Filipino living in Chicago, Illinois. Moved to the USA as a teenager. Served in the US Army for 8 years as a Combat Engineer. Studied at American Academy of Art for Illustration, Illinois Institute of Art for Media Arts/Animation & Multimedia Communication. Creative for life.
1. What kind of art weapons do you use to CREATE?
I was classically trained as an artist and proficient in pencil/pen/brush/etc, but have embraced working with the digital side of art. At first I started with a Mac then moved into working with a PC (OMG right?). The tools are not important, what you have in the grey matter is. I just treat every medium as a tool to create my art with so the computer (Mac or PC) is my new pencil.
2. When was the moment you fell in love with ART?
Art has been with me ever since I was a little kid. My dad was an artist and my mom was as well, so it pretty much ran in the family and was woven to my very being. Growing up, my life was filled with art – although back then, I was not aware that I had the talent for art and thought that every kid could do what I do, but my parents saw the ability and started me on what I know now as training. My dad would “train” me by drawing a circle and asking me if I could imitate it. He’d make me fill a page of the same circle, then lines then so on and so forth. When I moved to the US from the Philippines, I felt like an outcast, so I turned to my own devices and turned to my art for solace. In that moment, that is when art and creating became my true passion. I was hooked ever since.
3. What is your purpose to CREATE?
As an artist we all have this insatiable drive to create, create, create. It is like breathing for an artist and it is my way of expanding my self/being outside of the human vessel that I am confined in. The more I create, the more I can breathe. The more I can live, the more I can leave a legacy outside the walls of my mortal being. The body can and will die, but the things you create can continue living and affect people future generations forever.
4. Is there a particular message you want to communicate through your artwork?
It’s an expression of me as a filter. What is fed through me, through my mind and my senses is outputted through my art. It is what I perceive as beauty. What I believe to be right. What I feel needs to be expressed.
5. What is your meaning behind the word, “philARThropy?”
philARThropy is giving by the means of art, specifically my art.
6. How do you plan on using your creativity and imagination to give back to your community and make a difference?
They say pictures can mean a thousand words and I would like to have my art be those words. I want my art to be the hand that is raised and be noticed so that I can put a voice to something that I feel needs to be noticed by society.
7. What would be your contribution to the art community?
Myself, my art, and my vision (see #4)
8. What message would you give to a young artist who is trying to find their place in the art world?
Try and try hard, dont give up, believe in yourself and never stop creating.
Remember the 10k hour rule. To be great at what you do you need to devote at least 10,000 hours to your craft. So the earlier that you can start on your craft, the sooner you will get to be awesome at what you do. You will not be amazing from the start and that’s alright. Just remember this: Anybody that you meet who is incredible at what they do, has a whole lot to back up and justify how they got to that point.
Finally, remember the 4 P’s.
Practice - Majority of what you need is this.
Passion - Don’t half ass what you do. It’s either you love it one million percent or go home.
Perseverance - This is to get you though the rough patches you may run into in your life.
Patience - Anything that is worth anything requires this.
9. If you had the chance to collaborate with another artist, what would be the #1 thing on your art bucket list of creative projects you’d like to complete?
I would like to collaborate with artists all around the world on something/anything as long as it is the first one of its kind.
10. What kind of art legacy do you want to leave with the world?
See #3.