Chris Saunders Debuts With Gold Owlage

1xRun Thru Interview
Gold Owlage by Chris Saunders

1xRun: Tell us a little bit about this piece, is the original still for sale?
Chris Saunders: I am excited to be offering this piece as my first print for sale through 1xRun because it symbolizes so much change and evolution in my life. This was the first piece I created that I felt somewhat satisfied with. Rarely do I feel content when I walk away from a piece of art I create, this one to me feels balanced and represents where I am in my life with my artwork. The original is not for sale. I have this design done as a laser etching as well.

1xRun: Was this piece part of a recent theme, series or show that you had? If so how did it fit into that given grouping?
Chris Saunders: This piece is part of a series of animals I have been working on for a while now. It was originally a part of a larger totem piece with a Bengal tiger, but after creating the piece I realized the animals were powerful enough to live in their own space so i broke the piece up into the individual animals.

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1xRun: When was the piece created and with what materials?
Chris Saunders: It was created in May of 2012. This edition is screen printed on black matte paper and printed with gold/silver metallic and spot varnished with glossy black.  The original was a drawing that I did in my sketchbook., from there I used that as a reference to create a vector illustration.

1xRun: Tell us how the idea and execution came about?
Chris Saunders: A lot my artwork is loaded with symbolism and sacred geometry. I was getting lots of visions about owls and symbols of wisdom. One night I set out for a hike up in the mountains and at the trail head saw the silhouette of a very large owl. It looked like a statue as the moonlight highlighted it’s massive body. When I got closer to it, it stretched out it’s long wings and I stood there frozen taking in the moment of seeing this powerful bird rise above me. I couldn’t make out a lot of the detail but could feel it’s strong presence. I felt very inspired to recreate that moment.

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1xRun: How long did the piece take?
Chris Saunders: The piece took about one month to create.

1xRun: What is unique about this piece?
Chris Saunders: The piece is a one of kind screen print that captures the original piece of art beautifully.

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1xRun: Why should people buy this print?
Chris Saunders: The delicate fine detail is captured beautifully with the printing process and really came out quite beautiful.

1xRun: Describe this piece in one gut reaction word.
Chris Saunders: Powerful.

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1xRun: When did you first start making art? What was your first piece?
Chris Saunders: I first started making art when I was 2 years old. My first piece was for a contest in my hometown to draw a picture of Fiskes General Store. Fiskes General Store was a store in my town that had all sorts of cool toys, art supplies and lots of candy. I worked for weeks on the drawing and made it so perfect. The night before the contest my little brother took the drawing and drew a bunch of ghosts and weird animals in the front windows. I was so mad I almost killed him. My mom worked for hours to erase all the ghosts etc and she turned it in on time and I ended up winning the contest.

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1xRun: What artists inspired you early on? What artists inspire you now?
Chris Saunders: Early on Wayne White, Shel Silverstein, Dr Suess, Roald Dahl and  Vernon Courtland Johnson.  As for now, Salvador Dali, James Jean, Warhol, Cryptik, Retna, Aya Kato, Aaron Horkey, Hans Haveron, John Park and James Turrell are all continually inspiring for me.

1xRun: Do you listen to music while you work? If so what?
Chris Saunders: I do listen to music. Lots of classic rock like Hendrix, Zeppelin and Floyd. Love the Chili Peppers, The Talking Heads, Radiohead, and The Clash. Also really into Major Lazer at the moment as well.

1xRun: If you could collaborate with any living artist who would it be and why? Any deceased artists?
Chris Saunders: I would love to collab with Bjork because she is always doing insanely creative things. For the latter, I’d love to collab with Dali for his use of symbolism and because he seemed like a fun dude to hang out with.

1xRun: What was the first piece of art that you bought? Do you still have it? The last?
Chris Saunders: First piece of art I bought was by Hans Haveron. The last was a piece from John Park.

1xRun: Where else can people find you?
Chris Saunders: FacebookInstagram @chrissaundersart

-1xRUN