Katch One - Canvas - interview with artist Katch - Brief Article - Interview

Thrasher Magazine, August, 2002

You know those crazy Natural Koncept ads? The ones with Caz jumping off his barn or Kale going bananas in some backyard pool? Yeah, those ads, the ones with all the nutty characters and hidden text and subliminal messages and stuff. Well that's the work of NK's resident art monkey, Katch. Part graffiti superhero, part mad scientist, follow along and catch up.

What do you write?

Katch. I represent self. I represent my girl. I represent HawaiL I represent the world. I represent life. I represent the hunger in all of us to fuckin' try and be somebody and to do some shit.

When did you start writing?

1984. My friend came to school with his chick's name bombed on his folder with El Markos. It was weird 'cause I didn't even need an explanation of what it was, I had never seen real pieces on walls or trains. I just saw these filled-in letters with style and arrows, but I already knew it was supposed to be somewhere else. So that afternoon I went to the drug store and bought a few cans of the crappiest paint, and that night me and my brother went and did the crappiest piece; it said "chill." I sat on the top of his shoulders to do the top of the letters. I never did a crappier piece and I've never been the same since that day.

Who were some early Katch influences?

Before I started writing? Comics, Marvel and DC, Mad magazine, Don Martin & Spy vs Spy, Disney, and Warner Brothers.

After I started writing: Phase 2, Futura, Skeme, Dondi, Lee, Kase 2, Seen, Bode. These kids from Hawaii: Skez 520, Wiz 10, Animate 5, Bam, and Slim. But I still looked at Warner Brothers and Disney a lot. I used to record cartoons, press pause, and bite the characters.

What's up with all these crazy characters?

I see characters all around me. Not literally, but in the shapes of the clouds and trees, in the stucco pattern in the wall, in the shape of rocks, or in the pattern in the bed sheets.. .everywhere. Kinda like those shrink doctor ink blot shits. Sometimes I just get all stoned and close my eyes and characters and weird things are runnin' all over the place in my head.

Do you prefer to paint characters over letters?

I used to enjoy painting characters over letters because my letters were straighter and more technical, and it was a pain in the ass to me. Characters were a little looser and funner. Now my characters and letters are kind of fusing together so they're both fun.

Night missions or sunny piecing sessions?

Everything has its ups and downs. Night bombing missions are fun--the night, the silence, the adventure, the calmness, the whole fucking vibe--but it's also nice to not get arrested; and seeing exactly what the fuck you are doing is a bonus, too.

What's up with those crazy trains you've done? Were those in Hawaii?

There are no trains on Hawaii. Most of the trains were done in Call, some in Oregon, some in Canada. I did my first train because I just wanted at least one picture of a nice train that I could put on my wall, then I just got addicted. When people tell you they saw your fuckin' whole car in Jersey or Oregon, that shit is crazy. It's like the self traveling mural show. Amazing. I love trains.

What do you think of the current state of graff?

It's OK. It was nice with the introduction of the Europeans; it opened up a lot of people's eyes and in turn their minds. Lately though, I kind of been. seein it go back to everyone bitin', everyone doin' the same ol' same ol'. It's kinda like skatin'. You see all these kids trying to emulate the mags, hoppin' around the parking lot outside the skatepark tryin' to flip the fuckin' board every which way but haven't really figured out how to roll faster than most people can jog. That shit gets fuckin' boring. I'd much rather see fast and big with flow--it's kinda the same with graff.

Have you gone to art school or had any formal art training?

I went to art school for like a year and a half. It really sucked though, 'cause they are worried first and foremost about collecting dough. Basically, I ended up not really learning shit, got frustrated, and just fucked around. Now that I look back, though, I wish I would've just stuck it out; I'd be a much better artist.

How did you hook up with the NK crew?

I used to do art on surfboards for my brother's friend. Then we did snowboards 'cause the graphics in the industry were wack. Snowboards in Hawaii was probably one of the dumbest ideas ever, though. Eventually, it was sketeboarding 'cause it's my environment.

What's life like where you're at?

Sometimes I got too much shit to do at NK, but that's really a good thing. Plus, I got my girl and my skete. Could be way worse.

Any last words, shout outs?

My girl and her family, my dog, my brother, my mom, my dad, Philly, Natural Steve, Partridge, Trendy Posse, Sprout, Homies in LA. Rich, Nasa crew, Tyke and the AWR's, Caz, Kale, Sam, Josh, all the NK skaters, Lil' Tan, the JR's and their girl. Thrasher, thanks for the opportunity--I'm honored to be part of the mag. Peace.