Mike “Skatchface” Long

Art has always been my coping mechanism. I can immerse myself in it completely. I can block out the entire world, and create something as if nothing else matters other than the way my lines looks. Inspiration can be found anywhere in nature, music, a conversation or even in procrastination. Just like skateboarding, art gives us the ability to escape the mundane. I work rather spontaneously, often relying on stream of consciousness. When I’m at my best I am brought directly into the moment, experiencing life as it happens, focused on the task at hand, without worry of the past or the future. My influences range from 1980’s skateboard art, comics and illustration, to abstract expressionism. My work often combines philosophical ideas with the grotesque and irreverent. I encourage the viewer to take away their own meaning from the experience.