Your art style is unique to what people would usually think of art pieces on canvas. What was your journey to using acrylic markers for your abstract pieces, and how did you decide that it was the perfect medium?

Well, I guess it was a matter of convenience. When I started, I used oil and regular acrylic paint—you know, the starter pack. It was kind of okay, but I didn’t have the patience. Waiting three days for the oil to dry was desperate. I used my fingers to cover the canvas with the wet oil so it “could go faster,” you know. But it was a cool stage. I used to put the art works under my shower (in “high-pressure mode,” you know what I mean) to “destroy” the oil. I loved the effect; it was like making the picture 100 years older in one shot. Everything looked broken and cracked. I love the pictures from that stage, but I tend to do things more efficiently, so I looked for something more convenient for me. When I was a kid, I used to draw comics, so I’m quite familiar with pens. I found these thick Posca markers, which combine the best of both worlds: the convenience of a pen with the “quality” of acrylic paint. I just kind of loved them, and I kept using canvas because—well, I don’t know. I just was using them back then. It felt okay to me, and the result was quite neat.

But the storage issue with canvas became a problem because I had A LOT. I had to take them to a house in my father’s little village—they’re there now. So I switched to paper or cardboard, which solves the storage problem quite well. Framed, they look quite cool. Besides, I feel it’s an honest medium. Let’s be frank: the zeitgeist is not precisely rich these days. They are cheaper. I don’t know who can afford expensive mediums today—I can’t, I can tell you that. So I guess it’s quite “contemporary,” in a way. It speaks about reality. Following that “pathetic reality path,” I also switched to regular markers. I don’t try to fake it, as you see. If I’m poor, I am. Maybe I’ll go back to acrylic markers someday if things get better. The artworks show what is real in every moment—for the good and the bad.

What inspired you to blend pop culture with spiritual themes in your work?

Well, this one is deep shit, I guess. When I was 29, I experienced an “enlightenment experience” or—I don’t know what the hell it was—but it changed everything.

I was kind of a successful advertising creative; everything was going well more or less. But one day, I just “woke up.” In a single moment, I started to see the lies everywhere—in my life, in the world—and I just collapsed. At the same time, I felt this super urgent need to paint. When I was a kid, I just wanted to be an artist, you know. But you had to fit with the world too, so I chose the advertising path because it blended what I liked with what was “good for me.” And up until that point, it worked properly. But I’m afraid the world has taken another path; truth has become stronger, and lies are no longer allowed. I mean, it wasn’t only a personal process—it happened to everything these last years. My personal process was just a part of the whole process. I can speak about it now quite regularly, but, man, it was intense. I didn’t know what on earth was happening to me.

So, obviously, I felt super attracted to spiritual issues. I needed answers, you know. I got addicted to spiritual texts; I “suddenly understood The Bible profoundly.” Jesus, what a stage! It was amazing, even when I was twisted as fuck. One book after another, blogs, walks in nature... It was The Enlightened Juan Stage. And, sincerely, I became an expert. I could explain to you the depths of universal knowledge. And the last “enlightenment experience” I had a couple of years ago—well, we’ll leave that for another interview. But BIG SHIT. For real.

Well, so the art speaks about this: I was a pop boy—into trends, comic books, music, movies—and suddenly I became DA MASTER. One thing led me to another, in a way, and I thought, “Well, maybe others can relate to this.” I mean, what they talk about in the church feels quite lame. I can understand why people aren’t attracted to religion—it feels like bullshit how they explain it. But if they told you, “The Kingdom of God is like Eminem: you are the underdog in a world of lies, but truth must prevail (or something)...” it could work out. And I try to express that with art. I’m quite aware that the artworks, by themselves, leave a lot of questions unanswered, but I like tricky stuff—not being too obvious. Pull the string slowly. The more you investigate, the bigger it becomes. And, above all, not being too pretentious. So, I guess people don’t get all this with just one look. But maybe their attention is caught enough.

Are there any particular pop culture icons or moments that have had a lasting impact on your creative process?

Well, there are many, you know. So many. But a recent one could be the freaking TikTok. Man, when I discovered those L.A. dancers, they blew my mind. They were amazing—amazing, I’m telling you. I got quite obsessed with them for a while. I had my favorites, like my new personal pop stars. I even (and this is quite wild) made an exhibition about them, just about them. It’s in Spatial if you want to have a look. I called it Flowers in Full Bloom because, you know, that’s what they are—kids just doing their thing at their best moment. Man, what an era. It was two years ago, not that long.

But I’m not that contemporary. I mean, I still love new stuff, but my heart is full of my old things. My video games, for example. The Xbox 360 and Wii era was incredible for me. Street Fighter IV is probably the game I’m best at. I also loved Left 4 Dead (1 & 2), anticipating the zombie era. Zombies were a big deal back then. And Fallout 3, which I used to train for my personal apocalypse. In fact, I used those three games to train for the stage I was entering: my survival era. I spent many years going from here to there with a HUGE single dreadlock in my head... No perspectives, no future, no peace. But, hey, with those three games, everything went like a piece of cake. No secrets in survival for me.

About comic books, I was a great fan. I got bored of them around 2008 or so, but I have a huge collection. I loved the Ultimate Universe by Marvel, the reboot of all their universes, especially The Ultimates by Mark Millar and Brian Hitch. That series inspired the recent Marvel movies for sure. It felt like a true Hollywood movie. Probably my favorite artist is a comics artist, Peter Bagge, from New Jersey. He made Hate, starring Buddy Bradley. Those series had an enormous impact on me in my teen and youth years. They were ultra funny, ultra acid, ultra intelligent. For quite a while, it was almost the only thing I read, again and again. It was super cool. It spoke the truth as I’ve never seen again.

And, well, finally, also from New Jersey, the almighty James Rolfe, AKA The Angry Video Game Nerd. Man, man, man... This guy is top-notch. For many years, I used to watch, I don’t know, three hours daily of the AVGN. Probably I learned more English with the AVGN than with anything else. And swearing, you know—swearing is kind of his thing. But he’s funny, profound, not pretentious at all, and his knowledge and criteria about the medium are super wide and super respectable. I really love this guy.

How do you envision your style evolving in the coming years?

Well, nice question, especially these days; my stuff is losing its color. I’m going black and white for some reason. I can see why: the artworks, obviously, reflect my personal evolution. And I’m afraid my refined masculine side is taking the lead. These last few years, it was a mix between my kiddy side and my grotesque masculine side. And that, also, speaks about the zeitgeist of those years: a mix between the “unicorn vibe” and the “Trump vibe,” let’s say. That mix, as we all know, is extreme. So I’m glad I could capture that in my artworks blended with my personal view of it all. I kind of agreed and kind of disagreed with both sides. I believe the fight is easy to see in the pieces.

But now I’m going black and white. Probably it will mean “the same, but more balanced.” I’m still interested in spiritual issues and pop stuff, but now I’m much more grounded. So, probably, everything will become easier to understand. Also, I’d say it means a return to my roots. Sincerely, I was never attracted to oil or acrylic—that was just when I went into art “seriously” (if I can call this “seriously”). But when I was a kid, all I did was grab my Pilot pen and draw all day long in class. I got nice grades, don’t worry, but I was drawing all day.

And, yep, that’s my latest purchase: Pilots and Eddings. And some cardboards. So it feels familiar to me. I don’t have a studio or anything; I just put my big folder on my bed and draw on a cardboard on it while I watch Naruto or something on Prime, as I’m doing now. Maybe, if in the future I move to my father’s little village, I could have a studio because there’s more space there. But, nah, I feel comfortable this way. Besides, I need the TV. Just as easy as it was back then—more efficient, funnier, relaxing... My thing.

Well, and also in the village, I have some old computers: Windows 98, Power Macintosh G3. I used them quite a lot over the years, but I feel I didn’t use them enough. I made many NFTs with them before the format even existed, using Photoshop 5.5 and Macromedia Freehand. I love that vibe. So pure. So dreamy, so synthwave.

So I predict black and white, Pilot, Edding, cardboard, and, if I’m in the mood, Photoshop 5.5 and Macromedia Freehand. But you never can be sure. I grabbed the Poscas a couple of days ago to save an artwork that felt a bit boring to me, so...