Skate Deck Art(ists)

HK Magazine: Where do your inspirations usually come from?
Matt Bailey: When Chris gave me the skateboard I asked “Can I do whatever I want, or do I have to just paint?” I’m quite impatient and sporadic with art so I don’t really like sticking to one style. My inspirations... like a lot of artists, if it’s not the environment, it’s a lot of crazy stuff that’s going on in the brain. Dreams, nightmares, that kind of stuff.
Jessica Lee: I always think that art is not just a single drawing or painting; people can see there’s a different angle. That’s why I liked painting on a skateboard, because it’s really mobile, like the hat I wear. [Lee often uses baseball caps as canvases for her art.]
Peter Yull: I work a lot with historical stuff. I’m a huge fan of history and read historical documents all the time. I’ve always been like that ever since I was a little kid. When I was 14 I made my mom and dad go into the Gettysburg Battlefield and I was running around all excited, and they were really bored.

HK: This exhibit seems to be a combination of fine art and commercial, more “for the masses” art. Do you think there’s a big difference between the two types?
PY: There’s art that should be in a gallery, on the streets, in video form, on TV, and I think it’s kind of weird when things cross over. I was in graffiti art for a long time and I always found it really weird to see a graffiti piece on a canvas in a gallery. It always seemed very out of place for me, and I didn’t really like it. But I think there are no real set rules, just do whatever you want to do. That’s what art is.
JL: People should appreciate both, as long as [the art] touches your mind and heart, whether it’s [worth] 1 million dollars or $100.
Chris Keith: You buy art because you love it, not because of finances or what it’s worth.

HK: What will you be working on after this?
JL: I’m doing an exhibition with a friend, where we’ll be painting on furniture.
PY: This summer I learned to weld because I want to make a giant machine that will perform really rudimentary tasks, like opening a beer or cutting a piece of paper—a giant crank with all these gears.
MB: I’m going to be creating a puppetry multi-media performance that will come out with a children’s book. It’s about a little boy that travels the universe and saves his planet from a black hole.

HK: Have you ever run into any difficulties as artists?
MB: I’ve been doing this art fair for a while [Handmade Hong Kong in Discovery Bay], and usually it’s okay, but this time around I was surrounded by a bunch of artists that were just doing baby clothes, so I was really out of place. I had my prints there, and postcards, sculptures and stuff, but everyone was shopping for bean bags and handmade jewelry. Usually I do well, I get the odd person here and there who buys a shit ton of my work, but this weekend? Nothing.
JL: The biggest challenge for me was my parents, because they totally disagreed with what I was doing. Now, they’re fine, because they know this makes me happy.
PY: Art is just one non-stop challenge; it’s never easy. You’re always trying to make money and stay alive. It’s also really difficult to find your voice and vision. The hardest part is always the beginning. So many people tell you you’re crazy, especially family members, because they worry about you the most.
CK: Artists can paint, but they’re shit marketers. They can’t tell you what the value [of their work] is. A lot of artists need a good manager or gallery that will help them. It’s really hard to be a good businessman and a good creative person at the same time.

Catch the last chance to see Bailey, Lee and Yuill’s work (along with work by 28 other artists) this weekend.