How did you get into art?

I used to get in a lot of trouble when I was younger and my father was a pretty strict fella, so I found myself grounded a lot.  With his military background, getting grounded carried an entirely different definition then the norm.  All I was allowed to do is go to school, do chores and hang out in my room (no TV, no Phone).  So I spent a lot of that time drawin.  I'd make huge dents in my sketchbooks during these forced vacations from social interaction.  Although I drew before those days, that is when I think I really started to make some progress. 

How do you get inspiration for the pieces you produce?

I usually just browse my links section on my website.  I put most of those links on there so that I could help promote artists and friends who I appreciate as well as build a library of great artists that I could find easily.  I would always get frustrated when I would browse the internet for artists, find one that I liked, and be disappointed because they had a weak links section or non at all.  So now, anytime I find an artist that I like, I put them up.

You seem to excel in tattoos, painting and graffiti, how do they compare?

All, of course, have their advantages and disadvantages.  I really love to tattoo but I've come to realize that their are a lot of limitations that come with it.  In a tattoo, your spectrum of light to dark is a lot less then that of a painting or a graffiti piece. You're also limited to the canvas that the client gives you.  So if you have a great idea that involves background, foreground and middleground and the client decides they want it on their neck then you have to re-establish the whole composition and leave out some of the information that you felt may have been pertinent.  You've also got to keep in mind that if you put too much detail in your tattoo it's gonna be really difficult to read in future.

I really enjoy painting because the only thing that is holding you back is your imagination, patience, knowledge and budget.  There are so many techniques out there that can be used to achieve certain effects and the possibilities are endless.  However, it  seems to take me forever to get a painting finished so I'm usually faced with the dilemma of spending hours on end putting together a painting that someone may buy or doing a tattoo that someone will definitely buy. Tattooing usually takes priority.

Graffiti has always been an outlet art for me.  Not only does spray paint allow you to cover a huge amount of area in a short amount of time, but it's also pretty much 100% opaque.  One pass and whatever was underneath it is gone.  The only thing with graff is that you can either go out and paint a wall and possibly get locked up or you can do a painting or a tattoo and possibly make some money.  As I've gotten older the latter of the two options seems to make more sense.

What has been your best creation to date?

Most of the stuff that I like seems to be everyone else's least favorite and vice versus.  So it's pretty obvious that my opinion is bias.  I find that sometimes I'll like a piece just because of who it is on, how long it took me, or how I was feeling when I did it. But if I was going to pick one it would hafta be "The Battle between Rabbits and Mice (Part 1)".  The fella who I did that on allowed me to do whatever I wanted and that piece has evolved into a whole new storyline for some of my newer work.

How much do you think hype affects the public perception of what good art is?

The public's perception as a whole is pretty easily skewed.  If an artist can get the right people to wear, buy or push his artwork there are bound to be a ton of people who will follow suit.  If you throw a Jeremy Fish t-shirt on Eminem, then you're gonna get a whole slew of people who want to look just like Eminem and are going to buy the same shirt.  They don't even care who the artist is.  But if Eminem thinks it's good art then it has to be.  I've seen a ton of artists make it big just because of who they've tattooed or who is wearing or buying their work.  I also realize that it works both ways, if your art is good then your chances of getting someone to buy or wear your work are a lot higher.

Last CD you bought/downloaded/shoplifted?

DJ Lowbudget's Smooth Holiday Mix (It's a mash-up of a bunch of '80's stuff)

When did you you realised that art could make you some money?

Initially I was a bit confused.  My first paying art job was at Busch Gardens.  I drew caricatures of people and their kids.  We had to use a marker and draw them in under 3 minutes.  Most of the earlier caricatures that I drew looked like that dude Sloth from the movie Goonies and people still bought them.  They would tell me how great of an artist I was and ask me if I had to go to school to learn how to draw.  Meanwhile, I'm lookin around for cameras thinking that I was a part of some Candid Camera TV show.  I soon realized that there are a ton of people out there who love art but can't tell the difference between my work and Picasso's.

Why do so many people spend money on music yet so few buy art?

I think music tends to give you more bang for your buck.  You can get about 16 songs for less then $20, but it would be pretty difficult for you to find a quality piece of art for that price.  Aside from that, I really don't know.

How is your local art scene?

Richmond has a great art scene, primarily due to the fact that VCU (one of the better public art schools in America) is located smack dab in the middle of the city.  Richmond also hosts one of the oldest tattoo conventions in the world which has attracted a great deal of awesome tattoo artists.  And being that there are a ton of great tattoo artists here, it has developed a really great body of clientele.

What makes you happy?

Finishing a great piece of work.

What makes you sad?

Messing up a piece of work.

Sex, drugs or rock n roll?

Sex, Water and Mash-up Music.

Last book you read?

I've been reading a lot of Nutrition books lately.  I'm really intrigued on how food interacts with your body and how it can affect your overall well being.

Whats your favourite soup?

Tom Yum Soup (I love Thai Food).

Is there a downside to being so talented?

Not as far as I can see.  It's done nothing but benefit me.

Any close encounters with the law?

Yeah, I've had a handful.  Mostly revolving around graffiti.

What else do like other than art?

I love to travel, play sports, watch movies and play video games.

Any regrets?

I figure that any mistakes that I've made in the past have helped me get to where I am today.  I'm really happy with where I am so I really don't regret too much.

Final thoughts...

I'm definitely flattered that you are interested in me enough to
interview and I truly appreciate the support.  Thanx, Jesse.

Interview - Mr. Burrows 10/02/07