SLEEPYZ DIGITAL ART MAGAZINE
Edition #9
What’s good, Digital Art Family!
Thank you, for checking out edition #9 of the
"SLEEPYZ DIGITAL ART MAGAZINE"
Today's Guest: "ADHD"
Keep reading for an incredible interview with the Artist…🗞️
When did the passion and appreciation for art first begin ?
ADHD: "I was pretty much instantly mesmerised by the creative act as a kid. I obsessively created stacks of drawings and paintings and would even make my own stapled books of drawings trying to emulate a couple of the art books that my parents had laying around. But pretty much from middle school on I was printing t-shirts, taking photos at punk shows, making zines, drawing cartoons, using early versions of photoshop and filling up sketchbooks. Music was an equal passion to visual art and unsurprisingly I wound up splitting my time as an adult between the two as careers and passions."
Why did you end up choosing this space to publish your art ?
ADHD: "In some ways it feels like it chose me. I got into crypto around 2017 and for the life of me couldn't understand why it was so exciting. By the end of that bull run I had seen things like curio cards, crypto punks, dada.art, and eventually superrare start to spring up in their humble beginnings and then it all made sense. Out of mostly imposter syndrome I suppose I didn't jump in to mint anything myself until 2020 or so but I excitedly watched peers like my dear friend Sarah Zucker finding a serious collector base and finally getting the interest and respect their work deserved. As I shifted my art practice to become more and more digitally native it only made sense to dive in completely."
Where do you gain most of your inspiration from ?
ADHD: "Interpersonal communications and daily reflections on interacting with the world."
When did you decide to pursue a career as a full time artist ?
ADHD: "Back in 2004 I decided that I never wanted to have a boss again. That I would rather be homeless than work another 9-5. That I wanted to exist on the fumes of my imagination and self made luck. I've been a full time artist ever since."
The weekly poem from - Luca Ponsato
"The Good with the Bad"
A Poem inspired by the piece "Good News"
If everything was all good news
There is no wise reason to tell
Something just too good to be true?
Sets off each alarm and every bell
Never to accept the best
My world is always gray
And if there is some good news
It’s not me who has something to say.
Who are your role-models / people you look up to ?
ADHD: "Web 1.0: My parents are fucking wonderful and always supported, encouraged me to follow what brought me joy and made me feel inspired even if that meant taking a less traveled path and struggling financially and things like that.
Web 2.0: Janine Antoni, Fred Tomaselli, Kiki Smith, James Jean.
Web 3.0: Sarah Zucker , Alpha Centauri Kid , tjo , Jen Stark to name a few"
How did you end up finding your own style of art ?
ADHD: "I have a long history as a visual artist now in the traditional space as well as DIY art communities and I feel like my journey has always been about continuously experimenting from a genuine place to get closer and closer to my own voice. I've observed this to be true for many artists. When I look at my art now I actually have a sense of awe about it. Like I could have never arrived here without all of the hundreds of steps along the way. And what I mean by that is that I feel that each piece of art that I've made in the last 20 years or so has brought me closer to where I am right now, through pushing past my comfort zone in each work I slowly but surely found myself in territory I never could have imagined when I first began or even 5 years ago if I'm being totally honest haha.
That said on the surface, my style is a combination of everything I am drawn to aesthetically and where I come from historically. My influences are everything from cut and paste punk rock zine culture, 90's electronic album art (and music), graffiti, urban decay, abstract expressionism, glitch, décollage, impressionism, graphic design, advertising and psychedelics. I honestly think you can see and or feel all of this stuff in my work but at the same time it's easy to miss and not see any of that at all."
If you could work together with one artist from the past, who would it be and why ?
ADHD: "Robert Rauschenberg would definitely be at the top of the list. He constantly merged forms and styles to create new modes of thinking in art (he literally created something he called "the combine" which was basically a sculpture/assemblage combined with a painting) and he was never satisfied with staying in his lane in terms of medium. His ability to retain his voice and stay recognizable whether painting on a silk screened collage on canvas or with a found taxidermied goat is truly remarkable. I don't know why but watching his interviews made me think he would be really fun to be around and he never came off as judgemental or intimidating in the way he saw art. Usually I would have trouble working with someone of his stature but I get a sense he would be a different story. maybe im totally wrong but he's dead so we'll never know.."
What are some passions that you have other than creating art ?
ADHD: "I love spending time with my wife and our animals. (2 dogs and cat) I love listening to music and watching films. I love to watch or listen to garbage television while I work on art. I love podcasts and audiobooks."
What’s the biggest advice you have for up and coming artists, who are looking for long term success ?
ADHD: "Move slowly when it comes to minting or dealing with money, moving too fast will cause needless mistakes. Create a ton, share the best of it. Ask smart people what might seem like dumb questions. Seek relationships, not sales. Think LONNNNNNNNNNNG term."
What’s next for ADHD ?
ADHD: "On this coming wednesday (2.08) I have my first drop on Nifty Gateway called 'heavy/illuminated'. It's 7 new pieces in total. I'm insanely proud of the body of work and I think the drop should be a blast for collectors. There is something for everyone. We are doing all the things that Nifty is known for... ranked auctions, drawings, a super short & spicy open edition... I also threw some bidders editions and a $1 raffle piece into the mix to add some extra chaos. The work itself is about the struggle to overcome depression/anxiety and other forms of mental illness, especially during the darker/colder months of the year. There is also a more broad narrative of learning to heal our own pain and be our own source of light/love.
Literally the following day (2.09) a collective I am a co-founder of ( Flannel Collective ) is launching our World on Foundation. The title/theme is "We Own The Night" and roughly 20 or so artists (including myself) will have works dropping together. I'm extremely excited to watch it unfold and am looking forward to introducing some incredible artists to some new eyeballs.
There are a handful of other massive things I have recently committed to for this year that I can hardly believe are actually happening but that I can't speak on yet. I'll just say it's going to be another really exciting year. I'll be in NYC in april so if anyone out there is coming, shoot me a DM and lets link up & caffeinate together. <3 Thank you for your energy & attention."
Super grateful for this incredible interview with ADHD!
If you want to check out more of ADHD’s Art Work you are going to find the official links below..
Art Work:⏬
SuperRare
Foundation
Editions
Objkt
Exchange Art
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“SLEEPYZ DIGITAL ART MAGAZINE“
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