Interview with Mathiole & Incubus Winners Announced

The Incubus Contest Winners have been announced.

Congratulations to Hands_on_Fire for Crow in the Deep End, the People’s Pick.

Congratulations to sluis718 for Nebula!, the Band Pick.

Also congratulations to Mathiole for being the DBH pick with Wish You Were Here and the many prints he’s been attaining at DBH and elsewhere. Since he’s been one of DBH’s highest performers and one of the most popular apparel artists on the net, we’ve decided to interview him! Enjoy!

When I think Mathiole, I think watercolors- in designs like Ecstacy and SeaSick Symphony, you’ve used those huge splashes of color to great effect! How did you start to develop this style? Do you have any tips for other artists who would like to begin experimenting with watercolor?

Well, it was a natural choice. Since I was a kid and started drawing, I hated colored pencils, crayons and pastels. I tried oil-based ink, acrylics, but didn’t like the results. Then, when I started my drawing lessons, I started using Ecoline (like a liquid watercolor), and from that I got better results and became more interested for colors. In college, right from the beginning, I had classes about the theory of color, and it helped me a lot, because although practice is very important, theory helps us see through things.

Using watercolor was a natural choice of my style, from the moment I decided not to do images which were purely digital and started searching for the beauty in imperfection of the handmade drawing.

A lot of people ask me how I do all this watercolor effects. Well, they are not effects, they are made in paper, it is real watercolor, only scan it! We live in a time so digital and technological, and that to me seems do alien some artists. They forget they can use a real brush, instead of a Photoshop filter. So my tip is: practice! And don’t be afraid to experiment. Forget a little about Photoshop and Illustrator and look for real effects. Not only with watercolor, but with everything! Use charcoal, coffee, whatever! Even if those experiments don’t bring an immediate result to the work, with time there will be evolution. You can’t be afraid to make a mistake or be lazy enough to practice.

Your designs range from the humor of I Love Wars to the pure art of All is Vanity. Does your design approach differ depending on whether the goal is humor or art? Which do you find more fun to create, and why?

It was always a concern of mine not to have an specific style, exactly because I like to do a little bit of everything. I think it depends on my mood at the time. I am a very happy, optimistic, reserved and ironic person. I think my work shows those four things. I had a more critic/ironic phase, and an introspective one. Now I am in a more optimistic moment. But nothing stops me to create and ironic piece now!

Actually, to me, all creation relies on the concept. And it is always the first thing to do: think about the idea. The mood you are in will function as some king of “unconscious trend”.

I do not worry about creating something more artistic or funny, my only concern is that the final product is equal or better then it was in my head.

Of the tees you’ve designed so far, which has been your favorite? What was your process for creating it?

Usually are the last ones, because I didn’t have the time to get sick of them yet! Hahahaha. I think my best drawing is Butterfly Effect, a work I did for the Imaginary Foundation, a company which I feel inspired by.

In most of the times I “cook” the idea in my head for a long time, some sort of a mental sketch. When I feel the idea is mature, and I can see it perfectly in my head, then I start to create the image, knowing how it will be composed, which colors I am going to use, which style, etc. Of course during the process sometimes things change, but it is always for the better!

Technically speaking, most of the times I do the lineart in the PC, using my references or sketches, and the colors are almost always done in paper and then scanned.

Was there a defining moment on your path to becoming an artist? What were some of the important steps along the way?

My dream was always to be a soccer player (as in every male Brazilian). But the defining moment was when I started taking drawing lessons, around 14 years old. I didn’t know how to draw anything, but when I got there I saw there were a lot of people like me, and that were very dedicated. I practically gave up two years of my live to learn how to draw. I used to practice at least three hours a day, including weekends.

When I stated to realize my evolution I got excited and decided art would be much more than just leisure in my life. Once I was out of school, I started my bachelors in graphic design. I just graduated from college, and here am I. I never stopped believing I could be a good professional and always did it with a lot of pleasure. I think that is worth for every profession!

What written works do you find to be visually inspirational? Are there any authors, books, or poems that have influenced the art you create?

“Opportunists are where you look for”; “History has the habit to change people who believe are changing it” (Terry Pratchett); “Have no fear of perfection, you’ll never reach it” (Salvador Dali); Don’t panic! (Douglas Adams).

I love comedy. I don´t read a lot, but some authors made me break this bad habit: the genius Douglas Adams and his friends Terry Prachett & Neil Gaiman. Einstein is also a great inspiration to me! I think the way He sees the world is similar to mine, because He is always looking for creative ways to explain things, and was always very secure of his thoughts.

I also look for inspiration in music. I can’t imagine myself creating something in the silence! I am completely addicted to new and unknown bands of post/alternativo/prog/rock/metal!

Are the tees you design similar to the ones you like to wear? What are a few of your favorite shirts to wear?

I can’t define the style of tees I like to wear! Hahahaha. But I think I prefer more simple and discreet things. I rarely use my designs. One of my favorite tees is “Bear Hug”.

Beyond t-shirts, what other mediums have you worked in? What have been some of your most creatively fulfilling projects?

Most f the things I do usually become t-shits, but I have made snickers, posters, skate decks and moleskines.

I just graduated from college and my final project is probably the most handy/creative/complete so far! It’s a graphic novel based in pop culture, which uses its icons to discuss society issues, in a very ironic way. It is a shame it’s written in Portuguese, because you won’t understand the story (even if I tried to translate it, since it uses symbols there are very local, from the Brazilian culture). But if you want to check how it is graphically, it is on my Flickr album!

Do you have any projects underway that you’d like to promote?

I’m creating a cloth line here in Brazil, but I don’t wish to promote it yet because is very young still. I am also in the middle of a process to create and art collective that will use experimentation, with some friends from my hometown. Maybe in a month or so we will have some work done! Other than that, I have no other projects.

In case you want to know what I am doing, follow me on twitter (@mathiole) and add me on Flickr. I am always keeping things fresh there!
I would like to thanks DBH for this opportunity to share a little bit of myself and what I think. I hope it was useful for someone!
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Interivew by MJ
Compiled by jimiyo

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