For this interview, I bring a first for HorrorSociety (or at least I think it’s the first…..?) Anyway! Stepping outside of actors, directors, writers, and stuntwomen for a moment, I bring you another part of the horror genre – art! While you may not realise it at first, horror artists are an important part of the horror community. They make paintings or drawings or posters that we hang in our homes, they make the DVD art for our favorite indie films, an artist may have even made the blood background for this very site ! The list goes on and on. So, I figured it was time to pay one artist his just deserves and interview him. Enter Ben Von Strawn! He is a creative genius when it comes to art, especially in horror related art. He’s done everything from posters, to DVD art, to his own comic book, to charity work – you name it! He’s even at work on a secret horror film, but he’ll touch on that lightly in this interview. Ben has recently returned from Comic-Con where some of his work was featured. So, read Ben’s interview below and check out some awesome art work.
On Facebook it says that you are inspired by a couple cartoons and comics, including MAD Magazine. As a fan of both the comic books and the television adaptation, I was wondering – what is it about MAD that inspired you?
For me, MAD really goes back to the E.C. Comics days and all those great artists and writers that worked there. Tales From The Crypt, Vault of Horror, Haunt of Fear, and MAD – all work in those books are a huge inspiration, particularly the work of Bill Elder and Jack Davis. Every time I look at their work I want to try harder to get better at what I do.
Speaking of inspiration, are there any specific horror films or stylistic directors that have given you inspiration?
Anything by Roger Corman, Mario Bava, Dario Argento ,and of course the Universal Horror movies. The list could go on and on, but to sum it up, I prefer older films.
Since I’m 23-years-old and still have the artistic ability of a pre-schooler, I’m always blown away by other people’s ability to create art. Looking over some of your work, some pieces almost seem digitally created. How do you create these works of art? Paint? Markers? Digitally? A mix?
99% of the time I use brushes, paper, ink, canvas, watercolor and acrylic paint. I prefer the “By Hand” look and all its imperfections, but for the sake of time, I do use Photoshop to put together ads, logos and color pen and inks. Everything else is totally by hand.
I see that you were present at last year’s Mad Mad Monster Party, a charity for St Jude Children’s Hospital. Very commendable and something I’m passionate about as well. How do you help this organization, selling some of your work? And how can others promote or donate to the event, which you will also be involved with this year
I have my own line of Monster Merchandise that was picked up by a Halloween store chain called Halloween Adventure, and they had presented me with the idea of doing a St. Jude Charity Event at one of their stores. We only had about 2 weeks to put it together AND promote it! I invited everybody I could think of to it and the end result was the “Mad Mad Monster Party!” It was a big hit so we’re doing it again this year, only 1000% bigger.
It’s called Monster Party 2! It’ll be at the Pierce College Farm on October 1, 2011 here in So Cal. There’s going to be a haunted house, hay ride, corn maze, bands, auction, artists, vendors, a pumpkin patch, special guests and more. It’s a good time for a good cause. For more info check out- www.halloweenharvestfestival.com and www.stjude.org.
While browsing your portfolio online, I noticed there are a lot of pieces that have ghouls riding in cars. Why is this one of your favorite things to create?
That’s because of Ed “Big Daddy” Roth and Rat Fink. When I first started my career as an artist, and wanted to open my own monster business, there was Ed Roth doing it, making merchandise out of art, successfully. I also just dig the idea of monsters driving around in thundering cars!
Has being an artist crossed over into other media markets, such as creating pamphlets for events, DVD covers, etc?
I’ve been doing freelance art for a while now. I think I’ve done pretty much everything you can do like posters, CD covers, etc, but I’ve been 100% focused on doing my own work for about 2-3 years.
I also read that you’re a writer and filmmaker. Can you go into more details about this? What kind of films do you usually work on?
I’ve been writing short stories and making little movies since I was about 5 years old, mostly just for fun, but there are a few writing and film projects that I’ve been developing that I have to keep under wraps for the time being. To give you an idea with the film projects, some involve animation, and some involve live-action. Horror also plays a big part in all of it as well.
Here’s the chance to toot your own horn, if you want to. What, to your knowledge, is the biggest accomplishment you’ve had so far in terms of publication?
My biggest accomplishment in publication has been the completion of my 72 page Weirdo Monster Koloring Book. It has over 100 weirdos, monsters, and more. Plus, [it has] 2 free posters, games and even a pumpkin stencil. The response has been excellent and makes a year worth of work worth it! Thanks to all the people out there that got one. I really appreciate the support! To check it out please visit, https://www.posterpop.com/ben-von-strawn-coloring-book/
Being that this is a horror website, I gotta ask at least one question about indie horror. If you could play one role in any indie horror film, which role would it be?
A zombie!
When I was in college, I took two classes specializing in animation. I can do stop motion (think Gumby or Robot Chicken) really, really well…but no one needs to see what my animation looks like. So, I give Ben a lot of credit for anything artistic he does. I know a lot of people think, “anyone can paint,” but it takes someone truly talented to create something along the lines of what Ben has made. Everything I’ve seen of his is quite impressive. Hopefully, Ben Von Strawn will see continued success in this field and, hopefully, I can talk to him again in the future when his film nears completion!
Thank you for your time, Ben.
Here are two more pieces from Ben, just because I like his work so much. His official website is currently under construction, but you can browse his Facebook for more works here.
