Interview with Michael Alvarez

q)Name?

a)Michael Alvarez

q)Location?

a)Los Angeles, Ca

q)Contact info...?

a) www.michaelalvarezart.com

q)How did you get started making art?

a) I've been drawing far back as I can remember. As a baby I would watch popeye, he-man, a couple other cartoons, and look at the drawings in Mad magazine. I would try to copy those characters and draw on whatever I could find, and also the walls of my house all day long.

q)How would you describe your art?

a)Aesthetically, I guess it would be painterly, part accademic, part intuitive, dirty and grimey. As far as subject matter my pieces are socialogical, both postive and negative. It all depends on how I'm feeling. I use pictures I collect for reference, but somehow they end up resembling me somehow. I guess it is the big nose. My pieces are self-portraits though, in the sense that they come from personal experience. I like making awkward looking imagery, because I'm an awkward dude. I also like to add my wierd sense of humor into things.

q)Where do you get the inspiration for your art?

a)From everything. Good/Bad, Win/Lose.

q)What other artists inspire you?

a)Ekundayo, Andrew Hem, Barry Mcgee, Os Gemeos, Datefarmers, Gee Vaucher, Song Kun, Nikolai Fechin, Charles Bragg, schoolmates of mine and teachers, many graffiti writers, too many to name, freight monikers, the music of Roky Erickson, the 13th Floor Elevators, and Ween. There are definitely way more artists I am forgetting. I also grew up being inspired by hand painted signs, murals, and advertisements from where I grew up in El Sereno, Ca. There nothing cooler then seeing a giant fully rendered out painting of some cool ranch Doritos.

q)Where can someone purchase your works?

a) They can contact me at my website, or phone number which is posted on the site. Whenever I have something going on I will post it on my website. Now that I am out of school I am starting to show around a little. I have shown at galleries around Los Angeles like Crewest, Thinkspace, and the Hive.

q)What is your main medium of choice?

a)If it is a 2-dimensional piece, then I will most likely use oil paint. I love how thick it is, and it is fun to get messy and grimey. The surface I like to paint on is wood panel. As far as making a 3-dimensional piece, or a scupture, I use whatever I can find. I am a pack rat and usually collect random scraps or artifacts wherever I go. Wood also comes in handy, for just about anything. If I am going to make a little character sculpture, then I will paint him with acrylic. If it is big, then I'll use spray paint.

q)What are you working on now?

a)Some portraits of friends. I'm really just trying to get back in to the cycle of making things again. I finished school in December, and took a month off. So now I'm trying to shake off the rust and get back into a productive mindset.

q)What advice could you give to someone who wants to be an artist?

a)It's hard for me to say, because I just finished school, and am still kinda getting my feet wet in the big art pool. My advise would be to be yourself, and let that reflect in your art. Also to stay humble and loyal to your family. To accept constructive criticism, and pay no mind to the haters. I've still got more to learn.

q) What are you doing when you are not creating art?

a)Hanging out with my girlfriend, friends and family, and skateboarding. I enjoy taking pictures of art on trains, painting, exploring, trying to learn stuff, and of course sleeping. Also watching my dvds or skate videos.

q) What does music, in its entirety, mean to you?

a) Music rocks!

q) What does art, in its entirety, mean to you?

a)Art is everything, there is an art to everything, and they are all being excersized all the time. Thats what keeps me inspired, and motivates me to not stay indoors watching TV all day. And television can be a viable medium as well, but I hate to overindulge in things and get lazy, which I tend to do.

q) Are there some web sites that You would like to recomend? Artists, art communities, xxx,...!?

a)Most of the ones I go to, I'm sure most people know already, but fecal face is the one I check out most often. I go on flickr quite often to check out pictures and an artist named Troy Lovegates has amazing artwork on there.
www.andrewhem.com, www.ekundayo.com, www.hardsponge.com - These are some good websites, the last one is one of my former classmates, Vincent Hui.