3 questions: jeff hamada

Q: What has more weight in your work, the writing or the visual?

A: Right now I spend a lot more time eavesdropping conversations + writing down funny phrases than I do actually drawing. I’m a huge fan of David Shrigley + Gary Larson, + I always liked The Far Side comics that had a lot of text in them. I feel like maybe I’m a better reporter than I am an artist. I’m hoping that at some point my drawing skills improve to the point that I can just make one dot on a piece of paper + it will be like you’re reading a novel, + then I’ll make a drawing with like a thousand dots on it + people’s heads will explode.

Q: What’s changed about your drawing since you were a kid?

A: I used to be able to sit down + draw without thinking, like an unedited stream of consciousness. Now a lot of what I make is really premeditated, executing an idea I already had. I’d like to get back to being a lot more loose.

Q: What’s stayed the same?

A: I still tear pages out of my sketchbook + throw them away. I know I shouldn’t but sometimes things need to be crumpled up + thrown halfway to the garbage can.

Check out some of Jeff‘s work after the jump!

Every Wednesday we sit down (briefly) with a talented artist + ask them 3 questions.

If you’re an artist + you’d like to be grilled, email me at questions@hardfeelingsblog.com