After thinking about it for the better part of a year I’ve kinda figured that art is my way of communicating to people. Because in some ways I’m not as good communicating with words – I insert a lot of the things I think or worry about into my pictures. Symbols, longings, conspiracies, fixations, whatever. I try to not be too blunt about it because I feel when people are too obvious about their message, you have to be really good at conveying it idk, I’m not that great at it, nor am I super conclusive when I talk, so I’d rather just leave hints around of what I’m trying to say. But I always try to make pretty pictures first I think. If someone doesn’t get what I’m trying to communicate, I don’t sweat it.
When I make art, I try to talk with the viewer about peace, paranoia, happiness, nostalgia, confusion, symbols… it’s kind of a dream-like atmosphere – sometimes it’s very quiet, sometimes it’s very noisy, and i think some people notice it is a little uncanny, so yeah, it’s my way to tell people
“I’ve been fixating on these things”
If I don’t put these signs in my pictures, they just become bland to me, and I don’t really care about them anymore.
To me personally, very important. I don’t think I would be where I am without them. I’m lucky to have my closer online friends pushing me to work hard and not be lazy, some others that have given me great work opportunities, and also the people I talk to casually sometimes. I like the sense of just a circle of people that just admire or observe each other, it’s motivating and it keeps me on edge, but sometimes it’s overwhelming, there’s so many people you know, and everyone’s doing things, it’s cool but I usually end up closed off or not really looking at the people in the scene because I just get overwhelmed easily with that stuff, so I have a handful of people I really look at attentively (I’m sorry).
To my art, it has been more than essential.
Your work seems to be influenced by a childlike interpretation of nature, video games, cartoons etc –
Why do you think these things find a way into your the art you create?
I’ve been told that – I think people say that because my art is mostly colourful and simple and cute. I think cuteness is a powerful tool.. childhood, I’m still not sure. Absorbing so many things through my life, now I’m letting them out mixed together like a sponge.
I’m not really influenced, for example, by memories of my life, I don’t think. I’m not depicting parts of myself in that way, I enjoy drawing about the things I like, sort of uh, like a collage.
I think I try to give a sincere approach to art, and it’s possible that’s why some people see it as kind of “child-like” or that it reminds them of childhood. It’s a point in life where we are usually very sincere, when I draw I usually don’t think a lot, or don’t second-guess myself, and maybe to some that is a bit childish too.
Some things I like:
I like lilypads
mangroves
moss
I like very tiny ecosystems (when I was little I used to lay down on the grass and imagine myself as being very small, the size of bugs)
I like cartoons and games
I like collecting fabric patches
I like T-shirts
I like spirals (my favourite shape, represents mutation)
I really just like anything, I’m at a point in life where I see beauty in simple things
Are there any games or movies that had an influence on your work?
Yume Nikki, very important to me when I was younger, that feeling of wandering I think it’s present in my art to this day, Cave Story too (fav game). I wish Pixel would make more games like that, I really want to live in his worlds, no joke. Nowadays I’ve been playing a lot of immersive shooters (Deus Ex recently). I like movies and series too, but I wouldn’t know. I never was a movie person until recently, since I started watching movies online with some friends. I really like Vietnam movies for whatever reason, like Jacob’s Ladder, I think the construction of heroes or archetypes/symbols, propaganda, that’s important to me, or I try to be observant about it, so military stuff draws my attention, I’ve made art about military things before, or communications technologies, it kinda slips into my art sometimes. I really like manga too, when I was 15 I tried to redraw the first episode of Berserk, and I think I drew like 2 pages total (it was too hard)
I think I’m more influenced by music than anything else though, it’s hard to explain, but I feel more inspired by listening to James Ferraro, Susumu Hirasawa, Aidan Swank, Tek Lintowe, my friend Oliver, Hikkie-P, among maaany others. I feel maybe some of them touch on similar topics (the world-person-psyche), or maybe the sounds are just interesting, so it helps me channel images to my brain.
I really loved Kowloon’s gate and since I played it I’ve been trying to make something similar to that in feel and mood (I will someday). I was also very influenced by the works of thecatamites, Lilith Zone, and Osamu Sato, they’re developers I look up to a lot. I also really enjoy looking at L.O.L.: Lack Of Love. I’m sure I’m forgetting a lot…
If 5outho made a video game, what would the soundtrack be?
All of the sounds of the world and the beauty of music. In a super perfect world if I directed a video game, I would try to get people like japanraingoggle, yeongrak, and emamouse to help me with music (sorry, I’m being a nerd :S). But in the real world, I would be content with just making the music myself. lol
