1xRun: For those who are not familiar with your work, give us a quick introduction.
J.A.W. Cooper: Someone once described my work to me as illustrations of folklore and mythology from a surreal alternate reality… and I thought that was pretty fantastic.
1xRun: Do you have some recurring themes in your work you find yourself returning to?
J.A.W. Cooper: Oh absolutely! Some recurring animals (such as cicadas) have particular significance to me and the more I use the the more they become symbols as part of a visual language. Thematically I am fascinated by nature and natural systems, the science of perception, and the tension between “wildness” and “civilization” both externally and internally, and my works tend to reflect those interests.
1xRun: What are some of the adversities you have working through a piece? How do you overcome them?
J.A.W. Cooper: Each piece presents new challenges. Careful prep and planning can allow you to mitigate a great deal of trouble, but there is always that uncontrollable variable which crops up. I tend to think of mistakes and adversities as opportunities for creative problem solving and unexpected detail.
1xRun: Looking at your work, who are some influences that people might not see at first glance?
J.A.W. Cooper: Hokusai, Hiroshige, Sargent, Leyendecker, Haeckel, Audubon, Mucha, Toulouse-Lautrec, Steinlen and Chéret.
1xRun: How has this year been shaping up for you so far, bring us up to speed on what you’ve been up to since our last release?
J.A.W. Cooper: My August 2015 solo show at La Luz De Jesus gallery in Hollywood is right around the corner so that’s consuming the lions share of my time at the moment!
1xRun: What else is on the horizon for you this summer?
J.A.W. Cooper: Once the work for my show is done I’m going to treat myself to 2-4 weeks of camping solo up the west coast through Oregon, Washington, the Idaho Panhandle, Montana, and hopefully up to Banff in Canada if I have time. Besides that I’m working on publishing a collection of sketches and I’ll be making a series of video tutorials available soon as well!
1xRun: Where else can people find you?
J.A.W. Cooper: Website – Instagram@jawcooper
-1xRUN