1xRUN Thru Interview
Defiance In The Hour If Darkness by Ron Zakrin
1xRun: Tell us a little bit about this latest print that you created for 1xRUN collectors…
Ron Zakrin: It’s called Defiance In The Hour Of Darkness. The piece was meant to be part of my Assassin Nation series, but it does not rely on the series for context because at its core it’s a tribute to my early days of raising hell and evading capture by law enforcement, which, I am proud to say, I was remarkably good at. The series is a way for me to portray human nature with all of its flaws in a condensed manner, it could just as easily have been a bunch of plumbers, but the Assassin works for me because of the black costumes they wear gives me consistency and simplicity of form. When I get into a series, I have to explore it, run it into the ground, pick it up and dust it off, make it concrete.
1xRun: What materials were used to create this piece?
Ron Zakrin: For this piece I used acrylic paint as usual, but I also used some construction grade acrylic polymer mixed with powdered line chalk, which is a fluorescent orange. It really opened up my palette, so I picked up some acrylic colors in the fluorescent spectrum and the word vivid hardly does justice to describe the results of my labor.
1xRun: When was this pieces created?
Ron Zakrin: I made this painting in Spring of this year.
1xRun: Tell us how the idea and execution came about?
Ron Zakrin: I was set on expanding the Assassin Nation series, and wanted a full blown battle between the Assassins and their arch enemy, the Samurai. It evolved into a chase scene that has a political undertone. Facing daunting odds, our heroes outnumbered and in full retreat exhibit for the world to see the spirit of defiance that can’t be broken by overwhelming force.
1xRun: How long did this piece take?
Ron Zakrin: Waaaaaaay too long.
1xRun: What is unique about this piece compared with your other work?
Ron Zakrin: The palette used for this piece is a new direction, for sure. I’m taking lessons from this piece and applying them to a few new works. The fluorescent colors are fraught with the dangers of producing a neon nightmare, so a subtle and reasoned approach is required.
1xRun: Why should people buy one of these prints?
Ron Zakrin: I think people should only buy something if it serves a function, which art does not. But, with art, buy it if it moves you, bring it into your home if you feel a connection to the work. Do the colors or the composition alone speak to you or is there in the subject matter something that you relate to or simply enjoy? Yes? Then claim it and hang it.
1xRun: Describe this piece in one gut reaction word.
Ron Zakrin: Saturated.
1xRun: Aside from painting up a storm, what else have you been up to since your last exhibition Beauty & The Beats?
Ron Zakrin: I have been recording and composing some heavy hitting disco with my accomplice Dr. Disko Dust. I’ve been setting up a printing process that involves foam and bristles. Just wrapped up the Dally in the Alley poster. Working on a zine. And I just built a ceiling for my music studio out of a shipping crate.
1xRun: Where else can people find you?
Ron Zakrin: Website – Facebook – Instagram @zakrin
-1xRUN