out there? I am sure it is another level, I feel like this is level one, and how well we play level one is what determines
what level two is.
sense that he doesn’t know who he is. Basically, you read five hundred books, only
to understand you have to read a thousand
more. Your work is never done.
What makes a good leader?
Responsibility, understanding mistakes, understanding that
there is room for growth, understanding that there is still
stuff to learn—no matter how much you know—and really understanding how much you can take on as a leader.
You do not want to get overworked because that builds up
stress, and then you cannot function and be the leader that
you want to be.
Then there is the ego. Out of all the characters he is the strongest one, physically.
Mentally, he is the weakest. Out of all these
characters, you need the ego to compete,
to win, to be up to par. We are all of these
characters but I feel like as an artist, what
makes me creative is pain. It is the pain
and the confusion. I feel like all the great
artists, they are pulling it from somewhere.
For me, I pull my art from pain. Without
it, there would just be white canvas with
some stuff that you have seen before.
If you were not an artist, what would
you be?
Dead. Life does not make sense without
the calling. As an artist, it just does not
make sense.
What problems are you hoping to solve?
To be honest, my main focus before my demise is: I just
want equality. True equality, not the American dream. I
am not saying everybody should be rich. I am not saying
that everybody should be poor. I want everybody to start
off with the same resources as the next person. I want everybody to have a fair shot at life, because that is not what
is happening right now.
Emotional 4, acrylic on wood
So if you could pass a bill through Congress right
now, what would that be?
First, I would take away tuition and make studying free. Schooling and
What do you think happens when we die?
Everyday, I think, I give a different answer. I do not know. I feel like studying in other countries is free. I feel like the United States is doing
it is definitely something greater than this, but who am I to say what is everything backwards. Finances are the root of a lot of problems. One
right: Go Broke, acrylic on wood
below: wall murial and installation from the #HelloBasquiat show at Defined Enterprise, photo by Jason Fronczek
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