1) Where are you from originally as opposed to where you live and work now.
I grew up in Richmond, VA , I've been living in New York City since 1991.
2) How long have you been making art professionally.
When I was in art school , about age 19, I started doing paid freelance work , some logos and graphics for skatewear companies and bands.
3) How did you develop your style of crusty hillbilly creatures, is it self taught.
I'm not really sure where that stared. Kirk from Buzzoven kinda looked like a culmination of those characters, dirty, ragged, burned out. Maybe I was trying to capture that look when I was drawing this dog character for some Buzzoven things. I later I started doing more of those characters. Also , the Disney movie "Song of the South" was a big influence on me when I was really young. Brer Fox and Brer Bear somehow got into my mind and a lot of those wasted looking animal-type hillbilly characters were probably influenced by that. I haven't seen that movie in close to 30 years , since it's been buried by Disney.
4) I saw you did the "Dopesmoker" release, how did you get involved with bands like Sleep and Buzzov*en
I met Buzzoven when they were living in Richmond in 1991. We got a long well , they were a great band and that sound was fairly new at the time. I started doing flyers and shirts for them , then cd covers. They were friends with Sleep so I met them back then too, along with Eyehategod. I did one or two small designs for Sleep way back, I don't know if anything was ever done with them. Buzzoven self destructed for the last time around 1996-97 , and Sleep was in limbo until Jerusalem was made. I reconnected with Matt Pike when the Jerusalem bootleg was released, and we've remained in contact since then and with the High on Fire stuff.
5) What are some other projects you have been working on most recently.
I recently finished the art for the new High on Fire album Blessed Black Wings. I did a snowboard graphic for a Japanese snowboard company called Centigrade Aquatics. I've also been doing illustrations for Arthur Magazine which is out of LA.
6) Can you be found out in the scene much, if so, what kind of bands do you go out to see.
A lot of the bands I go to see are local bands I know, like White Magic, Gang Gang Dance, and No Neck Blues Band, then when others friends' bands are coming through town I check them out too- those are usually the "heavy" bands - HOF , Weedeater, Electric Wizard, etc.. Here in New York there's music happening every night so you've got a lot of options . Most of it I'm not that interested in , but there are some better things starting to form .
7) Do you make any music of your own.
I play music with some friends. We call ourselves Mountains of Mata Llama. We've got a practice space in Harlem so once a week we get together and play. I guess you could call it "heavy -psychedelic-mind-rock". I've recently been thinking of starting up a new musical project based on eastern scale music, combined with thick atomospheric drone.
8 ) You have a book coming out, where can we find and what are some of the things we can look forward to.
I've been gathering material for this book for some time now. Originally I was planning to include a 26 page comic that I did in early 2000 , but I opted to cut it out of the book, because I felt it was out of place with the rest of the book's content. What will be included are several of the record covers, and posters from a show I had last spring, as a well as other images and sections from sketchbooks. I work in various styles so I'll probably included elements of different types of work, not just junked-out hillbilly animal creatures.
9) What form of medium do you prefer, and do you find digital methods over-rated.
I prefer to draw with pen and ink , either with a croquil pen and india ink or a fineline marker. I use watercolors , paint, colored pencils, and permanent markers for color. I do use Photoshop and Illustrator sometimes to create imagery , but it's a different approach. I normally don't try to recreate an organic look with a computer because it usually looks too synthetic. I often treat Photoshop as a silkscreening process, I'll digitally create multiple subtle layers and combine them to make rich backdrops.
I think the digital process can be used wisely in some respects. Obviously if you want to create a sharp graphic image or typeface it's ideal, and using Photoshop to alter and bring out color is very useful. The problem I see with most digital methods is the laziness and lack of originality that easily comes with it . There's something so hollow about computer art when it's done poorly. People use the same fonts and generic effects so everything looks the same, there's no personality to it. It's soulless and cold. There are people making ads and alleged "art" who don't have an artistic eye, but they have a computer. The person should direct the machine , not the other way around.
10) How did you aquire the name Moonhawk.
Moonhawk is my real middle name. it's on my birth certificate. Yes, my parents were hippies, but it's also partly a family name. Moon was my grandmother's maiden name. Somewhere along the way someone printed Moonhawk with quotation marks aound it which makes it look like a self appointed stoner name, but it's real.
11) What are some future projects that you have in your head, that we might be able to look forward to.
I've been proposing the idea of an animated video for High on Fire. Des and I have talked a little about it. The budget would need to come from Relapse and I don't know how likely that it, so we'll see. Either way I want to do some animation. I've got ideas that need to be realized.
I think I'll also be doing some work for a British publication called Strange Attractor , it's a journal comprised of mostly esoteric/occult themed writings.
12) Who are some of your favorite artists that you look to for inspiration.
Greg Irons, Moebius, Rick griffin, Vaughn Bode, Jim Woodring, Ernst Fuchs, Roger Dean, Ian Miller, Hipgnosis, Barney Bubbles...others, many others.
13) Do you feel it's part of an artists responsibility to look at and critique society vices, and shortcommings.
I don't think it's a "responsibility" for an artist. I think the very act of creating is more of a responsibility if there is one. Because artists can transfer thoughts into a tangible form then perhaps an artist can reach more people and influence them and in that case an artist may want to use that platform to say something useful or profound.
At this point, considering the state of the world, i think everyone should be critiquing society and it's countless shortcommings. We're living in an absurd world of illusion, insanity, and deceit and it's getting stranger every day. People seem to be growing in different directions, some are going to down the road of fear and blindness and some are opening their eyes and looking for truth. All Those who will acknowledge society's problems should critique it.
14) Thanks for your time, any final words of wisdom? And if people want to see your most recent stuff is it still arikroper.com ?
Be strong and find the world inside yourself!
Yeah, that website is current but it needs to be updated. |
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