Saturday, October 26, 2013

Interview with Jared Konopitski.


Full Name:
Jared Konopitski

Do you have a nickname or what do your friends call you?
Frijolito, and George. George was from my Grandpa. And I am not sure why he called me that from time to time…
My grandmother had four children named John, Jim, Judy, and Jan. Guess she had a thing for the letter “J”. When she’d get pissed at me she’d be so flustered that she’d have to run through all four before getting to my name so when I was bad I was “JohnJimJudyJanScottSeanLefebvre!”
Ha ha! Yeah, my brother’s name is James. So I feel your pain. My mother did call us “Jarames” and “Jamred” a lot.

Birthplace:
As most humans, earth. More Specifically Sacramento California.

Current hometown:
Sacramento. I have traveled to the ends of the earth, but have settled back here.

Favorite city and why?
San Francisco, Tokyo, and I saw this city once in a comic that was built in a tree upon a flying whale. San Francisco has its own unique mystery lurking around every corner. I have never been to Tokyo, but it looks like a trippy place. I have been to Hong Kong China and that was fun, but I think Tokyo Japan would be even weirder. And the city upon a whale kinda speaks for itself as far as awesome goes.

Birthday/Age:
I am 32 years survived. Born in the summer of 1981, a hundred years after the incidents of 1881. The incidents we don’t speak of.

How would you describe yourself physically?
You ever see those billboards for the Gun Show Conventions? Those do a good job summing up my physique. Except replace the word guns with my biceps. And you have a good idea.

How would someone else describe you physically?
 Scrawny white guy.

The first thing people notice about you is…
The deceased conjoined twin rotting on my left side.

Hair Color / Eye Color / Race?
Black, Brown and White. On any other description, that is kind of a gross color combination.

Sexual orientation?
Straight. However, I did attend Drag Queen Bingo once.

Religion, if any?
Yeah, I have a few opinions that have turned into beliefs. Cleanliness is next to Godliness. And God made dirt, and dirt don’t hurt.

Are you superstitious at all?
I am superstitious about answering questions about superstitions.

Any phobias?
I am HORRIBLY afraid of Black Widow spiders!

Do you smoke/drink? If so, what?
I used to then my body got allergic to it all.
However, I do drink the occasional Absinthe.
The real stuff from Europe, not that fake California rip off stuff.

Any bad habits?
Yeah, I like to pretend I have a form of Tourettes, so that I can cuss profanities in public and random.

Current occupation/Dream job:
Artist/ Artist that can afford to quit my day job.



The Early Birds and the Little Blue Elephants

What do you like to do when you’re not at work?
Find adventures, travel with my amazing wife, watch cartoons, find rare films, and go see other peoples arts.

What is your zombie outbreak survival plan?
That is a secret for now, part of the plan is keeping my plan secret. You will see what I mean when it happens.

Weapon of choice:
The pen is mightier than the sword. So I figure a pen/sword combo would do the trick.

Do you have any special skills?
I am extremely bad at interviews. Is that a skill?
You’re doing a pretty decent job this time around.
Ha ha! Dang, I thought I was bad at doing interviews. So it turns out I am bad at doing bad in interviews. So that is my skill and I am owning it!

Did you go to college and, if so, what for?
I did for a moment. For art. Than I realized I didn’t really need school to do art. So stopped and just did art.

If you went to college, did you manage to pay off your student loans?
I paid for it all up front. However, it was a community college, so it was not that impressive.




Roots

Any pets? If so, what are they and what are their names?
Yes. 2 Puffer Fish, now carrying on the legacy of our deceased eel named Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch. All that is left is the funky bunch. A weird slithery dragon worm fish thing, that we call nasty. A frog named Frog, after a poem about a frog. And I have bunch of preserved specimens in jars.

What is your favorite animal?
Frogs, platypus, and minotaurs.

Speaking of pets, any pet peeves?
Any one driving on the same road as I am. They all seem to peeve me off in one some way.

Favorite / Least favorite Food:
Sushi, Thai food and fried chicken. Then, a few hours later, my least favorite food is sushi, Thai food and fried chicken.

What is your favorite quotation / motto / saying?
“Screw art and just make cool stuff.”

What is the best thing that ever happened to you?
I met my wife, Raina. Life has been amazing ever since!

What is the worst thing that ever happened to you?
I can’t answer this yet. Life has finished with me…..

Ever had your heart broken?
Yeah.
Is there a story worth telling behind your answer?
No, it is pretty typical. However, it did teach me a lot about myself…

Ever broken someone’s heart?
Hmm, I am not sure. I think I have, but you would have to ask them, just to be sure.
Is there a story worth telling behind your answer?
I am not sure, depends on their answer…

What is the best thing you’ve ever done?
Married my wife and decided to make fun things everyday.

What is the worst thing you’ve ever done?
I used to catch bees with my bare hands when I was young. That was pretty stupid.
I imagine it was pretty stingy.
It wasn’t swell. Or wait, yes it was. Oh, I am not good puns.

If you could kill one person, consequence free, who would it be and why?
Maybe Adam from Adam and Eve fame. It would have saved everyone a lot of trouble.

What do you do?
I make art! I show it to people and they pay me. Sometimes I get to do fun random things with it and go on adventures and meet cool people because of it too!

How did you get started doing what you do?
I loved creating. Then, I said one day, I am gonna call myself artist. I told others this and they believed me. I started showing in galleries, museums, books and even a bit on TV.

What is your advice to other people that want to get started doing what you do?
Never stop creating! Everyday! Be obsessed with it. Don’t have fear of rejection. You will have plenty of it. Go to art shows and meet people. Be friendly. Communicate when given opportunities. Let the bad people just roll off your back, and be a friend to the good ones. But let kindness, creativity, hard work, passion, integrity and perseverance fuel all that you do. And above all, never become jaded.

What are some of the projects you’ve worked on/finished in the past? Give us a little history if you will.
I made a 40+ page comic. Every panel was to be hand painted making over 80 individual paintings. I performed at a lot shows with my live paints. Made over 50 small paintings for the Art O Mat company. Was published in Heavy Metal Magazine and Color Ink Book. And have had over a dozen group and solo art shows this year.

What projects are you working on now?
I am going to be in a Dr. Who 50th anniversary show at Meltdown Comics in Los Angeles in November. I have a solo show in Berkeley California in November. Working on some post it note art for Giant Robot’s Post It Show 9 this December. And working on pieces for a 3 man show at Dragatomi in January. And doing some voice acting for a radio show.



I Was Me This Way

What are you watching?
Currently watching American Horror Story, Adventure Time, the Eric Andre show and just any random rare film or animation I can get my hands on.

What are you listening to?
Old time radio mystery programs, Melt Banana, Negativeland, the Billy Nayer Show, and Dead Man’s Bones.
Oh! Melt Banana! I did a huge mash-up of all of my Melt Banana once.
http://youtu.be/566Re5EEljE

That was great!!! I also have a weakness for Mash Ups! I can’t get enough of them. So that was pure bliss!
Glad you liked it! Tell your friends! For some weird reason it has only 133 views. That can’t be right. They must mean 133 MILLION!

What are you reading?
Currently, just comics. Multiple Warheads, a variety of comix, Spumco Comics, and Devastator Magazine.

Favorite author / book?
Hmm, I would have to go with comic book artists for this one. Eric Powell, Brandon Graham, Hans Rickheit, Tony Millionaire and so many more!

Favorite band / song?
Billy Nayer Show. All of them.

Least favorite band/song?
Beiber Jonas Direction.

Desert Island Music/Movies/Books: You know the deal. Five of each.
Aww, this question is so dang hard!
Music: Billy Nayer Show, Beck: Odelay, Weird Al’s Greatest Hits, Girl Talk: All Day, and the Oh Brother Where Art Thou? Soundtrack.
Movies:
Pulp Fiction
Spirited Away
Fight Club
Roger Rabbit
Schizopolis or Holy Mountain
Books:
One of the Flight Anthology books
One of the Hi Fructose Box Sets
Hitch Hikers Guide to the Galaxy
Edward Gorey Collection
And an 1800’s farmers almanac

If you could do anything other than what you do now, what would you do?
Oh, I would be a scientist working on advancing string theory and research the mysteries of dark matter.

Who would you want to meet that you haven’t met? You get three choices:
Alive. Dead. Fictional.

Jesus, Finn and Jake, Werner Herzog, William S Burroughs and the first person who ever sneezed.

What’s the best and worst job you’ve ever had?
Artist is best. Working at an office supply retailer is the worst.

Are there any questions that I didn’t ask that you wished I had asked that you would like to answer now?
“Would you like me to give a large chunk of money?” My answer would be, yes.

Anyone you recommend I interview that you can put me in touch with?
Hmm, my friend Eben is a fun guy: he is a comic book creator and you can check out his website here, http://bsquadcomic.com/.

Got any questions for me?
Have you answered all these questions yourself?
It’s odd, but not that odd, that you’re the second consecutive interviewee to ask me that question.
Since you asked, I did have the tables turned on me by my 24th interview subject Michael Welch, so the 25th interview on the site is me being interviewed by him.
http://youareentitledtomyopinioninterviews.blogspot.com/2013/10/you-are-entitled-to-my-opinion_9724.html
Well played sir!
Closing questions / summary / and thanks:
Thanks for allowing me to subject you to being interviewed!
Absolutely! Thanks for interviewing me. Fun questions too I must add. Good times indeed!

Pitch parade:
Give me all of your links for things you want to promote.   All of them.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jared.konopitski
Website: www.jaredkonopitski.com
Etsy:
http://www.etsy.com/people/jareko (soon to be updated)
Society 6:
http://society6.com/JaredKonopitski (prints can be purchased there)

About the Interviewee:
Jared Konopitski is an artist living and working in Sacramento, California. Jared works in many mediums, however primarily with acrylic paintings. His work has been exhibited at galleries, festivals, and museums across the US and Internationally including; The Smithsonian, Washington D.C.; The Crocker Art Museum, Sacramento, CA; and The Mutter Museum, Philadelphia, PA. Jared has had his work featured in Color Ink Book (2013),  Papercut Magazine (2013), Arcana’s Steampunk Originals (2013), Heavy Metal Magazine (2012), Catapult Magazine (2012), DisColouring Book (2012), Penumbra eZine (2012), And Wow!cool! Psycho Nurse Calendar (2011). In addition, Jared has curated numerous gallery shows and corporate art seminars. In his spare time he enjoys facilitating art workshops, with focus on early art education.

About the Interviewer:

Scott Lefebvre has probably read everything you've read and can write about whatever you want him to write about.
Mostly because when he was grounded for his outlandish behavior as a hyperactive school child, the only place he was allowed to go was the public library.
His literary tastes were forged by the works of Helen Hoke, Alvin Schwartz and Stephen Gammell, Ray Bradbury, Richard Matheson, Stephen King, Clive Barker, Edgar Allan Poe, and H. P. Lovecraft.
He is the author of Spooky Creepy Long Island and a contributing author to Forrest J. Ackerman’s Anthology of the Living Dead, Fracas: A Collection of Short Friction, The Call of Lovecraft, and Cashiers du Cinemart.
His reviews have been published by a variety of in print and online media including Scars Magazine, Icons of Fright, Fatally Yours and Screams of Terror, and he has appeared in Fangoria, Rue Morgue and HorrorHound Magazine.
He is the Assistant Program Director for The Arkham Film Society and produces Electronic Music under the names Master Control and LOVECRAFTWORK.
He is currently working on a novel-length expansion of a short-story titled, "The End Of The World Is Nigh", a crowd-funded, crowd-sourced, post-apocalyptic, zombie epidemic project.
Check out the blog for the book here: theendoftheworldisnighbook.blogspot.com
Check out the Facebook Fan Page for the project here: www.facebook.com/TheEndOfTheWorldIsNighBook
Check his author profile at: www.amazon.com/Scott-Lefebvre/e/B001TQ2W9G
Follow him at GoodReads here:
www.goodreads.com/author/show/1617246.Scott_Lefebvre
Check out his electronic music here: soundcloud.com/master_control
And here: master-control.bandcamp.com
Check out his videos at: www.youtube.com/user/doctornapoleon
Check out his IMDB profile here: www.imdb.com/name/nm3678959
Follow his Twitter here: twitter.com/TheLefebvre or @TheLefebvre
Follow his Tumblr here: thelefebvre.tumblr.com
Check out his Etsy here: www.etsy.com/people/arkhamscreenings
Join the group for The Arkham Film Society here:
www.facebook.com/groups/arkhamscreenings
Stalk his Facebook at: www.facebook.com/TheLefebvre
E-mail him at: Scott_Lefebvre@hotmail.com



OPTIONAL: Prove you’re not a replicant.

Question 1:
A tortoise lays on its back, its belly baking in the hot sun beating its legs trying to turn itself over but it can't, not without your help, but you're not helping. Why is that?

I have too many turtles in my hands already! I can’t save them all! Why oh why has someone left all these thousands and thousands of tortoises lying on there backs!!

Question 2:
Describe in single words, only the good things that come in to your mind about your mother.

She birthed me. She doesn’t believe in abortion (which is good for me personally), she is loving, she taught me to be a dreamer and she can cook very good food!


Question 3:
It's your birthday. Someone gives you a calfskin wallet.

I ask: Is it filled with “moo”lah. The crowd goes silent due to the joke being very inappropriate. Especially since, the person that gave me the wallet, just killed the new born calf in front of us all, skinned it immediately and stitched the thing together with pieces of straw and we are all waiting for the police as we have this weirdo detained. Dang, I was just trying to lighten the mood, yeesh.


Question 4:
You've got a little boy. He shows you his butterfly collection plus the killing jar.

I say, well done son, soon you will be ready to begin your walk about among the outback. It will be a long six months, but the butterfly jar has taught you much.


Question 5:
You're watching television. Suddenly you realise there's a wasp crawling on your arm.

I think to myself, “That is really weird, especially since I am watching a documentary about wasps crawling on arms”. 


Question 6:
You're reading a magazine. You come across a full-page nude photo of a girl. You show it to your husband. He likes it so much he hangs it on your bedroom wall.

Hmm, am I gay in this scenario? Because that really is gonna determine how I answer this.

Question 7:
You're watching a stage play. A banquet is in progress. The guests are enjoying an appetizer of raw oysters. The entree consists of boiled dog.

I suddenly realize the show “Cats” was actually played by cats!! And I am in some weird alternative cat reality and I have left my catnip and laser pointer at home. Damn!

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