Interview with Ron English

Could you please tell us where you from and how you start working as an artist ?

I am from the American Midwest. I wanted to be a revolutionary but being an artist seemed easier.



You painted on so many billboards.Is there a particularly one that, for any reasons, you remember more than others ?

Think Different with Charles Manson probably because it became the most famous, although the actual posting of some others proved to be much more eventful.



What was your motivation behind "squatting" these billboards ?
Is it visually exciting because of the huge size of these panels ?

Commandeering billboards is cheaper than renting them. It’s not free speech if you have to pay for it. Size is also important.
Rendering an image larger than human scale imbues the image with an extra dimension of authority.



Do you feel involved in all the messages you did ?

Yes.


What do you think about the relation between art and publicity ?

Art needs a vehicle to reach an audience. Unfortunately the big media companies are myopic towards contact, so an image has to be tailored to function in that environment if that’s the artist’s intended vehicle. For that reason alone, stolen billboards are my chosen vehicle.



Did you work for brands ?

I have worked for brands that are doing more positive things.



Did you ever feel that sometimes the billboard you’ve made, at the end, helped more the original company than your message ?

When companies engage in positive response to legitimate criticism, subvertizements become part of the companies’ broader campaign



Any problems with copyrights ?

Not lately.

Why these obsessions with Ronald Mc Donald, the Simpsons, Marylyn Monroe,... ?

I like to enrich the personalities of the icons that populate my existence.



Where do you find your inspiration ?

From pretty much anything.

Any favourite artists ?

I like living artists.



You also made some toys. Is it a medium you're comfortable to work with ?

It’s child’s play.



Do you believe your own characters will become a new pop culture icons ? Would you like it to be?

If they get their own TV show they will. Then someone else will have to parody them.



What's coming next this year ?

London, San Francisco and Hong Kong. You’ll have to wait to see what I do there.

Ron's website http://popaganda.com