A Cursed Blessing: How Art Saved Sean Gonzales

By Eliseo Garcia

Sean Gonzales with his work

The Curse of 2020 and How Art Got Sean Gonzales Through a Pandemic

“Art is something I never grew out of,” Sean Gonzales said, his arms, tattooed like a canvas. “It was something I always liked to do. Some kids like to play sports, I would doodle. In school, most guys played football; I had notebooks full of drawings.”

Gonzales, a truck driver by trade living in west Texas, worked long hours for days on end. He lacked motivation, and the long days stole the wind from his creative sails. He daydreamed at work, wondering what was next in his life.

During the pandemic, his work hours were cut, and like many people, he had trouble with bills and rent. Gonzales was given the option of a voluntary layoff. With his children away at college he was alone.

“I would start to miss my kids. I would go through little rough patches, fall into depression and stay in bed locked away in my room.” While the pandemic was a curse, it forced Gonzales to do what he had always dreamed of doing. The once-trucker turned to art, and he found that creative desire again in his hometown of Clinton, Oklahoma.

The Blessing

Gonzales’ children, who are his biggest critics and artistic guides, could visit more frequently after the move. “I like that my kids will give it to me raw—they don’t sugar coat; they don’t hold back,” said Gonzales. “During the pandemic, I rediscovered my love for art.”

After battling his panic and personal demons, Gonzales moved back to his hometown of 20,000 people, but he never thought he would return to pursue his art. However, Clinton is the birthplace of his passion for creation.

In the fourth grade Gonzales was once given an assignment to draw what he wanted to be when he grew up. He remembered the drawing made it on the front page of the Clinton Daily News at the age of ten or eleven. “I drew myself as an artist, painting on an easel, wearing a beret with a lamp shining down on me. The art became more therapeutic. I started doing more painting, to keep my mind busy,” he said. With ideas always in his head during 2020, he was able to dedicate more time to his true passion.

Influences and Pop Artists

Gonzales attributes cartoons, Star Wars, and comic books as early influences. He was also fascinated by his uncle Adolfo’s detailed artwork. As a collector of Topps Garbage Pail Kids trading cards, Gonzales once wrote Topps with examples and ideas of new characters. Someone from Topps wrote him back and told him they loved his ideas, but Gonzales thought because of child labor laws, they couldn’t employ him as an artist.

When he enrolled in art class in eighth grade his art teacher praised his work and encouraged him to continue. His teacher gravitated towards him, impressed with the young artist’s ability. “I was one of six people in eighth grade to receive a certificate of special recognition for art at graduation if I remember correctly.”

Early on, his drawing sketches were primarily in pencil and he worked little with color. “I was always intimidated by colors and paint,” he said, “There are a lot of artists that I love and like to emulate.” Gonzales said artists Andy Warhol, Salvador Dali, Alec Monopoly, Steven Paul Judd, D*Face, Alex Pardee, and Banksy were the artists who inspired him the most.

Left: Sean Gonzales, Be Quiet and Drive, acrylics and spray paint on MDF board, 24” x 30” Above: Sean Gonzales, Moonage Daydream, mixed media, Lego panels, acrylics and spray paint in resin on MDF board, 31” x 31”

Gonzales pre-enrolled in the Art Institute of Dallas, but never followed through due to his responsibilities as a parent to two young children. Years later he would discover another way to perfect his craft. “I saw this commercial for The Art Instruction Schools around 2007 or 2008, and I got accepted for home study courses,” he said. He completed several of the drawing assignment, but again life’s challenges got in the way.

More Than a Hobby

Walking into Gonzales’ home is like entering an art gallery. His walls are adorned with his original works alongside works from some of his favorite artists. Masks from the Marvel Universe and Star Wars creations are scattered throughout.

When he returned to Clinton, his family and friends visited and marveled at his art collection. “One of my aunts asked me, ‘did you paint these?’ and gave me a picture of what she wanted and asked if I could paint it, so it took off from there.” That first commission led Gonzales to realize his hobby could become so much more. By word of mouth through family and friends, he began to get more and more requests. Starting out in his living room, and then out into his garage, his art and paintings kept growing.

Gonzales, AKA Swab, created an Instagram page @swabscream dedicated to his art. “I started with maybe 60 followers, and now I’m at 4,400 plus followers,” he said. He was invited by another relocated artist and friend Cody McElroy better known as Dirty Needle Embroidery, to join him at the art space of West OK CO-OP , located at 613 Frisco Ave. in Clinton Oklahoma.

He has been commissioned to paint star athletes like standouts CeeDee Lamb and Trey Sermon to icons Selena, Madonna, and Audrey Hepburn. “Someone actually tagged Sermon on my Instagram post of the painting I was working on, and I was honored that he responded,” Gonzales said.

During the 2021 Cinco de Mayo festival in Clinton, Gonzales rented a booth to display his art and did a live painting adorning his favorite sugar skull mask. “I can remember this lady came up to me and wanted a picture. I started to pose without my mask, and she looked at me saying, ‘You’re not going to wear the mask?’” From then on, the mask has been SWAB’s calling card. “I love the mask; it makes me feel like a kid–it’s like a whole other persona and I’d rather take photos with the mask on,” Gonzales said.

The pandemic has thrust SWAB back into his art and he has no plans on looking back. “I’d rather grind and do what I’ve always wanted to do than go back to my old job. I don’t want it to come to that,” he said. Thus, his favorite Salvador Dali quote: “Those who do not want to imitate anything, produce nothing.”

“I would be honored in the years to come if my art inspires future artist to emulate my style,” said Gonzales. n

Eliseo “Rudy” Garcia, a University of Central Oklahoma graduate, is a curious, well-rounded, father, actor, writer,Tex-Mex living in Oklahoma. They can be reached at eliseogarcia.okc@gmail.com.