Battlemouth

And we’re back! The Indie Artist Series is always one of my favorites to do as I get to toss some nods to some friends as well as some favorite artists! For those of you new to my little series here is some info…
This little idea came out of a desire to spend all of my money on new pieces to add to my collection or hang on the wall. Thanks to the internet, and twitter, it has become nearly impossible to not find new favorite artists on a daily basis for me…there is a limitless number of incredibly talented artists out there, however there are limits to my wallet. Unfortunately for artists, and art lovers alike, the economy in most of the worlds countries is not as hot as it has been, and when times get tight art buyers find themselves saving, or spending on inflating bills more so than art. Of course, this is not a new concept, the term “starving artist” has been a part of the common vernacular for many a year. So I thought to myself one night, “Aaron what could you do to help out some of your favorite artists since you can’t buy every thing everyone makes? Duh, everyone loves free advertising!” So yes in a nutshell, I am marketing these uber-talented men and women to the masses of the interwebs in hopes that someone else that might not have spent money, will spend it now…and it will be all because of me. Even if no one makes an extra sale, it is important for artists to get their names out there as much as possible, and I think it is vital to the well-being of your soul to learn about a new artist of some sort everyday. I will be interviewing several independent artists about their styles throughout this series, and we will wrap up with (hopefully) a big surprise celebrity interview featuring some of your questions! So, without further delay, lets get started with the series!

There are islands scattered all over this beautiful world of ours. Some large, some small, some full of coconuts, and some full of kiwi. My first Indie Artist is a gentleman who has done some incredible work with his collage style of illustration and painting for custom designer vinyl pieces, as well as original paintings and sketches. He has also made a few brilliant tees using his unique design experiences. Hailing from the grand island in the sun that is New Zealand, Richard Kuoch, is storming the gates of art lovers minds with his fun and unique take on life through art! Of course, you might know him better by Podgypanda! His awesome characters are full of life and emotion. Some of my favorite pieces by Podgypanda are so fantastic because you can look at them for hours and see new images and pieces all the time, it’s amazing! A super friendly guy and an incredibly talented artist, Podgypanda agreed be the starter for our Indie Artist Series this round!

Aaronthestrong- Who is Podgypanda?

Podgypanda- Podgypanda is Richard Kuoch, a 2d animator, graphic designer, illustrator and doodler from ‘lil wee New Zealand.

ATS- Your unique style is both complex and beautiful. How has your style evolved into what it is now from when you started?

PP- Thanks! I’ve always been a fan of complex doodled designs, its something you can stare at for ages and ages, its kinda like, more bang for your buck haha! I guess it all came about when I just started doodling characters with a black pen on an old canvas, and thought “Hey, this looks kinda cool!” From there I experiment with different colours and stuff, and eventually, a friend convinced me to try translating a canvas doodle onto a 8inch Kidrobot munny. The rest is history

ATS- Twilight vs. True Blood vs. Vampire Hunter D

PP- True blood ftw. Anna Pacquin’s (Sookie) a kiwi, that’s win in my books

ATS- What kind of music inspires you to create?

PP- Anything with a catchy beat really. At the moment I’m really into like, heavy drum and bass stuff. I guess the oompf oompf oompf of it is kinda mind numbing, perfect for mind numbing doodles

ATS- You recently completed a gorgeous Mega Munny custom. What was the inspiration for this latest custom?

PP- Thanks! it was the first mega munny (or anything that size for the matter) i’ve ever attempted, so i’m pretty happy with how it turned out! The commissioner really liked my angel and devil characters (Angels name is Smoochez, Devil’s name is Ricardo ) and wanted me to do something with them. Playing to their characteristics, Smoochez is always kinda lazy and mucks around alot, and Ricardo loves to eat, so i thought, why not do heaps of them, doing heaps of different things?! 3 and a 1/2 months later, voila. Damn it took ages to do haha.

ATS- You have some illustrations of some originial characters that would make brilliant toys, any thoughts on working on getting any of them turned into production pieces?

PP- Yes! Totally I’ve sent a few pitches around of some character turnarounds to some companies. Still awaiting replies but defiantly a big dream of mine is to get some Podgypanda figures made. (then i can tick it off my to do list, haha)

ATS- What can we expect to see next in the Podgypanda line?

PP- I’ve many more things planned up my sleeve! A big one for me is my first ever Solo art show, its going to be at www.thisisnation.com in Calgary, Canada (very very very very very far away from ‘lil ol New Zealand hah) which is going down April 2010. I’ve got a theme locked down and started sketching for it. Is 4 months too short for a solo show? I guess ill soon find out! Going to be flying out their too, because I enjoy people mocking my kiwi accent.
I’m also currently working on a Podgypanda Apparel range, where instead of the odd t shirt release, an actual plethora (by plethora, i mean like 3 shirts at a time) of shirts and stuff released yearly, or twice yearly (which is a slow process as its fully self funded!) And many more doodley customs in the works

Remember people, the internet is your friend! Follow Podgypanda on twitter or check out his website www.podgypanda.com

Be sure to follow me on twitter as well, @Aaronthestrong for the most up to the minute updates on when the next part of the series will be going live! Viva la Viva la Viva!