Hi there

My name is GApe and I do vector illustrations. I guess you can say that I'm like most run of the mill vector illustrators who paints over photographs or scanned sketches. I mean let's face it, everyone does it because it brings something new and profound to the eye.

Technology shapes the way we see reality, and provides ways and means to edit our perceptions.

I've been in and out of artschools, private computer courses, and unrelated art courses, and to sum it up, my experiences have not being good whatsoever at these institutions putting me into more debt than ever with the government!

Maybe it's because I get bored very easily and can't find a good challenge to pursue. With computer graphics, Now that was a challenge indeed!

It was around 2001 when I got my first PC. I was over the moon that I got a machine that I could do things that analogue means couldn't.

I was also introduced to the internet and peer 2 peer downloading which means that I got a hold of a lot of software which would have cost me an arm and a leg to acquire.Yes I know crack software is wack software if a digital Witney Houston ever existed to quote that.

Around 2000, I was introduced to Adobe products. This was when I got a glimpse of Illustrator which I fell in love within the later years.

Courtesy of Rinzen

Fast forward around 2003, while I was surfing the web, I stumbled across Rinzen, a Australian art collective that did the most stunning vectors that my eyes couldn't believe. This of course aroused my curiosity to further investigate vectors.

Yes I did many a mistake when illustrating vectors, but hey you must crawl before you walk.

Influences

So what is my artistic genetic makeup in terms of who influenced my life? Well that's actually the easy part of my manifesto. I've been inspired by Andy Warhol and his rather simplistic style of art which he profited from, plus his eccentric personality was a curious factor that attracted me. It's was not only Andy's work, but the genre of pop art which is a huge influence in my life.

I was introduced to Roy Lictenstein (who passed away from pneumonia around 1997) by my tutor, and I was entranced by the boldness of his work, and total eclipsing of the comic genre of the 1950s using a technique called Benday Dots. Apparently he used a projector to shine on his canvases, and then painted on top of it.

His work also led me to reading comic books a whole lot more, which at one time I had my heart set to becoming a comic book artist. Unfortunately I lost interest in comics once I got to grips with graphic design.

Contemporary artist are key within my make-up. I would best describe my art to one Julian Opie, a digital artist (born.1958) as a comparison. I take a look at the world around me and take the piss out of it. I use the term 'Comic Satire' to illustrate the rather banal point of repetition and stealth opinions within our popular culture.

We repeat ourselves without the skip free feature or the stop button within our lives. Everything we see, hear, taste, or feel is repetitious. Celebrities are mass produce, food is genetically made and TV is on a constant loop.

The fact is that stupid people are ruling the food chain, while the smart and intelligent are side tracked by societal perception of what beauty is. Oh let's not forget about the poor!

So how does one describe my art? I think of it as a way to make banal conversation about the art that they see. Some would say 'porn' other's would say 'edgy' most would say 'hip', it will make you talk gibberish dialog known that we fest on the mis-fortunes of the successful!

Celebrities are key part of my research, I mean lets think about it. How many times have you seen Paris Hilton in a gallery? None, because she makes headline news on popular gossip websites. Sometimes I can make you think about a certain subject like the great divide between the rich and the poor. Celebrities have this fortune, and some if not most of the famously young frivolously waste it on luxury items and guilty pleasures like drugs and alcohol. No this not envy on my part, it's just funny and amusing at the same time.

I read up on Perez Hilton on a daily basis just for a laugh, and that's how I would like my works of art to do to you the viewer. Laugh as well as think!

The Technique

I use illustrator as well as photos from myself or from a web source. I tend not to use alot of shading and tone, because it feels redundant and re-used. Bright colors as well as dark colors play a integral part of my illustrations. I also use heavy bold lines, due to my fixation and love for instruction graphics and Diagram drawings for the past. Like I said previous, I was inspired Julian Opie and his simple imagery. So expect that from my art. Also movies such as 'Sin City', 'Grindhouse' and 'A scanner Darkly' plays a part of me formulating images.

Among other things

I tend to whore my name as a brand for everyday consumption. I produce tee shirts, buttons, and one color illustrations as something tangible for someone to take home and laugh at! Yes I love money much as the next person hence the whoring, I do have to make a living somewhat!

My final words

I would like to conclude that I'm in a rat race to victory lane. I love what I do. Art is my job, I enjoy it, I love it's rewards and it motivates me to challenge myself mentally!

Think about what we have become, and seek it's solution. Give all people everything!