Interview with Okuda
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Okuda is a multi-faceted Spanish artist at ease into street art or land art as on canvas or in galleries where he realizes its installations. Some creations full of contrasts between curves and geometric shapes, between monochrome and color explosion…
Hi Okuda, today MoW selected 4 of your artworks inspired by music from your project NEW IKONS.
Can you tell MoW why you created those pieces ? And why did you choose those music artists?
I love music and I chose Kanye West & Old Dirty because I come from the classic rap too, but my art style has evolved a lot, and is very far from the classic graffiti. I just thought in following my personal way, mixing disciplines, or whatever I feel to do. And I think that Kanye West is the same. He is a very nice artist, producer, director of some of his videos, really amazing.
I chose Die Antwoord because they are like nobody else, someone like them doesn't exist. I was in South Africa, and I knew Ninja, because I slept at my friend Tyler's house. Tyler is the artist that normally is tattooing Ninja. I could then understand more their music, and their lives. They live there and they hate all commercial products made by music industry. They hate people like Gaga, or the fuckin' Pitbull. We were singing and joking togheter about Pitbull when having dinner with Tyler and Ninja. They hate them because they are real and I could feel it.
What was the music that inspired those artworks? How did music inspire them ?
I hear music all day, different musics, electro, pop, rap, dubstep, ambient, flamenco...
There was no a specific music that inspired these artworks. But all their music, you know?!
The first one I have to talk about is "36 CHAMBERS" by Wu-Tang-Clan. This could be the album from my young and crazy live from the 90's.
From Kanye West I like the album "Robocop", the complete video "Run Away". And I want to kill someone when i look the video "No Church In The Wild" by Romain Gavras.
From Die Antwoord i love the scenography, punk drawings by Ninja and everything in videos like " I Fink You Freeky" or " Baby's On Fire"
How long does it take you to make an artwork ? And what is the techniques you use ?
Depending which kind of artwork, for a canvas I normally work on 5 at the same time. And maybe I need one month for all. I can paint a big wall like 5 floors high in 4 or 5 days.
Is music important to you and your art? If so, Why ?
Yes! I need it all time and even more when I create my art. I don't know why, just maybe because the music makes me looking inside my mind and my heart and helps me finding the ideas and the feelings when I paint.
Do you listen to music when you’re working ? If so what kind of music ?
Of course, I always listen to music when I am working. Ambient, electronic, new disco...
To name a few : Com Truise, Jamie Woon, Kollective Turmstrasse, Groundislava, Van She, Poolside, Jon Hopkins, Grimes, Bflecha, Chirie Vegas, Mendetz, Austin TV, Client, Dye, De De Mouse, The Frown, Darius, The New Division, Kisses, Giraffage, Keep Shelly in Athens, John Talabot, Fatima Al Quadiri, The Sound Of Arrows, Teeel, Extraperlo, M83, Holly Ghost, Washed Out, Millionyoung, Star Slinger, Bathcrones, The Golden Filters.
Do you have plans on creating new artworks insipired by music ?
Yes, I want to paint more for the serie NEW IKONS. But I don't know when because I have too much projects right now.
What is the song you liked the most lately? What album ? What was the last gig you went to ?
Maybe "Baby's Star Jam" by DE DE MOUSE or "Jamaica" by Van She
Are you a musician yourself ? If so can you tell MoW more about your music projects ?
No, I just work on visual art for the moment. But a long time ago, I started with a producer called Roty 340 a project called Rainbow In The Darkness. And I tried to do the different colours with electronic music. Each song was each colour. The way that we used was the physiology of image and colours. Tha was funny, but never finished…shit!!!!
I've started to work as a video director with Javi Diaz for a new video clip for the artist MENEO.
And sometimes I talk with my bro the dj-producer Christian Wunsch for doing an audiovisual group together. EDM music with screens or mapping with my art. But right now we are very busy with our personal works, but maybe in a near future.
Peace and love for everyone...
Find out more about Okuda here
