No Comments Written by Ezzzy on June 6, 2009 – 4:24 pm

I recently had a yarn to L.A based artist Travis Millard about the who, what, why and when of his art-making and leg-wrestling.

1. Tell us Aussies a bit about yourself.
I am from the United States, and I live in a small village called Los Angeles in the state of California. My time is largely spent hunting and gathering, but occasionally there is time to draw pictures at the end of the day by the firelight.

2. Materials?
Pretty basic stuff… bunch of pens, scattered paper, ink wells, dilapidated brushes, a computer.. other stuff sometimes.

3. You must draw a lot to have achieved such an awesome style. Describe your process. What do you do for inspiration if at all?
There is a lot of drawing time, but it usually depends on what’s happening. I think achieving any kind of style just happens naturally from years of doing it. I look back at old sketchbooks and see a common thread, but I think maybe I’m just more comfortable drawing and the style and content is a little better honed. Anyway, lots of drawing, but i also juggle commercial projects, or produce my own books and things can take long hours at the computer pushing things around and blinking. But i try to keep a good balance of both. .. hmm and inspiration… I’m not sure… I eat lunch?

4. In regards to Fudgefactory comics, did you grow up in a DIY type of environment? What was the catalyst for the home publications? To me it has a strong ‘punk’ vibe to it.
I grew up skating curbs with the neighborhood kids in Kansas, and discovered punk through their older brothers’ tape collections. There was nothing exceptionally cool about where I came from, so it was a challenge to find anything out of the mainstream. I’ve always been into drawing, but didn’t try to make my first zine until I was out of high school. A friend was into the culture and passed me an old Comet Bus issue, urging me to try and make one. I had a few weird comics I was doing, and tried putting one together, which got good reviews from my drunk friends, so I tried another and so on.

5. Did you always want to be an artist? Was it a conscious step or did it just ‘happen’ from being in an arty environment growing up?
I don’t think I knew what it meant to grow up and ‘be an artist’. There wasn’t really a precedent for it in my family. My mom was pretty crafty and always encouraged me and my brother to draw. She used to do toll painting for fun, and I would admire her art box and innocently huff the turpentine fumes. But it was probably my high school art teacher who spun some weird head games and spurred me to pursue it more seriously. I went to Kansas University and studied illustration and printmaking, and there were a couple teachers who struck a cord with me. I probably made a conscious step by going to school for it, but don’t think I still had any idea about what I was doing.
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6. Can I have your gocco printer? Please?
Yes, if you’re willing to leg wrestle for it in the yard.

7. In what way do you push yourself artistically? Have you always used the same materials or do you find yourself experimenting until you have what you’re looking for?
I used to experiment with materials a lot more, but just got interested in whittling it down to pen and paper. Sometimes I’ll bring in some coloured inks or collage, but I like to keep it simple and try to find progress in the joke or concepts, or not repeating myself too much, or not repeating myself too much.

8. Any shows coming up?
I’ve got some work in a show called “Strips, Scripts, and ‘Scapes” at the Riverside Art Museum in California, opening June 27th. Otherwise just focusing on various projects and making new work for a solo exhibit next year.

9. Any advice for emerging artists?
HAVE FUN! STAY POSITIVE! GET WEIRD!

10. Vodka or Gin?
Neither, but thanks. I’m good with beer or water.

Head over to fudgefactorycomics for more of Travis’s artwork and in particular a shitload of awesome zines he makes on his own and in collaboration with many other tops artists which are available for sale.