meevdear asked: What are some of your biggest inspirations for your artwork? <:

There are good number of sources that influence me; I could really talk about it forever… From a very young age, I formed a very boring and quiet addiction of forceful attraction in the mundane — and my brain basically became a sponge for beautiful things. Like a perpetual “seeing past the beast”, and simultaneous humbling of the “beautiful”.

Some particular artists I believe have had profound influence on my work:
Ukiyo-e (Yoshitoshi, and Kuniyoshi), countless Children’s Book Illustrators (Rackham, Dulac, Lane Smith) , Comics (Mckean, RAW magazine artists, bernie wrightson, miller, kelley jones), brutal 80’s style Animes and foreign animators (jan svankmejer, jiri barta, quay bros).

Most of my family went into the medical field on my Mother’s side and I was given many of her old medical books to thumb through  as a child. Via Western classicism I wanted to learn about the human body.

I find silver-screen faces beautifully idealistic.

I have a strong inclination toward the “haunted”, supernatural, and morbid. This is just who I am.  Basically all of my dreams are grotesque and shape a lot about me as well.

I’ve also always been drawn to religious iconography from basically every culture.

In the Western sense in particular, the feelings in classical pieces of art left strewn in the wake of a still “naive to science” and “tormented but hopeful” vision of god are deeply moving to me, and irreplicable . 

My personal opinion is that, at one point, art had seeming purpose to make evident god/s very existence; this beyond what was observed within weather/nature, and human emotion. It has a real power that has a legacy deeply imbued within our history.

I’m most drawn to the invisible world of lines, and those who have strength in their line-work. Hence, many of my artistic influences.
Being an Asian-American, I aim for a mash-up of Eastern and Western aesthetics to provide strength to both of my childhood perspectives of what is great.

Beyond the strictly visual: I read as often as possible to keep my imagination greased… and music is artistic meditation — I don’t care what my past teachers have told me.

Thank you for asking me! I hope my answer was not too stale.