RUBEN PEREZ
Ruben's drawings are a combination of twisted humor, melting body parts, intense face expressions, all somehow forming into intriguingly surreal environments, both weird and beautiful.
ART has become much more than a pastime to me, it's my life."
Where did it all start for you?When I was a little kid I would watch hours of cartoons. I used to watch all sorts of them like Porky Pig, Daffy Duck,
David the Gnome, Thundercats, etc... They were very entertaining. My parents were very supportive of this, and would
place me in front of the TV and play VHS tapes or buy me coloring books and crayons. My dad used to teach me how
to draw faces and cartoons around the time I was in 5th grade. In high school and college I had some great teachers as
well, who were very inspirational. That pretty much sums up, where I got my initial influence to take art up as a
pastime, even though it has become much more than a pastime to me, it's my life.
What's your style?I think I have a pretty loose style. Weird, messy, funny. I think it varies all of the time though.
If I learn something new, my art style changes. I would say "Eclectic".
What do you have to say about color in your work?I don't use color very often but I think it looks nice. I just happen to like the
way my drawings look without color. Lately however, I have been using more
color than usual. It depends on my mood or what the drawing is about.
What's the difference between commissioned and personal work for you? Commercial work can be very demanding. As a designer, I
am aware that a project will take some reworking from time
to time, depending on the client. Fonts and letters that don't
match the artwork, colorways that don't appeal to the client,
etc.. When I draw in my sketchbook at home, I have no one to
criticize me, but myself, and I am usually happy with whatever
comes out. I guess that is the main difference. Criticism.
Does music inspire your work in anyway? Definitely! I always need to have music playing when I
am drawing. I like to "warm up" by setting my playlist on
random and drawing, whatever comes to mind, to each
particular song. Wether it's Jazz, Thrash, Hip Hop, it all
depicts a different image in my mind. I love music as
much as I love drawing and design. I listen to music all
day at work as well.
Do you have a favorite piece of your work? Not particularly. I have found that drawings, I give away,
or that I leave somewhere, always end up being my best
drawings. My friend Bijan has a box full of drawings we
used to do in high school during astronomy class. Those are
probably some of my best drawings, in my opinion.
How do you kick back and relax when you are not working?I love to draw, whenever I can, or read a good comic book.
I also really enjoy skateboarding around my neighborhood
or recording some music in my room. If I had a ping pong
table, I would probably do that a lot too.
Is there a medium/style that you haven't worked in and
would like to try? I started doing my own comics and zines, I have always
wanted to do that. I think I will continue doing those and
maybe try painting as well. I have painted before, but I
would like to get more in depth with it.
What artists inspire you?I look up to the comic masters like Robert Crumb, Klaus
Jansen, Ralph Bakshi to name a few. My teachers in high
school were also really inspirational, especially Mr. Healey.
I think he has been the most inspirational overall.
- My wildest dream is...to go to egypt and exhume the treasures underneath the Sphinx, to meditate in one of the mayan temples, or to be launched into space and go further than no man has traveled before..
- Big up to...my family, my gal Samantha, all of my pals, artists, musicians, and happy people everywhere.
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