ED TEMPLETON 04 FERRIS PLOCK 05 KEVIN WILKINS 07 GEOFF McFETRIDGE 08 JASON POLAN 08 OTIS B. 09 THOMAS CAMPBELL 10 SHAWN STUSSY 10 JOSH HIGGINS 11 MEGAN BALTIMORE 12 TODD BRATRUD 13 BOB STEPHENSON 14 EVAN HECOX 15 MEL KADEL 16 MARK PENXA 17 JOHNNY KNOXVILLE 18 BENNY GOLD 20 CHERYL DUNN 21 GARTH MILAN 22 JERRY HSU 23 ERICA YARY 24 JASON CROMBIE 25 JOSHUA LINER 26 LORI DAMIANO 27 TRAVIS MILLARD 28 MARC JOHNSON 29 TOD SWANK 30
I started off my professional work life as a journalist in 1984. So, essentially, I came up asking questions. I had the opportunity to interview a lot of interesting people. After a while this started to bother me. Interviewing folks meant I was drawing a line between myself and the interviewee. So, instead of being a peer, I was a sort of outsider. If you’ve had the chance to interview someone you didn’t know, you’ll understand what I’m talking about. Eventually I got out of the magazine business and dove into art direction. But, I never did shake the publishing bug completely, as Bend proves. If you’ve followed Bend at all, you’ll see that, basically, it’s only as strong as it’s contributors, or, as I like to call them... co-conspirators. I’ve worked with or along side a lot of them over the past 20-some years. For the most part, I concider myself an introvert. Ask my wife, she’ll tell you. But I do love people, creative people, and their lives. I love biographies. Seeing what makes people tick. For this issue, I decided to make a list of inspiring folks I’d like to know a little more about. Hoping that you would appreciate them as well. I asked questions again, this time not feeling the line... Maybe because I already know these folks in one way or another. Join me. 24th issue, 24 questions. —Andy Jenkins, 12/14
ED TEMPLETON @tempster_returns
1) What’s the most embarrassing piece of music in your collection? Thats funny. It depends on who’s listening. I have had a Red Hot Chili Peppers song come on and felt embarrassed. But it’s only if someone is only familiar with them after “The Uplift Mofo Party Plan”. I have a bunch of music from bands that history has not been kind to. I like Chumbawamba’s first records, super political stuff. But then they came out with “Tubthumping” and they have been forever tainted. I have Juice Newton’s “Queen of Hearts” because I was so into it as a kid when it was a radio hit (on whatever station my mom was listening to.) That can be sorta awkward when it pops on. 2) Most cherished music in your collection? Cherish? I’m not sure I have anything that I would say is cherished. Perhaps since it’s all in CD or digital form? I checked my iTunes and found out that the most played song was “Traffic Jam,” by Artie Shaw. 3) Vinyl, CD, radio or Mpeg? CD first, then mpeg. The CD only goes into the computer to be converted then sits on a shelf for the rest of my life. Having written that out it sounds pretty dumb. I’m going to just buy the mpegs from now on. 4) What are you listening to right now, as you answer these? Fresh Air with Terri Gross on KPCC, some people who are “foodies” talking about cooking chicken which I don’t even eat or care about. 5) Are you embarrassed by photos of yourself as a teenager? No. I like how stupid I looked. I wish I was even more lame, the photos would be that much better. 6) Do you have a photo of yourself as a teenager that you would like to share? I over share everything. I can probably find one that hasn’t been whored out yet.
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7) Last place you traveled? I was in Europe for a month. The last place I was in before coming home was London. 8) Most enjoyable place you’ve traveled? Had a really enjoyable visit to Sardinia, Italy. It’s an island in the middle of the Mediterranean. 9) How do you pack for a typical trip? One pair of pants. Bring shirts and socks for half the days you are gone and wear everything twice. A backup pair of pants in case of a rip or something. Sketchbook, inks, Cameras, film. iPhone. Laptop sometimes. 10) Phone camera or other? I bring the Leica M6, a smaller point and shoot film camera, and the iPhone. Maybe a small digital camera too. 11) Pencils or pens? Both. 12) Notebook or phone (iPad)? Notebook. 13) Coffee or tea? Tea, Chai. 14) Pets or not? Our beloved cat of 18 years “Ptah” died and we have remained pet-less since. 15) Biggest influence(s) as a 20 something? Fugazi. 16) Biggest influence(s) now? I don’t know if its age, but I find myself struggling to list something/one now. I think I take bits and pieces from so many inspiring people. I wonder if it’s getting older and wiser, or the fact that watching more people is easier because of social media? 17) Is it painful to answer questions? Some more than others.
18) Introvert, extrovert, or in-between? In-between. 19) Are you a prolific dreamer? I almost NEVER remember dreams. It makes me sad because I know I dream, but when I wake up it’s like a memory wipe. I only remember dreams if I’m sick or have some abnormal sleep experience, like being woken up in the middle of the night. 20) Dreams or nightmares? Dreams. 21) How many hours do you usually sleep during the course of 24 hours? 7 to 8 hours. 22) Do you nap? Never. 23) Do you own art? If yes, what is your favorite piece? Yes. I have a big Chris Johanson painting I have yet to hang!
24) Do you like answering questions? Yeah. It means someone is asking.
FERRIS PLOCK
@ferrisplock
1) What’s the most embarrassing piece of music in your collection? I don’t embarrass easily… I might listen to Cheap Trick, Live at Budokan, when nobody is home sometimes… I will listen to Abba without blinking… Dolly Parton? Sure… Blink 182? Um, maybe? Sometimes I will put earphones on when listening to the Mariah Carey and ODB duet. 2) Most cherished music in your collection? The Clash. Everything else comes after. Certain albums are time machines and I will listen to them for sentimental reasons. I grew up with a lot of Zeppelin and Sabbath. Old Hip Hop gets a lot of play around here. I do listen to audio books quite a bit. 3) Vinyl, CD, radio or Mpeg? All forms of music are okay with me. Each has its place. Vinyl in the studio… CD & Radio in the car…. mpeg… when I’m nerding out or out pushing around. 4) What are you listening to right now, as you answer these? “If 6 was 9” by Jimi Hendrix. I had an idea today… do you think Jimi Hendrix got to hear the Velvet Underground in New York? 5) Are you embarrassed by photos of yourself as a teenager? In my size 42 baggy Ben Davis pants? Shaved head? Nah… I can’t wait to see what my sons wear. 6) Do you have a photo of yourself as a teenager that you would like to share? I’ll dig for one. 7) Last place you traveled? Portland, Newburg and Lincoln City, Oregon. 8) Most enjoyable place you’ve traveled? Western Ireland, South of Spain, Kyoto Japan. 9) How do you pack for a typical trip? Last minute and a prayer that I got it right.
10) Phone camera or other? Phone camera. I was raised by a Navy dad who used a camera as documentation tool rather than an art supply. I appreciate what people can do with cameras and I luckily have been living with great photographers around me for years… 11) Pencils or pens? Pens but pencils. My therapy through drawing comes through any ball point pen I can get my hands on. 12) Notebook or phone (iPad)? Notebook and back of hand.
13) Coffee or tea? There are coffee wars in San Francisco, so I will choose my words carefully. I like coffee. I also drink PG Tips tea in the afternoon when I’m feeling fancy. 14) Pets or not? PETS!!! Our sweet Thermos has been gone for a year and some change but her sister is still part of the family. Emma is a 14 year old, short-haired tabby. She is one of my oldest friends in the city. 15) Biggest influence(s) as a 20 something? Oh man. My brothers? They taught me how to skate and surf and play drums and to stay out of trouble. Others outside my family? I loved KRS1. I loved Jawbreaker. I got started late in the art world but I loved Barry Mcgee at The Luggage Store. I read a lot of Bukowski. I read a fair amount of Tolstoy. Booze was a gigantic influence over me. Traveling in cars around the US trying to find a Kerouac moment… ha… Many things happened in Baja California.
have many good friends that continue to inspire me with their art… Not going to do the name game because the game would take too long! 17) Is it painful to answer questions? Sometimes very painful. Sometimes it makes me unlock old memories that make me happy… 18) Introvert, extrovert, or in-between? True introvert forced to be extrovert. I see introversion like this: A introvert like myself wakes up in the morning with energy. Through every interaction (big or small) I lose a little bit of that energy. I have learned how to not let people take my energy and it is one of the reasons I live a very basic life and do not go out that often. I feel like extroverts wake up and aren’t necessarily empty but they gain energy through interactions. I get overwhelmed in big crowds and cherish being able to go to museums, restaurants, parks, beaches, etc when there’s nobody there. 19) Are you a prolific dreamer? I used to be. More than once I have been able to self actualize while in the middle of a dream. 20) Dreams or nightmares? Usually awkward Larry David dreams. 21) How many hours do you usually sleep during the course of 24 hours? 4-5 hours. 22) Do you nap? I like to. 23) Do you own art? If yes, what is your favorite piece? I love my wife’s paintings (cue cheesy music). I take one piece from her every year. I also have a cherished Jay Howell piece and a Mars1 painting that I love.
16) Biggest influence(s) now? My wife and two little dudes are my biggest influences. I get to basically spend all day with my kids and then because I’m a insomniac, I stay up very late. I live a very basic life that makes me very happy. I’m lucky… I know I’m lucky. I also
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KEVIN WILKINS @kevinwilkins
1) What’s the most embarrassing piece of music in your collection? It kind of depends on who’s trying to embarrass me. In the world where I just listen to music by myself, none of it’s embarrassing, but I have friends who try to make fun of Phish or Steely Dan or Slayer. I think it’s more embarrassing for them, though. Second-hand style.
2) Most cherished music in your collection? All my Minutemen vinyl. 3) Vinyl, CD, radio or Mpeg? Mpeg. I’m in front of my computer most of the time. 4) What are you listening to right now, as you answer these? God Help The Girl. 5) Are you embarrassed by photos of yourself as a teenager? I used to be. But now I like those photos a lot. I like that guy, too. 7) Last place you traveled? San Diego for Swift’s 50th birthday party. We skated Clairemont and drank beers. 8) Most enjoyable place you’ve traveled? A group of my friends have been going to Colorado every June for a few years. We camp, skate all the parks, visit breweries, and laugh super hard at each other. Those have been the most enjoyable trips I’ve ever taken. 9) How do you pack for a typical trip? A skateboard and a bag that holds a computer, a camera, and enough clothes for the trip—a pair of underwear a day, a pair of socks a day, a t-shirt a day, an extra pair of pants, a flannel, a hoodie, bathroom stuff, and a hat.
recently I’ve fallen back in love with freshly sharpened pencils. 12) Notebook or phone (iPad)? Notebook. 13) Coffee or tea? Coffee. 14) Pets or not? Hubble is our seven-year-old border collie and also the best dog in the world. 15) Biggest influence(s) as a 20 something? Everything skateboarding. The act, yes, but all the people who did it and all their output—photography, writing, zines, magazines, music, drawing, painting, business, and personalities. I can honestly say that’s still the case. 16) Biggest influence(s) now? Whoops. Jumped the gun there. Everything skateboarding. I also pay a lot of attention to professional cycling and all of its flawed beauty. My two sons, Miles and Cian, are huge influences on me now, too. Creative, funny, and loving, they are a consistent and stable reminder that the world is changing faster than any of us realize, but also that we’re all in really good hands. 17) Is it painful to answer questions? Not really. No. 18) Introvert, extrovert, or in-between? Depends on who I’m with. Probably a strong in-between. I guess extroverts are extroverts all the time, so maybe I tend toward the introvert side of the scale. 19) Are you a prolific dreamer? I’m not a prolific rememberer of dreams. I know I dream every night, but I don’t hang on to them very well. 20) Dreams or nightmares? Both. 21) How many hours do you usually sleep during the course of 24 hours? A solid seven.
11) Pencils or pens? I’ve been a Sharpie guy for a while, but
22) Do you nap? I’ve just started delving into the world of naps. I like it. Occasionally though, it
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10) Phone camera or other? I use my phone as a camera a lot, but I have a sweet Olympus point-and-shoot that takes good photos, too.
feels like I go a little too deep—like my nap turns into nighttime sleep. When I wake up from those naps, I’m grumpy and feel kinda shitty. Usually a good, shallow 30-minutes will leave me revived and ready to go. 23) Do you own art? If yes, what is your favorite piece? I don’t own too much art. I wish I had the money or desire to collect that kinda stuff. We have some photos and a couple cool pieces on the walls. I own a pre-press copy of the Independent Trucks book that’s dog-eared and all marked up with red ink. That’s arty and historical. I have a Lettus Bee painting you did for an early issue of The Skateboard Mag that qualifies as art and I love it. It definitely qualifies as my favorite. I just acquired a new Mark Gonzales thing that’s his signature and a handprint in red ink on a piece of plywood. I like that, too. 24) Do you like answering questions? I don’t mind it at all. I wish I had the wittiest, best-reading answers ever, but whatever. That’s not really me, I guess.
6) Do y ou have a photo o f yourse lf as a teenag er that y ou would l ike to sh are?
GEOFF McFETRIDGE @mcfetridge
1) What’s the most embarrassing piece of music in your collection? Probably that U2 record that was uploaded to my phone.
No.
I bought a Bad Religion tape when I was in grad school at Cal Arts. I remembering being really embarrassed to be buying it. That was a band I used to give friends a hard time about listening to, since I was a jerk. At the moment I bought it, around 1993, I was feeling some serious love for So Cal and I really felt like going deep into the KROQ-ness of everything. 2) Most cherished music in your collection? “Heart Food” by Judy Sill. I have a beautifully packaged record by Plush. It was his first record on Drag City and it came in a very fragile paper bag. It probably was a nightmare to produce. Some really beat up Tom Waits records that mean a lot to me. 3) Vinyl, CD, radio or Mpeg? Vinyl, radio, streaming, Rhapsody, and Spotify, rarely MP3 as of late 4) What are you listening to right now, as you answer these? The National… and Spotify is projecting a giant SLIPKNOT ad over the playlist 5) Are you embarrassed by photos of yourself as a teenager?
6) Do you have a photo of yourself as a teenager that you would like to share? Yeah sure.
16) Biggest influence(s) now? Travel. 17) Is it painful to answer questions? No.
7) Last place you traveled? Calgary, Alberta, Canada
18) Introvert, extrovert, or in-between? In-between… extrovert
8) Most enjoyable place you’ve traveled? Morocco.
19) Are you a prolific dreamer? No.
9) How do you pack for a typical trip? We mostly travel as a family. I am married and have two girls age 6 and 11. We have 2 Patagonia roller bags and inside each bag are 4 oversize ziplock bags. We each get one of those. Sometimes they are vacume sealed. Each of us then has a carry-on. The stuff my youngest daughter brings is hilarious; A small accordion, a shot glass maybe? A ball of wool.
20) Dreams or nightmares? Dreams 99.9%.
10) Phone camera or other? Phone.
23) Do you own art? If yes, what is your favorite piece? I own original drawing from the Little House on the Prairie books. These were drawn by Garth Williams. There is one drawing where Pa is lifting a log off of Ma who is on the ground, Laura and Mary are in the background looking shocked. The story is that he was in a hurry to build their house and had no one to help him (way out on the prairie) so ma stepped in to help. He makes a mistake, the log falls on her ankle, hurting her quite badly. For me, this picture is what it is to be a guy, in a single image; a hero, a villain, a father, a dreamer, a goof etc.
11) Pencils or pens? Pencil. 12) Notebook or phone (iPad)? Notebook. 13) Coffee or tea? Both. 14) Pets or not? Two dogs and a pony. 15) Biggest influence(s) as a 20 something? Travel.
21) How many hours do you usually sleep during the course of 24 hours? 8 22) Do you nap? Yes. But not often. If I could work it out I would nap every day.
24) Do you like answering questions? I don’t mind.
JASON POLAN @jasonpolan
1) What’s the most embarrassing piece of music in your collection? I am never embarrassed! Just kidding, 93% of my music collection is probably embarrassing. 2) Most cherished music in your collection? ****
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3) Vinyl, CD, radio or Mpeg? I usually like having the radio on while I am doing things. 4) What are you listening to right now, as you answer these? An Emmylou Harris song. 5) Are you embarrassed by photos of yourself as a teenager?
I am embarrassed by most photos of myself.
6) Do you have a photo of yourself as a teenager that you would like to share? No way.
7) Last place you traveled? I went to Hilton Head with my family a couple weeks ago. 8) Most enjoyable place you’ve traveled? I love the Bay Area and I love Michigan. I went to Mass MoCA in North Adams, Massachusetts, not too long ago and that was a nice trip. 9) How do you pack for a typical trip? I don’t bring too many things. I will bring some clothes, toothbrush, an extra sketchbook and some pens. 10) Phone camera or other? Phone camera and notepad. 11) Pencils or pens? Pens. 12) Notebook or phone (iPad)? 4”x6” Strathmore drawing pad.
13) Coffee or tea? I go through stretches with each. 14) Pets or not? Not here in New York but when I was younger in Michigan I had turtles. 15) Biggest influence(s) as a 20 something? Keith Haring and Don DeLillo 16) Biggest influence(s) now? A lot of people. 17) Is it painful to answer questions? Some yeah, but others are fun. 18) Introvert, extrovert, or in-between? I don’t know. 19) Are you a prolific dreamer? Not really. 20) Dreams or nightmares? Both.
21) How many hours do you usually sleep during the course of 24 hours? 7. 22) Do you nap? Nope. 23) Do you own art? If yes, what is your favorite piece? Yes, I love buying things and trading pieces with friends and occasionally buying pieces by artists I like a lot and maybe aren’t around anymore. I have a drawing by Basil Wolverton of the moon. I have a couple Jack Kirby drawings. I just got a drawing of Linus by Charles Schulz that I am also excited about. 24) Do you like answering questions? (...)
OTIS B. @otisserie
1) What’s the most embarrassing piece of music in your collection? I’m not embarrassed about anything I like. 2) Most cherished music in your collection? My newest vinyl purchase. 3) Vinyl, CD, radio or Mpeg? Vinyl. 4) What are you listening to right now, as you answer these? Melvins “Hold It In”.
5) Are you embarrassed by photos of yourself as a teenager? I never was a teenager. 6) Do you have a photo of yourself as a teenager that you would like to share? I never was a teenager. 7) Last place you traveled? Vancouver, BC.
8) Most enjoyable place you’ve traveled? Seattle.
17) Is it painful to answer questions? As much as it is ask them.
9) How do you pack for a typical trip? I bring a few things, a small backpack. Buy the rest on the road.
18) Introvert, extrovert, or in-between? O.
10) Phone camera or other? Phone and Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX3 11) Pencils or pens? I like both.
19) Are you a prolific dreamer? I don’t remember any dreams ever. 20) Dreams or nightmares? I don’t remember any dreams ever.
12) Notebook or phone (iPad)? Phone.
21) How many hours do you usually sleep during the course of 24 hours? 6.
13) Coffee or tea? Both all day. Mostly green tea.
22) Do you nap? No.
14) Pets or not? Cats.
23) Do you own art? If yes, what is your favorite piece? Yes. It’s a toss up; Thomas Campball / Mark Gonzales
15) Biggest influence(s) as a 20 something? Thrift stores. 16) Biggest influence(s) now? Thrift stores.
24) Do you like answering questions? See question 17.
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THOMAS CAMPBELL @thomascampbellart
1) What’s the most embarrassing piece of music in your collection? Nothing is embarrassing , I don’t care,,, Britney Spears song, Toxic, is really good for dance parties and embarrasses other people sometimes. 2) Most cherished music in your collection? Probably the Velvet Underground box set, Peel Slowly and See, it’s given me so many good times forever. Lot’s of unreleased gems in there. 3) Vinyl, CD, radio or Mpeg? Vinyl sometimes and things that are only on vinyl, CD’s to shuffle, radio in the car, mpeg for doodling. 4) What are you listening to right now, as you answer these? Birds and crickets at dusk. 5) Are you embarrassed by photos of yourself as a teenager? No. 6) Do you have a photo of yourself as a teenager that you would like to share? No. 7) Last place you traveled? New York.
8) Most enjoyable place you’ve traveled? Indonesia.
17) Is it painful to answer questions? Slightly.
9) How do you pack for a typical trip? Last minute — usually.
18) Introvert, extrovert, or in-between? Both.
10) Phone camera or other? Both.
19) Are you a prolific dreamer? Mostly.
11) Pencils or pens? Pencils or brushes.
20) Dreams or nightmares? Dreams,,, rarely nightmares,,, not into violent movies or music or scary movies.
12) Notebook or phone (iPad)? Sketchbook. 13) Coffee or tea? Coffee only as drugs,, not on the reg. 14) Pets or not? Muddy, a 4 year old Australian Shepard — so smart. 15) Biggest influence(s) as a 20 something? Neil Blender and Tod Swank.
16) Biggest influence(s) now? Patti Smith and other people who just do what they do, when it feels right to do it.
21) How many hours do you usually sleep during the course of 24 hours? 7. 22) Do you nap? Sometimes. 23) Do you own art? If yes, what is your favorite piece? A nice Margaret Kilgallen piece I got from Ed Templeton from the graphics she did for Toy Machine — I connected them. Miss Margaret. Thanx Ed. 24) Do you like answering questions? Kinda.
SHAWN STUSSY @thomascampbellart
1) What’s the most embarrassing piece of music in your collection? I am not embarressed by any music.
2) Most cherished music in your collection? Too many to pinpoint just one. The whole is what I cherish… The long journey, that’s the collection. 10
3) Vinyl, CD, radio or Mpeg? Pandora.
8) Most enjoyable place you’ve traveled? Kauai.
4) What are you listening to right now, as you answer these? James Brown.
9) How do you pack for a typical trip? Lean as possible.
5) Are you embarrassed by photos of yourself as a teenager? Of course. 6) Do you have a photo of yourself as a teenager that you would like to share? Not a chance. 7) Last place you traveled? Kauai.
10) Phone camera or other? I-Phone. 11) Pencils or pens? Pens, but I love pencils. 12) Notebook or phone (iPad)? Both. 13) Coffee or tea? Coffee.
14) Pets or not? Pets.
18) Introvert, extrovert, or in-between? Struggling.
22) Do you nap? I wish.
15) Biggest influence(s) as a 20 something? Music.
19) Are you a prolific dreamer? I puf before I sleep to tame the flow.
23) Do you own art? If yes, what is your favorite piece? Yes, the Basquiat we had for a dozen years.
16) Biggest influence(s) now? History, all kinds... 17) Is it painful to answer questions? Fuckin’ A.
20) Dreams or nightmares? Both are cool with me. 21) How many hours do you usually sleep during the course of 24 hours? 8.
24) Do you like answering questions? What do you think?
JOSH HIGGINS @joshwhiggins
1) What’s the most embarrassing piece of music in your collection? Destiny’s Child. 2) Most cherished music in your collection? Everything by Elliott Smith. 3) Vinyl, CD, radio or Mpeg? Most of my music listening happens on Mpeg (iPod / Spotify). 4) What are you listening to right now, as you answer these? Rocket From The Crypt. 5) Are you embarrassed by photos of yourself as a teenager? No. I am a little embarrassed and a little proud that I still wear the same thing (Vans, Levis, Black T-Shirt). 6) Do you have a photo of yourself as a teenager that you would like to share? Yes. Attached.
not make it work. Love having the artifact to refer back to. 13) Coffee or tea? Coffee. Lots. 14) Pets or not? Had a dog. Love dogs. 15) Biggest influence(s) as a 20 something? Music & skateboarding.
16) Biggest influence(s) now? Art and rad humans. 17) Is it painful to answer questions? No. These ones are nice. You can tell they are being asked by a creative. 18) Introvert, extrovert, or in-between?
Definitely, in-between. Love to talk and meet folks but then need to retreat to my cave. 19) Are you a prolific dreamer? Day dreamer for sure. 20) Dreams or nightmares? Dreams. Just wish I had them more often. 21) How many hours do you usually sleep during the course of 24 hours? 6. 22) Do you nap? No. 23) Do you own art? If yes, what is your favorite piece? Yes. Two of my favorites are my Thomas Campbell and Otis . 24) Do you like answering questions? See question 17.
7) Last place you traveled? Dallas, Texas. 8) Most enjoyable place you’ve traveled? Hawaii. 9) How do you pack for a typical trip? Very light. I usually always can carry on. 10) Phone camera or other? Phone Camera. Went to India with a nice SLR and came back with all the photos on my phone. 11) Pencils or pens? Pens! 12) Notebook or phone (iPad)? Notebook. Tried going digital but could
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MEGAN BALTIMORE @rubyropa
1) What’s the most embarrassing piece of music in your collection? OK, Fuck it. Coldplay. Sorry if I ruined your zine. 2) Most cherished music in your collection? Changes so often. But I cherish people in general that take the time to make music. Maybe with the exception of Creed. But making music is a pretty fucking great contribution to the universe. 3) Vinyl, CD, radio or Mpeg? Depends on where I am. Love the radio and vinyl. 4) What are you listening to right now, as you answer these? Jenny Lewis w/ The Watson Twins. 5) Are you embarrassed by photos of yourself as a teenager? Not really. Seems like now the safety net is just that… “I was a teenager”. 6) Do you have a photo of yourself as a teenager that you would like to share? If it’s mandatory… 7) Last place you traveled? By car, the desert, Joshua Tree. By plane, Frankfurt, Germany 8) Most enjoyable place you’ve traveled? I love Biarrittz. So beautiful. There’s a beach and it feels like no one is in a hurry. And I always have this memory of not feeling any difference between the “haves” and “have nots” and it made that place even more beautiful.
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9) How do you pack for a typical trip? Never light enough.
17) Is it painful to answer questions? Frustrating… not really painful.
10) Phone camera or other? Phone or polaroid camera.
18) Introvert, extrovert, or in-between? Both. With family, total extrovert.
11) Pencils or pens? Pens. Love colored pencils. If I was a good artist, I would make that my medium.
19) Are you a prolific dreamer? Did you just use the word “prolific?” I guess that means I’m not.
12) Notebook or phone (iPad)? Always notebook. Always. 13) Coffee or tea? Tea. Almost an obsession.
20) Dreams or nightmares? I guess both. But even when my dreams aren’t nightmares, they’re always heavy and stressful. I’m starting to not like questions.
14) Pets or not? One small Yorkshire Terrier. Got him the day Chick Hearn died so that is the name he got.
21) How many hours do you usually sleep during the course of 24 hours? About 6. Would love 8. Dream a lot about 8.
15) Biggest influence(s) as a 20 something? First half of my twenties I think it was all literary folks… I was obsessed with Anais Nin, Truman Capote, JD Salinger and the second half of my twenties are blurred by a skateboard company we started.
22) Do you nap? No naps. I have a close friend that naps and it’s annoying. I guess from a jealousy stand point.
16) Biggest influence(s) now? So many… closest friends, people being true, kind people, people that can play 12 string guitar effortlessly… it’s endless.
23) Do you own art? If yes, what is your favorite piece? I do. Don’t think I have a favorite but have a piece by Edith Abeyta that I always stare at and another by Misato Suzuki that always makes me happy. 24) Do you like answering questions? Andy, that’s a horrible question. It’s way too broad, dude.
TODD BRATRUD @toddbratrud
1) What’s the most embarrassing piece of music in your collection? My whole collection is essentially an embarrassment. I never play what I like on road trips or when people are around. I’m far too sensitive to people being critical of the tunes that fuel my hermit tendencies. Aerosmith. 2) Most cherished music in your collection? The Vindictives. 3) Vinyl, CD, radio or Mpeg? Whatever it takes. I have a little of all of those, obviously you can’t easily take vinyl on the road, and almost everything I have on vinyl, I ONLY have on vinyl so there’s that. 4) What are you listening to right now, as you answer these? The Vindictives, The Vindictives UnPlugged, “Invisible Man”.
5) Are you embarrassed by photos of yourself as a teenager? All of them. 6) Do you have a photo of yourself as a teenager that you would like to share? Yes. 7) Last place you traveled? The big city of Fagro, ND. 8) Most enjoyable place you’ve traveled? The Caymans 9) How do you pack for a typical trip? One bag for art/computer/camera junk and one bag for clothes, but light as I can no matter what... and usually the evening before. 10) Phone camera or other? All depends on the situation, both are pretty good. 11) Pencils or pens? Both/either, more pens usually. I own one pencil. 12) Notebook or phone (iPad)? Notebook. 13) Coffee or tea? Tea, but maybe once a year?? Water usually. 14) Pets or not? None at the moment, but yeah… I’m down. Some newts or frogs, a cat or a dog, I’m into it. 15) Biggest influence(s) as a 20 something? Skateboarding. 16) Biggest influence(s) now? Skateboarding. 17) Is it painful to answer questions? Usually, but not these. Thanks for that! 18) Introvert, extrovert, or in-between? Introvert to the point of not being able to use a phone, I might spend days at a time without speaking to people.
21) How many hours do you usually sleep during the course of 24 hours? 2-4? Sometimes more, all depends on the level of insomnia I’m dealing with at the time. Fortunately the way I draw takes forever so I always have something to do… 22) Do you nap? Not really. Every once in a while. I like the idea of it, I’ll sometimes daydream about napping… but thanks to insomnia, when I DO sleep, I wake up feeling so fucked up that I almost avoid sleep until I’m so tired I can do nothing else but lay down, that will usually turn into sleep in a few hours or so. The mathematics of naps don’t really work for me. 23) Do you own art? If yes, what is your favorite piece? LOTS! I lived in CA for about 12 years, both Northern and Southern, and the entire time was spent working within the skateboard industry. The fact that I all of a sudden had access in this world I had only ever seen in magazines and videos, I bought art from all of my favorites at any chance I could, saved cool mementos, traded things for photography and paintings. I was super fortunate to get to know most all of my heros/idols to the point of being able to collect art from them all… favorite piece has to be a giant portrait of Andy Roy painted by Jason Arnold, hangs directly above my desk. 24) Do you like answering questions? I don’t mind at all, even when painful and these felt great! Hardly any pain at all!
19) Are you a prolific dreamer? Very. 20) Dreams or nightmares? Mostly nightmares, but i’m game for both.
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BOB STEPHENSON @bobstephenson
1) What’s the most embarrassing piece of music in your collection? Christina Aguilera, “You Are Beautiful”. Only song of hers I own. I like her voice. 2) Most cherished music in your collection? The only recording of my old band, Chardonnay. The song is called “Pimp”. 3) Vinyl, CD, radio or Mpeg? I have a lot of vinyl from my punk and metal days but now I’m mostly Mpeg. 4) What are you listening to right now, as you answer these? Golf Channel.
9) How do you pack for a typical trip? As light as I can so I don’t have to check a bag but if I’m going to check a bag - I bring it all. And I make sure my iPod and sound dampening ear buds are easily accessible. 10) phone camera or other? Phone camera. It’s faster. Though I do love a good point-and-shoot. 11) Pencils or pens? Pens. I have an old Cross and a Mont Blanc I received as gifts that I love! 12) Notebook or phone (iPad)? iPad.
5) Are you embarrassed by photos of yourself as a teenager? Naa. That was the first time I heard punk rock. It was the early 80’s. It was pretty cool.
13) Coffee or tea? Green tea every morning. I feel like shit without it. Coffee makes me shaky.
6) Do you have a photo of yourself as a teenager that you would like to share? Yep. That’s me on the left in black next to my best friend Eric Olson. He introduced me to some awesome music. We were in boarding school.
16) Biggest influence(s) now? David Fincher.
7) Last place you traveled? Camping in the Santa Barbara mountains. 8) Most enjoyable place you’ve traveled? Belize.
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14) Pets or not? My wife is a Veterinary Technician so yes - 4 dogs. She’d have 50 if there was room. 15) Biggest influence(s) as a 20 something? My dad and David Fincher.
17) Is it painful to answer questions? No. It’s interesting.
18) Introvert, extrovert, or in-between? Extrovert. Too emotional and impatient. 19) Are you a prolific dreamer? Totally. 20) Dreams or nightmares? Dreams. Sometimes nightmares but the nightmares are usually not as scary when I think back. But while experiencing them - scary as hell. But mostly dreams. 21) How many hours do you usually sleep during the course of 24 hours? 7. 22) Do you nap? Sometimes. Naps are cool. 23) Do you own art? If yes, what is your favorite piece? I do own art. I love contemporary Latin art. Favorite piece is a Rufino Tamayo painting I have. Awesome. 24) Do you like answering questions? Is this the same as number 17? Wait, this is a psych test maneuver, right? To see how we react to the same question twice? Shit! I already fucked it up. Damn it, I gotta stop typing. I’m totally blowing it. Oh dear.
EVAN HECOX
@evanhecox
1) What’s the most embarrassing piece of music in your collection? That’s difficult to say, there are probably a lot. I have a number of Krafwerk albums, they seem like something an old, nerdy dude would listen to. I’d feel fairly dumb if I was caught listening to Kraftwerk. I may still have some Jazz records that are pretty bad, sort of funky 70’s jazz, the kind of thing that sends girls out of the room immediately. 2) Most cherished music in your collection? I have some semi-rare records, but I’m not really a record collector guy who cares about that stuff. There are certain albums that I like because I can listen to the whole thing, start to finish, which you can’t do with most. Calexico, the Black Light, Cat Power ,Moonpix and Galaxie 500 are some classic choices, lately it’s more like Allah Las, Tame Impala, The Growlers, Kurt Vile and The War on Drugs. I don’t really have a favorite band or put any music on a level that’s of religious importance. 3) Vinyl, CD, radio or Mpeg? A little of each. I’ve unloaded a lot of my vinyl, down to probably four hundred or so records now, but I still buy one or two a month. I have a CD changer in one of my cars still, so I buy CD’s just for that car. Denver has a good radio station called Open Air that I listen to online and in the car. Digital music on Spotify and from iTunes. 4) What are you listening to right now, as you answer these? A mix I made of current music that I’ve recently found out about. Right now it’s “I Wanna Love You” by Jessica Lea Mayfield 5) Are you embarrassed by photos of yourself as a teenager? I was a teenager in the 80’s and like most people who skated in the 80’s I have some cheesy photos of me in high-top Vans, with pink or teal shirts, sleeves cut off, hats with the brim turned up, flannel shirt tied around the waist, the usual. 6) Do you have a photo of yourself as a teenager that you would like to share? No.
7) Last place you traveled? Los Angeles. 8) Most enjoyable place you’ve traveled? Australia. 9) How do you pack for a typical trip? What I pack for a trip is all I probably need in my closet anyway, I’d be better off. It’s usually just a favorite pair of jeans, a couple neutral shirts, some comfortable shoes, a sweatshirt and a jacket, more for a longer trip, but I try to keep it simple. I like a carry-on duffle bag, something that can squish into a space, I don’t like boxy roller bags. 10) Phone camera or other? My phone camera is great, just because I always have it with me. I have a 35mm film camera for travel and family shots, I like getting prints back that can go into photo albums. I have a Mamiya 7 for when I’m trying to take artsy shots and a Canon digital SLR for everything else. 11) Pencils or pens? I draw best with pencils. 12) Notebook or phone (iPad)? I use the “notes” app on my phone a lot lately. I also use the camera to make visual notes on things, like where I’m parked at the airport. 13) Coffee or tea? Coffee. 14) Pets or not? Two small dogs. The family just got a new dog recently, this time it was supposed to be my choice but that didn’t really happen. 15) Biggest influence(s) as a 20 something? Margaret Kilgallen, Chris Ware. Graphic Design in general. 16) Biggest influence(s) now? David Hockney, Peter Doig. Photography in general. 17) Is it painful to answer questions? Favorite type questions are difficult for me. I have a hard time nailing things down to just one answer with most things.
18) Introvert, extrovert, or in-between? Exactly in the middle I think. I can be pretty quiet at times, but if I feel comfortable and in my element I’m a lot more talkative. 19) Are you a prolific dreamer? I don’t remember most dreams, so I’d say no I guess. 20) Dreams or nightmares? I take work into my dreams a lot, so that’s kind of a nightmare sometimes. The other night I dreamt about struggling with drawing some sort of complex mechanical object all night. 21) How many hours do you usually sleep during the course of 24 hours? 7 to 8 hours. I try to be a healthy person by eating well, exercising and the other important part is to get enough sleep. 22) Do you nap? Rarely, but sometimes if I’ve been on a deadline crunch and I’ve not been sleeping enough, then taking a break and napping for 45 minutes really can help me to recharge. 23) Do you own art? If yes, what is your favorite piece? My dad was an artist, I have some of his work which is among my favorite for sentimental reasons of course. I have some nice stuff from Thomas Campbell and other friends. I have a photograph by Lucas Foglia that I really like a lot. Difficult to pick one favorite. 24) Do you like answering questions? It actually helps to clarify things in my own mind. I don’t think about my life in such specific terms normally, but answering questions forces me to narrow things down and focus. So... no, I don’t.
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MEL KADEL @melkadel
1) What’s the most embarrassing piece of music in your collection? Sons of Jubal. They were a local band on Long Island that I was obsessed with in the early ‘90s. They don’t really hold up these days unless you were around that area during that time period. So I have to jam out in private, to those political reggae beats.
2) Most cherished music in your collection? All of the records from when I was around 14 years old, while I was discovering everything for the first time. From Dylan to Minor Threat. I treasure these the most and remember hearing them for the first time, during a period of total discovery. 3) Vinyl, CD, radio or Mpeg? All of it works for me, although I don’t think I even own CDs anymore. 4) What are you listening to right now, as you answer these? Radio. 5) Are you embarrassed by photos of yourself as a teenager? Yep. 6) Do you have a photo of yourself as a teenager that you would like to share? Most are hidden away at my mom’s house, but I’ll try to find one here. 7) Last place you traveled? NYC. 8) Most enjoyable place you’ve traveled? Port Antonio, Jamaica.
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9) How do you pack for a typical trip? I start with socks, and then throw in some t-shirts and jeans. I basically pack like a boy.
answering as I go, so maybe they get more painful?
10) Phone camera or other? Phone camera these days.
18) Introvert, extrovert, or in-between? In-between. I need massive amounts of time alone, but totally love being around people.
11) Pencils or pens? I use both, but if there was a fire I would grab a pen first.
19) Are you a prolific dreamer? I wouldn’t say prolific. But, I remind myself to keep dreaming.
12) Notebook or phone (iPad)? Phone.
20) Dreams or nightmares? Warped dreams.
13) Coffee or tea? Coffee.
21) How many hours do you usually sleep during the course of 24 hours? 7 hours works the best for me. Under that, and I feel anxious or something.
14) Pets or not? 1 cat named Nern, and 1 weird dog named Rodney. 15) Biggest influence(s) as a 20 something? Cy Twombly, Bob Dylan, Beastie Boys, Jane’s Addiction, Public Enemy, Edward Gorey… these are the first few I can think of.
22) Do you nap? Never.
16) Biggest influence(s) now? My dad.
23) Do you own art? If yes, what is your favorite piece? Yes, I’m slowly building up a little collection. Travis Millard had Devendra Banhart make me a little piece for my birthday a few years ago. It’s one of my favorites because of the time & place it represents.
17) Is it painful to answer questions? These aren’t painful, I swear. But, I’m
24) Do you like answering questions? I like these. I wish there were more.
MARK PENXA
@markpenxa
is of me pulling the sickest Judo off of a parking block he had in his garage. I have no idea where that one went but here’s one of me working on my boneless from that same day. 7) Last place you traveled? The UP, Eh - Michigan Upper Peninsula
8) Most enjoyable place you’ve traveled? Moscow. It is a total mindfuck. I loved every single minute of it.
1) What’s the most embarrassing piece of music in your collection? All those Duran Duran records have a special place in my heart... and under my mattress. 2) Most cherished music in your collection? Probably the music I’ve written and recorded over the years with my friends. I have back-ups of back-ups of back-ups. The thought of losing that stuff keeps me awake at night. 3) Vinyl, CD, radio or Mpeg? I gotta go Mpeg. Convenience always wins out with me. 4) What are you listening to right now, as you answer these? Co-workers whispering to each other in the next office. 5) Are you embarrassed by photos of yourself as a teenager? Of course. 6) Do you have a photo of yourself as a teenager that you would like to share? My most embarrassing photo’s are from when I was 13 or 14. My friend and I burned through rolls and rolls of film of us posing tricks. The really bad one
fucking rad people. They always have and always will be my biggest influences. 17) Is it painful to answer questions? Face-to-face or on camera? Yes. Via email? Not so much. 18) Introvert, extrovert, or in-between? Introverted, to a fault. 19) Are you a prolific dreamer? I was when I was in my 20’s. I was able to remember every detail, every single dream. I don’t dream much these days, which concerns me. 20) Dreams or nightmares? Awake Nightmares.
9) How do you pack for a typical trip? Frantically.
21) How many hours do you usually sleep during the course of 24 hours? Probably 6 but, I dream of 10.
10) Phone camera or other? Phone camera. I can’t even turn a real camera on.
22) Do you nap? Never.
11) Pencils or pens? Brush pens! 12) Notebook or phone (iPad)? Loose pieces of paper all over the floor, in my pockets, stuck inside of books... it is a problem. 13) Coffee or tea? Coffee. Tim Horton’s coffee. 14) Pets or not? We have a pug named Morty and he’s my best dude. We do everything together.
23) Do you own art? If yes, what is your favorite piece? We own a lot of little folk art pieces and artwork from our friends. We bought a low number serigraph of Charlie Harper’s “Wrented” as a gift to ourselves last Christmas and it is our favorite piece along with a recycled hand cut/screened board that Chris Johanson and Arthur Lindsay made. Which is incredible. So, it is a tie. 24) Do you like answering questions? Stop it. You sound like a cop.
15) Biggest influence(s) as a 20 something? My Dad and my grandfather mostly. My friends have always had the biggest influence on me, just feeding off of and trying to keep up with each other. I’m very lucky to have some pretty cool friends that make and do great things. 16) Biggest influence(s) now? I would be totally fucked if it weren’t for Tony Larson and Don Pendleton. Those guys have done so much for me in terms of influence, mentoring and just being
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JOHNNY KNOXVILLE @realjknoxville
1) What’s the most embarrassing piece of music in your collection? Jesus, I have a lot that I should be embarrassed about I guess, but I don’t honestly give a shit. Doris Day, Streisand, BeBe Neuwirth, Audrey Hepburn. BTW if anyone has a problem with Audrey Hepburn, they can kiss my ass. 2) Most cherished music in your collection? I looked in my iTunes to see which songs I played the most and the two top plays were terrifically inappropriate film quotes from Blazing Saddles. Those were followed by “Victim of Life’s Circumstances” by Delbert McClinton. Then songs by Waylon and Willie. Also love Blowfly’s Astrological album and basically anything that is filthy. But the music that means the most to me is my cousin’s music, Roger Alan Wade. It’s what I listen to before I get run over or stomped by something. 3) Vinyl, CD, radio or Mpeg? I’ve tried to give a shit about vinyl but honestly, I just don’t. I am tone deaf and also hard of hearing so the subtleties escape me. I listen to Mpegs. 4) What are you listening to right now, as you answer these? Nothing because my attention span is so poor the music would distract me from what I’m writing. Not that it’s good (writing) or anything, it would just make the process take longer. But you can never go wrong with “Don’t You Take it Too Bad’’ by Townes Van Zandt, esp the live recording of “Be Here to Love Me.’’ 5) Are you embarrassed by photos of yourself as a teenager? The more embarrassing the better. I am such a whore for laughs that I love coming across those pics. I do wince at some of the things I did as a teenager, some of that’s embarrassing. But oh well, fuck it. 6) Do you have a photo of yourself as a teenager that you would like to share? Oh yeah, here is a really emabarrassing one of me at my senior prom. It’s a picture of a picture but you get the picture. I had the jacket made BTW. What a douche!! 7) Last place you traveled? Just got back from filming in inner
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Mongolia and China. Hong Kong and Macau are next. 8) Most enjoyable place you’ve traveled? I love traveling. I never thought I would get out of South Knoxville so I really appreciate getting to experience other cultures. Tough to narrow it down though. Japan. Russia. Ireland is a special place. Rome was mind blowing. 9) How do you pack for a typical trip? I just cram all the other shit in my suitcase. It drives my wife crazy becasue she is super organized. 10) Phone camera or other? I use my iPhone most of the time, but I like the Fuji 210 instant camera and Fuji mini instant camera. 11) Pencils or pens? Pens, but I’m not picky. Whatever is close. 12) Notebook or phone (iPad)? I used to carry a notebook but they would just get ripped to shreds because I don’t take care of anything. Now I write on my phone, or email dumb ideas it to myself. That way I always keep track of it. 13) Coffee or tea? Coffee. But it makes ur pp smell doesn’t it? And if eat asparagus while drinking coffee, ur pretty much pissing WD-40. 14) Pets or not? I have always had a dog, and my oldest daughter always had cats, but she is away at college now (I wanted to put a crying emoji here but I dont know how to do it on my computer). We don’t have any animals at the moment. My son is 5 and my daughter is 3 and I want them to have one soon. 15) Biggest influence(s) as a 20 something? I loved Hunter S. Thompson then and I love him now. Mel Brooks. Also my father. 16) Biggest influence(s) now? Honestly, Spike is a great friend who I look up to and love a lot. My wife, Naomi, she makes me want to be a better person. And my kids, I want to do right for them. 17) Is it painful to answer questions? If the questions are painful it is. I am having fun answering these. 18) Introvert, extrovert, or in-between? My father is an extroverted introvert and I feel like I am becoming the same. On
the surface I am extroverted, but I can get very socially uncomfortable and it makes everyone else uncomfortable. Like, ‘why is the loudmouth being so weird?’ 19) Are you a prolific dreamer? Yes, I go bye-bye a lot in my head. I get sidetracked mid-conversation. Lots of dreams at night too. 20) Dreams or nightmares? Lots of nightmares growing up, but now my wife says all I do is laugh out loud in my sleep. She says it’s a type of self satisfied laugh, like I am laughing at my own joke. I’m an asshole. 21) How many hours do you usually sleep during the course of 24 hours? I try to lay in bed for 8-ish hours, but I am usually up 5 or 6 times a night. Very annoying. As a kid I was a deep sleeper and a bed wetter. Then my parents bought me this thing called the wee alert. It’s a metal sheet that goes under your bed sheets and when piss hits it an alarm goes off and wakes up the whole house. Then my mom would come get me, change my diaper (I was 8), gently rub a wet hand rag across my face (to get me awake) and then cart me back off to bed. Haven’t been a great sleeper since. 22) Do you nap? Once or twice a week or more if I can. They make me feel a helluva a lot better. 23) Do you own art? If yes, what is your favorite piece? A few pieces. I bought my wife a Ralph Steadman illustration, and I have a John Waters framed film still, lots of photographic prints from Jim Marshall and various people. I have two animation cells by Mike Judge (one is from Beavis and Butthead and the other is from King of the Hill). Mark Gonzalez just recently made this awesome sculpture for me. So sweet of him. I also cherish the stop motion animation films my daughter made for me. But my favorite is this Waylon sign my wife, Naomi, made for me from scratch. Taught herself how to use the jigsaw, cut out the letters, everything. Rigged the lighting. She did it in two days while I was at work. She is an insanely talented artist. 24) Do you like answering questions? See #17.
On the s urface I am extro but I can verted, get very socially uncomfo rtable an d it mak everyon es e else un comfort able
BENNY GOLD @bennygold
1) What’s the most embarrassing piece of music in your collection? I am a huge Rod Stewart fan. I own a box set of his that has almost all his music on it. We all know that, “The first cut is the deepest”.
The phone camera is the most convenient.
2) Most cherished music in your collection? I kept all my straight edge hardcore 45’s that I collected going to shows as a kid. I still fan out on them — something about colored vinyl!
12) Notebook or phone (iPad)? Nothing beats pencil to paper. The computer is the last piece of the puzzle for me.
3) Vinyl, CD, radio or Mpeg? I love spotify — everything I ever wanted to listen to is there waiting for me. 4) What are you listening to right now, as you answer these? Max Romeo, Crazy World of Dub 5) Are you embarrassed by photos of yourself as a teenager? I had all the bad skateboard haircuts. The Tony Hawk cut was embarrassing especially with a face full of acne. 6) Do you have a photo of yourself as a teenager that you would like to share? Yeah - attached is one from 1990 I think. I grew up skating in Key West Florida. By the time I got to High School I was the only skater in the school. This photo was taken by a tourist visiting the island who tagged me on Instagram 20 odd years later. 7) Last place you traveled? I just got back from Healdsburg, Ca. Its up in the heart of wine country. I can see myself disappearing one day into rural Northern California. 8) Most enjoyable place you’ve traveled? I loved visiting Spain. Skating in Barcelona was amazing — this was before a serious job, kids and a wife. HAHAHA! 9) How do you pack for a typical trip? Having a young kid you have to pack so much stuff. Toys, books, their clothes — by the time you are done there is barely room left in our luggage for your own stuff. 10) Phone camera or other?
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11) Pencils or pens? Pencils - much easier for revisions. I go through a ton of changes on every design before the final.
13) Coffee or tea? I am a tea drinker and prefer green tea to anything. 14) Pets or not? My little dude Levi has become the unwilling mascot of the Benny Gold brand. He is a french bulldog and has so much personality. 15) Biggest influence(s) as a 20 something? As a 20 something I was influenced by partying and hanging with my friends. 16) Biggest influence(s) now? Now I am influenced by family. 17) Is it painful to answer questions? Answering questions is not bad — it’s a nice break from actual work. 18) Introvert, extrovert, or in-between? Definitely in-between. I do enjoy my interactions with people, but I like to hide out at my office and draw things. 19) Are you a prolific dreamer? I used to never dream, but lately I have been too often. I feel like its hard to feel like you had a good nights sleep after some intense dreams. 20) Dreams or nightmares? A mix of both dreams and nightmares. I had a crazy nightmare last night — yikes! 21) How many hours do you usually sleep during the course of 24 hours? I shoot for a solid 7 - 8 hours a night. I
like to wake up early and do some sitting meditation before the family wakes up. 22) Do you nap? I can’t nap — once I am down I am out for the entire night. 23) Do you own art? If yes, what is your favorite piece? I do own a few really cool pieces. Barry Mcgee (Twist) gifted me a set a painted bottles. They are stunning and I am afraid to showcase them in the house because of earthquakes or whatever knocking them over. 24) Do you like answering questions? It is what it is.
CHERYL DUNN @cheryldunn
6) Do you have a photo of yourself as a teenager that you would like to share? Sure. 7) Last place you traveled? LA. On a plane to houston then going straight to Russia, so depending on the printing of this it may be Russia which sounds way more exotic.
1) What’s the most embarrassing piece of music in your collection? Some Celine Dion song. I swear it’s on a movie soundtrack — and not Titanic. Got busted when my iPod was playing during a studio shoot and this song came blazing on. Everyone looked at me and started laughing. 2) Most cherished music in your collection? Endless Boogie, Grinderman at the moment . 3) Vinyl, CD, radio or Mpeg? I use them all. Maybe not CD’s anymore. 4) What are you listening to right now, as you answer these? La Collection Sixties des EP’s Français (disc 2 ) Stella (I’m on shuffle on a plane). 5) Are you embarrassed by photos of yourself as a teenager? Not really. I did have braces till I was 14 though. Got then on at 12 after I did a flip and landed wrong causing my knee to crash into my front teeth. So freshman and sophomore year was a bit lean for making out. But when I got them off I tried to make up for it...
16) Biggest influence(s) now? Movie, Sickfuckpeople. Bruce Davidson, Pina Bausch, Nick Cave, Les Blank. 17) Is it painful to answer questions? Got to do it all the time. Used to it . 18) Introvert, extrovert, or in-between? In between.
8) Most enjoyable place you’ve traveled? India, Cuba.
19) Are you a prolific dreamer? Only when I’m on vacation. Barely never.
9) How do you pack for a typical trip? Always at the last minute. I can’t remember ever being chilled out while packing. I always have to bring a ton of cameras and hard drives, and work I didn’t get done before I left. Then there is barely any room for clothes, I like to wear dresses cause its just one thing. White and black t-shirts, a leather hoodie that can save my ass in cold but is not too burly for warm weather. 10) Phone camera or other? Traveling I usually bring. Leica M6, M7. Just got this sick Sony video cam that I can adapt my Leica lens to 20mm. 35, and 50mm lenses.
20) Dreams or nightmares? Both.
11) Pencils or pens? Both. But I can’t read my hand-writing anymore. So I have these lofty ideas that I will write in my journal. But then just tend to write stuff in my notes on the iPhone and print them out and glue them into a journal. Makes the book way too fat. 12) Notebook or phone (iPad)? Phone. 13) Coffee or tea? Coffee. 9th st. espresso, East Village NYC.
21) How many hours do you usually sleep during the course of 24 hours? 6. 22) Do you nap? No.
23) Do you own art? If yes, what is your favorite piece? Yes. Lots. Margaret Killgallen’s paintings. Chris Johanson paintings. Big Jose Parla piece over my bed. Good vibes. Malike Sadibe, Happy Christmas. 24) Do you like answering questions? Sure. If the answer helps someone.
14) Pets or not? Black cat named Whiteboy 15) Biggest influence(s) as a 20 something? That is a long time ago. Albert Mayseles, Keith Haring, Bruce Davison, Norma Kamali.
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GARTH MILAN @garthmilan
1) What’s the most embarrassing piece of music in your collection? I like all my crap, from old Willy Nelson to the Geto Boys to Minor Threat, proud of ’em all. My wife’s collection, however, now that is a different story... 2) Most cherished music in your collection? Another tough one, but I will have to go with Dead Kennedys’ “Bedtime for Democracy” on vinyl. Not only does it have one of the coolest illustrations ever for it’s cover, but the album itself is one of my all-tiime faves, and it was given to me years ago by a really close friend. Thanks, Ackerman! 3) Vinyl, CD, radio or Mpeg? I’d love to sound all cool and romantic and say that I only listen to vinyl, but with my travel schedule, Mpeg it is, for the most part. I love listening to records at home, but 99% of my music is listened to through my phone due to simple convenience. You can’t argue having your entire collection of music on one little device. However, I will say that all of the thousands of songs on said device have been purchased from the artists, and I still have all of the original CDs with liner notes. This is my one and only “collection” of anything besides camera gear, and is very cherished. (Even though one day soon I probably won’t be able to find anything to play them on.) 4) What are you listening to right now, as you answer these? I’m on a plane with my music on shuffle, but as I write this, the random song that happens to be playing is “You Can’t Take It Anymore” by the U.K. Subs. Oh, wait, it just changed to the Zero Boys... 5) Are you embarrassed by photos of yourself as a teenager? Only a couple. For the most part I looked
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like a punk, a skater, a motocrosser (no gear at school or anything, don’t worry; just tee-shirts), or a graffiti artist. All of which I am proud to claim. But there was this one small hippy spell where I am embarrassed to admit that I owned a tie-dyed shirt. I know, I know... Hey, I was young and impressionable. But I haven’t been a hippy since. 6) Do you have a photo of yourself as a teenager that you would like to share No, but if I had one, I would be happy to share it. I enjoy laughing at myself, and feel there is nothing wrong with doing so. 7) Last place you traveled? Just got back from a whirlwind weekend with three different shoots in Santa Barbara, San Francisco, and Maryland, all in the span of three days including redeye travel back and forth. Now I’m on my way back East again, heading to Florida to go shoot with James Stewart. 8) Most enjoyable place you’ve traveled? At the risk of making readers gag with this horrible cliche, I honestly try to make every place the most enjoyable one while I am there. Life is all what you make of it, unless you’re going somewhere absolutely shitty like Houston. No offense, Texas. But it seems that everywhere I go, there is something awesome or inspiring to be seen. If I were forced to pick one city, though, it would be Amsterdam. 9) How do you pack for a typical trip? I’m “that guy” at the airport that travels with no less than four bags, including massive Pelican cases that weigh enough for the airline to rape me every time I show up to the check-in counter. Packing all of this expensive “junk” is normally a half-day exercise/ritual, where I try my best to predict which ridiculously heavy and cumbersome lighting gear and camera gadgets I can do without for that particular trip. And then there are all of the power cords, gadgets, etc. Oh wait, did I back up all of the files from the last shoot? What is the weather going to be like in the middle of nowhere, where I’ll be for the next week? etc. 10) Phone camera or other? Obviously “other” when it comes to work, which takes up most of my waking hours, but on those rare occurrences when I’m on vacation, I swear by the phone camera. It’s just good enough, and the freedom
it allows is amazing. It’s definitely a nice little change of pace from my day job, where I have 30 pounds of lenses and camera gear swinging around my neck. 11) Pencils or pens? I think I am going to have to go with pens, though not when they run out or start leaking and you get ink all over your hands. But pencils have their own downfalls. Honestly, being left-handed, they both leave my fingers full of nasty ink or lead, so I embrace the era of typing everything on my computer. That, and my handwriting sucks. 12) Notebook or phone (iPad)? Though I do like taking notes by hand during meetings, conference calls, etc. for the most part I go the tech route and use my phone/computer. This way I can sync everything and share it with my clients and business partners. That, and I am notoriously bad about losing shit, so on the “cloud” everything is backed up. I can’t imagine losing a year’s worth of notes, my calendar and contacts, etc. But notebooks do have their time and place, and nothing beats sketching random things during a meeting to make it look like you are avidly taking notes and listening to what is going on. 13) Coffee or tea? Love them both. I really don’t like the effects of caffeine that much, but decaf just doesn’t taste the same, so I can’t kick the habit I’m afraid. My typical drink is an Americano, black. Or just really good, dark-roasted beans in a French press. As for tea, I like the herbals, like peppermint or orange, etc. 14) Pets or not? Pets!! I have four dogs; three Yorkies and a Shih-Tzu. I love them all so much. As much as a pain in the butt as they are sometimes, and as much work as it takes to take care of them, and as much as they have destroyed our house, we love ‘em. Wait, I’m not painting a good picture here... but they really are pretty awesome. 15) Biggest influence(s) as a 20 something? Same as the majority of my life now: Skateboarding, art, and punk rock. 16) Biggest influence(s) now? I’d say the same as when I was a
JERRY HSU @internetfamous
20-something, really, though in slightly different, less angry, ways now than before. I definitely don’t skate NEAR as much now either, due to a (thankfully) insanely busy career and a lack of time, though I am still totally influenced by the culture, and I will be a skater ‘til the day I die. Same with punk rock. I listen to the same shit I have for over two decades now, and it still speaks as loudly as ever to me when it comes to thinking for myself, questioning everything, and not being another sheep in the herd. 17) Is it painful to answer questions? No, it’s pretty enjoyable, actually. I just wish I had a transcriber to write all of the answers out for me because my fingers are starting to hurt. 18) Introvert, extrovert, or in-between? I’d say somewhere in between. I’m a bit of a chameleon, to be honest, and try to always adapt to my surroundings wherever I go. When the situation calls for it, I can be very outgoing, but when needed, I pride myself in knowing when to shut the hell up. 19) Are you a prolific dreamer? Yes.
1) What’s the most embarrassing piece of music in your collection? Mid 90’s Sting or Enya. 2) Most cherished music in your collection? That’s personal and embarrassing. 3) Vinyl, CD, radio or Mpeg? CD and radio for talk. 4) What are you listening to right now, as you answer these? My wife is talking to customer service people in India. 5) Are you embarrassed by photos of yourself as a teenager? Yes, definitely because I was a early/mid 90’s skater who loved Nirvana. 6) Do you have a photo of yourself as a teenager that you would like to share? Sure. 7) Last place you traveled? New York. 8) Most enjoyable place you’ve traveled? I honestly have no idea.
20) Dreams or nightmares? Usually neither, but here and there I have a cool dream that I barely remember once I awake. The occasional nightmare, as well, but it ‘s pretty rare (thankfully).
9) How do you pack for a typical trip? 3 cameras, lots of socks, and a book.
21) How many hours do you usually sleep during the course of 24 hours? No more than 8 or 9, and sometimes only 3 or 4, depending on my travel and shooting schedule that day/week.
11) Pencils or pens? Pens.
22) Do you nap? Heck yes, whenever possible. However, it rarely happens with my crazy busy schedule. But when the rare occasion arises, especially near a pool or beach with an adult beverage by my side, I go with it. 23) Do you own art? If yes, what is your favorite piece? Mulberry Street Unicorn by the man, the myth, the legend... Dr. Seuss. 24) Do you like answering questions? I think you already asked me that... Yes!!
10) Phone camera or other? Phone camera and other, always.
12) Notebook or phone (iPad)? Both. I love taking photos with the phone as mental notes for later. But I also have notebooks. My pockets are filled with crud. 13) Coffee or tea? Atiba once said coffee is for the weak but he’s an alien. Coffee.
14) Pets or not? My wife has a cat named Jerry that she adopted before we met. And my wife’s name is Kat. It gets confusing at home.
15) Biggest influence(s) as a 20 something? This may sound weird but skate wise I would say Louie barletta and Bobby Puleo influenced a lot of what I did for a while. Both in different ways obviously, but watching them skate and being with them inspired me and improved my perspective. 16) Biggest influence(s) now? Books and the internet. 17) Is it painful to answer questions? Its painful to think about people listening to the answers. 18) Introvert, extrovert, or in-between? Introvert almost exclusively, but I can pretend I’m not. 19) Are you a prolific dreamer? Almost all of my dreams involve anxiety and confusion. I’m often being chased whether it’s a shark in a pool or someone trying to kill me and I have to run. I’ve had a couple where, for some reason, I cut my own penis off and try desperately to re-attach it. Any dreams that involves skateboarding always involves me not being able to perform in front of people. That’s definitely a side effect of being a pro skater. 20) Dreams or nightmares? Like which do I prefer?? A good nightmare once in a while is pretty awesome. 21) How many hours do you usually sleep during the course of 24 hours? Lately 8-9 hours. I wish I slept less. 22) Do you nap? No. 23) Do you own art? If yes, what is your favorite piece? I have a drawing by Sammy Harkham and a photo by Daido Moriyama that I love. 24) Do you like answering questions? Sometimes. Lying makes it easier.
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ERICA YARY @ericayary
1) What’s the most embarrassing piece of music in your collection? If we are talking about my iPod or computer there’s a lot of awful music that I have on there “just in case” - which doesn’t make a lot of sense. It’s more for comedic purposes, but for sure the most embarrassing thing I have on the iPod is Skrillex. That’s a “it will be funny at some point to turn this on while with friends” but it’s ultimately embarrassing and terrible and that “just in case” time has never come. I’m just going to delete it.
2) Most cherished music in your collection? I collect records but I don’t have a massive collection, maybe about 400 albums. I pretty much cherish all of it even the Steve Martin stand up albums, but have some Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, and Beatles 45’s and albums that are rare and have inscriptions on them and what not that make them more cherished than others probably. 3) Vinyl, CD, radio or Mpeg? Vinyl, but Mpeg is just more realistic for the ol’ commute to and from work. 4) What are you listening to right now, as you answer these? I was just listening to Arcade Fire, The Suburbs.
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5) Are you embarrassed by photos of yourself as a teenager? Without question. I hope they never resurface and see the light of day. 6) Do you have a photo of yourself as a teenager that you would like to share? Haha I’ll try to dig one up for you... 7) Last place you traveled? I’m currently in Philadelphia, so, here! 8) Most enjoyable place you’ve traveled? Copenhagen is probably my favorite place I’ve traveled to, but I also haven’t been to so many places in Europe I would love to experience. Hopefully soon. 9) How do you pack for a typical trip? A lot of black clothes. I really hate the pressure of packing and putting “outfits” together, so I just make sure I have workout stuff, depending on the trip probably 2-3 pairs of shoes and a bunch of vintage tshirts and black jeans. I try not to overthink it anymore. 10) Phone camera or other? I like to shoot 35mm photos but I am bad at remembering to bring it with me or if I have a my little Olympus with me I’m bad at remembering to pull it out and shoot photos. I guess I am a phone camera person more often than not. 11) Pencils or pens? Pens. 12) Notebook or phone (iPad)? I go both ways on this but mostly I jot everything down in my phone or I email myself notes and tasks that are important so I won’t forget. 13) Coffee or tea? I like the taste of tea better but I drink coffee far more often. Jasmine green tea is ace. 14) Pets or not? I don’t have any pets but I would love to be able to own a dog.
15) Biggest influence(s) as a 20 something? My parents and friends. 16) Biggest influence(s) now? My parents and my coworkers. 17) Is it painful to answer questions? I don’t mind it at all! It’s easier to answer than come up with the questions to ask for sure haha. 18) Introvert, extrovert, or in-between? I’m an extrovert, but I’m no clown. 19) Are you a prolific dreamer? Really depends on the night. I really enjoy dreams of aliens and a future of dynamic space adventures and über advanced technology sort of stuff, I crave Sci-Fi dreams. 20) Dreams or nightmares? Definitely going with dreams here. 21) How many hours do you usually sleep during the course of 24 hours? I really want and need those 8 hours and I think I typically got that number. 22) Do you nap? I wish I could. Typically only if I’m running on 4 hours of sleep or so. 23) Do you own art? If yes, what is your favorite piece? I own art but it is all vintage/antique. I have a piece that is a man riding a horse in a pasture with a dog sitting him that I like a lot. I’m waiting on a Jay Howell sculpture he promised me to be delivered. That may replace my current favorite once it’s in my possession. 24) Do you like answering questions? I enjoyed this. Thank you!
JASON CROMBIE @burritodick
1) What’s the most embarrassing piece of music in your collection? The Stone Temple Pilots second album. I am deeply ashamed of this record. It’s corny and the lyrics are ridiculous, but I like it, and that brings great shame to myself and also to my family. 2) Most cherished music in your collection? Teenage Snuff Film by Rowland S. Howard (first pressing with original version of ‘Shut Me Down’), every Bad Seeds album, Ocean Rain by Echo & The Bunnymen, Scott 1, Scott 2, Scott 3, and Scott 4 by Scott Walker, Dusk by The The, every Smiths album, The Hounds of Love by Kate Bush, Floating Into the Night by Julie Cruise, To Bring You My Love by PJ Harvey, Temple of Low Men by Crowded House, Vintage Violence by John Cale, Coney Island Baby by Lou Reed, the first Velvets album and the album with ‘Jesus’ on it, Sound As Ever by You Am I, 1995 by Daniel Johnston, The Marble Index and Chelsea Girls by Nico, every Violet Femmes album before and including Why Do Birds Sing?, and the song ‘Twins’ by Cass McCombs. 3) Vinyl, CD, radio or Mpeg? Vinyl. 4) What are you listening to right now, as you answer these? ‘Cry’ by Godley & Creme. 5) Are you embarrassed by photos of yourself as a teenager? Not really. There is one photo of me in my KFC uniform age fifteen that makes me cringe a bit, but I’m a bit old to give a shit about how much of a spaz I was back then. 6) Do you have a photo of yourself as a teenager that you would like to share? Yes, Andy, I do. 7) Last place you traveled? The Bahamas to renew my US visa. I went alone and spent my days drinking beer and swimming. I also took up cigarette smoking for the week because I was alone and bored. I swam with sharks, though, which was cool, but otherwise I was pretty bored. I masturbated a lot. 8) Most enjoyable place you’ve traveled? New Orleans. I really liked it there
because I had this inexplicable burst of creative energy while staying in the French Quarter. I got a lot of writing done and a ton of ideas came to me. Also, you can walk into a post office with a martini in New Orleans and no one cares because it’s legal. I’m thinking I might move there for a year and bash out that book I’ve been talking about since 2009. 9) How do you pack for a typical trip? Light. I take as little as possible. If I can get out of checking luggage I’m very happy. 10) Phone camera or other? Phone. I’ve never really gotten a kick out of taking photos, so I’ve never bothered getting a decent camera. 11) Pencils or pens? Pens, specifically The Uni Ball ‘Eye’. It’s my favorite pen. I used to be into those Bic 4-color pens, but I’m all about The Uni Ball Eye now. 12) Notebook or phone (iPad)? Note book. I like to buy Moleskins notebooks and use about a quarter and them to write mawkish, sophomoric poetry when I’m drunk, then go buy another one. I have a desk drawer full of them. 13) Coffee or tea? Both. Americano. Early Grey tea. 14) Pets or not? I’d like a pet, but they’re a bitch when you want to travel or do anything that involves not being there to make sure they stay alive and don’t shit on everything. No pets. Not right now, anyway. Eventually I’d like to have one big dumb dog and a small yappy dog that bosses the big dumb one around. I’d also like a cat that hates them both, and five chickens with women’s names: Linda, Nancy, Janet, etc. I never get sick of animals with human names. My sister has a golden retriever named Troy and a cat named Nigel. 15) Biggest influence(s) as a 20 something? Probably weed was my biggest influence in my 20s; I was ripped for the first half; total waste of time. I can say the best influence would have to be the girlfriends I had in those days; they housetrained me good and pushed me to do things I wouldn’t have done on my own steam.
16) Biggest influence(s) now? Great writers. I can’t list them all, but they make me want to be better. They also make me really depressed because I know I won’t get close to most of them. 17) Is it painful to answer questions? Nope.
18) Introvert, extrovert, or in-between? Extrovert. Insufferable extrovert. But I can have attacks of shyness around people I don’t know sometimes, and I come off as a bit of a weirdo.
19) Are you a prolific dreamer? Not really. I dreamt more when I was kid; at least I remembered my dreams more. I used to fly all the time in my dreams when I was a kid. These days if I remember a dream it’ll be something stupid like getting chased by a dog with a wooden head (actual dream). 20) Dreams or nightmares? I like both, but nightmares are great because they can be so weird and creepy, and it’s amazing that your brain can just fuck with you so hard when it wants. Eating lobster gives me nightmares. 21) How many hours do you usually sleep during the course of 24 hours? 6 or 7. 22) Do you nap? Nope. 23) Do you own art? If yes, what is your favorite piece? I have this wonderful Andy Jenkins print actually. He gave it to me personally. He’s my friend. I also have a drawing by Daniel Johnston and some prints by various photographers. 24) Do you like answering questions? I’m the one normally asking them, so it’s a nice change.
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JOSHUA LINER @joshualiner
1) What’s the most embarrassing piece of music in your collection? Over ten years ago a friend of mine got married and I was in the wedding party. As a thank you gift he sent us all a hard drive loaded with music. It was really eclectic, and a great gift, though there’s some really random stuff on there. If I put my music on shuffle something such as Alanis Morissette might come on. That’s not really my personal taste. 2) Most cherished music in your collection? Hard to say. I listen to a lot of Grateful Dead so I’m going to go with some old live recording though picking a specific show would be difficult. Their music varied so much over their long career so really depends what I’m in the mood for that day. 3) Vinyl, CD, radio or Mpeg? Mpeg purely for the convenience. I used to have thousands of cassettes, then dozens of cd wallets, as well as a bunch of crates of hip-hop and rap vinyl. Now it all fits on hard drives. I know I’m sacrificing quality for convenience, though space is a huge issue when you live in NYC. 4) What are you listening to right now, as you answer these? I like listening to my music on shuffle, it’s one of the only random things I enjoy. The last five songs to come on my iPhone were Cam’ron, Grateful Dead, Action Bronson, Raekwon, and Sly & The Family Stone. 5) Are you embarrassed by photos of yourself as a teenager? Haha who isn’t?!?
6) Do you have a photo of yourself as a teenager that you would like to share? I’ll keep the ponytail photos where they belong, in a box with the dreadlock ones from my early 20s. 7) Last place you traveled? I received this email for 24 Questions
when I was in O’ahu for my friend’s wedding which was amazing. I had some serious catching up to do at the gallery when I returned, so am now writing this while on a plane to LA. 8) Most enjoyable place you’ve traveled? I haven’t traveled as much as I would like to lately so Hawaii was great. I also had a fun time in Basel, Switzerland this summer. Though some of the best travel related memories are definitely from backpacking through Europe after college.
17) Is it painful to answer questions? Not really. It’s been fun and brought back some good memories, so thanks!
9) How do you pack for a typical trip? I wish I can travel light. It’s impossible for me. I’m awful at it.
18) Introvert, extrovert, or in-between? Depends on my mood so I guess so I’ll go with in-between.
10) Phone camera or other? iPhone. Not much of a shutterbug, so the iPhone is all I need and the camera on the new iPhone 6 is great..
19) Are you a prolific dreamer? I don’t really remember my dreams when I wake up, though. I do have dreams of what I want to accomplish in this lifetime.
11) Pencils or pens? Pens. I got a really nice one for my birthday this year. It’s amazing how much of a difference a quality pen makes.
20) Dreams or nightmares? No nightmares thankfully.
12) Notebook or phone (iPad)? iPhone. It’s so convenient to then be able to email it to myself or anyone else. 13) Coffee or tea? Lately I’ve been off coffee as part of my daily routine, though I still enjoy an espresso after dinner. Now that it’s cold in NYC I’ve been drinking a lot of tea lately. Multiple cups in a day. 14) Pets or not? Currently no. I had an amazing dog, Timber, that went with me everywhere I went. It was great to be able to take her to the gallery with me everyday. We drove all over the country together. She loved camping and saw more of this country than most people. I miss her and will have another dog at some point for sure. 15) Biggest influence(s) as a 20 something? The Grateful Dead. They definitely changed my life once I went to college and could travel to see them when I wanted, and not have to wait for them to come to me. Even going out of town for a few shows was like running away with the circus for a bit. It showed me that life doesn’t have to be by the book, you can do what you want and love. 16) Biggest influence(s) now? I have to say it’s all the creative artists
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that I’m currently working with. I’m not an artist, I’m the other side of the brain, though when we collaborate some amazing things happen. I have a lot in common with most of them, though at the same time we are quite different. I definitely push them, and they push me back, the end results have been great and inspire me to work harder.
21) How many hours do you usually sleep during the course of 24 hours? I would say 6 is the norm for me, that’s the amount I need to function best. I can definitely sleep in on a Sunday if I want to and the weather facilitates it, either by being extremely cold or raining. There’s not much better than listening to the rain while laying in bed half asleep. 22) Do you nap? I’m about as bad as napping as I am at traveling light. 23) Do you own art? If yes, what is your favorite piece? Yes quite a bit. I would say my collection is about 50/50 between artists I represent, and artists I admire and collect. Picking a favorite is difficult though. I like art that has a story to it, meaning a story in how it came into my life. So I’m going to go with the Basquiat drawing I have from 1978. I acquired a book with six drawings he did in high school from a woman who was in art class with him. At the time I was living in Vermont where I started my gallery. I drove down to NYC to meet her. We met in a coffee shop and she just pulled it out of her tote bag. It was surreal. It’s in the “never sell” category. 24) Do you like answering questions? It was fun.
LORI DAMIANO
@lorida
1) What’s the most embarrassing piece of music in your collection? I have a record of the 1975 Drum Corps International Championship, Vol. 1. It features a marching band battle between 2 different bands from Wisconsin, a band from Etobicoke Ontario, and another band from Casper, Wyoming. I don’t know how embarassing it is, but it is maybe a little odd how much play it gets around here. 2) Most cherished music in your collection? ZZ Top, Eliminator. 3) Vinyl, CD, radio or Mpeg? I just inherited a stereo system that belonged to my Grandparents and it is the first record player of my own I’ve ever had, except for this kids turntable I hauled around for a while. I have been pretty excited about vinyl lately as a result. It also has an 8-Track player in it and my Aunt sent me a huge box of country 8-tracks to go with it that belonged to her friend. Some of them I can only listen to once before the tape breaks. I have a big pile of them to try and repair. I also listen to plenty of mpegs and cassette tapes... not so many CD’s these days. 4) What are you listening to right now, as you answer these? Tony Joe White. 5) Are you embarrassed by photos of yourself as a teenager? Some more than others! 6) Do you have a photo of yourself as a teenager that you would like to share? (...)
7) Last place you traveled? Quickdraw Animation Society, Calgary, Alberta.
8) Most enjoyable place you’ve traveled? I really loved Tasmania! 9) How do you pack for a typical trip? Frantically, at the last possible moment. 10) Phone camera or other? Phone camera for walkabouts, borrowed DSLR for animation, super 8 for moving pictures.
mentioned above PLUS Thom Lessner & Rose Luardo, Grandma Moses, Vanessa Davis, Ted Passon, Mel Kadel, Lynda Barry, Nat Russell, Lilli Carre, Stefan Gruber, Jo Dery, Leif Goldberg, Devin Flynn, Takeshi Murata, Amy Lockhart, Jennifer Levonian, Jodie Mack, Helen Hill, Bill Brown, Kirsten Lepore, Trixy Sweetvittles, Sean Buckelew, David Wein, Andrew Jeffrey Wright, Vanessa Renwick, Souther Salazar, Corey Adams, Masha Vasilkovsky, Naomi Uman, Zach Erickson, Nick Damiano, Kyle Field, Kevin Nagler, Micah Middaugh, and so many others!!! 17) Is it painful to answer questions? No.
11) Pencils or pens? All of the above.
18) Introvert, extrovert, or in-between? Cave dweller.
12) Notebook or phone (iPad)? Sketchbook!
19) Are you a prolific dreamer? I usually don’t remember them.
13) Coffee or tea? Coffee mostly.
20) Dreams or nightmares? When I do remember, it’s both.
14) Pets or not? I wish.
21) How many hours do you usually sleep during the course of 24 hours? 7
15) Biggest influence(s) as a 20 something? Jim Houser, Margaret Kilgallen, Thomas Campbell, Andy Jenkins, Spike Jonze, Mark Gonzales, Mike Manzoori, Chris Johanson, Barry McGee, Will Oldham, Danny Plotnick, Greta Snider, Johannes Gamble. 16) Biggest influence(s) now? I’m still influenced by all of the people
22) Do you nap? YES. I love naps. 23) Do you own art? If yes, what is your favorite piece? I have a portrait of Prince that is on a cutout piece of wood done by Thom Lessner that I love so much. 24) Do you like answering questions? I feel just fine about it.
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TRAVIS MILLARD @theotherfudge
1) What’s the most embarrassing piece of music in your collection? Early Mr Bungle (i.e. Squeeze Me Macaroni demo). 2) Most cherished music in your collection? The Embarrassment (1979-83 + Blister Pop).
8) Most enjoyable place you’ve traveled? Downtown post office is nice. 9) How do you pack for a typical trip? Keys, pen, paper, phone 10) Phone camera or other? My iphone has 8,364 photos on it currently.
3) Vinyl, CD, radio or Mpeg? All of it + tapes.
11) Pencils or pens? I like em all.
4) What are you listening to right now, as you answer these? The forthcoming Major Games album. Best of 2014 or 2015, whenever it comes out (I’m doing the design for it).
12) Notebook or phone (iPad)? Draw in the notebook, futz with the phone.
5) Are you embarrassed by photos of yourself as a teenager? Definitely. 6) Do you have a photo of yourself as a teenager that you would like to share? 13 years old with cake, sketchbook & moody hat, 1988. Photo by my uncle at grandma’s house. 7) Last place you traveled? Post office.
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13) Coffee or tea? I’ll have whatever you’re having. 14) Pets or not? Rodney the dog, Nern the cat 15) Biggest influence(s) as a 20 something? Television. 16) Biggest influence(s) now? Internet. 17) Is it painful to answer questions?
Thank you sir may I have another. 18) Introvert, extrovert, or in-between? In-between. 19) Are you a prolific dreamer? Yes. 20) Dreams or nightmares? Very weird dreams. 21) How many hours do you usually sleep during the course of 24 hours? 7 or 8. 22) Do you nap? Never. 23) Do you own art? If yes, what is your favorite piece? I own lots of art that I love, but my favorite paintings are from my mom in the ‘70s.
24) Do you like answering questions? I refuse to answer that.
MARC JOHNSON @marcjohnson
1) What’s the most embarrassing piece of music in your collection? That’s a tough one. It could be Ja Rule ‘Pain Is Love’. Actually, I wouldn’t even be embarrassed if someone saw it. Every CD has a story behind it; a reason you bought it. Embarrassing isn’t the word. I think ‘funny’ is a better word. I have some Wayne Newton albums as well. Danke Schoen is a pretty awesome song. 2) Most cherished music in your collection? That changes from time to time. I go on these binges where I’ll listen to a certain album over and over for a couple of weeks, and then switch it up to another album or artist. Over the years, I’ve narrowed my musical tastes down and I lean pretty heavily on Neil Young, Van Morrison, Pink Floyd, and Fleetwood Mac. Depends on the mood. The music is always in rotation. 3) Vinyl, CD, radio or Mpeg? They all get love. Lately the iCloud has been on shuffle because you don’t have to babysit the music while you work. Speaking of vinyl, I keep wanting to get a new turntable. There’s something so awesome about playing records. That’s a different experience. That’s when you’re playing certain music on purpose.
4) What are you listening to right now, as you answer these? The hum of the dishwashing machine, actually. 5) Are you embarrassed by photos of yourself as a teenager? No. They’re all skateboarding photos, and skateboarding rips. 6) Do you have a photo of yourself as a teenager that you would like to share? I just might. 7) Last place you traveled? New York City.
8) Most enjoyable place you’ve traveled? I really like Spain and Australia. I’ve had awesome trips to those places. 9) How do you pack for a typical trip? Last-minute total freakout panic overpack. I’ll pack a month’s worth of stuff for a 10-day trip. 10) Phone camera or other? Phone camera. 11) Pencils or pens? Both. Lots of ‘em. 12) Notebook or phone (iPad)? Paper notebook, always. I would rather write than type. 13) Coffee or tea? Most definitely coffee. 14) Pets or not? I feed a stray cat, but he is not ‘mine’ so to speak. No one owns him. He is an outdoor cat that comes and goes as he pleases. I’m more of a fan of dogs. I like dogs. I had a ‘relationship dog’ which was a huge mistake because I lost him when the relationship ended. Never again.
20) Dreams or nightmares? Dreams. 21) How many hours do you usually sleep during the course of 24 hours? 5. If I’m lucky, I’ll get a solid 8. 22) Do you nap? Yes, very often. 23) Do you own art? If yes, what is your favorite piece? I do own some art. Nailing a favorite down is tough. All the pieces I have are on purpose because I love them. That’s a hard question! 24) Do you like answering questions? That’s almost exactly the same question as ‘Is it painful to answer questions?’. I’m pretty sure I do like answering questions. It’s a form of play.
15) Biggest influence(s) as a 20 something? The Art Dump, Don Pendleton, Joe Castrucci, Van Morrison, red wine, new skateboard trick ideas, solitude, metaphysics 16) Biggest influence(s) now? No guru, no method, no teacher. Selfexploration. 17) Is it painful to answer questions? No way. This is my only outlet. People don’t talk anymore. They just ask you for shit via text message, then disappear again. 18) Introvert, extrovert, or in-between? Introvert that can be an extrovert when a situation calls for it. Much more introverted by nature. 19) Are you a prolific dreamer? Oh my goodness, yes.
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TOD SWANK @todswank
1) What’s the most embarrassing piece of music in your collection? I’m not sure. I palletized all my records years ago. Time capsule. 2) Most cherished music in your collection? I used to collect anything. The Damned, Stave Albini and Sonic Youth. 3) Vinyl, CD, radio or Mpeg? Pandora. 4) What are you listening to right now, as you answer these? Nothing. I am about to put turn on the TV on my iPad as a distraction. 5) Are you embarrassed by photos of yourself as a teenager? Not really. Maybe some. I don’t know. Don’t see them. Out of sight out of mind. I like that pic of me doing a Smith grind at Wizard with you guys that recently popped up. 6) Do you have a photo of yourself as a teenager that you would like to share? I will look. 7) Last place you traveled? Dallas, TX… same time as Ebola.
8) Most enjoyable place you’ve traveled? One of the most epic was Egypt. Did a riverboat trip for a week down the Nile River. Just before Egypt went sideways. 9) How do you pack for a typical trip? Pull out clothes and put them in a bag. Wala! 10) phone camera or other? Other. Panasonic DMC-LF1. Takes great pics. 11) Pencils or pens? One of each. 12) Notebook or phone (iPad)? Usually one of each.
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13) Coffee or tea? Pressed fresh raw juice. 14) Pets or not? Yes, Lola. She is a 11 year young blue coat Shar Pei. Super sweet. Had dogs continually for the 20 plus years. 15) Biggest influence(s) as a 20 something? Skateboarding, art, friends, zines. Music was in the mix too. Typical 80’s skateboarder art fag. 16) Biggest influence(s) now? My 3 year old daughter, Zoë. I’m lost at sea otherwise, pretty much. 17) Is it painful to answer questions? No it’s fun. Then I can look at them later and feel stupid. 18) Introvert, extrovert, or in-between? Is the something before introvert. You can talk to me, just don’t talk to me. 19) Are you a prolific dreamer? I had to look it up. I would say, yes, but dreams do shit unless you actually do something to make them happen. If you are just asking if I dream a lot for the sake of dreaming, I would say yes.
20) Dreams or nightmares? They both happen. Usually I have terrible dreams that include someone I maybe or maybe not was in a relationship with. What does that mean?!? 21) How many hours do you usually sleep during the course of 24 hours? Actually sleep if I am lucky 7 hours. 22) Do you nap? If the opportunity presents itself and I feel like it, yes. 23) Do you own art? If yes, what is your favorite piece? Thrift store art, mostly. Original paintings by someone that lives or lived here on the planet for their allowed time. I just got this amazing painting at a resale for $60 bucks. It’s by someone named Oliveria. I looked the person up and found someone else that it is not. I was looking for almost a year to fill this spot above my couch. When I saw it, I instantly knew it was the one. Cost more to ship home than what I paid for it. 24) Do you like answering questions? You already asked that question in so many words.
©2014 Andy Jenkins / Bend Press
BEND #24 / “Questions” @bendpress
BENNY GOLD BOB STEPHENSON CHERYL DUNN ED TEMPLETON ERICA YARY EVAN HECOX FERRIS PLOCK GARTH MILAN GEOFF McFETRIDGE JASON CROMBIE JASON POLAN JERRY HSU JOHNNY KNOXVILLE JOSH HIGGINS JOSHUA LINER KEVIN WILKINS LORI DAMIANO MARC JOHNSON MARK PENXA MEL KADEL OTIS B. SHAWN STUSSY THOMAS CAMPBELL TOD SWANK TODD BRATRUD TRAVIS MILLARD