Artist Interview With Nite Owl

1. Who are you, where are you from and how long have you been making art? 

This is Nite Owl and i'm based in Oakland, CA.

I started making art as a child when I opened my first box of crayons. I didn't take making art seriously until about 2004 and I started my work as Nite Owl in 2006.

2. How did you decide on an owl as your character? Is there a story behind it?

One of my clients nicknamed me "Nite Owl" since i wouldn't answer emails before 2am. I liked the name and it suited my lifestyle so I ran with it. The owl character didn't happen right away. Initially I avoided painting owls since it would have been the expected thing to do. Back in 2009, while sitting in JFK I came across a picture of an owl online and it just inspired me to draw it out on the spot. I guess I nailed it since I haven't made any major changes to that owl over the years. 

3. I’ve seen some cool character collabs from you, what have been some of your favorites over the years?

Thank you. oh man, do I love collabs with talented artists. In no particular order....Chris RWK, Zero Productivity, Stay Bacon and Sidy, Downtimer, Die Slow, Aura always comes correct on our collabs, Beaks, the list could go on and on.  Maska, Musk, Ham, Sidy, Uter and I have teamed up on some large scale, maniacal 40 piece collab shows like "The Heist" and "Drift the Bay." Currently I have a themed collab show named "With Friends Like These" on display at Chopsticks Artspace in Oakland.  This show was put together entirely during the pandemic and I'm grateful to all the artists for their efforts during these trying times. It features 15 artists and the work truly rises to another level. I invite you to check it out at www.chopsticksartspace.org

4. What is your favorite city to bomb? Have you ever done any international graffiti?

Paris, Berlin, Tokyo, Barcelona, um I guess that answers the second question. hahaha. I try to spend 2-3 months overseas each year. It's hard to explain, but the european attitude towards street work is entirely different than it is here. The local culture celebrates it, while back home it can be rather punitive and full of beef and drama.

5. Which writers and artists have been most influential in your work, who are some of your favorites that are getting active right now?

The first artist that truly inspired me was Dr. Seuss. My childhood worlds were fantastic. As a young boy in NYC I remember the crushed train days vividly. Mondays were always something to look forward to. That's when all the new train art debuted. I can't pinpoint any one writer from back in the day, because the whole damn scene blew my mind. As I grew older, I recall seeing Space Monkeys and Robots across the city. Huge fan of Dalek, and basically anyone else who worked under Murakami. Chiho Aoshima's works are incredible. Chris and basically all the other artists in Robots Will Kill collective.  As for right now, Easy and Duel have been killing it. Shouts to Savie, Aura, Posh, LORDS, Ceaver, BTM

6. How has the graffiti game changed over the years that you’ve been involved? The people, the places and the things?

It seems so sterile and watered down. It feels like the integrity is gone. It's more about fame and likes. People aren't really experimenting or taking chances. I don't know, I'm probably just old and jaded. Big shouts to anyone who paints merely to paint. 

7. What advice would you give to young writers that are just starting to tag?

I have 3 points:  

One: Be original. It's tough, but please make the effort to be unique and bring something new to the game. There's enough copycats out there as it is. 

Second: And maybe even more important, learn your history and show respect to the gray hairs out there. 

Third : RESPECT. Give respect to get respect. Stay humble. Don't act like you're the shit when you've only put 6 months into the game. 

8. Do you have any projects coming up or shows in the making? Even if they’re scheduled for after Covid 19.

Yes, I am super excited to announce the release of my first two production skate decks with Bad Apple Skateboards in September (I just caught a sneak peak of the decks and they are looking good). Immediately following that I have a solo show, "Keep a Lid on It" at Forage Space Gallery in NY opening in October. Sometime in between those two happenings, I'll be releasing a t-shirt with No Love City.  I'm in two group shows in S.F. at International Art Gallery  (currently open for viewing) in the Mission and Palette SF in SOMA once things open up again over here.  The "Summer Vacation" show at Chopsticks opens in late September. I'm eagerly looking forward to Carpe Diem 3 in Paris, possibly sometime in 2021.

9. What do you think of this so called “new normal,” do you think it will have an effect on the art we see coming out in the near future?

Kind of a mixed bag. I don't think this really changed much for artists. We typically isolate in the studio all day anyway...and this current landscape is not exactly inspiring. If anything the fact that bars and nightlife are shut down should add some productivity to the art game. lol.  I feel like artists were already making "pandemic" themed artworks about dystopian futures and wastelands...so if anything this is life imitating art. Selfishly, I had to put my "birdflu" campaign on hold. Summer of 2019 I began subtly dropping virus themes into my pieces. In January and February 2020 I dropped a few quarantine pieces, but I quickly shelved that effort...i'm going to bring it back at some point in the near future.

Here's a prediction about the future. I think some savvy artists are going to embrace the virtual aspect of online shows and start moving towards "performance" based video clips that will be featured on their websites. Tutorials, progress clips, etc... The artists that adapt to this "content" game are going to do well going forward. 

10. Is there anyone or any crews or spots you want to give a shout out to?

I miss my peoples in Paris - Joko, Dink, Wekup Streetrider. NYC - Turtlecaps, Belowkey, CityKitty,  Bay Area - Pengo, Mace, Crayone, Cuba, Bode; My international team of paparazzi - Silver Tuna Studios, Newman, Bmines, Dave, Exkise, Solophoto, John Domine... I miss Kizler Coffee, craft brews from Local Brewery and road trips to nowhere with Eddie Colla. Shouts to the galleries that show my work - IAG in S.F., Ewkuks in LA, 212 Arts and My Plastic Heart in NYC, Le Lavo Matic et Discocaso in Paris, Chopsticks in Oakland, Redefine Gallery in Orlando, and all my friends at the Queens Art Collective

Shouts to my guys over at No Love City, TYO Toys, Dumpsty, Urban Robot Podcast, Nuglife Productions, Rocky G, Hella Positive and all the homies. 

Shouts to Eto and Swoe - love these young dudes.

Be sure to keep coming back to our blog for more graffiti culture, artist interviews and product reviews! Be sure to check out NITEOWL on Instagram @naito_oru and follow us on Instagram @derp_taggz Thanks!!!

Artist Interview with Jeremy Fish

Haight Street Art Center, San Francisco, CA 

1. Firstly, who are you, where are you from and what’s your background?

My name is Jeremy. I draw pictures for a living in the center of the oldest neighborhood, in the most expensive city in the United States.

I moved to San Francisco from Upstate NY when I was 19 years old to attend a prestigious Art School, and to ride my skateboard down these hills.

2. My first memories of your art is in San Francisco in 2007, but how did your art career begin and how has it progressed?

After I graduated from SFAI in 1997, I got a job in the skateboard industry where I oversaw printing, drew graphics, and art directed for about ten years. That was my last full time job over 15 years ago. Since I have exhibited my artwork in museums and galleries around the world, and still spend my days drawing and painting here in North Beach.

3. What has most inspired your creative process over the years? Have any certain artists been an inspiration to you?

I am inspired by something new everyday. Mainly finding the motivation and passion to stay here in the city I love doing what I do for a living. I am inspired by artists like Todd Francis, Mike Giant, Travis Millard, Dr. Suess, Michael Sieben, and shitloads of others.

4. A lot of your work seems to center around a mixture of aspects of nature and aspects of the city life, what can you tell me about this? Does it have a specific meaning behind it?

I try to draw fairly narrative works, that have an underlying theme or story to them. I like to draw things that are a combination of cute and creepy. I like the tension created by drawing the viewer in to look close, and pushing them back from something odd.

5. How has graffiti and the graffiti culture most influenced your art career? Can you tell me about your process when it comes to designing a mural?

I was very influenced by Graffiti when I moved to San Francisco in the mid 90's. The scene here was very cool and progressive, and I learned a lot by studying some of the legends from that time.

Hashimoto Contemporary, San Francisco, CA 

6. I am a big fan of your work with Upper Playground and your company, Superfishal, what were the beginnings of your company and how did you partner up with Upper Playground?

Upper Playground is celebrating 20 years selling art driven tee shirts on Fillmore and Haight Street here in the city by the Bay. I am very proud to have been involved with this brand, its history, and all of the wonderful artists we were fortunate to work with over the years. 

7. You’re a bit of a veteran in the art scene, What ways have you seen the art/graffiti scene change over the years?

I am a 46 year old artist living in America's most expensive city by almost 1/3 more than Manhattan. I have watched the art scene here change very rapidly and dramatically over the 25 years I have been fortunate enough to live here. Artists come and go very quickly here, and so the "scene" is forever changing. Every time I pay attention the scene is something new and different. The voice of the Bay Area youth, as it should be.

8. What advice would you give to young artists and creatives trying to make a career in the art world?

Right now I would probably tell them to get a back up job. The world is a fucked up place to try and eat off of making art these days.

9. Do you have any upcoming projects that you are currently working on that you could tell me about? Or anything you want to plug for the readers to hear about?

I am moving in to a four story mansion, fully restored to its original late 1800's condition to begin an Artist In Residency project on September 1st. The Haight Ashbury Counter Culture Artist in Residency project sponsored by SF Heritage, The Haight Street Art Center, and Grants for The Arts. Where I live in this huge mansion alone and draw for three months. Also, I am releasing a set of 24 drawings and screen prints that I drew over the last six months called "These Covidian Times". They will be available in October from the Blackbook Gallery in Denver.

These Covidian Times (Art series releases at BlackBook Gallery in Denver, CO beginning of October 2020)

Follow Jeremy Fish on Instagram @mrjeremyfish

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621 Thank You Business Review/ Interview with Owner JSK42

The color paint markers from 621 Thank You are a product many of us have wanted for a long time. I know a lot of writers, myself included who have used the white out markers by Art Primo and Presto over the years. But there hasn't been a version that released color options for said markers until now and I think this is a great innovation for the graff game. The markers themselves come in a nice variety of colors for all surfaces. They still have that sturdy metal valve nib on them that we are all used to and they are also refillable, which I personally enjoy as a feature on any mop, pen or marker. I would say, like with most markers, to give it a good shake every time you use it and make sure to get that vibrant color. I like that each cap is labeled with the color of the marker, which is a helpful little feature. They marker itself is durable and writes on all surfaces. The ink comes out smooth and has a nice drip effect if you choose to squeeze a little bit harder while writing with it. It's pocket sized or fits right in the tip of your sleeve for maximum inconspicuous activity and for stashing away quickly if the occasion calls for it. Here is a video demonstration:

Interview with JSK42 owner of 621 Thank You:

When did you first come to Oakland?

I'm from Lodhi, Central Cal, in the valley.  There's nothing there and I was always this skateboarder artist, into music and all my friends were super weirdos. I was into goth and punk and all those things the most in my town. I think there was less than ten of us of all age groups and I just outgrew it. When I was 18, this was in about 2005-6, I moved to SF and it was like "there's shit going on here." I moved into the shelters when I was 18, I was in and out of shelters for a bit. 

I got into this program for kids who had been in the shelter and saved up some money and within two years of doing that I ended up in Oakland. Most of my friends I had made would always be taking the bus or the BART back to Oakland and I found that San Francisco is real crazy. It almost had a fractured psyche, you never know what's going to be around the next corner, there's people from all around the world. It's such a hardcore mix, it's almost frenetic.  Oakland always had the laid back creative community type of feel and I like that better. Back then there were a lot of punk shows and house shows and a lot of cool stuff like that. So right now I'm 33 years old, so I've been in Oakland probably about thirteen or fourteen years.

How did you get your graffiti name? How did you come up with JSK42?

It was Random...

I lived in Sacramento for about a year, this was 4 or 5 years ago, and I was writing SHITSREAL. I hooked up with one of my friends out there, he writes BURGERS, he has more names now like 666 BURGERS and he does a lot of sticker trades and stuff. I started making a lot more stickers because he had slaps from all over, he was the first one I seen with a book and he kept all of his prototypes and stuff. He was sending packs and getting packs all the time, so I started making stickers and a few years later I was back in Oakland and I had moved into a house where most of the people did graffiti. I started going to 14th Street [Supply] when it was downtown and getting new stuff. I was at Merchant's [Saloon] one night and I was drunk and I had tagged up the bathroom and I decided I needed a new name. SHITSREAL was too long. 

I was tipsy and I said to myself, I should pick like three letters and two numbers. And it just came from the back of my mind, JSK42, I was like "that work's and I'm going to run with it."

Were those letters and numbers that you liked?

I had heard from my friends, 3 other writers who were trying to do a custom piece for me, that those were three terrible letters to go together just because they're hard...

... I like 42 a lot, that's from The Hitchhiker's Guide [To The Galaxy] and they had a machine in the book that knows everything and they ask it 'what's the meaning of life' and the answer is 42. That was a good book series and I liked the humor in that answer, but it was mostly totally random. I like that it was by chance. It reminds me of doing Noise Music or Collage Art where you just start putting stuff down and just see where it goes. You mix it together, chop it up, without listening to it and then see what you got. So I liked it, it was just random and meaningless.

Though I did find out there's a crew in the midwest called JSK, so if you see it up on trains, that's not me...

.

..I don't like graff beef.

Have you had any negative experiences in the graffiti community?

No I've stayed out of the way for the longest time. I have a few friends who do it here and there. And a few friends who have beef a lot and friends who used to have beef a lot. I've just heard so many shitshow stories that are just petty, unnecessary and aggravated stuff. Unfortunately, it's a lowkey defiant kind of art form, so you're definitely going to have all different types of people doing it. Those people might also rob people, they might also kill people, they may do hard drugs and be more cut throat type of people. All different people write, so you never know, you have to be careful. Other people roll how other people roll, but sometimes you got to stay out of the way.

What is you business called and when did you start said business?

We are called 621 Thank You. We do color white outs, it basically began when I started buying Presto's [White Out Markers] at 14th Street [Supply] a couple of years ago and they became my favorite. Then I started dying them and buying them on Amazon for a little bit cheaper. Then I got some of the Press And Go [Markers] for Art Primo and I liked those a lot more for many reasons. And it's pretty much the same thing except you can unscrew the top and they're refillable, so you can put anything you want in them. But I ended up just dying them colors for myself, to see which colors worked and which blends worked. Then a few friends of mine, over and over, said "this is a million dollar product, I want these and I know more than a handful of people who want these." I had people who wanted to go into business with me, but I just kept going. I bought a bunch from Art Primo and now I'm just rocking with it. I put up stickers [on my website] and I also do a lot of Non Sport Trading Cards, like wacky ones or like for movies like Batman and Garbage Pail Kids and all the kind of stuff. Just trying to make it more fun. It seemed like the people who buy graffiti stuff on Instagram would like that kind of stuff and sometimes the orders are for younger kids, so yeah its been fun.

It's my way to keep busy. And also even when I have busy weeks I'm not making a lot of money. So right now its a lot of fun, there is a potential big deal coming soon and I maybe sold out for the next few weeks. (This deal ended up going through a few days after this interview and 621 Thank You will be partnering with Art Primo and putting out color dye Press And Go Markers).

Do you dye the actual white out that is already in the Press And Go [Markers]? 

We have them sent to us filled and we put our sticker on them, pop them open and run it through to test if it works. Then we put a dab of color on the cap, so it's straight dyed...

...I could never find color white out myself and I liked the idea so I just jumped on it.

What advice would you give to young artists coming up in graffiti? 

Paint and dry and tag at home as much as you possibly can. Go get reams of paper and do your style a million times, try other styles a million times. I'd say be careful who you go out [and paint] with. The most important advice would be to take care of yourself, being creative is important and a lot of people don't do it, but take care of yourself. Jump into it, but I think also exercise is important and having a routine. I get up every morning and I count my beads and do a mantra, then I come over here [Town Park, Oakland, CA] and I skate until I'm sweating and then I go home and have some Yerba Mate and breakfast and start the day, which has all helped me. I quit drinking that's been good for me, for younger kids I would say don't do drugs right off the bat. Maybe wait until your twenties if you can (Laughter). Mental health is real and it's important...

...Be fearless and be creative, be experimental.

Do you consider yourself to be an entrepenuer?

This year I've started considering that word because running this little business is floating me, so yes. Yes I do and I think more people should consider themselves entrepreneurs. And if you don't want to consider yourself an entrepreneur, then you should think of money as a game and if you're not playing the game correctly you're going to lose. What the game is and what the rules are is that if your money [spent] is not making you money then you're losing the money game. And it's something I've heard my whole life, but only realized in the last year how many ways there are to make money legally and in an honest way. The stronger  and larger your community is, the more opportunities you are going to have. The more people who can trust you and who can relate to you, the more opportunity you're going to have to make money and I'm learning that.

You already have an online store but do you want to open a physical store one day?

I've thought about it and if I open a store I would like it to be in Oakland and I would want it to be something super cutty. I'd like to sell stuff you can't normally find or even sell things from etch to pre filled fire extinguishers and collapsable ladders. That would be ideal, not that I'm going to do it, but I would love to.

Are there any projects in the mix that you are currently working on or any shout outs?

Shout out to anybody who has sent stickers in to us, I featured everyone who has sent a pack on my instagram in a little video. Shout outs to Thank You Crew, FRITOE, MIXTAPE and all the skaters at Town Park and anyone who's getting up in Oakland right now and to anyone who has supported us.

(621 Thank You's colored white out markers are going to be available on Art Primo. They ended up cutting a deal for the rest of their stock to be sold through Art Primo. JSK42 couldn't speak on the deal at the time of this interview, but now that the deal has gone through he would like buyers to know about it. So make sure and be on the lookout for their markers at Art Primo's stores).

Follow them on Instagram at @621.ty

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Stay tuned to the blog for more interviews and reviews and more graffiti and counter culture!