1 Comment Written by Jpeg on November 11, 2008 – 12:00 am

Melbourne based street-artist and animator Paul Orton has been refining his skills of late. Opening his own studio, character designing for some children’s cartoons and working hard on a joint exhibition with myself and Sydney artist Maxcat.

I had the pleasure of interviewing him earlier last week. Have a read to see what makes this young talented artist tick. Paul is set to explode upon the scene in the coming years, with his tight illustration work and fresh character design.

Firstly, who are you and what do you do?
I design, illustrate and animate. I have been drawing since I was able to walk, comics, school teachers, and characters. I then discovered digital art in mid high school and the graphics tablet.

About that same time I had a few trips into the city on the train and I discovered the art of graffiti and street art. There were so many styles, forms and characters. I began to study, copy and work my own characters with a big focus on the line work. Writers like Mistery and Phibs who brought out some killer pieces and characters were a big influence in the way they worked their lines and cuts. I brought this back into my digital art and into my own characters. Graffiti has influenced my style to date, I guess a lot has, that’s what keeps my work progressing.

Your Place of origin?
Melbourne, Australia

What are your Favorite Mediums?
Acrylic on canvas is always a good mix; I have also worked on ply wood which is a top choice. I don’t mind bringing out the can on canvas either. Ink is also a favorite of mine.

Your main inspirations and favorite Artists?
As a kid, I used to dig Mad Magazine. Tom Richards’ artwork inspired me to get into humorous caricatures. Greg Simkins has been a big inspiration also, as a Disney fan from way back, to see him reproduce some of those famous characters and throw them into an entirely new scene is incredible. From Australia I’d have to say, Mistery, Phibs, Dash and Merda, are big inspirations in their own respective styles.

Internationally I’d have to say, Jamie Hewlett (Gorillaz), 123 Klan, Daim, Craola,

The new “Anti Graffiti laws” have created a lot of discussion in Melbourne this year. What are your views on the recent law changes?
I think this new law has definitely increased the amount of aggravated local artists. It’s a pricey penalty if you’re just heading back from the paint shop to do some artwork in your studio. If they wish to decrease the amount of vandalism in the CBD I believe there needs to be a proactive and positive approach. There’s a lot more to it (graffiti) than meets the surface, I don’t think there’s a solid understanding of what graffiti/ street culture is all about.

There are so many top graffiti/ street art galleries and exhibitions around Melbourne; graffiti art is becoming well recognised in the local and international art scene, with local paintings being sold for thousands of dollars. I’d encourage anyone who feels ‘graffiti isn’t art’ to take a look at these galleries. See for yourself. I think there needs to be more public awareness and more positive outlets for these graffiti artists. There does need to be a balance, however, money spent on cleaning and prevention could be better spent on financially supporting and educating these artists to make a career out of their skills.

Future goals and aspirations.
My main goal would be to make an impact in other people’s lives through my work, for someone to see my work and walk away changed by what they have seen. I’d also like to move into a role as a character illustrator/ designer for animated film. After working in so many different areas of design and animation, I still can’t go past picking up the pen and illustrating.

Finally, any shout outs?
Shout outs go to my wife ;), JPEG, Mistery,  Jolane (& the Krosswerdz cru), Benno the burner, Nicko X 2, Craola, Squirt, Roofus, Crinklez, Pete & Drew.

Thanks for your time Paul. All the best with upcoming exhibitions and animation work. To check out more of Paul’s work head to http://www.ortonstudios.com