Mike Mo$es: Rising Contemporary Artist
Mike Mo$es has been an artist since before he could walk. He recalled falling in love with art and making it his hobby when he was in third grade. In our interview, he said anything could inspire him to draw whether it was his favorite cartoon character or different styles of art he wanted to conquer, like the anime style.
His third-grade year was when he created a character that has continued to inspire him and follow him throughout his career, the Kekun Frog. This design depicts a Japanese-inspired frog with black eyes and a large, white, toothy smile.
One artist that really inspired Mike Mo$es to take characters and put them on canvases was Bryan Donnelly. Donnelly would take characters and re-create them in paintings and bend them in an artistic way. This made Mike realize he could re-create characters in any way he wanted, whether that be painting, digital art, or sculpting.
Another artist that inspired Mike’s passion for art was his grandfather. Mike recalled how his grandfather was a custom jewelry maker and oil painter. He’d paint scenery and “weird contemporary styled work” as Mike said in our interview. “Still to this day, I can’t tell what he meant by it, but I love it anyway.”
When asked about his creative process, Mo$es explained his inspiration behind some of his more recent artwork: “Recently, I've been trying to really sit myself down and search subjects I’m interested in. I've been diving into worldwide mythology, whether it's religious or not. I've also been touching on old rubber hose cartoons from the early 1900s, you know, trying to play with different characters that nowadays would be deemed inappropriate, but bringing them back in a way where people can appreciate them for what it was.”
Mike also explained that there’s a lot of Japanese and comic art influence in the way he creates, mixing many artistic styles to create his own unique product of contemporary art.
One of Mike’s biggest motivators to create is that he’s been able to accomplish his goals on his own. Because of his dedication to his craft, Mike studied different materials, styles, and artists throughout his artistic journey. Despite not having formal training, he’s learned a variety of styles and has seen himself grow into the talented artist he is today.
All Mike Mo$es ever wanted to do was draw, he explained. Since elementary school, he always carried a sketchbook with him, drawing and experimenting with different styles and approaches to the characters he wanted to create.
Though Mike has created with several materials and learned different layering techniques, his current favorite method of creating art is painting. Even if he draws an illustration with watercolors or an alcohol-based marker, he always comes back to outlining with acrylic paint. He loves the way the acrylic paint sits on the surface of his pieces, brightening and tying the finished product together.
On Mike Mo$es’s website, you can watch time-lapse videos of him creating his illustrations and artwork. He likes to record himself creating for two reasons, he explained. The first reason is for archival purposes. Mike has already been able to see progress through his work and will continue to see progress as he learns more, creates, and focuses on his craft. The second reason is to show other’s his process of creating, that it’s not just instant magic, but takes time and skill.
To continue reading this article on NYC Tastemakers, click here.
Opmerkingen