Music = heroin: I'm a music junkie. It's my heroin. I get jittery if I'm not constantly hearing new music. I like Sade, Björk, Portishead, and Esthero. Especially Esthero. She's a Canadian jazz vocalist. Her album Breath From Another was my favorite. It put all these images into my head. One day I picked up the paintbrush, and it started flowing out of me.
Bob Ross made me do it: I've done live paintings at Paisley Violin, the Icehouse, Club Freedom, Wet Paint, Paper Heart. I just like doing it. I don't know why. I'm a real quiet and shy guy. But if I get into the zone and do it, it's like I'm in my element. Like that's what I should be doing.
I was inspired by Bob Ross. That's where I got a lot of my painting techniques. I would watch him religiously, learn from his techniques and adapt them to mine. I'm like, "Man, if he can do that in a half-hour, what can I do?"
Why Carl Hayden High sucks: They wouldn't let me take art classes because they said I was too advanced. That's why I hated it there. Also, there were so many gangs and so many problems with fighting on a daily basis. Fortunately, I was able to slip through all that.
They did give me my first illustration job, though. I did the cover for the senior yearbook. It's black, and has a falcon, and he's gonna grab planet Earth, but it came out all wrong and it was a big controversy because he looks like Toucan Sam.
Home Depot and Van Gogh: I use Van Gogh acrylics, the cheapest brand you can buy. Not the best, but if you know how to use it, you can make it work for you. I like greens, blues and purples. Phthalo blue is my favorite.
I paint on hardwood boards from Home Depot. I prefer it to canvas. With canvas, the texture is harder to work with. With these boards, you can get the softer, more oil-painting look to it. It's smoother, and less expensive.
Norman Rockwell's the shit: I was ashamed for a long time to admit I liked Norman Rockwell. But finally I was like, fuck it, man, that guy's the shit. The way he painted women was amazing. He painted them so gracefully. I really study his paintings. Like, wow, how did he do that leather shoe? How did he make it look like real leather? I could look at his work all day.
Chicks with big eyes: I'll paint a guy now and then, but with a woman, there's more of a story behind their eyes. They wear their emotions on their sleeves more. I like big eyes because, like they say, eyes are the windows to the soul. I've studied acting classes, and a lot of acting is in the eyes, not facial expressions. A lot of people think that because I like big eyes that means I like anime, but I don't like anime at all.
The romance of old Hollywood: Classic beauty is what I'm really into. Like with this book Hollywood Cheesecake, I just mark images that I think would make a good painting. It's full of old B-movie actresses. There's a lot of cool stuff in it. My father found it at a swap meet for a couple of bucks and gave it to me. He said, "Maybe you can paint something from it." I was like, "Hell, yeah."
On the bachelor party for his impending wedding: For the bachelor party, we're gonna have a pinup art show. All my friends will do a pinup painting, and maybe have an auction and sell the paintings. My best man said, "Hey, dude, you want me to get you a stripper?" But I'm not really into that. I go, "It's cool if you want to get a chick for my bros. Just keep her away from me."
