1xRun: How long have you been writing for?
Remio: Since the mid 80’s. I didn’t meet any other writers (other than a kid who showed me a blackbook, skateboard & the Beastie Boys tape) until the late 90’s. I grew up on a small island in Norway, there was no graff when I was kid.
1xRun: What inspires you outside of graffiti?
Remio: Surfing, my family, nature, my friends
1xRun: Describe your last trip to Detroit in one word
Remio: Icy
1xRun: Does your infamous R character have a name? It feels like an entity all by itself.
Remio: My so calls him Remio…..It’s turned into it’s own world for sure
1xRun: When did you first start making art? Do you remember your first piece?
Remio: I started making art as a child. I can’t really remember my first piece, maybe some finger painting or something. The first thing I remember being proud of was drawing a serpent like dragon in the ocean, figuring out the rings of water around the dragons body as it was coming out of the water was a big step back then.
1xRun: Do you think your son would be stoked to have a wood cutout in his room?
Remio: Oh yeah! He has the prototype.
1xRun: What artists inspired you early on?
Remio: Comic books. I would read them with my dad. In Norway it was mostly Disney stuff rewritten into Norwegian. Donald Duck, Mickey all that stuff. There was also Mad Magazine and Pyton Magazine. Pyton was like a Norwegian Mad, raunchier though.
1xRun: What artists inspire you now?
Remio: My son, he’s completely uninhibited in the way he draws.
1xRun: Did you ever think that you would make a living off graffiti? Is it strange to go ouut bombing & then turn a profit from from the same act on a different medium?
Remio: To say I make a living is a stretch. Its meager, enough for one maybe. It’s a challenging transition, bombing is still bombing. But I’m a Papa now, even though I haven’t stopped painting illegally. Painting and drawing and graffiti have been interwoven for me since day one. So now i have to weave the family into those acts and baby’s gotta eat.
1xRun: Do you listen to music while you work?
Remio: Definitely! All types, sometimes its nice to work in silence though. I like Johnny Cash and Willie Nelson. I have a live recording of theirs that never gets old. Their banter between songs is real good. I work on the road a lot, so my environment always changes. Usually I try to find a nice chill little zone to get some stuff done in, although more often than not I just have to get to it in the middle of all the chaos.
1xRun: If you could collaborate with any deceased artists who would it be and why?
Remio: Kurt Cobain made some really cool art. He seemed like an honest spirit.
1xRun: If you could collaborate with any living artist who would it be and why?
Remio: Maybe a musician like Neil Young. I’m not sure what we would come up with but I love his music. He wrote some of my favorite songs. He’s into trains too. I know that much.
1xRun: What was the first piece of art that you bought? Do you still have it?
Remio: Yes I do, it was a print from Bill Daniels of a Bozo Texino drawing.
1xRun: Where do you hope to see you work in the future?
Remio:I’m not sure really. I spoke to a Frenchman about this same topic once. He said ” it’s important that your future work ends up with other important work”
Check out the full collection here.
1xRun: Where else can people find you?
Remio: Website – Instagram – Twitter
-1xRUN