Xavier Palin
When did you first become interested in art?
I think the first time was when I watched the animated film, The Iron Giant. I forgot how long ago that was. I was nine from what I remember. Anyways, after I watched that movie, I told my dad that I wanted to learn to draw. My father was an amazing artist. He never really went on the art route though. Instead he became a recruiter for the marines. He ended up teaching me how to make artwork. Since then, I’ve been drawing, but I haven’t been drawing frequently as I should until now. I mostly spend my time making animations, so studio artwork is new to me, but I think I managed to finally maintain a unique style
Has your style changed from when you first began as an artist?
Yeah, definitely. During my teen years, it was hard to find my set style that I can stick with.
When I first started out, I was trying to make like the most realistic drawings ever, but a few years later I felt my art was way too mechanical. It didn’t have any feeling. So I stopped for a while and got into watching a lot of cartoons, films and other peoples artwork. I think exposing myself to so much media has caused me evolve as an artist
What style of art do you use most?
Mostly Ink and Graphic Design. I also dabble in Pop Art.
I think the reason why I like this style of art is because I don’t have to stick to any themes or anything. I’m not trying to create art for people to gain a message or some sort of emotion. I just make art to entertain people and express myself. I feel when I try to do other forms of art like realism or fauvism, it limits my creative juices
What medium do you use?
I use a bamboo tablet, Macromedia Flash 8, and Photoshop
What made you choose that medium?
I never been really good at painting in real life, so I just stick to vector and bitmap art because it’s easier on me. And, I don’t have to spend so much money on supplies
Do your ideas come from life or imagination?
It all comes from my imagination. Most of my teachers tell me that I’m a grown child. I don’t feel that old really. I’m only nineteen, but I think like a 10 year old. So that’s why most of my artwork is crazy and warped. I can easily close my eyes and see the image in my head and just draw it out. I don’t think any of my artwork comes from real life, excluding the pop art ones because they have references from real life
How do you choose your images and colours?
Images are all based on what I’m feeling or thinking at the time. I don’t really plan anything out, which makes my stuff feel a bit more organic. Colors just depend on the topic I’m illustrating. For example, my piece about my mind on technology uses purple, because the color represents innovation. I stick closely to what I learned in school about design
Who is your favourite artist?
Takashi Murakami. I don’t know if you know him, but I first heard about him when I picked up the album Graduation by Kanye West. I loved the artwork on that cd. It was so colorful and full of imagination. From then on I followed his work. I want to buy a print of his once I get the money to do so
What is your favourite piece of work by yourself?
My favorite piece so far is ‘Your Brain on Technology’. This one just really reflects what I like as far as toys and techs go and what I do on a daily basis which is play videogames. I sort of just started making artwork like this, so I don’t have much to choose from, but this one is my best I think out of the three
How much time (on average) does it take to complete a work?
on average it takes me 6-7 hours. Because I just jump right into my artwork, I never really take the time to plan stuff out. I feel its better to just jump in based on a word or a concept. That way you get the most out of your imagination.
How well do you take criticism?
I take criticism pretty well. As long as they make good points. If they just are gonna rip it apart for the sake of being a moron, then that’s when I ignore their criticism
What do you do to overcome a ‘block’?
Well, to overcome a block I just draw. I don’t think about anything. And when something comes up from it, I redraw it the way that makes sense design wise
How do you know something is ‘finished’? Is it easy to walk away?
Once I make a final version, I only check it once. I never check it more to once and if its already up on the internet and I see a tiny problem, then I leave it. I believe that the imperfections in your artwork makes it unique. It’ll never be perfect, so I just leave it the way it is
Have you had exhibits in galleries?
Not at the moment no, but hopefully this year I will get into at least one or two galleries. Like I said before, this is my first year where I focused on creating print artwork
What are your plans for the future?
My future plans are to finally open up a real website where everything I ever done is in order for fans. I want to continue making this type of artwork and continue making my independent animations. I love making art, so hopefully I can do it more often once I get out of school
What advice would you give new artists?
One thing I will say is watch as many animated films and look at as much artwork as possible. Your brain will absorb all that media and then you can use it to your advantage when you draw.
Think about it like this. The more you have to take from, the more you can imagine and dream up because you seen a concept, or a character, or a theme, or anything that inspires you to pursue that idea
I think you are going to go far with your art. You have a talent that shines through already! Thank you for the interview 
You can view more of Xavier’s artwork at http://kartunehustla.blogspot.com/
