Happy No Fear

PrefID (@pref_id) is a British artist who paints around the world. We talk about dating fellow artist Adele Renault, hard kombucha leading to amnesia, moving to LA, how their dog came into their life, his love for Belgium’s excellent beer and food items, his process, the reason for not using tape in his murals, the pursuit of perfection, taming the medium, his hate for typography, how letters can communicate beyond their usual means, the trajectory to authenticity, how his collaboration with Fendi turned into a full collection and his crew ID. www.prefprefpref.com IG: @pref_id Listen on iTunes, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, Audible or anywhere else. // #pref #pref_id #design #streetart #arttalk #podcast

We talk about recently surviving a heart attack, working at Riot Games as an Art Director, moving to Venice Beach from Montreal, the benefits of Kung Fu, discovering Hip Hop and graffiti in the late ‘80s, working with the first Mac to start working with Adobe Illustrator, being vectorheads, feeling-based outlines, Designer Republic, partying in Belgium and getting influenced by the club scene there in the early ‘90s, skating in Ostend at a Leffinge Skatepark, trusting artists with the freedom to do what they want to do, where things are going, staying pure about graffiti elements in their work, the 30 year anniversary of 123KLAN, being 72 and rocking a double outline, being thankful for the new generation pushing boundaries, anti-style being so difficult to execute, getting settled in LA, and doing one more European Paint Tour. www.123klan.com IG: @123KLAN

Klor is a French artist and partner with Scien in 123KLAN, who paints worldwide. We talk about growing up in the north of France/south of Belgium, being there at the beginning of the movement, being married to Scien for 28 years, working on each other’s work with full trust, coming up as a girl in the graffiti scene, always including graffiti lettering in projects, the preciousness of the lack of access before things became a trend, how they ended up in Montreal, moving to LA, their system for staying free and independent, being picky about collabs, keeping your overhead low and work ethic high, BANDIT-1$M, painting canvases in the winter, sticking to purist rules, painting for one’s self, vibrancy, being a vectorhead, working with Adobe Illustrator in 1994, how they approach projects, the benefit of not talking, equal creative partnership, selling direct vs. working with galleries, refusing to sell paintings to certain people, and the meaning behind the name 123KLAN. www.123klan.com IG: @klor123klan IG: @123klan

Davey Leavitt is an artist and designer and the former co-founder of Cyrcle. He lives and works in Los Angeles. We talk about low-key chic living in Los Feliz, the apprehension for learning new things, Kung Fu George popping up at the right time, joining a lesbian basketball league, becoming conscious, every artist dealing with trauma, living with depression, vanilla granola, mustard seeds of faith, healing from pain and becoming of service, the benefits of Intensive Short-Term Dynamic Psychotherapy, anger as assertiveness, dogs becoming family members, getting inspiration from his wife Mel, entering his neutral period, double drop shadows, starting over, painters not having a distribution model for their work as opposed to musicians or other creatives, starting off in streetwear in Oakland, moving to LA to art direct for FiveFour, the euphoric feeling of getting samples back, the 614 story, the difficulty of creative partnerships, how Cyrcle ended, needing a W, the President of the Douche Club, leaning towards design, artists that don’t know they’re artists, and how the sweet is never as sweet without the sour. www.daveyleavitt.com IG: @davey_leavitt

Skount is a Spanish artist and a master chef living in Amsterdam. We talk about the Holy Waters of Lourdes, the almost non-existent lockdown during the pandemic in Amsterdam, turning clubs into gyms, the can-do spirit of the Dutch, painting in Copenhagen, the crazy story of how he ended up living in Amsterdam and most likely avoided jail time in Panama, creating menus, meeting in Venice 12 years ago, taking cabs around LA, the importance of signing and copyrighting your murals, getting inspired by the artist Laguna, the best department store in Tokyo: Tokyu Hands, daytime missions in Shibuya, the use of masks and symbolism in his work, his experiences with ayahuasca and getting dosed by a shaman with peyote, the meaning behind his name and getting inspired by everything. www.skountart.com IG: @skountart

Steve Saiz is a legendary professional skateboarder and artist/designer living in Los Angeles. We talk about the US Angeles group show he curated, skating with Spike Jonze, Freestyler Magazine, the resurgence of skateboarding in the ‘80s, touring Europe with the Bones Brigade, the beauty and far reach of skateboarding, Stacey Peralta’s influence, building skateparks for Native Americans, the story behind his iconic board graphic, George Powell’s involvement in Powell Peralta, the wit of Jason Lee, personality vs tech ability, the story behind the featherboards, hanging out with Nirvana, ollying before the trick was named, coming up with the ‘Skateboarding is Not a Crime’ sticker with Tony Hawk in North Carolina in 1987, skating with Shephard Fairey, how Heath Ledger’s Joker may be based on SMA’s Skip Engblom and what the future holds. www.stevesaiz.la IG: @saiz5412

ZLA is an artist an illustrator in LA. We talk about having a studio for the first time, making the switch from working for an advertising agency full-time for 10 years to working part-time to focus on making art, growing up in Glendale drawing mazes, why the senses are time-machines, having an older brother who was into graffiti, going to UC Davis and Art Center Pasadena, hand-me-down knowledge, keeping bridges in order, infusing walls with love energy, knowing when you’re ready to step up, everyone wanting to be an artist, commercial work being like babies put up for adoption, the purists’ perspective, the danger of taking on too much work, how to turn the dope shit into your shit, planting seeds in gardens that are fertile, and the meaning behind ZLA. Website: www.zla.la IG: @zla_la

Kii Arens is an illustrator, artist, musician and director who lives and works in Los Angeles. We talk about painting the facade of the Roxy on the Sunset Strip, spin art, opening up for Gangstarr back in the day, performing at Prince's 31st birthday party, designing the last Van Halen poster, the gig poster world, poppers, designing for Woodstock '94 and '95 and playing the festival as part of the agreement, the Warhol tribute show 'Diet Warhol' at La-La Land Gallery coming up, Paul Frank, choosing quality over quantity, turning Mr. Brainwash away at the studio door, and his show 'Life of Kii.' www.kiiarens.com IG: @kiiarens YouTube: Life of Kii

John Park is an artist living in LA who paints around the US. We talk about Cannibal Flower, coming up in Ohio, attending RISD, the CIA using Modern Art in a covert operation in the '50s to combat the cultural Cold War, soft power flexes, Alphonse Mucha, Frog Tape, the 28,000 square feet Nike job, cracking sidewalks with lifts, hand-painted giant advertisements, the process of painting a basketball court, investigating the things that scare you, the power of saying yes, regulating self-talk, Saturdays feeling like Mondays, becoming friends with your past, teaching art at Concord High School and being the whistleblower on its corruption, always over-delivering, having 50 non-artists paint 50 paintings on a fictional show called 'Striver: The Art Edition," and being the last of the analogues. www.johnparkart.com IG: @johnparkart

Nychos is an artist from Vienna who lives in LA and works around the world. We talk about his upcoming show with @mirusgallery in LA: 'The Awakening' and the 100+ paintings in it, getting healthier and more clear in mind,body and soul the closer he got to finishing the work for the show, painting as a way to clear out and let go, being the sickness and the medicine at the same time, taking accountability for your own bullshit, the 5 collaborative paintings in the show with @saturnoart, @persue1, @1010zzz, @oh_yanoe and @theartofchase, and all the goodies that will be released the day of the show. www.nychos.com IG: @nychos

Rizon is a 3D Designer, Illustrator and Creative Director who lives in Antwerp, Belgium. We talk about the early graffiti days in Antwerp, first trips to NY, glass eyes in sandwiches, seeking refuge in clubs because it was too cold outside, the beauty of early adoption and fighting for the art form, never finishing high school, odd jobs and faux-finishing, building Zillion, figuring out the flier business, learning Strata off of video tapes, 10 years of 14 hours a day of learning programs, Beeple's work and success, NFT hesitancy, the power of working client-direct, agency hi-jinx, his long-standing relationship with Nike, the story behind founding the 'Us By Night' design festival in Antwerp and its challenges, and the superpower of being insecure and vulnerable. https://www.rizon.be IG: @rizon_parein_3d

Pez is a Spanish artist who paints worldwide. We talk about early beginnings, positive graffiti, Barcelona shutters, his show at Thinkspace Gallery in LA, the barrier of the mind, the scene in Bogota/Columbia, cops that write graffiti, the Visual Arts Rights Act, Amsterdam adventures and more. IG: @pezbarcelona www.el-pez.com

Recorded at Modern Multiples Studio with Lionel Deluy and Montana Mills on the signing day of "Angelina", we talk about how the collaboration edition came about, details of the production, the story behind the Angelina Jolie shoot back in the early '90s and how she knew exactly what she wanted, working with the drum-scanned polaroid because Vogue never returned the negatives, the many firsts that are happening on this collaboration and Lionel's technique of signing with his fingerprint that contains a little amount of his blood. www.bigbropub.com IG: @modernmultiples IG: @Lionel_Deluy

Montana Mills is the Director of Modern Multiples, a fine art printmaking studio in Los Angeles specializing in serigraphs and digital giclees. We talk about the founder of the studio and Montana's uncle, the artist and printmaker Richard Duardo and the legacy he created and left behind, LA's Chicano Art movement, Hecho in Atzlan, the difference between an archival digital print and a multiple, the true meaning of the word "giclee", the art of printmaking, creating the Chicano Collections with Cheech Marin, the process of serigraphy, working with Richard Sera, Ed Ruscha, Banksy, Shephard Fairey, Chaz Bojorquez and others, and the intense production of our upcoming collaboration release "Angelina" with photographer Lionel Deluy. www.modernmultiples.com IG: @modernmultiples

Fabian Alomar is a professional skateboarder and actor living in Los Angeles. We talk about being freshly released after being locked up in Pelican Bay State Prison for 4 years, making the 'Cholos Try' videos, staying sober and clean, celebrating too much, self-help programs in prison, the Anti-Recidivism Coalition (ARC), spending time in the hole, being friends with people who's faces he's never seen in SHU, how to make a kites and lines to communicate with and pass items to fellow inmates, how he got into skateboarding, how Menace got started, getting turned pro by Mark Gonzales, having Danny Trejo as a mentor, being a part of DOC, the first tagging crew that had professional skateboarders in it, doing what comes from the heart, what the pandemic was like in prison, and how to stay smooth like dolphin. IG: @fabianalomarofficial

Nychos is an artist who was born in Vienna but now lives in Los Angeles and paints around the world. We talk about quitting sugar and alcohol, meeting at See No Evil 2 in Bristol back in 2012, getting into Lords Crew and JBCB, opening the Rabbit Eye Movement Gallery and Studio in Vienna, doing 4 solo shows in a year, hitting San Francisco hard, getting sick with a mysterious sickness which took many years to figure out, having a life-changing 5-MeO-DMT trip, doing tai chi everyday for 8 months straight, life/death consciousness, clearing out past karma, regressing to 12 past lifetimes, getting visited by the white rabbit, the price of entry to America, surviving 10 near-death experiences and losing the fear of death, healing yourself with what you paint, and what's coming up next. https://www.rabbiteyemovement.at/ IG: @nychos IG: @rabbiteyemovement_official

MadSteez is an artist living and working in New York. Recorded at his studio in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, we talk about making up meanings for the paintings after the fact, why Mr. Ween is number 1 and how the Weeniverse got started, working at Rusty as an assistant Art Director without them knowing he was still in High School, how Andy Warhol, David Hockney and Picasso owned Wiener dogs, why you can go backside on the Ween, his thinking behind packing everything up and driving from Orange County to New York with his Wiener dogs 3.5 years ago, doing art for 20 years, proper challenges, putting on your own art shows, why New York is freestyle all-day, strange presentations of one's self, bad taste in art buying, relating the hip-hop world to the art world, longevity and staying relevant, making art as a way to immortality, leaving art on the sidewalk, hanging on to one painting every 2 years for your own collection, getting a development deal for an animated show based on his Weenimals with Erkel doing one of the voices, how paintings painting themselves, Warhol's first stencil, flooding the whole Costa Mesa basin with fluorescent green silkscreen ink while working on a massive painting that took 10,000 pounds of sand to clean up, why New York has better waves than Newport Beach, waking up at 9:44 AM every morning, and starting an OnlyFans called OnlyWeen where he's gonna paint in the nude. www.madsteez.com IG: @madsteez We are also joined by writer Anna Del Gaizo. IG: @thisannaisbananas

Enrique Lorenzo is a professional skateboarder who lives in Barcelona. Recorded from the steps at MACBA in Barcelona we talk about funny trick trends poppin' up accidentally through the socials, skateboarding being an art or a sport depending or your perspective, how he ended up skating for World Industries, getting the call from Rodney Mullen on a Wednesday, foregoing his high school studies to skate, how most of his footage from his Trilogy part was sponsor-me footage, raids at the Courthouse, things being really tight-knit, how Nike got into skateboarding, living in LA for 22 years on-and-off, romance pulling him out of to LA, being able to film all day every day in Barca, loving what you do, starting the clothing line 'Great Tomorrow' and dealing with opening multiple stores, staying humble and feeling like you haven't done shit, and dining and ditching. IG: @enriquelorenzoo https://www.greattomorrowclothing.com/ IG: @greattomorrowclothing

Allison Bamcat is an artist living and working in LA. We talk about growing up with Scientologist parents, how Dianetics saved the day when food-poisoned once, starting to paint walls two and a half years ago at the age of 30, getting taught by graffiti artists, the scene in Boston, how to get boomlifts to stop beeping, painting in the rain, painting 8 walls in the last 2 months, loving to paint, honoring the past, developing original characters rather than using known properties, coming from the world of footwear design at Converse, not relying on the background color to cut back in, what the best spray paint is and why, the short-cut to making PDFs, sending out personalized postcards to curators in order to get noticed, the benefits of business cards and brochures, if it's not positive don't do it, living with mental illness, the power of breathing, expressing your struggles, one's taste level being higher than the work one creates, and incorporating symbolism. www.bamcatshop.com IG: @allisonbamcat

Gsulf is a graffiti artist from Paris who now lives in LA. We talk about moving to LA in January of 2020 right before the pandemic, the power of the bidet, wiping from the front just to be safe, abandoning the technical side of painting, spray paint as a tool, focusing on gesture, being free to try new stuff with the option of not showing it, maintaining focus on the letterform, abstract painting as a way to unlearn how to paint, trusting every mark and mistake, painting as a game, never using a sketch, incorporating the old painting when painting over it, the accidental beauty the buff leaves behind, the LA homeless situation versus the Paris homeless situation, why it's time for an alien to show up, virtue signaling, being able to chill for free in Europe, living in a car culture without a driver's license and what's 'Bon pour le Morale.' IG: @jathieumulien