#LLEW MEJIA | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

rashadrastam · 2 years ago

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Folk Tattoos, great conversation with Llew Mejia. Hilarious banter of NYC and LA (at Los Angeles, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/ClBtLZ4uQlq/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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mirellabruno · 5 years ago

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LLew Mejia

#llew mejia

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dandelion-jester · 6 years ago

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2/100 days of productivity

I created my llew mejia work for my graphic design A level portfolio. His style is hard.

#100 days of productivity #llew mejia #graphic design #a levels #march 16th 2019

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houseofvans · 6 years ago

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ART SCHOOL | Q&A with LLEW MEJIA

We’re digging the illustrations of artist, textile designer and part time tattooer Llew Mejia, whose beautiful work blends half digital and half traditional mediums to create colorful patterns, influenced by popular art of Mexico and the Southwest. We got a chance to chat with Llew about his art background, his process, his tattooing, and what he has coming the rest of the year–including his recent trip to Taipei for EVA airlines!

MAKE THE LEAP

Photographs courtesy of the artist.

Introduce yourself My name is Llew Mejia pronounced LOO MEHIA. I know its a doozy. and confusing. I am an illustrator, textile designer and part time tattooer. But I also just get really into things and have a bunch of hobbies like making chairs or rugs or whatever ceramics I basically just make a bunch of stuff. Some people may not know I live with three cats that look like gremlins with varying degrees of hairlessness haha.

When did you first get into drawing? What were some of your early influences? I first got into drawing my last year of high school and into the first year of college. I was going to school to potentially be a surgeon, but I ended up feeling that the coursework and overall culture of the school was pretty empty for me and dropped out and applied to an art school in Minneapolis. That’s where my stuff really took off I think. Like most people my age, I was into graffiti and skateboard culture as well as the outdoors and traveling, all of these contributed to my style eventually I think.

What mediums do you love to work with? What are your essential art tools? It really depends on the work I’m doing for people. Alot of the time it’s half digital half traditional mediums so computer aided gouache and inks for the most part. Alot of sketching and stuff is done traditionally and depending on what the client is looking for I find myself doing a traditional painting of a pattern from start to finish.

How would you describe your work and style? I would say alot of my style focuses on a certain level of naivety and folkiness. I am fascinated by people’s interpretations of the world around them when they are not classically trained in making art, so I try to incorporate that vision in my artwork. There is a lot of stuff that comes from the popular art of Mexico as well as many other cultures I have seen in the Southwest which is where my family lived for some time.

Describe your artistic process for us. Again this always depends on what I am making and for who. But alot of the time its super collaborative which is how I like it. Someone may have a vision and send me images and I work closely with them to see how it is we can come up with something we both like. It would probably start like most things I do with a simple pencil sketch of layout of a pattern since thats the majority of the work I do for surf/skate/sport brands and then we both come together on something we mutually vibe on. The final is addressed in the same way with a color palette we both like and a flow /scale of the pattern we both really like.

You’ve worked in various art mediums, which would you say is your favorite and which would you say you’d like to try out? I think that gouache is definitely my favorite, but it could be a bit finicky, I like how it has alot of variety you can choose to make it really flat or really painterly. I think I would like to dabble a bit more into 3D work whether that be stone sculptures or plaster or something along those lines. I like the tactility of three dimensional work and the weight is satisfying.

What’s the art scene like in New York these days? Who are some local artists you’re stoked on? Hmmmm that’s a really loaded question, I feel like I don’t pay too much attention to whats going on in the ‘art world’ here or anywhere to be honest, probably to my detriment, but I think now since we are exposed to so much it’s good for you to limit yourself on what you expose yourself to. It can really influence the work you make which for some people may be a good thing, but I dont want to riff off of people too much. It doesn’t mean I don’t go to Chelsea a few times a year for certain shows like the Barry Mcgee show or something, but I do make sure it doesn’t play a huge part in my practice haha I am just trying to live my life ! That doesnt mean there aren't a ton of really talented people in NYC though its really chalk full and oversaturated with talent haha.

What makes you smile when viewing someone else’s art? What is it you’re looking at – composition, color, line? Yeah I think mostly composition and color are pretty important. I think what makes something good is obviously the whole package, but it’s so subjective. I am definitely drawn to unknown or unnamed artists of the past, i.e. folk artists no one pays that much mind to. I collect alot of it so I feel like it’s a pretty important part of my artistic vocabulary and what I find the most interesting.

When you’re not drawing or designing, what are your favorite things to do? I tattoo during the weekdays too out of my studio. I think it really mixes things up for me, and since I only do my own drawings for the most part, or flash that I doodle it keeps it in my court. I am not making a living off of it, but its a fun part of my life and I love talking with and meeting new people. It fulfills my voyeuristic side and lets me hang out with people while also learning new things about how others live their lives. You can follow my tattoo account @tatu.poepoe

I like drinking beers, walking around, having people over at my house and eating alot haha just a classic dude nothing major.

What kind of music do you listen to when you’re working on something? I listen to old country like Patsy Cline, Slim Whitman, Johnny Cash, Hank Williams, The Carter Family. Then some reggaeton, trap rap, some podcasts, some Rancheras, all sorts of different true crime because I have the ID channel on sometimes while I work. But really a mix of stuff.

What do you think you’d be doing if you weren’t an artist? What would be your career? Uhhhh I hope nothing else, but let’s be honest, probably a biologist or something. You get to travel a bit and have a specialty and interact with the world in a way that most don’t.

What are your FAVORITE Vans? Slip-ons by far they're just so versatile. Dress em up or down or just naked its all good

What advice would you give someone thinking about doing what you do? DO IT. haha, naw but really you should do what you want and if you're passionate enough then you will succeed at the thing, it becomes your path you know? It sounds corny, but I believe its true.

What do you have going on coming up that you can share? I just got to go to Taipei with EVA airlines and did some work for them over there for a week and got to explore the city. I am both nervous and excited about the project because I think im going to be on a lil spot commercial on youtube and stuff and I dont usually show myself in that capacity. But either way I am excited to share that with the world.

Follow LLEW | Instagram | Website

#Art #Vans #Vans Art #LLEW MEJIA #illustrator #designer #Art School #interview #new york #]

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art-mysecondname · 6 years ago

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