Mig Kokinda (US)

Mig Kokinda (US)

"Eclecticism" ? Yes, you can definitly use this word for Mig. Just take a look at the  bands he worked for, or the kind of music you could hear entering his place, and you will probably have a better understanding why his work covers such a wide range of skills. His work is pure handicraft and really deserve a close and long look !

Hello, of course as every Crewk interview, first question: what are we
listening to when we come to visit you?

- the Clash, Curtis Mayfield, Tammy Wynette, Verdi, The Jam, Motorhead, Mozart, the Minutemen, David Bowie, Roberta Flack, Dusty Springfield or maybe a book on tape.

Can you tell us more about yourself, who are you, where are you from,
what do you do?

-I was born to an American GI and a German woman. I was raised to work hard and to appreciate simple things. I've always loved working with my hands and I've always loved to travel. I married a painter, and now have two rowdy boys and a dog. I am here in Austin Texas. I make posters with spray paint and stencils.

When did you start drawing?

-As a child,watching my siblings and cartoons.

Did you follow any course or did you improve by drawing in the margins
of your schoolbooks?

-I've always tried to improve through any and all means: classes, museums,books,people.

Today are you living from your art, or do you do something else for a living ?

-I've lived through art for the past 20 years. I tattoo (mainly) but also make posters, do design work and work for a museum.

Are you collaborating with magazines/fanzines, regularly?

-Not so much.

Where does your influence come from? Is there any artists/graphists

you particularly like, what are your influences?

-From everywhere: Alphonse Mucha, Richard Scarry, Jose Posada, the WPA,Albert Uderzo, all propaganda, graphic arts from any era, tattoo art, Andrew Loomis, old lettering books, Toulouse-Lautrec, Yoshitoshi, Greg Irons, older animation, Philippe Fix, Wallace Tripp, too much to name.. a lot of my contemporaries as well...

What are the principal steps in your work ?

-Everything is done by hand. First, I figure out a basic layout for the poster. I draw out the main image and, once satisfied, add all the text around it.

  I decide how to separate the colors, and then begin cutting each stencil-testing them out along the way. Posters are usually anywhere from four  to twelve stencils (which take about a day to cut) and then it takes about two days to make 30 to 40 posters. I keep the edition numbers low, because at around 50 posters, the stencils begin to lose their detail (getting clogged with paint). Each poster, because of my process, looks slightly different from the next.

Do you do everything by hand or on computer?

-By hand. 

How long does it take you to do a poster?

-From four days to a week,once I get going (from concept to stack of posters).

You have a very distinctive style, are you doing only what you feel
like or if tomorrow somebody asks you an oil painting with horses
running out of water with a sunset backdrop, is it a problem or are
you up for it ?

-I'm up for anything-that's how I've lived through art for all these years.

For which band have you already worked for?

-Boxcar Satan, Sonic Youth, the Minutemen, Mayer Hawthorne,Mission of Burma, the Marching Plague, Joss Stone, Fearless Iranians from Hell, Avett Brothers, King Diamond,Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears, the Gourds,the Flamin Hellcats, Fugazi, Steelpole Bathtub, Sloppy Seconds,Turbonegro, MC5 and El Santo.

For which band would you love to work?

-Motorhead, George Jones,Andrew Bird Southern Culture on the Skids, Wild Flag, Pink Martini

Do you choose the artists yourself?

-Sometimes, sometimes not.

What is the most difficult part in designing a poster ?

-It's always something different: sometimes it's coming up with the right imagery, sometimes it's waiting out the rain so that I can paint.

Do you think you are part of a "Graphic Scene", if so who else ?

-Sometimes, sometimes not.

You will attend Flatstock 2012, is it the first time you take part of
such an event ? What are you expecting from it ?

-I've been doing it since Flatstock 2- now it is Flatstock 33. I'm doing it right now. And I expect to talk a whole lot and explain the process of stencils a whole lot.

A bit of self-promotion, take advantage of it, it's free, where can we
see your work , on the web or in real life?

-www.migkokinda.com          But it is in dire need of an update.

The best praise you received lately?

- My 7 year old told me that I can draw really, really good.

What can we wish you for the future?

-That I live to a ripe old age and I retain all my faculties.