Found Footage

What was your first experience with art?

When I was little I used to draw stick figure women with boobs going down slides. My parents also let us draw all over the walls in the living room where my dad built a loft.

Fireflies, Starry Sky

A lot of your work is semi other-worldly—describe your art making process.

Images are always popping into my head, whether in waking or dreaming life, so sometimes I decide to try and translate one of them into this physical world. Sometimes I compile photos I've taken and make a composition out of them in Photoshop to work from, sometimes I just start on an image and play with materials and see where it goes from there. I made a song the other day that was an entire meditative experience to write because it's about jumping off a tree into the sky and once I was in the sky I had to decide what would happen next, and next, and next, until I felt like coming back and I hitched a ride on a meteorite and headed back down to earth.

I've had lucid dreams where I've been floating around in the air, breathing underwater, and changing the color of the sky with my mind which are all very inspirational experiences for art making. Last night I had one where there was this poodle with wings on my porch that I followed down to my yard and it started flying around. Maybe I'll draw that. And have you heard the America's Ventura Highway? I just noticed they talk about "alligator lizards in the air... in the aiiiiirrrr," now that is inspiration.

Gary Wilson for Rita Records

What are your thoughts on the San Diego art scene?

I've been traveling a bunch so I'm not too deep in the know about San Diego's art scene but from what I do know about, there are awesome people doing great things! My friends running Rita Records have been doing some pretty cool DIY music shows, most recently for Gary Wilson's 7" album release for which I did the artwork. I think there are other cool things happening and spaces forming. Low Gallery is new and has been showing lots of work, as has Gym Standard. I have a show there in September & they have cool beanies there that I have been getting compliments on!

Also, my friend, Keenan, is planning interactive events called Instant Worlds. We're having one next month in this cave that I built! There's also a big squirrel running around in the tree next to me doing a great performance piece but I'm on Mount Tamalpais so you'll have to come up here to see that.

Patagonia

Which artists/experiences have informed your work?

What a difficult question. Basically everyone and everything in my life has informed what I do. There's so much inspiration everywhere! Earlier today I heard a crow fly over me and I'd forgotten what the sounds of their wings is like and it's really amazing. I love plants, coral reefs, music, people watching, animals, lichen, bodies of water, the sky, dreams, emotions, all the small details and textures surrounding us. I saw dinosaur skeletons for the first time a couple weeks ago which blew my mind and I got really into Mati Klarwein for the second time in my life the other week and I visited Tom Killion a couple days ago because I really liked a woodblock print he made.

Last night I lay in bed falling asleep to Pure X's Pleasure album which was very relaxing. There are countless artists I could list off but I'm very lucky to have very inspirational friends and people in my life like Aaron Glasson, Ally Frank, Jenny Welwert Gil,  Naomi Shon,  Brigette Bloom, Jonny Alexander, Keenan Hartsten, Oscar Moreno, and my sister, Yvonne Byers. Also, look up Dallol Volcano in Ethiopia if you've never heard of it!

Every Man Is An Island

Some of your illustrations have been featured in The New York Times. What was that like?

It's really cool! Pretty crazy, really! It's also a really good mental exercise because the turn around rate is super fast, giving them sketches in a day then a finished illustration in two. I can definitely feel a change in energy when working with them, so fast compared to my normal life. It's also fun designing an image that can say a lot in a relatively small amount of space and is so amazing knowing so many people are potentially absorbing a picture you've created and that you have a chance to say something to all of them.

What's your favorite San Diego hang out?

In the ocean and atop Sunset Cliffs. Or really any of San Diego's cliffs, preferably standing on a wave but I only learned how to successfully catch unbroken waves a couple months ago so it's a magical rarity. I also like eating the kiwilango burger with a black bean patty and sweet potato fries at Raglan's in OB.

Favorite/least favorite medium?

I really love gouache. I also use mechanical pencils, Micron pens, spray paint, and random stuff I find on the ground, in the kitchen, the beach, wherever. I got really into gardening this past year and have been planting all types of edible plants, succulents, and cacti which are really fun and rewarding mediums to play around with. 

I'm in love with my nylon string acoustic guitar.

What are you currently working on?

I'm working on a poster for World Oceans Day Hawaii and a T-shirt design for PangeaSeed, who I just designed a zine for! I'm trying to renovate the cave I built last year so I can rent it out, I'm painting a mural for Mission Bay Friends of the Marsh at their UCSD research headquarters at the end of Crown Point Drive. There will be an unveiling event that everyone should come to! They protect the last existing marsh in Mission Bay and we're trying to get more people involved to care about it and hopefully expand the marshlands in 2017. 

I'm also working on this series of pieces about hunting which include a picture of cheetahs eating a man. 

When visiting one of my girlfriends in Switzerland last month, I had the treat of having authentic homemade ratatouille in Geneva, made by a Parisian dude. It. Was. Amazing. He also made some sort of chicken, fig and date compote as a side and everything was delicious. I had never actually had ratatouille before but am so glad I got to experience it in a traditional way before attempting it myself. Pair this with some nice red wine, and definitely serve while watching this.

28 oz canned whole, peeled tomatoes

1 large or 2 small eggplants

2 large yellow onions

6 cloves garlic

2 large zucchini

2 bell peppers (any color)

1 tbsp fresh marjoram 

2 fresh bay leaves

2-3 tbsp red wine vinegar

1 cup gemelli pasta

Olive oil

Salt & pepper

Cumin

Cinnamon

Nutmeg

Serves 4-6.

~Preheat oven to 350F.

~ Pour entire can of tomatoes into a roasting pan (or any oven-proof dish with raised sides). Break up tomatoes by hand into about 1" pieces, drizzle with 2-3 tbsp olive oil and bake in oven for 30-40 minutes, stirring and rotating pan every 10 minutes.

~ While tomatoes roast: wash eggplant and cut into 1" pieces. Toss chopped eggplant with 2-3 tsp salt in a colander and let sit for 20 minutes. The salt will help to draw out the liquid from the eggplant. After, squeeze out excess water with paper towels.

~ Heat 4-5 tbsp olive oil in a large pot on medium heat. Chop onion into large slices, add onion to pot and cook for about 5 minutes (until the onions begin to turn translucent).

~Mince and add garlic to onions. Chop bell peppers into 1" chunks and add to pot; cook for about 4 minutes.

~Chop zucchini into 1" chunks, and add to pot along with roasted tomatoes, eggplant, bay leaves, and freshly chopped marjoram. (Sidenote: Marjoram smells SO good. Get a few good whiffs.) Bring the mixture to a simmer, bring head to medium-low and cook for about 15 minutes partially-covered with lid. The key is to not overcook or you'll be stuck with mushy vegetables, yuck.

~While ratatouille is finishing, cook pasta according to package directions, set aside in colander for serving. I like to lightly toss the pasta in about 1 tsp of olive oil as well.

You will end up following him all around the greater LA area in hopes that he picks you up. And he will. But just as soon as he has, he will put you back down. There will no explanation, no end to something that didn't even begin. He will leave you in limbo. It will add to the mystery. Don't be fooled. The aloofness he parades around in is not depth.

You see, this type of guy is not in the market for girls, or boys for that matter. He’s in the market for notoriety—hence the persistent proclamations of being “just all over, dude, super busy.” He craves being amongst the crowd of other curated personalities, but he will tell you otherwise so as to not break character. But just as proximity to wealth will not make you richer, consciously constructed eccentricities will not make you interesting, but it does a pretty good job of fooling the in-crowd.

Once your mystery fades and he realizes that the genuine qualities you possess are those he is trying to fake, when he realizes yours aren't affectations like his, that you are a real human being, he will disappear. Because that is what happens when a dilettante meets authenticity.

Do not wait for him. Do not dull yourself for a person who lacks the foresight to realize your future will be grand.

What's the story behind VeraMeat?

I started VeraMeat in 2008 as my first effort at running a business, which I’ve always wanted to do. Making jewelry was relaxing for me so I thought that would be something I could do for a while if it worked out. Things have been falling together ever since and I’m happy to say it’s growing each day.   Tell us about the design process of your jewelry.

I always made things I’ve wanted myself. That works well for me as I’m my own customer. So if I like it I know my customer will too. I also design in series not collections. I have a dinosaur series, monster series and others I’m slowly adding too when inspired.   You've had experience as a model. Tell us about that. How is the modeling world different from the jewelry world?

I learned skills modeling that I still use for my company but stopped modeling as the industry really takes advantage of young children. I’ve been supporting The Model Alliance which tries to help the industry not abuse children. Now being in the jewelry world I have control over my own career and no one is extorting money from me so that’s nice. Plus I have some wonderful people working with me that I try to take care of as I know what it’s like to not have anyone looking out for you in your profession.

Photo Credit: VeraMeat

If you had to choose an animal to describe your design aesthetic, what would that animal be?

I have a collection of power animals for VeraMeat, I believe animals really do bring us energy and inspiration. I’ve always loved dogs and my puppy Fred is our mascot. Recently I gifted my friend and Salad Days co-star Megan, a Scottish Fold kitty named Yummy Breakfast and she’s also now our mascot with Fred. My power animal is probably a hummingbird as I’m very flexible in business and my art. I don’t let anything take me off my chosen path.   What's the story of Fred Meat?

I’ve always loved Ewoks, Gremlins and magical animals in general. Then when looking through the dog breed book for fun I couldn’t believe that an Affenpinscher was a real dog. Even now people walk up to me saying Fred doesn’t look like a pet but something more magical and special. I totally agree and feel so lucky to share my home with such an inspiring little being.   Tell us about Salad Days. What's the premise of the film?

Salad Days is an idiomatic expression referring to a youthful time full of idealism, indiscretion and enthusiasms one associates with a young person. It’s a story of friendship between two girls who have had some miscommunications in New York so they set off for California on a cross-country road trip. As when the term was coined in a Shakespeare play, in the film we are cold in blood yet green in judgment. We were also so lucky to have worked with the talented dynamic film duo Dan and Sharon Kanes.  Dan is a fantastic cinematographer who started the company Paralinx (a real time wireless monitoring system which we used on the film!) Like VeraMeat on Instagram to stay updated.

Photo Credit: Sharon Kanes

What's your favorite (not-so) secret spot in NYC?

Well my two VeraMeat stores, one on 315 E 9th St in East Village and the other 132 N 5th Street in Williamsburg, also Caravan Of Dreams restaurant has yummy young coconuts, Peels has yummy lunch, Vaselka is open 24 hours, Cha-An tea shop is great for a business lunch and Neue Gallery café & museum is good for an artful weekend near Central Park.   What do you do when you’re not running VeraMeat?

I write songs, write short stories, travel to a lighthouse upstate, write more films I’d like to direct, walk puppy Fred and draw haggard animals because that’s the best I can do right now.

If you could have dinner with three people from history, living or dead, who would they be and why?

My future grand grandchild just to see what they’re like, King Harry who founded Reykjavík Iceland as I just found out we’re related and my old horse Roho so we could go on a dinner walk and reminisce about old times. 

Photo Credit: Sharon Kanes

Favorite noise?

My puppy Fred breathing in my ear as he sleeps on my shoulder.

Least favorite noise?

Ambulance while walking on my street in New York.   If you were to make a time capsule, what are 5 things you’d put in it?