Today, before presenting Friday’s exclusive interview with the artist, we bring you the opportunity to venture into the watercolor playground created by Scott Campbell, aka scottc. His cast of characters comes together in clever ways. Whether it’s done as a comic reference to pop culture or a cute scenario reminiscent of Dr. Seuss, scottc’s art carries with it a definitive, recognizable style that is all his own.  Click on an image to enjoy the slideshow!

scottc’s blog :: scottc’s flickr :: scottc’s twitter :: scottc’s webcomics

Tags: ::ART::, artist profile, illustration, scott campbell, scottc, slideshow narrative, TOE gallery

And the sounds of a broken city speak riddles;

minor symphonies of secret hearts.

-Know Hope

Click here to see the image gallery.

Tags: ::ART::, artist profile, best street art, graffiti, israel, know hope, know hope art, know hope artist, street art, tel aviv, wheatpaste

Febreeze.

Tags: ::LITERATURE::, artist profile, cremation, isaac asimov, john steinbeck, quit smoking, smoking cigarettes

Discipline is essential. It is the key to getting through the so-called “artist slumps” that one encounters so very often. I try to feed my discipline with daily motivation from other artists around the world and with rigorous sketching routines.

Writing things down helps a lot as well. I have sticky notes all over my computer monitor at times. It has a list of my daily responsibilities as well as motivational quotes I might have picked up along the way and I jot them down to give me the extra kick while working.

I have also made a rule for myself to do at least one life drawing a day regardless of the amount of work I am facing. Not only does this help me loosen up a bit from my commercial work, but it works as somewhat of a refresh button for me. While at times I have music blaring in the background, I have found myself listening to either audio books or spiritual sermons more often lately to help me establish a mental focus as I work and get into the so-called zone.

I believe it is extremely essential to have an artist community that an artist should be part of as well. It is extremely important for me to meet at least once a week with fellow illustrators and either go out sketching or have some discussions related to art, share each other’s new work, talk about clients, share ideas and so forth.

If you look at any of the well known illustrators today: Tomer Hanuka, James Jean, Yuko Shimizu, Sam Weber, Jillian Tamaki, Marcos Chin… and so on. What do they all have in common? (except their success?)… “They all know each other!!!” They are a community. They either went to school together or they hang out on a weekly basis.

The artist community is very essential to an artist’s career.

::Tin Salamunic also writes at http://www.salamunicart.blogspot.com/::

Tags: ::ART::, artist community, artist profile, daily routine, illustration, james jean, jillian tamaki, manual to digital, marcos chin, sam weber, tin salamunic, tomer hanuka, yuko shimizu

I’ve been torn between secretly hoarding The Twins for myself (while I privately follow their every move, hoping that their world is still unbeknownst to my fellow artsy-fartsy Americans) and shouting their names out to everyone that I know and anybody else who might listen.  But now the time has come, and I know that it is only right for me to attempt to expose them to as many people as possible.

Os Gemeos, which is comprised of  Otavio and Gustavo Pandolfo, have created the most vibrant and enticing alternate reality that I can think of in contemporary art.  They started out just like millions of others, as self-taught graffiti kids.  But these masters of pattern and texture have evolved into a welcomed fixture in the streets of their native Brazil, where they’ve even been commisssioned to paint murals and the city trains, and have expanded their work to include impressive international gallery shows and museum exhibits, including Tate Modern.

This video presents their largest indoor exhibition to date. Titled “Too Far Too Close”, the show fills the gallery with the dreams and fantasies of Brazil: street kids, family portraits with mermaids, bathing girls, street musicians, favelas, flying animals, clowns and the reoccurring theme of twinship.  It invites viewers to explore the childhood of the Pandolfo brothers, while simultaneosly revisiting their own.  [If you wish to see more, check out Flickr.]

Carnivalesque Dreams of Os Gemeos from Scribe Media on Vimeo.

Tags: ::ART::, ::INTERVIEWS::, artist profile, brazilian graffiti, brazilian street art, deitch, deitch projects, os gemeos, os gemeos interview, os gemeos video, pandolfo brothers, tate modern, the twins, too far too close, video clip