MERI

Name:Meri
Age:28 Country: origin forgotten, now living in Hungary
Website: kasiukasiu.com/blog

At which age did you start creating art? And why do you feel compelled to create?
Since I learned to write I thought myself a writer till the age of 25-26. Then all of the sudden there was a major life crisis and I started drawing for the first time in my life. Because the ability and will to draw came quite late in my life (I was 26) I feel it's a gift, so out of happiness I draw...

What are you inspired by? And who do you look up to?
Oh, for instance I love Kozyndan. They make great things and they seem to have so much fun, while working so much. I look up to people like this, those who work a lot, but who's priority it is to enjoy life. I love Yoshimoto Nara, too, and and Aya Takano's works make me almost cry tears of joy.

Which influential artist would you like to ask for advice?
This is a hard question...if there was a time travel machine invented I'd go back in time to sit quietly in a corner and watch Caravaggio, not just painting, but whatever he'd be up to, he seemed fun and dangerous and interesting. But I cannot think of what kind of advice I could ask for. Advice must be a surprise and discovery.

If you had to put up one piece of artwork on your wall and stare at it for a year, who would it be by and why?
Ha, easy " The Naked Maya"!

Tell us about your creative process.
Most of the times I sit down and sketch and look for a face that would make me happy. I just make it as simple as possible. I look at pictures of girls and boys and things and read about sex research or the cosmic horizon and then draw some silly simple things with a random pen. And I only hope that one day the simple things will come together and say something.

Do you ever find weird connections between life and art?
It's one and same for me. If you want to divide it you can get really depressed, and for no good reason.

As an artist, are you Technical or passionate?
I make decisions when I draw and I have to think (or rather focus) , or else I immediately regress. But I know how it looks when people are technical and think of their work and what it should be. I am definitely not one of them, but I hope I can learn this a bit at some point. Both the technical and loose are great.

How do you determine when a work is finished? Or is it ever finished?
I just let it be as quickly as I can. There's a moment where I want to go on and try to make something a bit better. So I care not if it is finished or no, it's more of a feeling. When I draw something commissioned I try way harder and try to think more about the end result.
Do you think there are boundaries you would never cross in your art making?
As the prophet Kanye West said, "I'll do anything when the time's right".

What frightens you most about your art?
It doesn't frighten me at all. It's so much fun. I think of all the darkness inside of us and I draw a nice looking girl. This is great, some sort of sublimation is going on and it makes me a happier person.

Do you have any magic cures for creative blocks?
Self medication, but that is not magic. But any way to stop worrying is good. Whatever works for resetting yourself. Actually, magic works, if only by the way of distraction. There's plenty of writers and artists with little occult messages here and then, if you repeatedly listen to them some parts of your mind start working in uhealthy ways, and when you dance it off it kind of cleanses your mind.

Do you dream about your artwork?
No.

Which of your own works are you most proud of/ is most meaningful to you and why?
well the kidkid because i felt really free drawing it and it was so quick, it was instant gratification. and the wonders, for the same reasons.

Which art mediums and brands do you prefer to use?
Recently I started using acrylics and I still know nothing of it, so I cannot recommend any brands. I usually stick to stabillo pens, or faber castell ones, and love the big copic markers.

What kind of art education do you have? Do you think it is important?
Well, I have no art education. I mean, I wrote my masters on Andy Warhol's movies, and currently am in the PhD program with the same artist in mind (soon I shall be a drop out though ) so in a way painting was something I studied by the way of studying something else. But sadly I never attended to any proper drawing classes. Which i'm really disappointed about now.

What kind of career do you ultimately want? And what kind of career do you think you'll end up having (or already have) realistically?
While this thought is a bit beyond my cosmic horizon, I want to improve in drawing and painting and I hope the comissions keep on happening. But I also want something more down to earth, I want to study yoga more intensly.

Is your family supportive of your art? Who influenced and nurtured your creativity most?
My family is okay with it. This month my father complimented my drawings and I beamed! My mother starts asking me how my drawing goes, so guess it is all fine. People not laughing at me is my nurturing factor.

Which direction do you see your art heading in the future?
Hopefully I can start painting. And I want to be more free and loose, and at the same time practice detailed drawing.

Who are some of your heroes outside of the visual art stream?
Whenever I am in doubt and exhausted I think of my childhood hero, Frodo. I know, right, not exactly a real being, but it IS my hero. I am thinking "Well, he didn't want any of the trouble, but he kept on going". Also, James Bond. Every now and then everything turns against him, and does he go and sulk? He escapes and proves everyone he's cool and on the "right" side. There's also Henry Miller and Oscar Zeta Acosta, at least they are not made up characters!