Matthew Laurence Knott

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We took a trip to Orange County to pay Matthew Knott a studio visit and he sent us home with some gems. The SoCal based artist shared with us his journey on how being inspired by cartoon drawings turned into painting large murals in your favorite neighborhoods. In high school Matthew started taking the craft serious & developed his style. Known for his illustrations, drawings & murals; you are able to view some of his newest work on display @ Sneakertopia or follow his social media here. Below he shared with us his inspirations and advice he has for aspiring artist. Don’t forget to like & share, enjoy!

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“I’ve been an artist my whole life, I remember winning most artistic in 8th grade”

Interview

 

What inspired you?

So, you ask what inspires me? I could easily go into a rant, saying Picasso inspired me or Andy Warhol inspired me. Which they have of course. However, I wouldn't say that being a fan of their work and many other great artists' work, is the reason I chose art. I gain inspiration from almost anyone I meet. I'm fascinated with people. I love working with people and hearing their stories. Growing up I wasn't the smartest kid in class. I was never the best player on the team. I was however naturally talented at drawing. It felt good to be good at something and I never wanted to let that go. So, you ask what inspires me? I would say I'm inspired to use my art as a vehicle to connect with as many people as possible. The connection is my addiction. I'm inspired to connect with the world.

What advice do you have for the youth aspiring to be artists?

The advice I would have any aspiring artist, regardless of their age, would be to start. I have met so many talented artists who feel like they are not " ready." You will never be ready. I had no clue what I was doing when I started putting my work out there. I learned everything through trial and error. If you are a creator and you put your work out into the world and make at least one person happy, then you did your job. Don't get caught up in trying to blow up or make a million dollars. Learn to enjoy the process and most importantly don't be afraid to make mistakes along the way. The key is to learn from your mistakes and if you are really smart you will learn from the mistakes of others. Be consistent. Treat your passion like a job. Ask yourself everyday. Did I put in the 9-5 work ethic with my art today? Would I fire myself if I was my boss? Treat it like a job. Develop a daily routine. Go out and meet people who are doing what you want to be doing. When you eventually find those people who love what you do, make them your new best friend. Create a circle of positive influence. Youtube is your friend and can teach you almost everything. I could go on for days on what to do and what not to do. However you will learn that on your own, but only if you start.

Photography by Jamil Brown & Marrice Hill

WATCHMYKIX

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“it was an opportunity that turned into passion…now I am cutting the best player in the NBA”

Last weekend we got to sit down with Danny "watchmykix”, owner and hairstylist at Expensive Habits barbershop. He talked about how his love for barbering came early in his career and how even 13 years later he could not imagine himself doing anything else. As a kid he gravitated towards drawing, inspired by Dragon Ball Z characters & shoes the skill came natural to him. With similar principles the art of barbering came easy to him as well and it soon would become his life. Taking pride in his work and focusing on being consistent with every cut he would gain clients like Kawhi Leonard. Two guys who grew up in the same city (Riverside,CA) become stars in their own respective fields.

if your barber doesn’t use gold clippers what are they doing?

if your barber doesn’t use gold clippers what are they doing?

interview

What inspired you?

To be honest I wasn’t really inspired by anything, I was approached by one of my friends with the idea of barber school. At that point in my life I didn’t have anything else going for me i just knew I didn’t want to be a bum lol...so I went all in on this barbering thing. 

What advice do you have for aspiring barbers/artist?

 My advice for upcoming barbers & artist is to get stuck in the grind, always invest in yourself & strive to get better everyday!

Chef Garcia

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Meet Chef De Cuisine Jonathan Garcia of Leoness Cellars, located in Temecula wine country. With Leoness being rated the #1 Winery Restaurant by USA Today’s 10 Best Reader’s Choice and Best Restaurant of the IE for 4 consecutive years you can imagine the level of responsibility Chef Garcia deals with on a day to day basis. Last week we got to sit down with chef and talk about his love for culinary arts, how important his team is, chef knives, and some new items he is working on for the holidays (like a translucent pie). Working at a french restaurant has taught him some key techniques that he has used to create unique dishes; for example the Demi-Glace they serve takes about 4 days to make from scratch and everything used is made in-house. Jonathan also talked about his love for traveling and how he always visits new restaurants whether it’s the taco shop on the corner or Michelin star fine dines you can always find inspiration in a dish. From there he takes the idea and recreates it in his own way, this can be looked at as artist inspiring artist. He explained his “style” as creative, never putting himself in a box he wants to create as much as possible even if it goes against tradition. We hope this story gives you a new perspective on culinary arts or inspires you to cook. Enjoy!

“At 12 I made my first 3 course meal from scratch for my mom on Mother’s Day and that’s where the love for cooking grew.”
— Jonathan Garcia

What inspired you?

I’ve always had a love for food. Ever since I could talk I’ve always wanted to go to fine dining restaurants for my birthday when other kids would choose Chuck E. Cheese. I would play “restaurant” growing up where I would have my mom make the food and we would treat the house as if it were a restaurant. At 12 I made my first 3 course meal from scratch for my mom on Mother’s Day and that’s where the love for cooking grew. I grew up in a single parent household and in high school my mom was going to school to get her masters at night and working during the day. One day I decided I want to step up and help out so I told my mom I wanted to cook dinners during the week so that it was one less thing to worry about. On the weekends I would get recipes from the internet or food network and we would go to the grocery store on Sundays and get what I needed to make dinner for the week. When I think about my life I always tie some of my best moments throughout with food whether it were eating a certain person’s food or eating with certain people. When I cook I’m inspired by trying to either tap into my diners nostalgia by bringing back those special memories they might have through my food or create great new memories for them to remember through their life. Just as I have throughout my life so far. 

What advice do you have for the youth aspiring to become chefs/artist ?

My advice would be to keep grinding and working hard. It sounds cliche but hard work does pay off and I’m a testament to that. Being an up and coming chef is not for the faint of heart and is a very stressful, tiring, and rigorous journey but if you love it it’s all worth it. Night in and night out you have to sacrifice yourself for your diners and put them before yourself. You have to be ok with making mistakes because that’s what makes you a better chef or artist as long as you learn and don’t repeat them. As an artist you have to really love what you do because that’s what drives you every day and nothing else. Everything has to be for the love of the art. I love what I do and I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world.

Karate Xplosion

A product of the DMV makes his way to Socal and brings all of his artistic talents with him. Nate or Karate Xplosion is a man of many talents; he creates work as a musician, photographer, designer, painter & tattoo artist. Always available for hire, you can view and purchase some of his work here. Below he shares his story of how he became an artist and the inspiration behind it, enjoy!

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‘Everywhere I go is a fashion show for interdimensional space/time travelers’

 

What inspired you?

Growing up learning about great artists like Dali and Picasso who stretched the idea of what we see vs. what is possible, sculptors like Andy Goldsworthy, and Richard Serra creating beautiful works of art from earth materials some found, some made. Stretching the impossible from what we are given. Thinking outside the regular vision to see what can be, as opposed to what is available. 


As far back as I can remember I have NEEDED art and music in my life.  Life throws us curveball but in the end there has to be some outlet and that has always, for me, been in the form of art and music. Making something that inspires others to see things differently or to make their own self expression no matter the outcome, thats why it's made.

 

I think that the true inspiration is what we find inside ourselves as a result of lots of pressure internal and external, how far we are willing to go to be heard and somewhere along the way the unexpected turns that are dealt in the form of disappointment, expectation or hurt is toppled by our ability to take those punches and move fluidly with it. How much can you take from life’s learning lessons and turn it into a positive? What keeps you going?

What advice do you have for the youth aspiring to be artist?

For every time somebody tells you that isn't the way to express yourself, or that isn't how something is made.....be extra YOU times 1000. Let that be the fuel to create something beautiful. For every person that judges or tries to shape your expression of self, do the opposite.

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