Interview with Ben Venom

q)For the people who don't know your work - how would you describe it ?

a)I’m interested in juxtaposing traditional handmade crafts with extreme elements found on the fringes of society. My work can be described as opposing forces colliding at lightening speed. Imagery found in Heavy Metal music, the Occult, and Motorcycle Gangs are stitched together with recycled materials using techniques usually relegated to your Grandmothers sewing circle. Serious, yet attempting to take on a B movie Horror film style where ridiculousness becomes genius. The question remains… Can I play with madness?

q)What are the key themes running through your practice?

a)Some of my more recent pieces are heavily influenced from tattoos and certain aspects of biker gang culture. The majority of the work borrows from the Occult, Mysticism, and Music. 

q)Your favorite place on earth?

a)San Francisco, CA

q)What influences your work?

a)Reading books and researching ideas on the internet.

q)What music are you into right now?

a)The new Baroness album Green / Yellow , YOB, Hazzards Cure, Zoroaster, Acid King, Black Cobra, Kylesa, Red Fang

q)Describe your thought & design process...

a)The process begins with a hand drawn sketch transferred into photoshop for further manipulation and re-sizing. Each t-shirt is then hand cut to a corresponding piece within the overall design and appliquéed onto the top layer using my Juki F-600 sewing machine. The final step is to bind all layers of the piece by sewing the quilting stitch. In the end...even the beasts of Hell need a warm blanket to sleep with!

q)Which emerging artists are you looking forward to seeing more of?

a)Erin Riley, Bill McRight, Kevin Earl Taylor, Jeff Eisenberg...

q)Favorite place on the internet?

a)Netflix

q)Do you have any upcoming projects/exhibitions we should know about?

a)I will be exhibiting work at Circle Culture Gallery in Berlin, Germany and Milton Keynes Gallery in England in the next 2 months. My work is included in the book Milk and Honey: Contemporary Art of California that was just released via Ammo books and is now available through Barne and Noble or Amazon.comAmazon.com. Get This! Gallery will be exhibiting some of my quilts at the Aqua Art Miami fair in the early December. Check out HUCK Magazine: The Identity Issue....I have a small interview in there. 

q)Tell us something we don't know - but should...

a)I am a self-taught quilter and am still learning...Ha!