? He was a designer?
My grandfather, Allen Salsbury, was an interior designer
in Seattle. A lot of people in Seattle called him the rst
minimalist there. He had a great showroom in Pioneer
Square, which was an old saloon. It is now the Edward Curtis
Gallery. It's a beautiful space.

Do you remember your rst inuences in the design or
creative arena?
My earliest inuences came from skateboard and snowboard
culture. Early on, I was heavily inuenced by the Powell
Peralta & Bones Brigade movement. A friend of mine gave
me a copy of the doc lm Ban This when I was quite young,
which I watched over and over. It was not just the inuence
DESIGN
32 JUXTAPOZ DESIGN
of the skateboard culture though, but the graphic nature of
everything, the clothes and the individual style of diferent
skateboarders, as well as the skateboard graphics and logos.

After going to design school, I was inuenced and inspired
by my family. My father and most of my family were
architects, and my grandfather, of course. He would always
say: "Style is everything."

So you are self-taught as well as art school educated?
Both. Before going to design school I started a clothing
company, which we had for 2 years.
You were originally working for an agency, and have now
gone of to start your own studio. Describe the transition.
I used to work at a large agency in Seattle called Hornall
Anderson Design for ve years after school. It taught me
a great deal about building brands on a large scale. We
worked on a lot of big brand type projectsStarbucks,
Microsoft, Pepsi, even Mammoth Mountain, which was one
of my favorite projects to date.
When I moved to NYC, I was interested in taking a break from
the corporate world. I shifted my focus towards working with
clients in fashion and the arts. I worked at the MoMA for a little
MAY 2014 33
while as an exhibition designer and then went on to work for
Wolf Olins, a brand consultancy. I have always had a lot of
respect for Wolf Olins design sensibility. They always looked
like they were having more fun than any other agency.
I worked there for a little over a year before deciding to start
my own studio, which comes with its own challenges. There
is a great deal of work in NYC. You just have to be curious
enough to nd it. The greatest challenge to owning your own
studio is guring out how much compromise you are willing
to make. I try to compromise as little as possible and have as
much fun as possible. I think it's important to stay small. It's
hard to stay true to who you are and what you started once
you grow over a certain size. It's the challenge that most
agencies face on a daily basis. I am happy to say that we can
say no to work that does not t with who we are.
What was the breakthrough? The moment when the
projects started coming one after another?
I am still waiting for my breakthrough.
One of the things I love about your design, and let's use
your MoMA work as an example, is that its almost an
art piece unto itself. Typography stands out. Talk about
typography and how central it is to your projects.
I have always been heavily inspired by the typographic side
of design. More and more companies and brands are trying
to create something that is proprietary, and so many of them
fail. What we try to create with every project is something
unique and timeless. This usually takes shape through
something that is more typographic driven.
What is the dream project?
It's in the works.
For more information about Javas Lehn Studio,
visit javaslehnstudio.com
JUXTAPOZ.COM / DESIGN
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Photographed by Henry Leutwyler
34 JUXTAPOZ DESIGN
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June 21st August 24th 2014
ONLY NEW YORK
REELING IT IN WITH CO-FOUNDER MICAH BELAMARICH IN UPPER MANHATTAN
MICAH BELAMARICH AND I BOTH GREW UP AVID
sherman on the waters around the Five Boroughs, though
our tastes diverge when it comes to shing styles. Personally
I am into the heavier stuf, downriggers and trolling, while
hes into light tackle. However, with his co-founded brand
ONLY, he has created something that embodies a New York
we both know. Bold design, the late 90s, skateboarding,
grafti, and of course, shing. ONLY isnt just striking,
fashion-forward aesthetics. Guided by strong principles and
respect for local resources, most of their products are made
in the USA. Brent Gentile
Brent Gentile: What are the origins of ONLY?
Micah Belamarich: ONLY is an independent clothing brand
based out of Manhattanville, NYC which is along the Hudson
River in Upper Manhattan. ONLY was founded in late 2006
by myself, Andrew Shear and Julian Goldstein. We all grew
up on the Upper West Side and went to public school
together. As a creative person, it made a lot of sense for me
to try to make a career out of my creative passions and drive.
Starting a clothing brand was something I was interested
in during high school. In the city, there was a lot of focus
on gear, a lot of kids were collecting North Face, Polo, and
others. I think that played a big role in starting our own brand
that could represent us and a new generation.
As the founder of ONLY, what is your direct involvement
with the brand?
Generally speaking, I drive most of the creative initiatives
and have done probably around 90% of the logos and
graphics we put out. I act as the creative director in terms
of envisioning the collections. However, my partner Julian
deserves a ton of creative credit as well. We work really well
together and nalize everything as a group. We like to get
feedback and input from everyone in the ofce.
Whats your take on brands out there today preaching
heritage and made in USA principles when in reality,
its just a lot of noise? ONLY really makes an efort to
manufacture domestically.
In fashion there are always the companies and brands who
just jump on and follow trends. That's how business works.
It doesn't really phase me anymore. From the beginning, we
have tried to make everything in the USA. Unfortunately, it
is pretty challenging. Finding good manufacturers, or just
manufacturers in general, is one of the biggest challenges of
our enterprise. But, at the end of the day, it simply feels right
to support other businesses in the US.
FASHION
36 JUXTAPOZ FASHION
Growing up on Long Island, shing played a huge role
in my life and, without a doubt, taught me patience.
Something about waiting hours on end for that cow striped
bass, right? Has shing impacted your artwork and design?
Observation of nature has always been a huge inspiration
for me, and I do it everywhere. I think that plays a big role
in shing. You need to know how to monitor the current
conditions when you're shing to determine how and what
to sh for. It usually comes down to reading the water. I think
creating art and designing can be very similar. You have to
asses the task at hand and try a bunch of diferent things to
nd what works.
Yeah, the nuances that go into shing are incredible,
everything from the color lure, tides, bait, type of sh,
depths, temperature, is a sort of mad science. What's your
dream catch?
I've had my share of dream catches, mostly saltwater,
inshore, and on light tackle. Right now I would say my dream
catch would be a Bonito on the y rod from the stone pier
(RIP) in Woods Hole. Unfortunately, Bonito have been very
scarce over the past six to eight years or so, especially
inshore where you can have a good chance at one. It's been
probably six years since I caught one, or even seen much of
them, sadly.
Growing up in the Upper West Side, have you always
shed the Hudson?
Actually, no. As much as I wish it was shable, it really isn't,
at least on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The water is
naturally really murky, especially when the tide is coming
from up river rather than the harbor. The visibility is awfully
poor so shing lures or ies, which I use, don't really work
too well. I've seen a handful of small stripers and white perch
caught on bait along the Upper West/Harlem; that's about it.
People do a lot of crabbing.
I've never seen anyone sh lures or y sh on the Hudson in
Upper Manhattan, and I've done a ton of searching online in
hopes to nd somethingbut nothing. Every summer, I start to
convince myself that it can be done, especially since the water
is literally just across the street from our of ce. I've only seen
a handful of top water activity in the Hudson over the course
of my entire life. I recently found an article about a guy who y
shed the Hudson on the UWS and would catch giant stripers
from an inatable raft. It was an article in Sports Illustrated,
published in the late 70s. I was psyched to read it but couldn't
believe any of it. One part describes catching small 12"
schoolie stripers pretty constantly in between these "giants.
The funny thing is, the two stripers my dad and I have caught
in the Hudson (mine in Riverdale, Bronx and my dad's on 96th
St.) were both 12" and on the y rod.
BEYOND THE STORY
ONLY NY has collaborated
with a few artists that you have
seen in the pages of Juxtapoz
over the years. Not only has the
brand featured graphics from
cover stories Grotesk and Andy
Rementer, but ONLYs The
Newsstand blog feed features
an array of up-and-coming
graf ti and ne art talent.
Photo by Dakota Gordon
MAY 2014 37
I see a lot of reference to 1997 in ONLY. Where's that
come from?
1997 was a really inuential year for my friends and me.
We were really young and started getting exposed to
and involved in a lot of street activities such as graf ti,
skateboarding, and gear. The Upper West Side was a lot
diferent back then. There was a pretty big graf ti scene.
Since the inception of ONLY, 1997 has become the year with
which we associate and identify the brand. It has a lot of
personal meaning for me.
How'd the name ONLY come about? Were there some other
choices that didn't make the cut? Or love at rst sight?
I spent about four months trying to come up with a brand
name. It was really dif cult. I didn't want to force it. I honestly
can't remember any of the other names, but when I came up
with ONLY and ONLY NY, I knew I nally had got it. My brain
started racing and the concept of the brand immediately
started to form. I got the name from a thesaurus at school,
searching the word unique. I couldn't wait to get out of class
and tell everyone.
Can you talk about balancing your ne art career
with ONLY?
Balancing my personal art with ONLY has always been
enjoyable and keeps me inspired. I don't really consider my
ne art as a career at this point, it's more of a passion or
hobby. I consider myself both an artist and a designer and
I enjoy doing both pretty much equally. ONLY has been the
main outlet for my design, and "Micah NYC" is my personal
art. While they denitely inuence one another, I've kept
them pretty separate. I work on ONLY 40-50 hours a week,
mostly at the of ce, and do art either after work at night or
on the weekends at home. It helps me relax. Sometimes I
wish I could spend more time doing art, but at the end of the
day, ONLY is what I enjoy doing as an actual career. I gure
I will have plenty of time to draw and paint when I retire.
Running your own business is no joke!
For more information about Micah Belamarich and ONLY,
visit micahnyc.com and onlynylives.com
JUXTAPOZ.COM / FASHION
top right
Photo by Derek Wood
top left
Hydrant Canvas
Krink Mop
60" x 48"
2013
bottom left
Lamp Post Canvas
Hydrant
Do 'Em Dirty Mop
60" x 48"
2013
38 JUXTAPOZ FASHION
Accalia and the Swamp Monster
Kelli Scott Kelley
Reproductions of Kelleys artworkmixed-media
paintings executed on repurposed antique linens
punctuate the tale of Accalia, who is tasked with
recovering the arms of her father from the belly of
the swamp monster. Rich in symbolism and expert-
ly composed, Accalia and the Swamp Monster is both an
entrancing display of Kelleys art and an afrmation
of the transformative power of fairy tales.

50 color illustrations
$29.95 cloth
AVAILABLE IN BOOKSTORES AND ONLINE AT WWW.LSUPRESS.ORG
LSU PRESS
THE UNDERGROUND GUIDE
UPDATED EDITION
MichaeI Patrick WeIch with Brian BoyIes
ALL THE PLACES YOUR MOTHER
WARNED YOU ABOUT

With new interviews and insights from local artists and musicians
106 b&w images, 8 maps
$19.95 paper
NEW ORLEANS
CHECK OUT THESE FRESH PRODUCTS AND MORE @ SANUK.COM
BEERCOZY
SANDAL COLLECTION
LIGHT
BRENDAN MONROE
MODERN METAMORPHOSES, ART AND ALCHEMY
BRENDAN MONROE USED TO PAINT THE MOST
beautiful blobs you could ever imagine. And even though
he isnt a scientist, he transforms biology into ne art,
nding the spaces between consciousness and ambiguity
(although he did in fact have a microbiologist interview him
for his monograph, b.monroe). His paintings and sculptures
have been shown around the world, including standout solo
exhibitions at Cooper Cole in Torotnto, Richard Heller in Los
Angeles, and Galerie LJ in Paris.
When asked about his inuences, Monroe began to
brainstorm the very essence of his artwork, stockpiling
words and environments from which his characters and
scenes emerge. When was the last time you read that an
artist was inspired by lumps of gooey material? From a
stint in Stockholm and back to Oakland, California, here is
the return of the blob.
ACTIVITY / MOVEMENT / CURRENTS / ACCUMULATION
GROWTH OVER TIME / DRIPS / WATER / GRAVITY / BLOOD
AMINO ACIDS / TRANSFER OF LIQUIDS INTO GASES / FORCES OF
PRESSURE / IGNITION / CHEMICAL REACTIONS / LIGHT BENDING
TIME PERCEPTION / TAR EXPLORATION / DEEP SEA DIVES
ENDLESS DESERT DUNES / GEOLOGY / PLATE TECTONICS
LUMPS OF GOOEY MATERIAL / EROSION

CYCLES
The cells of plants focus on utilizing the environment to
engineer their bodies. Since they stay in the same place for
the duration of their lives, they have gured out how to solve
this problem. Chemical elements in dirt and atmosphere
are absorbed to convert and catalyze into an entirely new
living mass. In death they return to the earth, and chemistry
continues, dissolving and evaporating, then continuing
the cycle with new plant life in their place. As these cycles
continue they usher the things normally thought of as
stagnant and inanimate, like carbon atoms, into active
participation. Over time and generations the contents of land
are exchanged, alive, dead, alive again, always repeating
existence and continuing through history. Everything cross
pollinates the basic elemental exchange in a landscape.
-
LATTICEWORK OF BONE / FLIES / MAGGOTS / BURIAL / DIRT
DECAY OF PLANTS / DEATH / GROWTH / LIFE UNDERGROUND
EXTRACTION / THINGS WE MAKE FROM EARTH
BUILDING ON BUILDINGS / LANDFILL / LANDSCAPES / MINED
MOUNTAINSIDES / LOCUSTS / CICADAS / LIZARDS
FUNGAL GROWTHS / ORGANIZATION OF ANTS
MOLD GROWING
Theres a science education kit I purchased once to grow
slime mold. It comes with petri dishes and a few dry
akes containing spores. By feeding them water and oats
(carbohydrates) the mold begins to grow. If the conditions
are right, it will ourish and expand out of the petri dish and
take over your workspace like some kind of devouring blob,
creating a beautifully complicated latticework of slimy neon
yellow stuf, as long as its kept moist and well fed. Theres
an efciency to the organization it creates, resulting in a
freeway-like netting for nutrients and moisture to feed the
organism as a whole.
-
Portrait by Alex Nicholson
left
Layers
Acrylic on paper
11" x 8.5"
2013
right
Ridge
Acrylic on paper
24" x 19.5"
2013

bottom
Untitled (reservoir)
Ink and gouache on paper
9" x 15"
2012
INFLUENCES
42 JUXTAPOZ INFLUENCES
MAY 2014 43
PRECIOUS MATERIALS / OLD TREES / BURNED
LANDSCAPE / FLASH FLOODS / CORAL REEF
CONSTRUCTIONS / OBJECTS WASHING UP ON THE
BEACH / LONG JOURNEYS / EMPTINESS / SILENCE
HALF AWAKE DREAMS / ELECTRICITY IN THE BODY
KEPLER TELESCOPE
Created to peer as closely as possible at the systems of
neighboring stars. The data and images it has gathered
are being analyzed, and multitudes of planets are being
discovered. This brings up the question of Are we alone or
not? much closer to the reality of an answer. Whether the
answer is yes or no, the stories of more worlds are now an
absolute truth. There are innite possibilities of landscapes,
oceans of chemical liquids, and gaseous mixtures of
atmospheres. There is the viability of life and how rare or
abundant it is. There could be someone out there, very
much like ourselves, who is looking back in our direction
and thinking about the same thing. There could also be
communities of primordial single celled organisms, and it
would be just as exciting.
-
PATTERNS IN NATURE / VEINS / LAYERS IN WOOD
VOLCANIC REMNANTS / TORNADOES TOUCHING DOWN
WHIRLPOOLS / SCALE OF MATTER IN SPACE
PLANETARY SPIN / POLAR MAGNETISM / OXYGEN
HYDROGEN / IRON
NERVOUS SYSTEM
If youre lying down or just sitting and begin thinking about
your foot, you can feel it just there, sort of tingling, and
pulsing. The electrical paths in the body are telling our brains
to understand a sensation. Touch, force, pain, ache, reactions
to textures, temperatures and environments. Those billions
of tendrils connecting give the body its instantaneous ability
to communicate with its parts. Such engineering is a well-
developed mechanism for the primary purpose of navigation
through surroundings and staying alive.
-
For more information about Brendan Monroe, visit
brendanmonroe.com
JUXTAPOZ.COM / BRENDAN - MONROE
left
Float
Acrylic on paper
11" x 8.25"
2013

right
Secrets
Acrylic on paper
10" x 8"
2014
44 JUXTAPOZ INFLUENCES
Lrlk oen 8reejen, Cerr, offert,, 2013, acryllc on canvas, olptycb: 48 36 lncbes eacb, 48 72 lncbes overall
LP|K DLN 8PLL[LN
Tbere's a Plot Goln' On
May 1 - [une 7, 2014
530 West 24th Street New York, NY
212 691 7700 freightandvolume.com
CHRIS JOHANSON
INTERVIEW BY KRISTIN FARR PORTRAIT BY WYATT TROLL
CHRIS JOHANSON IS ONE OF THE MOST NOTABLE AND INSIGHTFUL ARTISTS OF OUR
time. Recognized internationally by museums, biennials, and publishers, hes remained true
to his roots and ideology despite the blue chip fame. His work is challenging, ever-evolving,
and an extension of his being. As he says, I think life is the artwork...
Like many artists, Ive been inspired by Johansons stream-
of-consciousness approach to art-making and his ability to
address meaningful subjects with humor and poignancy.
Talking to him is like seeking the counsel of a sage. He is
more attuned to universal vibrations than most people, and
he is full of good advice.

Kristin Farr: Why is Adobe Books your favorite place?
Chris Johanson: I dont think Im a hopeless romantic or
nostalgic person necessarily, but Ive met many great people
here and the vibe is good. Certainly meeting my wife here
has a lot to do with it. Its a democratic place, grounded in
a slippery-slope, always-moving world. Change happens
always, but this place has a peaceful continuity. Ive only
hung out at the new location a little bit, but the vibes still
good. Its perfect.

You were telling me that school is everywhere. Can you say
more about that?
I think its helpful to know that school and teachers are
wherever you go. Theres something valuable to be learned
about anythingetiquette, skills, spiritual information,
intellectual being, problem solving, inspiration, whatever. I felt
that school was not that fun because of the parameters. I think
people operate in diferent shades of gray or colorsome
people might have trouble in that environment. I did, and that
bothered me for a long time. But now it doesnt, because
thats not the only school out there. There are all these other
schools, like walking down the street and meeting people.
Some people are visual learners, some learn from hearing,
others are physical learners, and thats important because you
do get stuck in a rut. If you cant exist within this one zone,
then its not going to work out, or the road ends. Theres a
blockage. But you can just go around that blockage.

Tell me about the house project youre working on in
collaboration with your wife, Johanna Jackson.
We do lots of art together. We do our individual thing, and
then our collaborative thing in the house. We moved to LA
and we live on a hill. Its 120 steps from the street to the
house. When we got there, we realized we didnt want to
have too many things, only exactly what we wanted in the
house. We made all the furniture out of garbage, and its
been incredible. Johanna made lights and did all the wiring,
and I made chairs, tables and racks for everything, and
she made the curtains and textile stuf, like cushions. She
took industrial sewing classes. My thing is pretty free form,
basically learning joinery. Were making furniture, pottery
and cement formsjust taking art out of the gallery. Its a
way to change the dynamic and grow as an artist.

Whats it been like having shows all over the world?
Im 45 and I started having shows when I was 20. They were
few and far between, and then it ramped up into shows all
the time, traveling for years; like being on tour in a band,
except that I wasnt in a band. I was a solo artist, and every
time I went somewhere, I wasnt playing the songs from the
last record. It would be like making 15-40 new songs for
every show. It became totally exhausting. I quit doing that
for a long time. Now Im doing shows again, but its been an
insane, professionally weird journey with both good and bad.
As far as subject matter, I just think you cant do the same
thing over and over. It becomes deeply not interesting to me,
but I do revisit things.

You said you consciously stopped making gurative work.
I read a mystery anthology about Raymond Chandler, and
there was a quote of his about how it became harder to write
because it was too easy to write what he was writing. I relate
to that experience completely. That gurative art got too
easy to not feel like I was doing standards. It became like a
chore, stale and not creative. You have to just keep growing,
so now I do a little bit of gurative art.

Where was your rst art show?
I grew up in San Jose and my rst art show was at an ice
cream parlor in Los Gatos, Double Rainbow, where I was
working. I had taken a silk-screening class at De Anza
College, and I used to make paintings and prints about
this dog named Yota, and that was my rst art show. Then I
moved to San Francisco and I started to have shows at cafs.
I had my rst real gallery show at William Passarellis gallery.
It was called Emmanuel Ratnitskys Found Objects, referring
to Man Rays real name. It was a trip. People from the band
Flipper were there, and all these local artists who were older
and from the early, pre-punk avant garde.
BEYOND THE STORY
This is the unabridged version of
an interview with Chris Johanson
lmed at Adobe Books in San
Francisco for a video series
Juxtapoz contributing editor
Kristin Farr produces for KQED
called Art School.
48 JUXTAPOZ CHRIS JOHANSON
What do you think about the Mission School label?
Glen Helfand came up with that for the SF Guardian article
he wrote. Ive known him for a long time. Hes a cool guy,
very dedicated to the art scene in San Francisco. I dont mind
the idea of the Mission School, its just that the people who
get mentioned as being a part of itI feel pretty strongly that
they feel the same waywe dont really identify with it being
a painting thing. For me, it was just a neighborhood thing
that involved visual artists, photographers and lmmakers,
writers, reporters, activists, performance artists, musicians,
and incredible galleries. This is pre-interest, theres no
money going on; it was a beautiful situation, and it all
connected, like a thousand people. Thats what it was and is
about. Theres a continuum. At this point, it could only really
be dened as a really large grouping of storytelling.

What are the good and bad parts about being involved in
the art market?
Were in a capitalist society, and to me, thats a strange
thing. It has pitfalls, for sure. The professional art life is an
interesting worldthe commercial art world and going to
fairstheres no rhyme or reason to it. I would like to say
that if you worked hard, it would just happen, but thats not
necessarily the case at all. Its a pretty random situation,
what becomes valuable and not valuable. The reality of it
doesnt bother me at all, now that Ive been involved with it
for so long. I see it for what it is, just chance. Theres a very
strange who-knows-ness about it.
However, I believe working hard pays of. If Im a gentleman
and I keep at my creative thing, I think theres a way to
survive in this world where money is unfortunately a real
factor to surviving. I think people can do it. Its a hard road,
but lifes hard, so that shouldnt be mysterious to anybody.
To be a professional artist, you have to have a really thick
skin and be prepared for disappointment, but also be
available to make good things happen for yourself.

above
Untitled
Acrylic on paper
24" x 17.75"
2013
Photo by Joshua White
right
Untitled (The River of Life)
Acrylic on paper
24" x 18"
2012
Its a lot about being in the right place at the right time.
I think thats one of the most fascinating things about the
whole journey of being a participant or just looking at it as a
cultural anthropologistseeing how things go down, or rise
up, or become spotlighted in the art world. Ive seen so many
ways that its happened, and sometimes, yes, its just being
in the right place at the right time. As far as the academic
scene lately, it seems like people are watching artists
from Yale or UCLA, USC and CalArts too. The galleries
are looking for people that have bright shiny objects that
havent been shown that much, but that have promise. They
can instantly control their markets and raise the pieces to
$10,000, $20,000 or $500,000 so theres that.
But that doesnt interest me at all. What interests me is
devoting your personal energy to this life thats just a
slowed-down situation, a more directed, philosophical, slow
life. Its really a trip. Youre almost certainly setting yourself
up for a diferent type of life. Quite often it will not involve a
retirement plan, and youre not going to get benets. I guess
now its changing with the health care mutation, which Im
totally excited about. Its an excellent babystep.
There are so many ways to nd a great place to be in the
world of art making. It doesnt necessarily mean that youll
be selling paintings, but it means that youre involved
somehow, whether working for a non-prot, or working on
lms. There are many ways to get into interesting, creative
jobs where youre working for an art department and making
a good day rate. Then you only work half the months, and
the rest of the time you can work on your individual art.

Why do you think being nice is important?
I would sayto young people and old people, people who
dont know what age they are, and middle-aged people, or
anybody who wants to be involved in artremember to be
nice because then you get to do art with other people. If
youre a selsh jerk, people will just end up hating you. Some
people hate you anyway, but more people will hate you if
youre not a nice person. The collective vibration will be a lot
more fun. Have shows in garages and galleries; have parties
and share your creativity. Its a good space to be in. I bet
anyone thats been involved in the history of art making and
sharing will say the same thing.

How do you infuse your energy into your art?
When Im making physical artwork, its very meditative and
helps create my homeostasis, my better mental headspace.
Its completely a therapeutic type of thing, and that whole
thing is the artwork. I think life is the artwork, so a physical
thing documents that.

Have you always thought of your work as conceptual?
I consider my artwork conceptual but only in the sense
that the denitions of the art scenes from the past are still
happening. Words and denitions are free to go into the
next poem or song. Language is always moving around.
When I was younger, I didnt really understand conceptual
art. I just took it on at the same time that a lot of people
were reinventing that language for themselveschanging
it to mean that there is content that you cant see behind
this work, and thats whats making it. Reimagining that
denition, and saying, you know, the concept behind this
work is anti-anxiety, or serenity, alienation, or peaceful
thoughts. Its free, and Im taking itthats the way I look at
conceptual art.
When you paint words, it really makes you slow down and
think about them more.
You are slowing down your thought process because you
have to be in sync with how fast you write down a word, and
it puts you into a meditative state, for sure. I dont meditate
in the traditional sense, but I think that I tap into that stuf
when I make artwork, and I think thats what other people do
too. Thats what its about. Even if its intense action painting
or whatever, I personally want to do it all. Its a peaceful
endeavor. Its helpful.

How do you use your sketchbooks?
I only work on one at a time, but I keep them all, and I refer
to them when I go to shows. I bring about three of them.
Thats me having my ducks in a row. Sometimes they will be
above
Door Sculpture to Talk About
the Idea of Diferent Possibilities
You May Have to Process Your Life
Project Los Altos: SFMOMA, Los Altos
2013
right
I Do Not Know But I
Am Open to Learning
Project Los Altos: SFMOMA, Los Altos
2013
sketches for installations, or poetry and writing things that
I want to do in lm. I write the dates down because between
that, my datebook, and random photos I keep, I can gure
out the timeline of things. Thats a really important system
for me to have.

What are some words you use to describe your work?
The way I describe my artwork is selsh expressionism
because its just myself and what I have to say. Its just
funny. Im not a cynical person. Im not very jaded, but I like to
put humor in everything because I think you need humor to
survive. Life is bittersweet, and humor is a really good tool for
dealing with life. If I call my art selsh expressionism, I think
thats funny because people are self involved. People are a
crack-up. Everybodys a freak. I just think its really tting.

That is the only way I describe my work because anything
else would seem self-involved, and its already self-involved,
so thats about as far as I can take it. I mean, how many art
shows can you have? I take what I do seriously, and I have
this book coming out, and Im very happy about it. But I hope
another one doesnt come out for a long time. Thats enough
for a while. I used to like to do shows all the time. I like to do
shows once in a while now, because if you just do art shows
all the time, do you really have anything to say? There have
to be in-between moments.

I got into multi-media art living to keep it from getting stale,
and thats why I play in Sun Foot, the band Im in with Ron
Burns and Brian Mumford. Thats why I have my record label,
Awesome Vistas, so I can collaborate with musicians and
artists. I just keep things moving around because it gives you
some time to have a successful, creative life. You know how
cooking is like art? Cooking is one of my favorite arts that
Im involved in. If you are moving your energy around, to me,
thats the same as walking or riding a bike. Its living, and it
doesnt become about this concerned commodity so much.
It keeps things reasonable. I work with wonderful galleries
all over the world, but I cant do it all the time because then
I wouldnt really be making anything other than an object
thats for sale. And then I wouldnt be bringing anything of
value to that commercial gallery dynamic because it would
just be dead art. It would be nothing.

above
Untitled
Acrylic on paper
21" x 5.75"
2012
right
Untitled( StraightForward)
Acrylic on paper
23" x 17.5"
2012
Photo by Joshua White
There are art pieces that can only happen if I can walk
around. Where my studio is, in Highland Park, there are no
big pieces of wood to nd, so all my work is made out of
small pieces of wood that I put together. I sit with the wood,
and sometimes the shape of the wood tells me something
about how the paintings going to go. I like to make pieces
about the sun, and a new day, and that kind of stuf, and I can
only make a round painting if I nd a round piece of wood.
Im not going to cut a piece of wood into a circle. It has its
own pace, and thats just the way it goes.

How does your brain relate to color?
I like working with color and cans of paint that I nd. Its a
dynamic way to communicate. Yellow like the sun, brown like
the ground, blue like the sky, green like growth, gray like the
gray area, and black like resting or restorative energy.

I used to like knowing why I was painting, so I put a lot of
meaning into everything, but now I dont. And thats been
a fun thing, to not want to know why Im doing things any
more. I used to want to know, but now I dont. I dont care at
all. I used to totally know why I did everything that I did, but
that became a dead end. I had to unlearn that by not doing
it. I quit making art for a little over two years. I refused to
even think about it. I dug holes in my backyard and planted
trees and blueberry bushes, and just walked around my
neighborhood. It was fantastic. I didnt do any art almost the
whole time. And then I unlearned all this stuf that I thought
was so important. Because it was important then. But then it
became not important at all. It was an interesting time.
For more information about Chris Johanson,
visit chrisjohanson.com
Check out two videos featuring Chris Johanson
at KQED.org/ArtSchool
JUXTAPOZ.COM / CHRIS - JOHANSON
MAY 2014 55
NICK CAVE
INTERVIEW AND PORTRAIT BY CALEB NEELON
WHEN THE RODNEY KING VERDICT WAS ANNOUNCED IN 1992, Nick Cave was alone
in a city park and felt compelled to do something physical. He gathered sticks. They
became the rst of his more than 500 Soundsuitsgiant wearable costumes that obscure
the wearer's identity, race, and gender. Subsequent materials like plush toys, buttons,
potholders, hook rugs, sequins or pipe cleaners, take on forms that evoke vessels,
mountains, religious attire, and even instrument cases. They became one of the more
identiable and successful bodies of work by an artist in the past twenty years, but Nick
Cave is stepping away for the time being.
I spoke with the Missouri-born artist on his birthday as he
was about to open a show at the Institute of Contemporary
Art, Boston. Comprised of two spaces, the exhibit features a
room full of his famous Soundsuits and a second with newer
works built around found ceramic dogs perched on suitably
gaudy sofas.

Caleb Neelon: What was it like growing up as one of eight
brothers? I wonder if, as a young artist, that would have
been hell.
Nick Cave: It was great. We were raised that you always
loved one another. We had our ghts, and we had to kiss and
make up. That was just how it was. And even today, we love
and respect each other. They come to as many openings
as they possibly can. I mean, ve of the seven are jocks,
straight-up jocks, and I'm thinking they don't have a clue as
to what I do, but I'm amazed at how much they do know.

Jocks wear uniforms...
Exactly! So it's really quite exciting. My birthday is today.

Happy birthday!
Thank you. And they all texted me Happy Birthday. We grew
up together like a basketball team, all eight in a row, one
year apart. My father passed away when I was eighteen,
right when I was going into undergraduate art school.

Eight children had to have stretched a single mother
economically, so there must have been some real
diference makers in your life.
You know, there was another family, and whatever we had
left over from dinner, we would take to them. So I never
knew that we had nothing because there was this family that
we were also feeding. I wasnt raised in a surrounding where
that was even recognized. I think it's really how you are
placed in the world and the structure around it. I remember
once, when we literally didn't have any food, my mother
wondered, Oh my god what am I going to do, we don't have
anything for dinner. She created a popcorn party. We all had
popcorn, we came together, and we all had fun.

We really were not aware of the circumstances. It was a
very protected and unconditional set of afairs. I never
knew what it was to not have anything. At the end of the
day, they wanted you to be happy. I look back on that and
think about how I was equipped and groomed to be who I
am today. Even as a kid, I was prepped with the sensibility
of art in my existence; it was brought to my attention. There
was that, and the teachers in life who condition and shape
you to focus and nd a direction. Somebody handed me of
to somebody else, and they each did what they had to do.
There was an amazing infrastructure in place, and I'm here
because of that.

When did dance enter?
As a kid, I was always around theater and dance in school,
but did I ever think of dance as a career? Probably not.

But you end up meeting Alvin Ailey.
That was when I was in undergraduate school at Kansas City
Art Institute. I was interested in performance and movement.
I took dance as an elective to feed back into that, never as a
career goal.

And the same with fashion?
Same thing. I have always been interested in it, working at
Macy's, and I also had a store with another person where
we did collections and sold to about 300 stores across the
country. But I kept art as a secret from that whole collector
and buyer perspective. I never really even brought those two
moments together, but I was interested in one feeding into
the other. And at the end of the day, you know what's really
your core.

As the chair of the graduate fashion department of the
School of the Art Institute of Chicago, you must think
about that all the time. Where do the lines of fashion and
art intersect?
Where it lies for me, and where I nd it to be the most
interesting, is at the couture level. At that level it's about
theater, setting the stagea level of presentation that is
mind-boggling. You're collaborating with lighting and set
designers to really showcase this elaborate collection. It's
not what you see in stores, but it's about the vision. And that
vision is what lters down into a ready-to-wear collection. It's
the feeder.
BEYOND THE STORY
He's not the Australian musician
who plays with the Bad Seeds.
Diferent guy, same name.
He's one of eight children,
all boys.
He currently chairs the Fashion
Design department at the School
of the Art Institute of Chicago.
All images courtesy of the artist and
Jack Shainman Gallery, New York. All
photos by James Prinz Photography

Soundsuit
Mixed media including
fabric and sequins
108" x 27" x 15"
2013
58 JUXTAPOZ NICK CAVE
And at that high point, things can get a little fuzzy between
there and here, in the gallery.
Yeah, it's fun. It's theater and dance, and it's an interesting
position and place to be. For me, it was looking at that,
looking at art, and looking at ideas associated to craft
asking how could I align all of these ideas, then reshape and
re-form a new way of thinking.

I asked curator Jenelle Porter if she had the chance to try
one of your Soundsuits on, and she didn't. While we just
met today, I won't lie, right now Im sizing up how much
time I'll have to spend around you before asking if I could
put one on. What is the immediate reaction people have
when they put on a Soundsuit for the rst time, or I should
say, when a Soundsuit wears them?
It's interesting you say that. I talk about the object or
the work that you are going to be wearing. I ask them to
imagine what it is going to feel like. Prepare yourself for this
transition. Touch it, experience it in this imaginary sort of
way. And then I tell people, when you put it on, don't even
move at rst. Just become one with the object; otherwise
it's wearing you. You've got to be able to surrender to this
transformative space, or else you really lose control and fall
apart. Individuals need to take out the time to surrender to
this shiftbecause what happens is your identity, gender,
race, is no longer relevant. I'm forced to look at something
without judgment. It's about projection and conviction. I
know that you are in the Soundsuit, but how are you going
to establish an identity that allows coming face-to-face with
this other. It takes time, but when you do reach that shift, it's
amazing when that happens.

There is something so beautiful and timeless about
these, but at the same time, they are often so rooted in
contemporary events, or cued by them.
Exactly.

Rodney King, Trayvon Martin, and so on.
I just started working on a new body of work that is titled
TM13, the Trayvon Martin series. It's rooted around identity,
above
Soundsuit
crochet blanket and sequins
108" x 27" x 14"
2013
right
Soundsuit
Mixed media including fabric,
buttons, and shopping cart
110" x 24" x 24"
2011
following spread left
Sculpture
Mixed media including ceramic birds,
metal owers, ceramic Rottweiler, and
vintage slipper sofa
86" x 71" x 52"
2013

following spread right
Soundsuit
Mixed media including fabric,
buttons, and bentwood chair
118" x 24" x 28"
2012
it's rooted around proling, fear, the unknown, ritual, the
cultural kaleidoscope, maybe Haitian voodoo, as well as
around the surplus of the world and how we renegotiate
that. It's established around economic boundaries, race, and
being open to being empowered by these ideas in coming
up with something that appears to become larger than life.

Was Chicago the city of your imagination growing up, and
did you always envision being there?
I could have gotten into a lot of shit in New York, but in
Chicago I can have an amazing studio environment. I think of
Chicago as my open canvas, my testing ground, and that's
how I use it. At one point, I thought I would be living in New
York with everybody else. But knowing I have the ability to
jump into the center of it all and then jump back is what it's
saying to meChicago has protected me from being lost,
from being seduced.

Are most of your supplies sourced locally?
No, they're from all over the country. We did some
scavenging here in Boston. But we'll y to Seattle, rent a van,
and drive back and nd things. Go to Mexico.

You must get boxes of items mailed to you from people
who nd things that they feel might interest you, right?
It's never what I really want! So, I appreciate it but decline.

Tell me about these newer dog pieces. As a dog owner, I
look at them, and where the Soundsuits have the human
at the core, these have the absence of the human at the
corethat old saying that if you want the most comfortable
seat in the house, move the dog.
Exactly.

It's a displaced human being.
When I started to transition to this work, I asked myself, how
do I transfer the essence? Once you understand that, this
work can be embraced with the same intensity.

Are you a dog owner?
I am. And this was a lot about You're my dog, the street
idea of guardianship and protection. There is also the role
of the dog within 19th century painting, the baroque, the
idea of dens, and also the role of class, of purebred and not
purebred. It gave this edge: Is it friendly, or is it not friendly?

DON'T EVEN MOVE AT
FIRST. JUST BECOME
ONE WITH THE OBJECT;
OTHERWISE IT'S
WEARING YOU
MAY 2014 61
On another topic, I wanted to know about Dakar, Senegal,
and the large-scale work you did at the American Embassy.
Amazing. It was working with the Art in Embassies program
with Virginia Shore in Washington DC. They wanted me to
make a large piece for the entryway of the new embassy
in Dakar.

And the Embassy, I'm sure, was an incredible building.
Awesome.

They're huge fortresses.
I had been there and to the one in Haiti where I had done
another piece. In Dakar, I needed to somehow involve the
community, so I brought to Virginia's attention that it needed
to be a collaboration. It was incredible to go to studios and
see the work of Senegalese artists, as it really became a
project within a project. I didn't want it to be just me coming
in, doing a performance and leaving.

You have another Massachusetts show looming in the
Fall of 2016 at Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary
Art, which, for those who haven't been, is pretty much a
massive old New England mill building-turned-museum
space that every artist dreams of. Think airplane hangar
with exposed brick walls, right near the Berkshires. How
are you approaching that one?
What I will say about that project is I'm going to put you in
the belly of a Soundsuit. When you know it's a show that's
going to run for a whole year, it changes things. And there is
the Jack Shainman show this fall in New York, which is going
to be new work, but no Soundsuits.

Stepping away from Soundsuits had to take some guts.
You know, it really didn't. I was feeling it, and decided, you
know what, I'm doing it. We have to keep moving. I had been
thinking about it for a while. And Im planning to take a ten-
year hiatus. I have ideas for new ones, but I'm ready to talk
about some other things.
Nick Caves work will be on display at the Boston ICA
through May 4th, 2014
For more information about Nick Cave,
visit nickcaveart.com
JUXTAPOZ.COM / NICK - CAVE
Soundsuit
sequins and beads
72" x 30" x 30"
2006-2012
Soundsuit
Mixed media including rugs
and crocheted blanket
Approximately 98 " x 21 "
2011
MAY 2014 65
WINNIE TRUONG
INTERVIEW BY KRISTIN FARR PORTRAIT BY JAMIE CAMPBELL
WINNIE TRUONG DRAWS HAIR BETTER THAN ANYONE, and her subjects are soulful and
strange, but the way we categorize them in our minds says more about us than them. They
are otherworldly and they seem comfortable being hairy, so who are we to judge? Some
art leaves you full of questions. After admiring her work for years, I nally had the chance to
ask Winnie everything Id ever wondered, and the questions had really piled up. Why is she
so obsessed with hair? How much time does she spend drawing all this hair?
What kind of sandwiches does she like? Youre about to
nd out. For our 20th anniversary, its only natural to be
featuring an artist who grew up inspired by the pages of this
magazine. Winnie Truong was ve years old when the rst
issue of Juxtapoz hit the shelves, and she is now a successful,
internationally exhibiting artist. What goes around comes
around, and I know Jux will continue to inspire generations of
fresh talent in a sublime, everlasting cycle. Cheers to Winnie
Truong, the artists she will inspire, and the next 20 years.

Kristin Farr: Who do you think has the most beautiful hair
in the universe? What does the ultimate hairdo look and
smell like in your mind?
Winnie Truong: To answer both questions at once: if Jared
Letos perfectly ombred man-bun smelled like cinnamon.

What is the sandwich of your dreams?
Something that is all at once spicy, meaty, cheesy, and
presented to me open-faced. That would be ideal. Can my
answer be pizza?

Yes. Have you been drawing since you could hold a pencil?
Ive been drawing since as far back as I can remember. It
was a way for my parents to keep me busy. They would buy
stacks of the three-ring binder paper, unwrap it, and let me
have at it. I would ll up those pages with pen drawings of
girls eating ice cream and playing tennis because thats just
where my head was at in 92.

Why do you think you are so obsessed with hair? Is hair a
metaphor for something?
Hair continues to fascinate me as a subject in art. On a
physical level, I have a relationship with hair, and the very act
of drawing each strand is equal to a mark made on paper.
Hair is something we all have. Its naturally occurring on our
bodies and we style and adorn it in diferent expressions of
class, culture, gender, and even personality, especially at its
extremes. Working with hair is a way for me to question and
subvert our heavily coded ideas of beauty and the status
quo. In my work, hair serves as a stand-in for those external
tensions, while also expressing the individual qualities of
the subject.

Are you also obsessed with faces in general?
I wouldnt say that Im obsessed with the human face but
rather captivated by the range in human individuality that
comes from the basic template: two eyes, a nose and a mouth.
Whether Im perusing chicks with Steve Buscemi eyes
or celebrities without teeth, Ive always been fascinated
by portraiture and the gure because of its immediate and
empathic relationship with the viewer. For me, coming up with
diferent types of characters and their features is something
Im naturally inclined to do in my doodling.

Do you get inspiration from faces you see in everyday life?
While I work loosely from models in magazines, I see my
drawings more as anonymous portraits of subjects that exist
at the fringe of biological possibility. I get a lot of inspiration
from people watching and fashion and hair magazines. From
there, I enjoy coming up with weird transmutations of those
models and trends in my sketchbooks as both entertainment
and brainstorming exercises. I tend to generalize the
features and, over time, my drawings carry more of a
likeness to one another than to the original sources.

Have you always made these hair portraits? How do you
dene them?
Ive always seen hair as the primary character in my portraits
and have always worked loosely with likeness, never
portraying actual people. I prefer to embrace homogeny
when I draw facial features, letting the characters in my
work exist as a species and genus amongst themselves. Im
comfortable with considering my work as both Hair Portrait
and Hairy Portrait because the subject of hair as extension
and metaphor for personality is central.

MAY 2014 67
Do they feel like something you could keep drawing
for years?
Its really hard to say. I love everything about being in the
studio and drawing on paper at the moment. As far as
subject matter goes, I think that shift will occur organically.

When there are two gures wrapped up in the same hair,
is it two diferent people, twins, or two sides of the
same person?
With that series, I started dreaming of hair as something
beyond ornament and accoutrement, and instead allowed
it to overow and become an enveloping and immersive
substance. It is at once comforting and all consuming. These
works explore the relationship tensions we have within
ourselves and with others. I play with the asymmetries/
imperfect symmetries of the gure and leave the
determination of reection, split personality, or twin up to
the viewer. I am always interested in eliminating the line
where the self begins and the veil or other ends.

I was just about to ask if you think about the masks people
wear, in terms of veiling certain aspects of their true selves.
Like the twin gures, the works that contain split portraits
delve much more into appearance as faade, who we put
forward and who we contain within ourselves. In those
drawings its about not knowing which appearance is the one
that is put on, and which is the subject unveiled and at rest.
WORKING WITH HAIR IS A WAY FOR ME TO QUESTION AND SUBVERT
OUR HEAVILY CODED IDEAS OF BEAUTY AND THE STATUS QUO
above
Palaver
Pencil crayon on paper
50" x 44"
right
Oblivion
44" x 36"
above
68 JUXTAPOZ WINNIE TRUONG
What is your relationship to your own hair?
Im pretty tame with my own hairstyles. Im all for familiarity
and comfort in my own life and save the time and labor of
hair maintenance for the drawing surface. The most dramatic
shift in my own appearance since high school may very well
be that I gave up on bangs in early 2013. As far as the rest of
the body goes, I usually do maintenance according whim or
warmer weather.

Do your gures have exaggerated body hair or something
more supernatural? How about the facial linesis it hair, or
a cross-hatching style? Sometimes it looks like grown-out
peach fuzz.
I have always envisioned my gures existing on the fringe of
our own reality; just beyond what we familiarize ourselves
with as the biological norm while still echoing elements
of our world so there is denitely a sci- element I wont
discourage. As far as faces and esh, I made the decision
very early on to maintain the consistency of texture and line,
and allow that ambiguity between esh and hair to persist
in the work. The drawing style denitely lends itself to the
peach fuzziness or vibration of line and color. Its essentially
a series of cross-hatched lines to create the efect of optical
mixing, with layers of diferent strokes of color that blend
when viewed from a distance.
What do you like about the beautiful/grotesque
juxtaposition?
I am still very interested in creating work that straddles
that subliminal space between hair as beautiful and hair as
something abject and grotesque. That ambiguity fascinates
me, and I think it gets back to the core of our relationship
with hair and how we react to it when it grows in familiar and
acceptable places, and then its ability to repulse when it
diverges from those norms. Often it only takes the weight of
one coarse and curly hair to tip that scale.

Would you say the hair has been growing longer, stronger
and more enveloping recently?
In my previous show A Slow Immersion in Toronto, I had
blankets and wrappings of hair as both the subject and a
metaphor for the ongoing relationship with drawing it in
the studio. Today, I see my drawings as an equal balance
of visual and visceral experience. Drawing is both a nal
product on paper and an immersive physical activity that
takes place in my studio during the time of production.
However, with the time I spend drawing, I often nd my free
moments of thought and memory are overshadowed by
automatic drawing on the back of my eyelids similar to the
Tetris Efect but instead of a mental puzzle of falling blocks
and disappearing lines, I am drawing wisps and braids in my
mind before I fall asleep.

Tell me about how you make under drawings and why you
began working that way.
For the large-scale pieces, its essential for me to make an
under drawing from colored chalk pastels in the preliminary
stages so I can block out major areas of light, shadow
and color. It keeps me available to make adjustments and
grand gestures early on without being held back by making
too many precious little marks while the work is still in
development. Even though most of the chalk is brushed or
smudged away when the drawing is done, it leaves behind
general areas of softness that I really enjoy.

You make tiny, perfect sketches before you do the huge
pieces, right?
For the most part, I start with doodling in sketchbooks when
Im bored as a way to collect inspiration. If there is something
Im particularly drawn to, it becomes a postcard-sized
study, which is much more accomplished in detail and color
than the original doodle. The studies allow me to see what
groupings of subjects and color work together when I plan
out series, as well as allowing me to clearly visualize what a
4x6 piece might look like weeks before its complete.

Are the ower arrangements of hair representative of
the afterlife?
While those works draw from the Victorian tradition and
Foundlings
11" x 14"
right
Siren
44" x 50"
practice of creating hair jewelry and keepsakes for loved
ones whove passed, I was interested in taking a physical
part of someone that doesnt decay, and creating imaginary
crafts and ornamental arrangements for sheer aesthetic
pleasure. I imagined vases and baskets that are both colorful
and lively, and have been lovingly made from the haircuts of
characters in my other drawings.

Tell me about your pencil crayons. Ive never tried them.
I have a lifelong love of using pencil crayons for their
freedom, simplicity, and immediacy. Historically speaking,
drawing has always been valued as a preliminary companion
to painting and sculpture. For me, its a nostalgic and
seemingly juvenile tool I can use to create something both
monumental and fragile. Theyre accessible and easy to
handle and maintain. They are also very satisfying to look at
just laid out as a gradient on my drawing table.

How has the scale of your work changed over time?
I am much more comfortable going back and forth between
large detailed drawings and precious studies than I was
before. Ive embraced the study sized complete works
more than I used to, meaning I wont reiterate it in a large
scale for the sake of it.

Do you stress your muscles and joints drawing hair
repeatedly forever?
There is denitely a lot of stretching and tea breaks in my
studio routine. But I also think that with the way I work on
such a large scale, I use a lot more of my upper body as a
whole, so theres not too much repetition that causes worry.
Email correspondences and website maintenance on the
other hand does impose a greater carpal tunnel threat.

Why do your characters often have serious expressions?
I think it comes from a lot of my experience with life drawing
in high school and throughout my undergrad. One thing
you learn about drawing from a live model is that during
a long session, their initial expression will slowly relax
and settle into a thousand yard stare and its this neutral
MAY 2014 71
resting face that I default to, and that ties into my inclination
towards creating an ambiguous tone with hair leading the
conversation.

Not to toot our own horn, but you told me youve gotten
some inspiration from Juxtapoz over the years. Whats
stood out to you?
Juxtapoz exposed a suburban high school art kid like me
to a whole variety of art practices that werent so text-book
in nature. That there was art out there that was culturally
signicant, while being fun, uid and personalthis feeling
persists today, every time I pick up Juxtapoz, or read from
the myriad art blogs as I make new art discoveries.

What do you listen to or watch in the studio?
These days, its a mix of This American Life, Radiolab,
comedy podcasts, and Twilight Zone radio plays.

What keeps you in Toronto? Are you planning to go to
grad school?
For the most part, I really enjoy living in Toronto. I spent my
childhood years here and permanently settled here after
graduating from art school. Its a young city with a growing
creative scene with funding and support for young artists.
Its also within reasonable distance to other major hubs like
New York and Montreal, and connected with diferent art
scenes. However, when the time does come, I would love to
do my MFA abroad.

Any good stories from shows or art fairs?
I was in New York for the opening of my last exhibition at
Mulherin Pollard and had an afternoon of to go see shows.
I saw Michael K Williams (played Omar Little on The Wire)
at the Basquiat exhibit at the Gagosian in 2013 and couldnt
share my excitement at the time with my husband because
he wasnt there, but I can share it with you all now!

One of your drawings had teeth growing out of the hair,
and it reminded me of those stories about tumors with
stuf growing inside them. Is that something youve
investigated?
For that piece, I was Googling broid tumours (good luck to
the curious) as a source of inspiration. I grew up watching
a lot of Guinness Book of World Records and Ripleys
Believe it or Not, and Im pretty sure it was from one of those
segments. The human body is all at once terrifying and
fascinating. Other fun terms to Google include Hyperdontia
and Trypophobia.

Tell me about stuf you collect.
For Valentines Day, my best friend Lisa got me a realistically
rendered ceramic tooth that I keep on a shelf by my dining
room table. A few months prior to that, my friend Matt gifted
me a giant, stained cow molar that rattled loose from a skull
he had. While I havent been actively seeking specimens to
collect, I have a good feeling this will be a naturally accruing
collection.

How do you describe your lifestyle?
I would describe my lifestyle as equal parts hard work
and relaxation. I spend almost all of my days during the
week in the studio drawing or incubating new ideas, and
my evenings with friends biking around the city when the
weather is nice. I live here with my husband, Darren, and we
love it very much.

Do you have any pets, and is fur as interesting to you
as hair?
I have a cat, Berlin (name given by her previous owner) and
I often give myself the task of harvesting her fur from her
favorite spots around our home. Ive also taken up needle
felting little creatures in the evening while I watch Law and
Order SVU, which I think ows with my overall interest with
hair as well.

Do you do the needle felting with cat fur?
Not yet! I work with pre-dyed wools for the most part. It's
something I have thought of and that has been suggested
many times. I have small reserves of her fur on a curio shelf
but won't be working with it until I learn to properly clean and
prepare it. Ive looked at a book called Crafting with Cat Hair
that is adorable, horrifying and kitsch.

Besides cat hair crafts, whats coming up for you this year?
I just had my solo show, Rites of Passage, in April at Galleri
Benoni in Copenhagen, and I am working towards another
solo exhibition at Erin Stump Projects in Toronto this fall. As
well I will be a part of this years Suggestivism group show
curated by Nathan Spoor at Copro Gallery in Santa Monica
this August.
For more information about Winnie Truong,
visit winnietruong.com
JUXTAPOZ.COM / WINNIE - TRUONG
I AM STILL VERY INTERESTED IN CREATING WORK THAT
STRADDLES THAT SUBLIMINAL SPACE BETWEEN HAIR AS
BEAUTIFUL AND HAIR AS SOMETHING ABJECT AND GROTESQUE
Other Ways Of Knowing
44" x 36"
ALEXIS ROSS
INTERVIEW BY AUSTIN MCMANUS PORTRAIT BY JEFF JOHNSEN
ALEXIS ROSS HAS STORIES TO TELL. After some brief banter with Ross, it became
apparent that he is a skilled raconteur and procient in the local vernacular of the
Los Angeles region. When I disclosed the various Westside cities I grew up in, he ofered a
detailed list of dates and personal experiences of those places.
In one of our rst conversations, reassuring him of
the informality of this interview, he shrugged, I'm not
particularly an artist. I'm mostly a guy who sits on the porch
smoking cigarettes in between long naps. I stretch my
creative ngers perhaps four times a year. Ultimately, I'm an
example of just how far laziness can get you.
If that was an attempt to deter me from pursuing this
interview, it had the obverse efect. With hoards of artists
anxiously scratching for recognition, its refreshing to see
a fairly apathetic approach, a general lack of interest in
garnering attention: no website, no social media, no carefully
curated package peddling his art. Ironically, many of the
friends Ross keeps are the current pioneers, curators, and
proponents of the contemporary art world. Attention is only
a phone call or cofee away. When Ross does surface to
work on projects, they are usually each uniquely diferent.
Unbeknownst to many is that Ross played an integral role
in realizing the epic Street Market installation for Art In The
Streets at LAs MOCA in 2011. One of his rare displays of
paintings was a two-person exhibition with Todd James.
He also contributed to Steve Powers The Dreamland Artist
Club project and was commissioned by UNDFTD to paint an
entire billboard with his friend Phyn. On the apparel side, he
has designed elegantly awesome t-shirts for Stussy, FUCT,
RVCA and The Seventh Letter.
Ross continues to operate quietly under the radar. By choice,
obviously. Im still surprised he agreed to speak, as he doesnt
do many interviews. However, I believe it gives us all some
context about who, indeed, is the president of Majestic
Persuasions, co-creator of Cafe Legs and vice-president of
the Gents of Desire. Mindful that he is an exceptionally well-
rounded creator of things, I just wont use the word artist.

Austin McManus: Hows your day going?
Alexis Ross: Pretty typical. In between jobs, so I am perched
on the front porch watching dust collect on my neighbor's
palm tree, smoking cigarettes and counting on my ngers
how many years until I can retire with a full pension.

How would you ll your days if you were able to retire
tomorrow?
Start with one hell of a nap, then probably get down to the
chores around the house I have been putting of. I recently
found a note my wife left me back in 2008 asking me to
measure the windows for awnings. Would be cool to nally do
that. There's enough stuf on these lists to keep me busy for
the next ve years. Besides, it would just be nice to be around
for the holidays and family birthdays, which I end up missing
because of work. I would still reserve my morning time for
other people's design problems, and work on those solutions
before my morning nap. Then, ultimately, nd some other
retired dudes to kick it with, sit at Canters with them and call
ourselves the ROMEOs (Retired Old Men Eating Out).

Why do you like smoking cigarettes so much?
When I was 22, I gave up heroin and picked up Lucky Strikes.
An old-timer handed me a pack of Camels while I was in day
two of kicking and put me on to general smoking etiquette,
like which end to light and how to make an open pack appear
closed. It would be a few more months until I hit my stride
and found my own brand. I always associated Camels with
convicts and Pall Malls with my father. Luckys were still sold at
most gas stations and let's face it, they look cool as hell. So,
basically, I put down the spike and picked up a cigarette habit,
now more of a pain than pleasure. As smoking has really gone
out of vogue these days, I feel like the odd man out, though
I do enjoy sitting on the porch in the evening and having a
smoke with my wife. Without that we would probably have to
get cable TV and watch True Detective.

Are naps a necessity?
I can't speak for the rest of the world, but let's also be clear
about what a nap really is. I'm not interested in "power
napping" or the light siesta. A proper nap means shoes and
pants on the chair, and so long for a good hour and a half
minimum. Preferably a full two hours. One should not wake
up refreshed. Rather, you should feel completely out of it.
Hopefully, someone has prepared you a cofee at this point.
As a heavy smoker I do little to no exercise, so the midday
nap allows my body to sit down and repair itself. So-called
"catnaps" don't allow your body to get down to work. I nd
that I have my best ideas in the morning with a cofee and
a cigarette, and a daily nap doubles my ideas by recreating
the same state. Ultimately, it's a bootleg approach to staying
healthy. So far, so good. I seldom get sick, and so long as
I don't move around, I feel pretty good.

Is Los Angeles the only place youve ever lived?
I was born in Norwalk, Connecticut and was two when
we moved to Alhambra where my folks split up. I spent
the rst grade bouncing around Ohio with my father, a
house key around my neck. Second grade, we moved to
Canarsie, Brooklyn. Cousins, aunts and uncles all in walking
distance of each other, it was great. I've always wondered
how life would have turned out if I had stayed, but then it
was also the place I was called "nigger lover" for wearing
a Dodgers hat. There seems to always be two sides to a
coin. In the end, I grew up in California with my mother in a
neighborhood called Mar Vista or "Burbank by the Sea. My
local bus was the 33 or 333 when I was lucky. When I was
really unlucky, I woke up in Santa Monica at the end of the
line. After graduating from Venice High, I spent two years in
Brooklyn attending art school, lost interest and came home.
Except for the occasional lapse in judgment, I have been
here ever since. Los Angeles is my favorite city in the entire
world. I realize that a lot of folks would argue that, which is
ne by me. The more folks who get disenchanted, the better.
We desperately need their parking spaces.

I was originally exposed to your work on a visit to
Coney Island but didnt realize for years that you were
responsible. The painting on the side of Peters Clam
Shack, a personal favorite amongst the many murals, was
for the Dreamland Artist Club project, right?
Steve Powers had Finn and me come out that rst year to
paint with him in Coney, and that's when we painted the
Clam Bar. What was commonly mistaken for a cholo was
actually a typical Brooklyn guido spinning a clam on one
nger, shouting out, "Hey, Joey!" as it was Joey Clams who
worked the clam bar there. It would be guys like Joey Clams
that made the project worthwhile as he became extremely
proud of the sign. It was our typical ploy to give the little guy
his proppers while the owner just scratched his head.
above
Stoned In Space and Cafe Legs #1
4157 Normal Avenue
Los Angeles, California
right
Concept Sketch for Art In The Streets
Pencil and paper
11" x 8.5"
2011
76 JUXTAPOZ ALEXIS ROSS
My Coney experience hit full stride the second year when
Steve opened the sign shop, and it would be the rst time
I turned down work to go hide away on Surf Avenue, and
the rst time I would make homemade tattoos available to
the public. In front of the shop, I hung some ballpoint pen
ash with a price list that fell out of a time machine: names
for ve dollars, a full Virgin of Guadalupe for twenty. Most of
my day was sitting out front trying to hustle handfuls of body
powder. With a bark of, "Powder powder powder it ain't
dope it ain't caine hooks you up just the same powder
powder powder, mostly entertaining myself.
My favorite Coney story happened when Sean Barton
made me a sign that read "Culos Cha-Chas Chi-Chis Gratis"
(Spanish slang for asses, pussies, titties, free). Towards
sunset, a group of well-lubricated Puerto Ricans called
me on the joke, which turned into quite an evening. The
forty-year-old mom wanted "Tego" tattooed across one of
her rotten watermelons of a breast, while she fought the
whole time with her drunken fteen-year-old daughter
and boyfriend. The handsome thug cousin and the lesbian
"snake lady" were scheming on the one ne girl of the
bunch, while bored nephews ran back and forth to the
bodega for cofee and beer. By the time the good-looking
girl pulled up her skirt to get "Diabla" tattooed on her ass,
the whole place smelled like beer, boners and vomit. It was
one AM when I nally got everyone out and the gate pulled.
That's when a real life Chinese Crip rolled up. Blue rag
drippin' and set trippin. It was like seeing a unicorn. I left
them to their drama and hopped on the F train.

How often does your homemade tattoo cart make
an appearance?
I haven't actually done a homemade tattoo in quite some
time. The problem with them is, while I think homemade
tattoos look the absolute best, they just take forever. It
always sounds like a good idea at rst, but then you get
down to all of that shading with a single guitar string and
youre like, "Fuck, no wonder this is such a penitentiary past
time!" I will, however, still pack up a little kit if I am traveling
overseas. Seems that the opportunities to waste away my
evening come more readily away from the responsibilities of
home. I would like to nd some time to get the cart up and
running or do something like we did in Coney. Perhaps that
will be what comes with retirement.

What was your involvement with the Installation of Street
Market at Art In The Streets?
I will give you the long version, for your own clarication.
I have never been much of a fan of this so-called "street
MAY 2014 77
art," for the record. When Aaron Rose told me that he was
to work on a show at MOCA titled Art In The Streets, I had a
good laugh and felt bad for my friend. A month later I got an
email from Steve, Barry McGee, and Todd asking if I would
participate in this next incarnation. Now these are three
gentlemen that I know from three diferent areas of life.
Todd I knew from when we were both still teenagers writing
grafti. Steve, as a member of Gents of Desire and the Coney
Island project. Barry, much later in life from mutual friends.
I think that ultimately they wanted an LA head to better t
the locale. So I took a look at the previous versions they had
done of Street Market and came to a quick conclusion, that
the last thing they needed was another artist. Rather, I would
ofer up what I had going for me from my day job, production
design. I treated that project much like any other job without
a budget. Long hours and pulling a whole lot of favors,
happy to fade back into obscurity when that was all done.

What characteristics describe members of the Gents of
Desire? Would I be correct in calling it a social club?
Yes it is, or better was, a social club. The members
themselves are a diverse crowd while, certainly, there are a
handful of older writers. The club includes one skateboarder,
one South Sider, one counselor, one director, two production
designers, two wardrobe stylists, one book collector, one
ex-artist, one curator, one jeweler and a y homosexual.
I suppose that what they all have in common would be
completely solid pedigrees, each putting in a good amount
of work to be who they are, having real life reputations that
exist with or without social media.

Tell me something noteworthy about your crew Majestic
Persuasions.
We have t-shirts that even grips like. Our prop master has
three balls due to a BMX accident. Our teamster can sign-
paint better than your sign painter. Our leadman can beat
up your leadman. Our current ofce assistant is the lead
singer of Holy Grail. We have a real Chinaman. We have two
bathrooms and two napping areas. We are personal friends
above
Trying to Commit Suicide at Two
Stories. Strictly Smoking Sherm
Pen and paper
2009
right
Sherm Stickn
Acrylic on canvas
72" x 60"
2012
and colleagues with Keith Wager (aka From Folsom to
Fashion). We somehow manage to make the money work.

How did you get into production design?
A fellow named Floyd Albee turned me on. I was lured into
the art department with free cigarette cartons and lunches
at Roscoe's. That was enough incentive to show up early
and leave late. Worked on music videos where we had to
do everything ourselves. Slept on stage, said yes when
I'd rather say no. Generally kept doing the next thing that
came in front of me without complaining. Was taught early
on to be nice to the guy below you as he would someday
be your boss. Can't tell you how many times that came true.
Would eventually work under a designer named Robbie
Freed, who taught me how to show up in a foreign country
and make fast friends with the local crew. This would be
invaluable down the road. He was also the person who
nally said "enough" and made me start my own crew.
You appear to nd comic relief in cholos?
Like most white kids of my generation, I grew up somewhat
enamored by the old Chicano styles, more specically a
time I like to call "when cholos still had hair." I still have
a ballerina's turnout that I developed in the third grade
that attests to this fascination. Unfortunately, these styles
disappeared with the growing popularity of Hip hop. Shaved
heads and shirts the size of house dresses hold no interest
for me. So far as the humor of it all, this came much later
in life. Getting clean, I was surrounded by a group of older
convicts who had an incredible sense of humor. Half seemed
MAY 2014 79
Fruit Loop and Fancy Free
Acrylic on canvas
72" x 48"
2012
MAY 2014 81
to be older black bank robbers from the fed system, and
the other half were Chicanos trying to avoid another state-
sponsored holiday. It was the latter of the group that really
got me laughing again. You see, we were all engaged in the
grim prospect of putting down the needle once and for all.
So everybody is going through a bag of mixed emotions,
from what feels like the worst broken heart to "fuck it" and
walking out the gate. Without many real life tools to cope,
humor became a useful outlet, much of it around the idea of
not taking oneself too seriously. This, mixed with a healthy
dose of KRLA, would become the foundation of a new life
for me.
How that afected what I draw is hard to say. One can
sit down with a ballpoint pen and knock out a decent
handkerchief with all the usual bells and whistles (tough
dudes, ne chicks, wicked skulls, song title, etc.) with
the end result of "Damn, that shit is tight!" Now if I was to
draw the same images, but hanging from the barrel of the
gun is a blown out pair of crime ghters and the song title
is something from Spandau Ballet, half the viewers are
laughing. The other half is like "Damn, that's fucked up, eh?"
At the end, I have to thank guys like Casper ESC (RIP) for
reminding me to laugh when I felt like dying. So, no. I don't
nd comic relief in cholos, no need now when there are so
many white kids to make fun of.

Whats the idea behind Cafe Legs and how many have
there been now? What kind of cofee do you serve?
Aaron Rose mentioned a new place in the neighborhood
where they repaired old scooters and made an incredible
espresso, to which I replied, "That sounds horrible." The
place was called Choke and it was run by a young dude
named Jef Johnsen. Turns out that Jef was pretty unique.
He was making espresso with a machine cobbled together
from various parts, all while tinkering away on old scooters
above
Ronaldo The Great
Ink and zipatone on illustration board
11" x 9.5"
2010
right
Shop Window #2
Acrylic on canvas
72" x 60"
2012
and mopeds. This was also right before the craze of fancy
espresso. Problem was that his spot became very popular,
to the point where Silverlake moms were complaining about
exhaust, and actor losers were going over scripts on the
couch. I spent a summer warning folks that espresso was
dead and it was all about Boba Tea. That never took of, but
Jef got rid of the espresso and the place became strictly
a moped repair shop, a problem, as there was nothing left
for me to do. I never agreed with the trend of souped-up
mopeds. Those things were lame and still are.

I had already painted all the signs I could to point out this
fact, so I no longer t into a place where I liked to hide.
Around this time, a customer had traded a small single group
espresso machine for some repair work. Jef and I built a
small shack in the repair yard where we could still have
a cofee and listen to tunes. This was to be Cafe Legs #1.
The name comes from an idea I copped in Santiago, Chile
which has storefronts called caf con piernas where you
would have a cigarette and cofee while hugging a woman
dressed in her underwear. It was one of those things that
made perfect sense down there, but would never translate
up here. So instead, we would sell limited items that you
couldn't buy anywhere else. We would open to the public
one day per month to sell that one thing and ofer espresso.
The rub was we never advertised; it all happened through
word of mouth. So, ultimately, either you were there and
copped the one time deal, or you weren't. The other twenty-
nine days of the month, I would sit there and hide away from
life if I wasn't working, cooking up the next idea for a sale.
It was a time before the economy dipped and people were
obsessed with the idea of "limited. So the concept was
really "beyond limited" coupled with a great price.

Around this time, we met Pat Tenore from RVCA, who really
twisted our arms until we agreed to build out Cafe Legs #2
behind his retail space on Fairfax. He had, and still has, such
an infectious enthusiasm and is a genuine good human
being. Once he agreed to the Legs terms of seldom open
and loss of prot, we got going. In many ways #2 was the
biggest success. It was there for about two years with the
espresso machine on and Goran Bregovic coming out of an
old Sansui receiver. Indoor smoking and a Japanese toilet
that washed your ass. A few times I dozed of there on the
weekend while my wife played her accordion. But most of
the time it just sat there untouched.
MAY 2014 83
Around this time I tried an experiment to see what it would
be like if I were an artist, a week of of work to draw each
day and a twelve-hour day including my nap. At the end of
that week I had twenty nished pieces and an urge to go
back to my day job. Aaron Rose got on my ass about having
a show with the work, so I nally agreed to do it if the venue
was Cafe Legs #2. I always hate going to art shows as there
is nowhere to sit down, and smoking indoors is long gone.
So #2 was just the type of place to endure such an evening.
A year later, I worked with some friends on building out
a miniature city for Art in the Streets, and it only seemed
appropriate to add in a Cafe Legs. This was #5 (yeah,
we skipped ahead). Rather than the typical old espresso
machine, we had a broken percolator as the idea of a Cafe
Legs in a museum. We wheeled out the homemade tattoo
cart and lled the display with "cool guy treasures. Inside
there was the customary napping cot that came in handy
during what turned out to be a long installation.
Much of the Cafe Legs story is one of having a laugh that
someone else is paying for, and that hit its peak with #3. Our
friend Kun convinced some folks in Tokyo that this would be
just what the new Ron Herman store needed, so we shipped
every nut and bolt to Japan where we spent the next three
weeks assembling it. We are still waiting to be invited back,
or at least get a free shirt.
In November 2012 I had a proper art show with my friend
Todd James called Beyond Elegance, the rst time I sat
down to make paintings for public consumption. Looking
like it was going to be quite the spectacle, we gured the
space could use a spot to sit, smoke and drink cofee, so we
wouldnt have to stand around talking about art. Cafe Legs
#4 came with all of the usual trappings, an old La San Marco
espresso machine, napping cot, MLK portrait, Sansui reverb
unit married to a Marantz and a bootleg Corinthians jersey,
as well as folders of every dirty doodle I had made for that
show. It's certainly up there with one of my favorite items of
all time. Now it sits in a storage unit back east. Hard to tell
if there will ever be a #6. Now Jefs a big time prop master
and part-time dune buggy racer. I'm sitting here shitting
myself at the cost of Catholic school and writing budgets for
other people's big ideas.
For more information about Alexis Ross, maybe try a
Google search. If you dont know, now you know.
JUXTAPOZ.COM / ALEXIS - ROSS
above
Interior of Cafe Legs
right
Rodger's Rules
Ink and zipatone on paper
18" x 24"
2010
RYAN DE LA HOZ
INTERVIEW BY HANNAH STOUFFER PORTRAIT BY AMY HARRITY
THE CONTEMPORARY GENRE KNOWN AS THE MAKER CULTURE IS A RELATIVELY NEW
pursuit, representing and emphasizing explorations in the intersections of both traditional and
technology-based mediums. As a subculture, the approach is that if it can be imagined, it can
be made. Ryan De La Hoz is a maker. With an innovative style, collaging white noise, tie-dye
and faux marble in the form of sculptural installations, xeroxed remixes and graphic puzzles,
De La Hoz is essentially creating a maker class of his own. Heavily inuenced by the contrast
of past and present, as well as modern culture versus antiquity, his work examines society at
large, dipping into nostalgic romance, oral patterns and heavy gradients.
Hannah Stoufer: Hey Ryan, what are you wearing?
Ryan De La Hoz: I am wearing brown moccasins, black jeans,
and a plaid shirt. Basically the exact same look my father had
going when he was my age.
What was your dad into? Tell me about your childhood
and the point when you realized your attraction to the
creative eld.
My dad was into The Twilight Zone, musicals, and camping.
He died when he was 45 in 2005, so my memory of him
is sporadic. His death afected me deeply and I have no
doubt that it is the reason why death and fragility are huge
themes in my work. I appreciate my dad for introducing me
to stories like those in The Twilight Zone, in which reality
gets ripped out from underneath a protagonist suddenly at
the end. I use this idea in my work and I try to show glimpses
of something just before or after a monumental shift. It's
like Michelangelo's The Creation of Adam. The power of
that painting is in the anticipation of the coming moment,
the touch of life. I grew up in the suburbs across the street
from a creek so I was big on climbing trees, building bike
jumps, tree houses, skateboarding, and video games. Ive
been constantly drawing ever since I can remember, but
really started to make bodies of work when I was in high
school. I was super into Spider Man and I started painting
him over and over. The big thing for me is that I nally had
an art teacher that let me make whatever I wanted. Before
this, it was always like "Okay, kids, it's October so let's make
orange pumpkins. From there I never stopped making
things. I am now an art teacher and never limit my students
because creation is freedom.
Thats right! I knew you recently started teaching art to
kids, so how is it going?
It's the best! If you truly love your day job, it changes
everything. I teach painting, drawing, screen printing and
clay wheel. My students are in the 6 to 12 year-old range so it
is challenging and ultimately very rewarding. I want an "all art
all the time" life and teaching certainly ts the bill. Nothing
compares to the joy of creation and wide-eyed wonder on
my students faces.
Do you agree, as I nd, that there is this nostalgia in your
work? Are you pulling things from your early years, or
tapping into elements from your past?
There are many subtle nods to my childhood within my work.
The '80s and '90s were a time of Silly Putty, Gak, ooze,
ectoplasm, and slime. Some of my work drips and warps
because of these inuences. I made a zine in 2010 which
became a t-shirt that says, "Welcome To Your Doom," which
is a direct reference to a video game from 1988, Altered
Beast, in which Zeus calls you from the grave to rescue his
daughter, and you immediately start ghting ghouls that
explode from their tombstones. Tim Burton's Batman and
Beetlejuice made an indelible impression on me as well.
They got me thinking about how patterns can create mood
and environment. It was a weird and wacky time if you
think about things like Ninja Turtles, Garbage Pail Kids, and
Ghostbusters. For me, it is impossible to deny things from my
childhood that make their way into my work because they
are a part of me, and I embrace that.
If you had to dene your work in a specic time, what
would it be?
I try to examine the past and present at the same time. This
clash of cultures makes it difcult for me to pinpoint any era.
These days, I have been focusing heavily on periods such as
Late Antiquity through the Middle Ages and the counterculture
Hippie movement of the 1960s. I use periods in history to
excavate emotions because I think one thing that ties all of
BEYOND THE STORY
His last name means "of the
Sickle" and I am obsessed with
Grim Reapers.
He has a large collection of E.T.
memorabilia.
In 2010 he was awarded the
Canson Wet Paint Grant.
MAY 2014 87
history together is the feelings of a society at any given time
apathy, fear, hope, joy, misery, etc.
Do you feel like you are heavily connected or drawn to
contemporary culture more than other eras?
I am denitely drawn to contemporary culture. Both the
good and bad fascinate me. I get into habits of researching
counter-cultural movements in order to understand that
which prompted radical change within society at any given
time. Contemporary culture is my culture, and therefore,
makes its way into my work, no matter what.
Even though I've known you for awhile, lets pretend that
I haven't. Tell me about yourself and your studio setup.
I am in my studio which is in my apartment. I live in the
Mission District of San Francisco. I am 28 years old. My
studio is a relatively small room with a desk and things all
over the walls. When I have a show coming up, I barricade
myself into a corner, ship it all out, and then repeat the
process. Living where your studio is has its pros and cons
but I nd I can make art anywhere. I was once living in
essentially a closet for about six months and I managed.
Your work graces the surfaces and mediums of a wide
variety including sculpture, weavings, collage and apparel.
Is there one particular medium that you favor or that you
feel holds your work the best?
I worked with cut paper and ink exclusively for about ve
years, but these days I work within whatever medium I feel
best suits the project. This was a scary thing at rst. I found
myself bored and wanted to expand my materials but was
hesitant. Once I got over what now seems like an irrational
fear, I opened up a lot of doors in my creative mind state and
now utilize many mediums. I nally realized that there was no
point in doing this if I didn't make whatever I want, however
I want, without worrying about what others think about me,
and just switch things up. With that said, I favor any form of art
making that is hands on. A lot of my work may look entirely
digital but I have a hands-on approach to everything I do.
Where do you feel like its headed? Onto what surface?
The sky is the limit! I will continue to welcome transitions
within my work as long they happen naturally. Sometimes
I buy junky art kits for kids and try to make ne art with them.
I recently bought what is essentially a poor man's airbrush
kit. It pressurizes marker tips and sprays that instead of
above
ESP
Cotton
48" x 48"
2013
right
Welcome To Your Doom
Puzzle
10" x 14"
2012
What Burns Never Returns
Collage
8" x 10"
2013
Brain Fold
Ink and cut paper on paper
11" x 14"
2012
/
/
88 JUXTAPOZ RYAN DE LA HOZ
actual aerosol. I am also addicted to scratchboard kits as
I nd it really loosens me up if I feel like I am getting too
rigid and controlling in my practice. It's just fun to make art
with everything you can get your hands on. At the same
time, I enjoy the idea of setting limitations for myself both
conceptually and with materials used. This comes into play
when I make pieces with nothing but paper and an
X-Acto knife.
So, would you consider yourself a designer, an art maker,
a wizard?
I would consider myself a maker. It's just something that
I need to do.
I know you're heavily drawn to crafted, produced goods,
like apparel. Do you think your line Cool Try is directly
linked to your gallery work at all? I feel like there are some
crossovers.
In my mind, the things I make for Cool Try are in a separate
realm than my ne art, although some would disagree. If
any themes or motifs inhabit Cool Try as well as my gallery
work, it is either a subconscious thing or I was just feeling
compelled at the moment. I can be my own worst enemy
when it comes to what I am making, and these days I try
harder and harder all the time to simply loosen up and do
what I feel.
What would you say the majority of your energy is focused
on? Gallery shows, products, jokes?
I put the most focus on my personal work for gallery shows.
I try to keep my products such as Cool Try fun and free. For
example, I don't adhere to producing seasonal graphics for
my shirts and products. I just make them when I get the idea
and have the chance. Fun and free. When I am working on a
body of work for an exhibition, it becomes an all-consuming
endeavor that I constantly think about from the thumbnail
stage to the nal installation. I wouldn't have it any other way.
Lets talk about patterns in print, textile or other mediums.
What are your top favorites?
Who doesn't love a good checker board pattern? I suppose
my favorites will always be the classics such as polka dots.
Simple and timeless.
What about all the tie-dye, marble, oral patterns and brick
that you use? Do those take second place?
I suppose they do take second place to the masters that
have come before me and conceived the classics. I use tie-
dye, brick, marble, oral, maze, and static patterns often.
I let them recur in various bodies of work. Besides
aesthetically, I use diferent patterns to implement a time
period. I am constantly referencing gures and surfaces
from antiquity. Lately I have been combining these elements
above left
Wall No. 1
Collage
8.5" x 11"
2014
above right
Fallen Vessel
Hand-cut paper and ink
11" x 14"
2013
92 JUXTAPOZ RYAN DE LA HOZ
with articles and motifs of modern Americana. I started
using tie-dye to comment on the fact that while it is now
considered kitschy by some, it was once emblematic of a
movement that deed corporate culture among many other
things. It is interesting the way motifs change meaning over
time as they are reappropriated. I understand that I too am
reappropriating many things in my attempt to examine them.
It seems like this would put you all over the place, but what
color palette do you nd yourself most attracted to?
Probably cool/muted. I like to use a lot of black and white so
that any color really pops.

Has this remained pretty consistent, or do you go
through phases?
If I stick with cool/muted colors for a long enough time,
I will go through phases of brightening things up a bit. It all
depends on my mood, the intent of the work, the music I am
listening to; even the time of year comes into play.
Where would you say you acquire the main sources of
inspiration for your pieces?
Everything is inspiration. I am inspired by timelines in history,
discovering new things to make art with and on, people, and
music. I like that essentially art history is a series of rules that
get broken by rule breakers, and boom, out comes a new
art movement! This goes beyond art. You need to break the
rules to change the world. I am drawn to this slight chaos.
Where would we be without dissent? In the context of history
I am fascinated by the general cycle that is greed-power-
enslavement-despair-corruption-revolution-destruction and
so on. Everything goes in circles, and humans can't seem to
stop making the same mistakes twice.
When I rst saw your work, it was pretty illustrative with
bits of collage. It seems like you've stepped away from that
and gone more towards graphic mediums and produced
materials. Do you still use illustration?
My work has denitely become more graphic and less
gurative over the years. I like the idea of making a piece that
is entirely hand-cut paper, and then moving on to a piece that
is full collage and/or manipulated, ready-made materials. I try
to blur the line between digital and analog. Many things that
appear to be digital in my work are made by hand or are hand-
manipulated. For example, if I ever warp or stretch existing
imagery, I do it by hand as it is being scanned. I also like the
idea of a quickly executed portion of a piece juxtaposed with
a section that I spent hours on with a ruler and ink.
I've always considered your work to be intelligent (genius),
conceptual, and witty. What are the three words you'd
hope to convey?
If we are talking about feelings, I would say isolation, loss,
and some hope thrown in for good measure.
You seem to have gotten of to a busy start this year.
Whats been going on? How has 2014 been the best ever?
I kicked of the year with a solo show at Slow Culture Gallery
in Los Angeles entitled Rise From Your Grave. It was work
that dealt with death, resurrection, and the collision of
modern and antiquated cultures. I am especially jazzed
about 2014.
How did it go? You recently showed at Breeze Block in
Portland, as well, right?
My LA show was a blast and I felt like I really let loose and
had fun making the work. I have been slowly introducing
textiles and plastic sculptural elements into my installations,
and for this show, it all came together really well. Only
recently have I been entirely condent to make art with
whatever substance I feel like and trust that it is all going
to come together as a cohesive whole. I ended 2013 with
the Portland show. I had the honor of showing with Russell
Leng, and the most exciting thing was nding similarities in
our respective bodies of work that we hadn't yet seen. It was
also a rewarding challenge to integrate our work rather than
occupy each side of the gallery individually.
What do you have coming up next?
I have a few product collaborations in the works, home
goods and cut-and-sew clothing. Things that I simply cannot
produce on my own, so that is exciting. My next solo show
opens at Flatcolor Gallery in Seattle on May 1st and is
entitled Form and Void. I took this concept from the Bible. It
is taken from Genesis verse 1:2 "And the earth was without
form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the
deep. I am taking religious/creationist connotations out of it
and focusing on the words "Form" and "Void.
What are you truly scared of?
Henry David Thoreau said, "Most men lead lives of quiet
desperation and go to the grave with the song still in them."
I want to make sure I "sing" as loud as I can while I am alive
because to die with a desperate soul is a sad and scary thing.
For more information about Ryan De La Hoz visit,
ryandelahoz.com
JUXTAPOZ.COM / RYAN - DE - LA - HOZ
CONTEMPORARY CULTURE IS MY CULTURE, AND THEREFORE,
MAKES ITS WAY INTO MY WORK, NO MATTER WHAT
MAY 2014 93
WINSTON SMITH
INTERVIEW BY PATRICK ONEIL PORTRAIT BY JOE BROOK
I DASH DOWN THE STAIRS LEADING INTO THE LOS ANGELES Museum of Contemporary
Art, only to be stopped short by a large, boisterous crowd. Another art opening. There's a
DJ spinning vinyl. He's playing the Sex Pistols, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Black Flag, The
Clash, even The Ramones. I push my way through a gaggle of hipsters dressed down in
leather and torn punk band t-shirts, only to step into another group decked out in Dolce &
Gabbana and Alexander McQueen. The museum's brick courtyard is packed. Everyone is
milling around, drinking beer and wine, hyped-up on music made before most of them were
born. But that doesn't seem to matter.
They're all here to see MOCAtv's The Art Of Punk, a series
described on their YouTube channel as "tracing the roots of
the punk movement and the artists behind the iconic logos
of punk bands."
As I look around, I'm left wondering, just when did punk
become so nostalgic that it would bring out all of LA's cool
kids? But then, of course, that's why I'm here, to see the lms
and talk with Winston Smith, the artist featured in part three
of the edgling series. For the last 30-plus years, Smith has
been a mainstay of the punk art world. He designed the logo
for the inuential punk band Dead Kennedys, as well as the
majority of their album covers, and other bands artwork and
poster art. Three books published by the underground press
Last GaspAct Like Nothing's Wrong, Artcrime, and All Riot
On The Western Front: The Montage Art Of Winston Smith,
Vol. 3chronicle Smith's prolic career.
Having been a part of the punk movement during the late
'70s and early '80s, I remember all too well the origins of
punk rock. Back then, when I was the entire art department
for Alternative Tentacles, the record label of Dead Kennedys'
lead singer Jello Biafra, I worked closely with Smith. But that
was a long time ago and it's heartening to see this much of a
renewed interest. There's a smattering of gray haired punks
from back in the day, and it's good to see a majority of them
recognize Smith. He's an artist I always felt was never given
proper recognitionbut then, when do alternative artists
ever get their due, at least while they're still alive?
However, with the gallery way too crowded, and the music
too loud for conversation, Smith and I agree to meet up later
in San Francisco at the North Beach studio he's dubbed
Grant's Tomb.

Patrick ONeil: What's with the name Grant's Tomb?
Winston Smith: I call it that since it's an old 19th century crypt
under Grant Avenue. Although, now at last I know who really
is buried in Grant's Tomb it's me.

There seems to be a renewed interest in, for a lack of a
better title, punk art, or maybe the entire movement.
How does it feel to be part of this nostalgia?
Nostalgia? I never imagined the punk scene would last this
long. I always felt condent that the punk underground was
so nasty, gnarly and disgusting that it would never be in
danger of being commercially co-opted by the mainstream.
Makes me wish I'd bought stock in it.

Do you think this interest in punk art is simply nostalgia?
Or is it still a major inuence, as it has been in the
fashion industry?
Its way more than fashion. People who are sincerely
interested in punk art, or punk-inspired art, are intrigued
because the message and relevance are still socially and
politically important. I hope so anyway.

That said, what do you think is the present state of the
art world?
I'm mostly ignorant of the current art world. If it happened
after 1598, I'm clueless about it. I wish I knew more of who's
who in the art world, and my lack of proper education
probably accounts for that.

1598? We're talking Italian Renaissance, oil paintings, and
ne art. But it's 2013, isn't ne art dead?
Not at all! I'm constantly amazed at the incredible work
published in magazines such as Juxtapoz, which display the
phenomenal range of imagination and inconceivably bizarre
fantasy that couldn't be dreamt by any of the great masters.
The new painters working today have the skills of Raphael
combined with the imagination of Kafa. I wish I could put into
words my admiration for their talents. Isabel Samaras is an
example of a contemporary painter who is classically trained
and can execute the most bizarre compositions in a skillful and
traditional format. Dennis Larkins is another good example.

In dening skill, imagination, and classical training as
attributes to ne art, do you hold any specic beliefs about
what might be called art?
Art is in our DNA. Art is in our bones. If you lost your bones,
it's still in your mind. And if you lost your mind then it's still in
your heart. If all the planets lined up and the magnetic poles
reversed, and if all human life came to a sudden stop Art
would still exist.
God Told Me to Skin You Alive
Album art for Green Days Insomniac
1995
96 JUXTAPOZ WINSTON SMITH
Which artists have inuenced your work?
Naturally, my rst inuences were those of my folks, who
were both artists. Then I'd have to say the classical masters
such as Leonardo, Giotto, and Botticelli. Also, a lot of the
art on album covers such as Peter Blake's incredible Sgt.
Pepper's for The Beatles, or Roger Dean who designed
covers for the band YES. The illustrator Ralph Steadman
is another. There are many contemporary artists among
my circle of friends who inspire me, even if I can't say they
directly inuence my work, like stencil artists Sam Miller and
Scott Williams. And Mark Wagner for his intricately hand-
carved creations made exclusively from U.S. currency. But
inspiration is a mode of inuence, even if it comes through
our work subconsciously. We're all the sum total of countless
inuences, and even those who have that efect on us are
products of the inuence of countless others.

Taking into account the pervasive humor in your art,
does that imply that you dont take things seriously?
I do, indeed, take things seriously and perhaps too much
so. But my manner of self-expression probably does come
of as ippant or tactless in the face of serious issues.
There's so much sufering in the world: personal angst
trips each of us go through at diferent stages of our lives,
horric life-shattering tragedies that befall entire nations,
and the ongoing degradation and abuse endured by
generations around the world due to their race or religions,
or the misfortunes of climate or economies. Add to that
the deliberate strangulation of the natural world by the
forces of unbridled greed and arrogance, and the countless
environmental insults that are turning back on us and
causing the greatest sufering for those who didn't set out
to gain from it. The kings of the earth, the huge corporations
and their "termite mentality" and lust for destruction are
happy to "socialize" the sufering and the costs, but they only
want to "privatize" the prots. Winner-take-all capitalism.
Rapacious greed justied by a twisted ideology. It's what's
killing the planet and everyone on her, and I don't think we
should go down without a ght.

So, there's rebellion in this humor?
It's rebellion against the status quo, and the job of the artist
is to overturn the status quo. I think it was the great surrealist
Andr Breton who said, We surrealists are allergic to things
as they are. That's how I've felt all my life. What can I say?
I hold all authority in suspicion.

The use of cutout images from other sources, repositioned
to serve your purpose, is reminiscent of Marcel Duchamp's
ready-made art, and he too used humor. Any parallels?
I certainly couldn't compare myself to Duchamp but there is an
essence of ready-made art that is fundamental in the medium
of collage. The very medium depends on the availability of
pre-printed imagery, usually from mass media publications
such as books, magazines, newspapersall the things that
are quickly disappearing in the age of the Internet. I've always
Ashes to Ashes
2004
Out of the Frying Pan and into the Fire
2006
Addicted to War
2000
considered collage as Instant Surrealism. Its ready-made
feature is that, given the exact same material from which
to work, each artist will render a diferent interpretation
depending on point of view. Some of my compositions are
cluttered and complex, and some are created from just two
or three elements juxtaposed in a posture just of enough to
create an entirely diferent composition from the one intended
by the original plan of design.

I notice in your last book, the work was titled Montage.
If you were to give your medium a title, is that what
would it be?
Yes, I usually refer to my work as montage. My rst
impression of collage was of the traditional sense, strips of
ripped-up paper, shards of glass or pieces of broken wood
and string, etc. Only by interweaving the various elements
together, I try to achieve a gurative composition that ofers
a window into a diferent world.
Speaking of a diferent world, what were you doing art-
wise when punk rst started, before Dead Kennedys?
I was a roadie for Santana, Crosby, Stills & Nash, Neil
Young, The Tubes, Journey, Sly Stone, and Quicksilver
Messenger Service. At $2.20 an hour minimum wage, it was
the only gig someone like me could deal with, especially
since I'm a lifelong chronic insomniac and hopeless at
any straight job where I'd have to show up at 9 a.m. I did
that until late in 1977 when I began seeing posters and
yers for punk shows, which were emerging at the time.
All I could think was, nally! I'd been waiting for this all my
life. Punk was something I could really sink my teeth into.
I volunteered to do art and layout for an outt called Rock
Against Racism, originally formed in the UK as a response
to the ultra conservative wing of the British government
of Prime Minister Thatcher. The object of RAR was to
organize concerts and events, encouraging young people
to repudiate racism and encourage diversity and tolerance.
WINNER-TAKE-ALL CAPITALISM. RAPACIOUS GREED
JUSTIFIED BY A TWISTED IDEOLOGY. IT'S WHAT'S KILLING
THE PLANET AND EVERYONE ON HER, AND I DON'T
THINK WE SHOULD GO DOWN WITHOUT A FIGHT
MAY 2014 99
I made yers, mostly for unknown bands, one which
happened to be Dead Kennedys. As fate would have it, one
of my colleagues suggested I listen to a 45 given to her
by Jello Biafra. It was California Uber Ales. I sent Biafra a
postcard I'd made from stills of the Zapruder lm of John F.
Kennedy's assassination, and he wrote back asking for more.
We've been partners In crime ever since.

What do you think of artists who emulate your work?
I believe it's all perfectly valid. After all, I wasn't the rst
person to stick pieces of paper together to make a new
composition, and I hope I shan't be the last.

How about new grafti artists, the creators of the
stencil art?
There are some maestros out there who are incredible. Of
course, Shepard Fairey comes to mind as having created
some spectacular work over the years. There are not enough
superlatives to describe him. The funny thing with Shepard's
work is that I had never heard of him, but several years ago
while driving under the freeway in an abandoned area of
the City, I saw this weird black and white poster pasted way
up on a freeway pillar. I pulled over and snapped a picture
using a disposable camera I had in the car. Later, I got the
photo back from the Rexall drugstore and enlarged it on a
photocopier so I could have a poster, not even as big as the
original on the pillar, and I put it on my wall. It was on my wall
for at least a year before I saw some of Shepard's work and
realized it was his image. Much later, when I found out he
was in town for a show, I introduced myself, showed him the
photo, and explained how I happened to get it. We've since
worked on some shows together and he even featured one
of my pieces, Idol, used for the Dead Kennedys' EP In God
We Trust, Inc., in one of his books. What an honor.
I was also so clueless that I didn't know who Banksy was
until my publishers Colin and Ron Turner of Last Gasp gave
me a book about him: Wall & Piece. The work seemed
so wide-ranging, I thought it was a collective of diferent
artists. Like 12 diferent guys masquerading under one cover
name. Even that would be amazing, but that it's just one cat
creating these pieces is mind-blowing.

above
Dollars to Donuts
2002
right
Carnage
2008
Could you talk a little bit about the documentary for
MOCAtv The Art of Punk?
Bryan Ray Turcotte and Bo Bushnell made a series of three
lms for the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art, and
the rst one was all about the Black Flag logo by Raymond
Pettibone. Another was about the Crass logo designed
by Dave King. Mine was the third, and they were released
together at a giant premier in L.A. Bryan Ray and his crew
came to my studio and shot for several hours. They did a
great job on the editing and production. You can see the
results for yourself on my website winstonsmith.com where
we have the Art of Punk series posted.

Other than appearing in cool mini documentaries, what's
the future for Winston Smith?
I've been living in San Francisco's North Beach district for
nearly 20 years now. My studio is only a four or ve minute
walk away and I've been running it for over four years.
It's always a struggle to keep the balls in the air, but it is
the only thing that stands between me and oblivion. At
Grant's Tomb, I have the workspace to deal with the storing
and researching of my resource material and supplies.
And besides producing new work, my new endeavor is to
establish The Collage Museum of San Francisco. We're
planning to hold short exhibitions about two or three times
annually with guest artists and notable practitioners of
the art of collage, montage and assemblage. We want to
have the space become a museum in which to showcase
these artists' work, conduct educational exchanges, mount
historical exhibits, ofer prints and original art, and to
encourage new artists to explore this medium. It's an idea
whose time has come.
For more information about Winston Smith,
visit winstonsmith.com
JUXTAPOZ.COM / WINSTON - SMITH
MAY 2014 103
JUXTAPOZ PROJECTS X CONVERSE
BRINGING PUBLIC ART TO AUSTIN DURING SXSW
JUXTAPOZ PROJECTS IS OUR NEW INITIATIVE TO
bring together all the elements of contemporary art that we
champion and love: public art and interaction, community,
and investing artists to challenge themselves and make
their dream projects come true. As we celebrate our 20th
year, Juxtapoz Projects allows us the opportunity to have
artists such as Richard Colman, Andrew Schoultz, and
Dennis McNett build and create art on location, surrounded
by a receptive audience, and have their art exist within an
environment or neighborhood that appreciates this creative
community. Austin, Texas gave a warm welcome, and is
where Juxtapoz Projects began.

Going on three years, Juxtapoz and Converse have
collaborated on site-specic public art projects around
the United States as part of the Converse Wall to Wall
campaign. From Austin to San Francisco, Brooklyn to
Portland, we have introduced the worlds best muralists to
neighborhoods to celebrate and promote creativity and the
arts. During SXSW, Juxtapoz Projects and Converse teamed
up, bringing some of our favorite artists to Austin to create
installations, performances, and interactive art to accompany
the music, tech, and lm experiences that happened
throughout the early weeks of March 2014.
Richard Colman Orbs
We have always been big fans of Richard Colmans art, a
unique style that blends abstract geometric patterns on
both canvases and installations into his now recognizable
characters, so we were very excited to collaborate with
him on bringing them to a new mediumweather balloons!
Unfortunately, in the very early morning hours following
their launch, a thief in the night sneaked in and cut the Orbs
loose. If you spot them in your backyard, let us know. The
search is on.

Photography by Alex Nicholson

Schoultz Fabrication Assistant:
Howard Hung
SOUTHWEST INSIDER
104 JUXTAPOZ SOUTHWEST INSIDER
MAY 2014 105
Andrew Schoultz Melt Down
Andrew brought to Austin a new chapter from a previous
show at Project Space Arkitip in Los Angeles where he
constructed a 3D military tank as part of the installation. The
plan for Melt Down was to take that tank, cleave it in half,
and mount it to the wall, creating the illusion of a military
tank driving through an oil sludge brick wall. This is the
rst time Andrew has included 3D sculptural elements into
a large-scale mural. The idea was also to do this in a way
where the 3D aspect of the piece would read as both at and
3D at the same time, Schoultz explained. The conceptual
basis for the piece was to create a dynamic and fun
experience for viewers, while, at the same time, capturing
the general vibe of chaos, militaristic themes, as well as the
depiction of oil explosions on a global scale.
(continued on page 108)

2 0 2 0 E . 7 T H S T S U I T E B , L A ( C A )
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Dennis McNett Wolfat Vital Vessel & The Flames of Surtr
Whether hanging an art show, drawing a skate deck, or
conceiving a Viking Ship parade of madness, Dennis McNett
is an artists artist, creative in any eld, constantly exploring
the limits of performance and immersive art. McNett and his
crew of assistants spent the better part of a week building a
giant ship outside the Yellow Jacket Social Club, along with
elaborate masks and accessories that uniquely accompany a
Wolfat parade. Unfortunately, due to the senseless tragedy
that occurred on the early morning hours of March 13th, we
were appropriately discouraged from having the parade. A
special thanks to all those who came out and helped to build
masks and a ship with Wolfat! Working with Dennis is its
own reward.
JUXTAPOZ.COM / JUXTAPOZ - PROJECTS
BOOKS
THE TITLES JUXTAPOZ IS CURRENTLY READING
TYPORAMA: THE GRAPHIC WORK OF PHILIPPE APELOIG
Inuential on both sides of the Atlantic, Philippe Apeloig is considered one of the most
fascinating and distinguished graphic designers working right now. Beginning his formidable
career in 1985 when he designed the poster for the Muse dOrsays rst exhibition,
Chicago, Birth of a Metropolis, Apeloig has worked and taught extensively for esteemed
museums and cultural institutions in France and across the globe. He challenges, My job
is to perturb. And indeed, Apeloig does just that with the visual language he creates in
brochures, posters, exhibition catalogs, logos, and typefaces, consistently fashioning a
mystical sense of movement and rhythm while inviting his audience to dance through the
letters and lines. We have a feeling that Typorama: The Graphic Work of Philippe Apeloig, the
gorgeous retrospective of a highly original graphic designer, will become essential reading
for anyone with an interest in the recent history of graphic design. Lal Shafaghi
Thames and Hudson Books, thamesandhudson.com
GUSMANO CESARETTI: FRAGMENTS OF LOS ANGELES, 1969-1989
Gusmano Cesaretti, a Juxtapoz favorite, has come out with another astonishing monograph,
Fragments Of Los Angeles, 1969-1989. One of the rst to photograph the vibrant East LA of
the early '70s, Cesaretti captured not only the roughness of the neighborhood, but also the
unique tenderness of its residents. This self-taught photographer credits his poor English
with being granted close access to his photo subjects. "I was trying to read the grafti, but
it was difcult to interpret, so I found this guy, and he introduced me to this subculture of
low riders," said Cesaretti. Its exactly that charming enthusiasm that adds to the layers of
his distinctly developed black-and-white images. Fragments Of Los Angeles opens with a
textured interview by Aaron Rose of Beautiful Losers, which rst appeared in our April 2011
issue. And as the director Michael Mann plainly states in the introduction, The images in this
book could not be photographed by anybody else. LS
Alleged Press, allegedpress.com
MIKE KELLEY
Inspired by the genderuid performances of the Cockettes and lms by John Waters, Mike
Kelley became one of the most inuential artists of our time. Originally wanting to write
novels, he quickly found performance and visual arts to be better suited to his particular
type of storytelling. This multifaceted artist created a protean body of work commenting on
cultural conventions from the mid-1970s until shortly before his untimely and tragic death
in 2012. This companion volume to the much-anticipated retrospective exhibition, now at
the Museum of Contemporary Art Los Angeles (MOCA), after traveling from The Stedelijk
Museum Amsterdam, Centre Pompidou Paris, and MoMA PS1 New York, was conceived
in close collaboration with the artist. Mike Kelley, the most comprehensive volume on
the radical American artist, features essays, a fully annotated plate section, exhibition
chronology, performance history, videography, discography, and a full bibliography of
Kelley's work as well as his nal and very poignant interview. Mike Kelley is a crucial addition
to the library of any art lover. LS
Prestel Publishing, prestel.com
REVIEW
110 JUXTAPOZ REVIEW
Opening CeIebration May 10th 7-11 pm
Show runs May 10th - 31st
BISARO BUDER CYPHER DEEN DUGONE EYES GUESS RIZE
HoodLAB SF + 1669 Haight Street + San Francisco, CA 94117 + 415.628.1833 + hoodIabsf.com
TMF CREW
FROM THE ARCHIVES OF:
presents
A RETROSPECTIVE COLLECTION OF PHOTOS, SKETCHES, BLACKBOOKS AND MORE.
J
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MOLOTOW
TM
ORIGINALS ARTIST:
CAPARSO is a young illustrator from Dresden (Germany) and a member of the infamous
Burning Saxony crew and Bandits Dresden. After winning the Paint Club Battle Tour in 2010,
he succeeded in drawing the attention from the art world on various projects, due to his
specifc style and amazing artwork. Be sure to check out his new website he recently released
www.caparso.com and fnd a collection of his amazing artworks on different media.
http://facebook.com/MOLOTOWPAINT http://twitter.com/MOLOTOWPAINT
TRUE ART DESERVES TRUE QUALITY
LIVE THE ORIGINAL
ANTHONY FRIEDKIN
THE GAY ESSAY REVISITS SAN FRANCISCO
IN 1969, RICHIE HAVENS SANG Freedom (Motherless
Child) at Woodstock, delivering what many would call the
most impassioned performance of the festival, split screens
and smashed instruments notwithstanding. One man and a
guitar. That same year, nineteen-year-old Tony Friedkin took
a camera and started The Gay Essay. Among my favorites
is a portrait that portrays the quiet happiness of a couple
being together, standing against the simple rough stucco
of the Reverend Troy Perrys Metropolitan Community
Church. It shows the artists ability to capture dignity while
documenting and personalizing the issues of race, sexuality
and the marginalized. Julian Cox, founding curator of
photography at San Franciscos Fine Arts museums, gives
insight into one man and a camera.
Gwynned Vitello: Looking at his subject matter, as well as
the empathy of his eye, I feel he must have grown up in a
supportive, open-minded family.
Julian Cox: Friedkin grew up in a very artistic household. His
mother, Audrey, was a dancer who performed extensively
on Broadway, and his father, David, was a successful
screenwriter and director in Hollywood. They had a passion
for the visual arts, collecting prints, works on paper and art
books. Tony took up photography as a boy of 8, and by the
age of 11, was developing his own lm in the darkroom.
I would think his fathers determination to hire Bill Cosby in
I Spy as the rst black lead actor of a TV series indicates a
home guided by respect for human rights.
Yes, exactly. The family was attuned to social issues, with
debate encouraged at mealtimes and family gatherings.
The Friedkins regularly entertained and counted as close
friends a gay male couple, one a dancer at Paramount. Tony
remembers them as warm, funny and extremely intelligent.
Couple in front of church
Los Angeles
1970

right
The Reverend Troy Pelly, Gay Activist,
in front of his burnt down church
1973
PROFILE
114 JUXTAPOZ PROFILE
I imagine him let loose in Southern California, exploring
the architecture, watching lms, and hanging out at the
beach. His surf photos are stunning. Did he surf as well as
chronicle the sport?
Tony always was, and still is, an avid surfer. Love of the
ocean is among the most important things in his life. He
has not really documented the sport of surng, more the
lifestyle and attitude. His home for the last 40 years is still a
rent-controlled place in Santa Monica.

Do you think theres a correlation between the patience
one needs in being both a photographer and a surfer?
Thats a nice analogy. Surng requires great anticipation and
awareness, characteristics that apply to photography too,
and which are especially evident in The Gay Essay.

Its so impressive that he had the condence and
conviction to document the gay community in 1969 when
he was only, what, 19 or 20?
In his own words, he stated that, I was a young
photographer following my own instincts. I was going
through an enormous amount of self discovery about my
own sexual feelings when I was making the work I was
concerned with registering an expression. Very young, but
already very driven. I think he sensed from the outset that
this was a great growth opportunity, a way to learn about
himself as a person and as an artist.

Since we publish in San Francisco and the show is
exhibiting here, Im interested in knowing the length of his
stay and if he had favorite haunts.
Tonys older brother, Gregory, was an undergraduate at UC
Berkeley 1969 through 72, so he spent time visiting the Bay
Area during those years. He made some great photos of the
Vietnam protest rallies at UC Berkeley and in Golden Gate
Park in 1969. For The Gay Essay, he came to San Francisco
in November of 1972, specically to photograph The
Cockettes at the Palace Theater in North Beach for their nal
performance as a troupe, a midnight show based on Edgar
Allan Poes The Masque of the Red Death. Thats when
he met and photographed Divine, whom the Cockettes met
through John Waters.

The Castro District is literally a tourist destination in San
Francisco. Where did the LGBT community gather to feel
comfortable in Los Angeles proper?
In truth, they were not truly comfortable anywhere in Los
Angeles at that time. They congregated in West Hollywood,
around Selma and Hollywood Boulevards. A focal point
for them was the Gay Community Services Center set up
by Morris Kight and Don Kilhefner, who oversaw services
such as legal advice, draft counseling, and help with
sexually transmitted diseases or drug problems. Both men
were very kind to Friedkin, supporting him and his work in
photography. They ushered him into the gay world where he
could pursue this deep engagement with his subject and his
desire to give a thorough accounting of the gay community
and its quest for integration.

He evidently prefers black and white. What were his
preferences for this project?
The Gay Essay is photographed entirely in black and white.
He worked almost exclusively with the 35mm Leica M4,
introduced in 1967 and a gift from his father. The camera
was compact and highly portable, and Friedkin wielded
it unobtrusively, imparting to his pictures both intimacy
and immediacy. He operated without a ash, so he could
shoot at a shutter speed on an eighth or a quarter of a
second, fast enough to record action behind the scenes at
a club or onstage at a show. It is also the slow, measured
MAY 2014 115
accumulation of frames that marks out this work. In this
way his approach has some afnity with the mechanics of
Hollywood movies which were well known to him, even as a
young man. His contact sheets show that he was rigorous in
his examination of a subject, intently studying the sitter and
location to identify the most satisfying composition.
Tell me more about Jim Aguilar, who was apparently and
understandably, a favorite subject.
Those tender portraits are among the strongest in The
Gay Essay. Tony was fascinated with his vulnerability, but
there is an undercurrent of anguish. Tony wrote, I rst met
Jim at Troupers Hall. For months we worked together and
became close friends. Jim was raised in East Los Angeles, a
community dangerously macho. Its not easy to be gay and
live in East LA. Often his mother screamed at him, called him
queer. He was afraid to walk the streets alone. Jim could
have been an active barrio gang member and carried a knife
or gun. But he only carries a brush for his hair.
How great that this exhibition culminates in the publication
of the book that Friedkin always envisioned for The
Gay Essay.
Tony wrote to the MoMA in 1973 that, There are many
reasons I chose to do this particular essay, in part because
gay people are very misunderstood and mistreated, and
I wanted to document their lives. My concern for these
photographs is tremendous.
Anthony Friedkins The Gay Essay will be on exhibit at the
de Young Museum in San Francisco from June 14, 2014
January 11, 2015.
For more information, visit deyoung.famsf.org
JUXTAPOZ.COM / PHOTOGRAPHY
left
Jim and Valerie
Troupers Hall
Hollywood
1970
right
Couple
Los Angeles
1970
116 JUXTAPOZ PROFILE
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PRODUCTS
THINGS JUXTAPOZ IS AFTER
THE WINTER THAW FINALLY TOOK EFFECT, and we are
trying to nd the right ts for the next few months of sun
and outdoor activities. Juxtapoz has narrowed down a few
suggestions for your life this month, including some shades,
a new wardrobe, and something to put on your shelves after
all that spring cleaning.
A few pages ago, you got the background on one of our
favorite brands of the moment, (1) ONLY. The NYC-brand
has gone back in time to an age when 8-bit graphics were
the norm and The Low End Theory was well, just a theory.
Their new Spring/Summer collection has a few gems from
the paradise that dont involve Tommy Bahama. Its more like
paradise inside a Paul Wackers painting, and dont we just
love that. onlynylives.com
The Nagasaki prefecture town of Hasami, which has been
manufacturing ceramics for over four centuries, and LA
based type foundry House Industries teamed with local
artisans for fantastic and elegant sets of ve plate options,
six bowl sizes, teacups, teapots, compra bottle, and a
tenugui cloth. (2) The Monohara Ceramic Collection not
only epitomizes Houses simple design treatments, but
have understated and unobtrusive details that allows over
400 years of perfection to shine through. Get the whole
collection and position your homewares in a culinary class of
their own. houseind.com
RAEN has been making great optical wear since 2008,
with a timeless mixture of classic and updated styles in a
wide range of colors and shapes. Recently, we have been
wearing The Archar, a new Spring 2014 frame from (3)
RAEN featuring a thicker acetate that makes for a more
comfortable balance and wear. The matte root beer color
is our pick. raenoptics.com
1
1
2
3
REVIEW
118 JUXTAPOZ REVIEW
contact: (415) 824-6636
wh o l e s a l e @l a s t g a s p . c o m
L AS TGAS P. C OM
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TALES OF THE SAN FRANCISCO
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Evans, Galbraith & Law
The group influenced everything
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COMIC ART
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HI-FRUCTOSE COLLECTIONS
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TWELVE PACK WITH JAY HOWELL
ART FRIENDS AS REAL FRIENDS
MY BUDDY JAY HOWELL WAS RECENTLY IN AUSTIN
for SXSW. I live in Austin, so it seemed like an excellent idea
to meet up with Jay and do a quick Q&A for the magazine
you're holding in your hands right now. This isn't meant to
be a comprehensive, in-depth interview. It's just twelve
quick questions and twelve quicker answers from one of my
favorite art friends.
Did you attend an art school?
For three monthsa long time ago.
Would you recommend formal art training for younger
artists hoping to have a career in the arts?
Yeah, sure. It depends what you wanna do, you know?
Learning editing/animation programs and stuf is a good skill
to have.
Who is your favorite contemporary artist?
Two: Shel Silverstein and Sergio Aragons.
What's the worst piece of art-related advice you received
when you were younger?
That you can't do something. Shut up; I'll do whatever I want.
In one sentence, give some advice to the aspiring artist
reading these words.
Listen to and be realistic with yourself. Life is a gift and yours
to live.
Was skateboarding your introduction to graphic
illustration?
Totally: Pushead, Pettibon, Jim Phiilips, Ed Templeton, Chris
Johanson and Julien Strangerpossibly the best art director
of all time besides Peter Seville. So crucial.
What's your favorite skateboard graphic of all times?
The whole Roskopp series of the hand breaking through,
and also every Anti Hero board ever made. Right now I like
Bianca Chandon, Polar and Fucking Awesome. The kids are
changing things for the better again!
How important were zines in terms of your career
trajectory?
The most! It's how I got every good job I've ever had.
What's your dumbest/most-regrettable tattoo?
The word "party" tattooed on my nger. Just so dumb.
How did you meet Jim Dirschberger, a frequent
collaborator?
He emailed me after seeing some zines I did. Then we
started going crazy.
Is having your own cartoon on Nickelodeon (Sanjay and
Craig) everything you dreamed it would be?
It's the absolute best! It's a constant dream come true.
What's next, dude?
Oh, there's some really cool stuf coming up: new shows,
music videosso much thrashing!
For more information about Jay Howell,
visit jayhowellart.blogspot.com
JUXTAPOZ.COM / JAY - HOWELL
SIEBEN ON LIFE
120 JUXTAPOZ SIEBEN ON LIFE
1 | MEGGS, Liz Levy, Apex, and DJ Nef at Apex solo
show at Subliminal Projects
2 | Dave Dexter, Billy Shire, Matt Kennedy, and Click
Mort at La Luz de Jesus Laluzapalooza group
show opening
3 | Juxtapoz contributing illustrator Travis Millard and
February 2014 cover artist Mel Kadel at Kadels solo
show opening at Merry Karnowsky Gallery
4 | Merry Karnowsky and journalist Tommy Tung
LOS ANGELES
SUBLIMINAL PROJECTS, LA LUZ DE JESUS, AND MERRY KARNOWSKY
Photos by Sam Graham
1 2
3 4
122 JUXTAPOZ POP LIFE
POP LIFE
1 | Greg Escalante and Annie Adjchavanich, dressed up
in Mochi the Maltese for the Surreal Salon soiree,
Baton Rouge Gallery
2 | Hayoto DeSouza, Escalante, and Joe Givens at the
Surreal Salon soiree, Baton Rouge Gallery
3 | Juxtapoz contributing editor, Michael Sieben with Jay
Howell hanging in front of Dennis McNetts ship at the
Yellow Jacket Social Club, Austin
4 | How Nosm at their Pace Prints solo exhibition, NYC
AUSTIN, BATON ROUGE, NEW YORK CITY
BATON ROUGE GALLERY, YELLOW JACKET SOCIAL CLUB, AND PACE PRINTS
1 2
3 4
Courtesy of Baton Rouge Gallery
1,2
Photo by Brent Gentile
3
Photo by Evan Pricco
4
124 JUXTAPOZ POP LIFE
POP LIFE
NONE 2014 - Aerosol on wood cradled panel - 20x20 - Edition (50)
www.enjoydenial.com
WATCHING, WAITING, WISHING
THE GLOBE ON YOUR SCREEN
IN EVERY CONVERSATION I HAVE HAD OVER THE PAST
two months, there was about a 95% chance that House
of Cards and True Detective were going to come up. And
if you were lucky, someone was going to slip into a Frank
Underwood voice. The amazing thing is that, unlike any time
in history, we are sharing our experiences with pop
and underground culture simultaneously, simulcasting
our reactions via every social media channel in our
closest proximity.
Walter Benjamin, in his seminal 1936 essay, The Work
of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction, wrote so
obliquely about what was to come, During long periods
of history, the mode of human sense perception changes
with humanitys entire mode of existence. The manner in
which human sense perception is organized, the medium in
which it is accomplished, is determined not only by nature
but by historical circumstances as well. I couldnt help but
think about this point over the course of putting this issue
together: I relied so heavily on new media to let me know
what was going on with all my colleagues: There was SXSW
and all the amazing work being done by Richard Colman,
Dennis McNett, and Andrew Schoultz, for which I had my
little app to illuminate their progress in Austin. I even got
envious of peoples experiences at the Armory Show in NYC
while I was at the Armory Show. It sort of blows your mind, all
this information and access. All this peering in. Looking out.
Wanting more. Heads down.

I love it, Im confused by it, and know its necessary. But
its happening so fast. I wonder what Benjamin would have
thought of today? EP
JUXTAPOZ.COM / PERSPECTIVE
Illustration by Travis Millard
PERSPECTIVE
126 JUXTAPOZ PERSPECTIVE
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ART + CULTURE + DESIGN

MAY 2014, n160 $5.99

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Juxtapoz Art & Culture Magazine - May 20 - Unknown

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