Lucky for us, Jermaine Rogers is not digging ditches. Instead, for the last two decades, Rogers’ has been a driving force behind modern rock poster art, creating some of the most treasured rock posters associated with some of the most beloved bands in current history, from the Foo Fighters, Deftones and Die Antword to Queens of the Stone Age and Radiohead. Concerned with investigating and creating art as an exploration of the soul, Rogers makes work that is inspired by and which accompanies songs that move the heart and mind, making decisions and following creatives paths based on a higher understanding. POW chatted with the tuned-in artist about origin stories, his love for story-telling and what he really wants.

“When I came out of high school, my senior year English teacher pulled me aside on the last day of school and was like, ‘I know you’re probably going to follow your art thing because thats what you like, but please don’t neglect your writing. You’re a good writer and if you work hard, you might actually be a great writer.’ It’s weird because all these years, that same basic foundation that you need to actually write and love writing, I think you need the same thing in visual arts. It’s the idea of being able to visualize an idea before it exists and to lay it out.

I love to create universes and that kind of bleeds into the art work that I’ve done where I like to create these reoccurring character that are struggling with personal issues or bigger issues . It all comes from just growing up reading all kinds of literature. I loved comic books as a kid, and just got into reading all types of other literature. It basically instilled inside of me this desire to want to create a universe with varied characters whose lives intersected and who all sort of met at the crossroads under certain circumstances.

I like the idea of motley crews. Like that scene in Miyazaki’s Spirited Away where you have Sen the little girl, and a little mouse, and a little bird and then No-Face together on the train. That’s the stuff I love about writing; putting these groups of people together that don’t necessarily fit next to each other.

Right now I’m working on a more extensive, broken down story line that explains the struggle and disputes that are happening in this little patch of woods, far away, where these bunnies and the raccoons are constantly warring with each other.

“The Exchange” by Jermaine Rogers

Those familiar with Jermaine’s poster art will recognize the aforementioned characters. Used commonly to depict and reflect back social, political and cultural dilemmas that simultaneously plague the modern human race, he uses the animal agents as a vehicle for a broad conversation. Jermaine touches on the origins of the characters in a bit of depth on his site, stating:

‘Well, first you have to understand that there are these raccoons…and they have a feud of sorts with these rabbits, which has become increasingly more hostile as it has dragged on. It goes back a long time: one would have to literally do ancient research to figure out just exactly where it started. But it’s primarily over a modest patch of woods that they both feel belongs to them. There have been various bunnies and ‘coons throughout the ages who’ve made quite the elegant argument for their respective sides. There is much debate over who was there first: no one really knows. The other animals of the surrounding fields…well, they just stay away. It’s a shame, really…because this patch of woods is so beautiful and old. Many believe that the first animals of the area came forth from THIS forest. But this forest has seen so much death and conflict. Some animals of the area feel that the very trees there survive on the spilled blood in the soil. In recent years, a stranger from the west began to wander the perimeter of the forest. Offering knowledge and food and skill, he became involved with the bunnies. The stranger taught them how to control themselves, how to organize and think. He taught them how to construct weapons for their crusade and supplied the raw materials for these. He began to accompany them in their swaggering excursions into the deep areas of the forest. He stood with them, quiet and glaring, as they hurled taunts and threats at the raccoons. Threats became virulent attacks, and the stranger occasionally participated in the carnage. Homes were taken, families split, raccoons slaughtered. Several raccoon elders felt it was best to meet with the bunnies in an attempt to stem the violence. Few of these meetings were actually convened, and though some of these held out slim hopes for a peaceful coexistence in the forest, radical elements on each side sabotaged any progress. And to this day, the battle for a small patch of woods rages on. Bunny and raccoon blood soaks the soil, while the reckless voices on each side urge on more and more conflict. Through all of this, the silent stranger has stood near to his bunny brethren, supplying them with what they need in their struggle for the wood. Unable to compete with the rabbit population in this aspect, the raccoons have increasingly participated in guerrilla warfare tactics to strike their blows. Animals of the surrounding fields keep a far distance, afraid to become drawn into the violence of random and ruthless attacks. Though several of the raccoon elders have begged the population for peace and calm and a return to the ‘honorable rules of war’, the radical adherents have embraced the ways of terror. And here is where our image comes into play. One incident among hundreds, when a desperate group of animals who’ve lost fathers and mothers and children and lovers feel very justified in making certain sacrifices to inflict the same damage on their enemy. This is how wild animals think.’

In Jermaine’s latest release with POW titled “The Exchange“, the world of the dueling bunnies and raccoons is at the forefront.

“It’s very anthropomorphic. I think that people who are intellectually turned on and see what’s going on in the world can see some of the correlations that I might be alluding to in some of the activities that go on in this patch of woods. Both the bunnies and the raccoons kind of feel like they have the ancestral rights to it, and so this causes a lot of disagreements between them. The disputes they have are not always necessarily based in sort of common sense politics. A lot of it is ancestral and based on what they’ve been told and tradition. So it can get pretty violent.

Over the years, I’ve shown different confrontations that the bunnies and the raccoons have had. The other animals in the forest, they just sort of look on; every now and then they get involved. Sometimes they’re pawns used by ones side or the other. A lot of the times, they just sort of observe and stay away.

But the squirrels!” he exclaims, “You know, I’ve always been meaning to introduce the squirrels. The artwork for “The Exchange,” which I simultaneously used for a Foo Fighters tour print, that print is the first time the squirrels actually appear. The squirrels, they’re up in the trees, they’re above everything, they’ve very observant, they look down. They’re very opportunistic. They sort of move and operate based on what’s in it for them. They’re very self-oriented. So they will do things and make arrangements and even make partnerships with different entities in the forest if it benefits them and their individual community. So they’re kind of these mysterious things.

Some of the ancient bunny community there –in their ancient lore and their ancient writing — they believed that the squirrels were like phantoms of the trees; they believed they were like tree ghosts because they’d see these quick things moving around and never quite got a good look at them.

What’s happening in “The Exchange” is that the bunnies have caught one of them and they’re holding him hostage for their own personal reasons, which will come out eventually.”

Simultaneously, Rogers is edging away at another work in progress.

On the other hand, there’s a story that is night-and-day different which involves real human beings to some extent. It has some real personal humanity tied into it, but also has personal politics laced in. And when I say politics, I don’t necessarily mean governmental politics, more so, the politics of human beings interracting with one another and the structures that go along with that. I sounds really vague right now, but hopefully by this time next year, at least one of these will be written down and exposed to the public.”

Jermaine Rogers has been creating illustrations for music gigs professionally since 1995. Arguably, he’s made his prominent impression on the community, and quite frankly, doesn’t have anything left to prove. At this pinnacle point in his career — in what is seemingly Jermaine Rogers’ fashion — he simply sees windows of new opportunities and excitedly shared future aspirations regarding how to spend his time in the coming months.

That’s what I really want time for. I love drawing and I love the arts, but slowly — more and more — I want to carve out more time for writing because it really really makes me happy right now. Not that visual arts don’t, but this year, I got a lot of writing done. Those mornings when I can come down, have something to eat, sit down at a table with my computer and just write for hours; I’m so happy. Like I haven’t felt that level of happiness in a long time. I’m really looking forward to more of it if I can carve out more time for it.”

“Rock and Roll Saved My Life” by Jermaine Rogers

All of Jermaine Roger’s prints have this habit of selling out immediately; his first print collaboration with POW titled “Rock And Roll Saved My Life” — which was used by Queens of the Stone Age for for a Houston, TX headlining tour concert poster — was no exception.

“It’s sort of an autobiographical work. The flying eyeball, visually to a lot of people — especially those in the rock and roll poster art community — kind of represents rock and roll as a whole. The flying eyeball has been a modern, underground and iconic image for many years. Von Dutch really popularized it in the middle part of the last century. Within all of these years through culture, you go back and see this representation of an all-knowing eye or a mystical eye with a sight that went beyond physicality and went into the spiritual world or whatever you want to call it– the metphysical.

Basically, the way I depicted it is the way it was popularized by an artist named Rick Griffin. He worked in the 1960s when rock and roll poster art was really, really evolving into this sort of free form aesthetic. There was a big jump from the boxing posters of the ’50s and early ’60s to what you got with Rick Griffin and Wes Wilson and Stanley Mouse in the late ’60s out of San Francisco.

For me, visually, that eye ball sort of sums up rock and roll– the entire religion of rock and roll. And the woman in front, she’s naked and bare to it and in a way, almost bowing her head to it. Depending on how you look at it, in a way she is wounded also, and rock and roll is there for her with the tongue of fire in his hands to sort of enlighten her and raise her up. For me, that’s what rock and roll did.

There’s a lyric in a Smiths song called “Rubber Ring” where Morrissey says ‘don’t forget the songs that saved your life.’ He says ‘even now when you’re older, remember that those songs were the only ones that ever stood by you.’

For people like me, rock and roll and all of its beautiful, trashy, ugliness is haunting like Joni Mitchell, in your face like the Subhumans; rock and roll is Hendrix, it’s Public Enemy, it’s all of that.

One of my greatest personal joys recently was taking time to expand what was supposed to have been a brief 15 minute conversation discussing “The Exchange,” and turning it into upwards of an hour spent bathing in Jermaine Roger’s frame of mind.

“Frida and Vincent” by Jermaine Rogers

Creative, enlightened, humble and honest, he attacks life with a demeanor that welcomes inclusion and begs others to just c h i l l l l out a bit. We talked religion, growing up black and alternative, and basically everything in between, around, above and below the topics. We ended the conversation analyzing perception.

“Day to day. That’s all you have to do. Just take it day to day. It’s not about belonging to groups and pressing ‘my thoughts,’ ‘my political party’ or ‘my god.’ I stepped away from that way of thinking a long time ago. I have trouble even calling myself an atheist because that purports the idea that I know there isn’t a god to believe in. 

This whole scene whether it’s graffiti art, rock and roll poster art, designer vinyl toys, whatever, I think they are all spokes on the same wheel. If we as a human race ever get it together, if we ever actually get it together — it’s going to be because of art. Period. 

There’s scientific proof that certain tones and certain auras effect us on a biochemical level. I know that as I’m saying this, there are some people that could hear it and just think it’s hippie bullshit and that’s okay too. And it really is. Some people can’t grasp these things and can’t really just chill out because of circumstances we’ve created. For the dude in Syria trying to get his family out and just cross border lines, that dude can’t just relax. Or the single mother who is over here busting her ass to take care of these kids and she knows she’s not spending enough time with them and she knows she’s raising them in a neighborhood where you see all types of shit on the street and she’s terrified and looking for any dude because she needs help financially and in the home, she can’t just relax. And what is the answer? There is no answer. It’s okay. It’s just okay. 

It’s okay that we’re going to live here for a little while on this frequency. People always want to find themselves. If you look in the mirror, that is not you; that’s a flesh machine that you drive. You inhabit that thing. You are really like a bunch of electrical impulses and signals that are jumping around the frontal cortex of your brain. So you are driving this ‘thing.’ And when this ‘thing’ breaks down at some point from 80 to 100 years if you’re lucky– you know it breaks down from time to time, but has this amazing ability through nature and evolution to heal itself and unfortunately we’ve totally forgotten that a huge ability we have to fix ourselves, is us. If we just sync up with it, we can do a lot of self-healing. But, at some point our machine breaks down beyond repair. We know that it stops existing on some level as far as interacting with the thing we’ve been driving, but what happens after that is okay to say ‘we don’t know.’ It doesn’t mean you’re a bad person or stupid. It’s just about acceptance on a broad level.

If you go from the surface of your skin outward, you are infinitesimally tiny. You got trees, mountains, continents then you have planets. And this planet is just a tiny little thing in comparison to Jupiter which is nothing next to the Sun. But the Sun is just a yellow dwarf; it’s one of the small and mediocre stars. So we, as these infinitesimally tiny things literally on this mediocre planet, on the outskirts of this mediocre galaxy,relatively speaking, think we know the reason for everything? It’s just silly.

At some point you just have to say look, am I nothing, and that’s okay. But at the same time, if you go from the inside surface of your skin inward, you have a body that is made up of a tremendous amount of atoms. The number of atoms in your body is a 1 with 21 zeros after it. There’s an infinite amount of space in every atom of your body. When you start looking at it, you can say ‘my body is a multi-verse’ and that’s the beautiful duality of it all.”

The post Prints On Wood Interview appeared first on Jermaine Rogers.com.

[On the eve of the release of Jermaine Rogers’ first self-produced vinyl toy, CHOICES, Vinyl Pulse reached out to him to explore the character, the connection to the underlying storyline, and his perspective making art and art toys.  Enjoy the interview and be sure to check out the SDCC release info, after the jump.]

Q: Hi Jermaine. You’ve been making art toy fans really happy over the last year or so.  Next up is CHOICES — a blood red-eyed, knife wielding rabbit with something or someone clearly on his mind. Can you tell us more about the character and  his fellow brothers often seen in your various gig posters and art?  Do the Dero and these unusual rabbits see eye to eye?

Well, these bunnies belong to a particular patch of woodland very far away. They’re involved in a centuries old dispute with a community of raccoons who share the woodland with them. The two sides don’t really like each other, but tolerate each other for the most part. From time to time, there are flare-ups. Sometimes violent flare-ups. Every community has it’s extremists.

But, every community has it’s level-headed, forward thinkers…and they exist among the bunnies and raccoons as well. More stories of the individual players in this story will come out in future figures/prints. This bunny in particular is faced with some sort of decision, as well as an instrument to help him carry it out. His choice is not specified, because that is for the viewer to decide.

As far as the Dero and their relationship to these bunnies, I’m going to ‘no comment’ on that. It’s been pretty well established that the bunnies, raccoons, and Squire (the human-headed pig creature) all exist in the same storyline. Squire is a source of tremendous peer pressure on the bunnies. Meanwhile, the Dero and Veil storyline is a different thing entirely. I will say that, yes, these 2 struggles exist within the same ‘universe’.

Q: I’ve always wondered how you make your character choices.  Which comes first, the animal or the concept/feeling you’d like to portray ?

There really is no process that I stick with. I let it happen naturally. Sometime, there is a type of being that I want to artistically portray, and I look for the right way to do that. Sometimes the ‘right’ way for me is the way that no one else will expect. In any case, I try not to dictate a process in any certain terms. Just let it happen. Often when you feel the ground sort of cracking beneath your feet, you instinctively look for something to grab on to. Artistically speaking, sometimes it’s just better to throw your hands up and just fall with it. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. But it keeps everything ‘real’, you know? The art is coming from your gut.

Q: Beyond the striking visuals, a big draw of your art are the edgy, thought-provoking, authority challenging  proto-stories running just below the surface.  It seems that the title of this new piece refers to profound decisions, individual and societal.  At the risk of getting this question sent right back at me, what are the choices confronting us all, as you see them ?

Well, yes: the characters in my artwork deal with a variety of issues, both individual and communal. I guess it’s similar to what we deal with in our much more advanced, highly evolved (hah!) human world. We’re confronted with constant choices: the tendency to rely on what we think we know and what feels ‘comfortable’ and stand still on our beliefs, our traditions, or whatever…or to really get on with the business of evolving and moving to the next thing. We are ancient cosmic energy, ghosts driving these meat vehicles until they malfunction beyond repair. What’s next then? No one knows, no matter how much they or their books tell you they do. The one thing we DO know is that we have ‘now’. While we are alert and aware and breathing, we can decide to embrace our connectivity to everything else around us. We can decide to get lucid about what we are and how we take care of ourselves and each other. It’s quite a choice. But it’s supplemented by a number of smaller choices we make along the way. That’s what our little bunny figure here is presented with. What the choices before him are, I’ll leave that to the viewer to decide. Is he defending or attacking? Is he an agent of righteousness or deceit? In that sense, it’s all about ‘choices’…for both the character and the viewer of the piece.

Q: Staying with the topics underpinning your art, are you ever tempted to address  concerns or questions people have about your work?  Most recently, the  perceived ambiguity over ‘My Brother was a Hero’ and its relationship to ‘terrorism’ comes to mind.

Well, I’m always happy to talk art with folks and, within reason, give them an insight into what I was thinking when I came up with something. That said, I’m not one for defending anything I’ve done. The art itself is a language, and I strive to make it say just what I want it to say at the time. You can’t please everyone. That’s a cliché you hear all the time, but artists whose work is seen by a lot of the public really learn to understand that…or go nuts.

It can sting when your art runs into resistance or is misinterpreted, because the work oftentimes comes from a very tender place. That said, to continually follow a piece of work after you release it, and tend to it and pet it, and verbally defend it and try to justify its creation to scores of folks who don’t dig it or have decided that it’s no good or whatever…man, no way. I’m not going to do that. I think it really hurts the artwork and turns the whole process into a very cheap thing. Say your thing as hard or as softly as you think you need to. Equip it with all of the tools you think it will need to be ‘successful’, whatever your definition of that happens to be. Then, let it go. It’s almost like letting a child grow up and move on.

When I originally did the artwork for the print that the ‘My Brother Was A Hero’ figure was based on, I released it with an explanation of what I was feeling. It’s out there online for anyone who wants to find it and read it. Or they could look at the thing and decide they hate it and list their reasons why on some forum board. Or they could catch me at some show or event I’m appearing at, and ask me more about my feelings. All that said, the majority of folks ‘got it’ and dig it. And even if the majority of folks hated it, I couldn’t let that change my process. I want to say my thing.

Q: You’ve worked with first-class companies on your art toys from StrangeCo  to Kidrobot, what made you decide to self-produce this one ?  And piggy-backing on that, why go the digital route for the sculpting (via Bigshot Toyworks) instead of the traditional approach?

Yeah, I’ve had the chance to work with lots of really great people, folks I’ve learned quite a bit from.  I think the desire to self-produce is a natural progression in this industry. You start off and you watch and learn and sponge up every bit of know-how you can, then you do your own thing. I tend to desire complete artistic control with absolutely no design-by-committee aspects. I DO encourage people to give me their opinions and ideas and I always let people do what they know how to do. But, I’ve got a certain vision, and I want to steer that in my own way.

As far as working with Bigshot Toyworks, man those guys are amazing. Klim and I have talked for years about doing something together. I admit, I was a slow mover towards the digital sculpting thing, and it didn’t really sink in until I saw another piece that Bigshot did for another artist. Meanwhile, Klim is like, ‘Just send me some turnarounds and let me show you what can be done.’ So, I did. The result blew me away. It was so precise and exact. It was also a fairly quick turnaround. Corrections were made so very easily, as the digital surface is so malleable. You’re left with this creation that is digitally archival, quickly reproduced in various sizes, and useful in getting a real idea of what the finished product will look like. It’s like some hardcore black magic from the wasteland. I love it.

Q: At one point, there was talk that Choices would be released in resin rather than vinyl.  What’s your perspective on choosing one over the other?

Well, I was so pleased with the final result of the original sculpt, I just went with the impulse to go vinyl and have much wider availability, while maintaining a definite limited edition. I did the Dero: Creeping figure in resin last year and it was very successful. I dig the freedom that resin gives artists here domestically, as far as production goes. Still, the more and more I looked at the little bunny, the little man inside of my head kept saying ‘vinyl!’.

Q: If you had an unlimited budget and no constraints, what would you have to create?

A fully functional world, like a theme park but so much more tactile. Life sized creations everywhere, interacting with visitors. 7 Foot tall Deros inhabiting underground caverns, Veil Specimens moving through forests and grasslands. Bunnies, raccoons, and other woodland creatures everywhere. Squire and his kind, wandering around the park. A place where you could go and completely lose yourself.

Or a huge miniature golf course, with larger than life creations of all of these beings…where you can buy a hot dog, chili cheese Fritos and a cream soda from a guy in a Dero suit. 

Q: Finally, what do you have on the horizon?  I’m assuming we’ll see additional editions of CHOICES.  Any other toy projects churning around in your head ?  Will we see a new exhibition soon ?

Yes, there will be some CHOICES surprises on the horizon. Starting at San Diego Comic-Con. the SDCC Exclusice ‘CHOICES’ bunny [ed: 50 pcs, $60] will be available: a shadow bunny with glow-in-the-dark eyes. Also at Comic-Con, I will finally begin releasing the Aleppin Sane vinyl busts that I created some time back, including the SDCC Exclusive which is a glow-in-the-dark variant [ed: 100 pcs, $60]. I’ll also debut some new screen prints there, including a CHOICES themed art print [ed: ‘Family First’, 25×20”, 100 pcs, $40]  & my newest piece of work for Nine Inch Nails.

Future toy projects will see a return to the world of the Dero and the Veil, a really cool new project with the Toy Art Gallery in Los Angeles, California, and a new character that will debut sometime later in the year. Also, a new Life-Size Squire. Years ago when we made the original colorway of Life-Size Squire, I held back on the final couple of colorways…specifically because I wanted to do certain production details that weren’t at my disposal back then. Now they are. For all of those people who have been searching for a Life-Size Squire over the years and are bummed that they never got one, just wait. Oh yeah, and there’s something coming called ‘The Dero Queen’.

The post Vinyl Pulse Interview on ‘CHOICES’ appeared first on Jermaine Rogers.com.

Jermaine Rogers (born October 14, 1972 in Houston, Texas) is an artist and designer in the field of modern rock/pop poster art, also known as ‘gigposter’ art, as well as serigraph and fine art production. Rogers began his career in Houston, Texas as a member of the 1990s Texas poster-art scene, which featured fellow artists Frank Kozik, Uncle Charlie, and Lindsey Kuhn. Since 1995, Rogers has designed posters for a wide variety of musical acts, including Neil Young, Tool, Deftones, Tori Amos, David Bowie, Morrissey, The Cure, Mars Volta, Public Enemy, Them Crooked Vultures, and literally hundreds of others. His work is viewed as influential in the modern resurgence of the art form, “continuously crafting images that push boundaries, whether social, cultural, or aesthetic”. His work is cataloged among the permanent collections of the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio as well as the Experience Music Project in Seattle, Washington. His work has been featured in various media, including print, television, and feature film. Rogers currently divides his time between Brooklyn, NY and Houston, TX. USA.
(Wikipedia)

If you ever get the chance, have a conversation with Jermaine. He is a volcano of knowledge and always a good talk. The talks we have had at SDCC over the years have always been epic, but and to give you a small taste, we asked him 5 questions.

KR – Your Apocalypse Dunny was a huge hit. How did you finally get connected with Kidrobot?
JR- Well, I’ve sort of danced a weird dance with KR over the years. A lot of ‘courting’. We were very familiar with each other and always wanted to work together, but things never worked out. There were a few items I did with Strangeco in the early 2000’s that KR carried exclusively, and they were always very kind to me when I’d run into their people. They always held out the invitation to me to do a Dunny, but it’s just something that, for a variety of reasons, I never seriously got around to. Around 2008 or so, they really started reaching out to me seriously and persistently. Paul (Budnitz) and Joanna (Sieghart) both were very interested in doing an original figure with me, and basically gave me free reign to come up with an idea. By 2010, we had gotten a couple of ideas on the drawing table, including a ‘Jackalope’ vinyl piece (based on the silk screen art print I’d done earlier). It would’ve been a vinyl wall-plaque of sorts, sporting the 3-dimensional, sculpted ‘life-sized’ vinyl head of one of my Jackalope bunny characters that you could literally display on a wall. Ultimately, we abandoned this project for something different. About a year later, I was asked to do the Apocalypse Dunny series and felt good about what I could bring to the series. It was fun to do. Around this time, I met with Galen (Creative Director) and really dug his approach to things creatively. Working with him and his team has been really enjoyable.

KR -When you start new project, what is the initial inspiration?
JR- It could be a myriad of things. Sometimes it’s something in the news, or something I’ve recently heard or read. Sometimes, it’s something that’s been gestating in my mind for a while. Some ideas work that way: they need to marinate. Other times, it’s just an ambient thing that’s kind of there, floating in the ether. That’s the wonderful thing about ‘art’: the initial seed can come from so many places, and combine with the present state of your mind to create that elusive ‘spark’. In my other career of designing artwork for rock and roll bands for years, I’ve gotten a lot of practice in balancing ‘brain’ with ‘gut’. There’s a certain amount of brainstorming involved in the creative process, but many times it’s a hunch…and it takes a while to really learn to trust your gut and just go with hunches. After a while, your gut will either justify or condemn itself: you’ll know which it is by looking at the body of work that you are building. And even then, it all depends on your point of view. If ‘success’ is viewed by whether something sells a lot or gets lots of critical praise from the community, then certain ideas and pieces of work that you produce might be viewed as ‘failures’, to some extent. There’s a lot of compartmentalizing, you know? Like, ‘THIS over here is to pay the bills…but THIS right here is for ME’. I think the longer you work and the more practice you get, you can meld the two into the same thing. But yes, there’s a certain kind of vacuum that you have to exist in. An insulated, private place where every one of your initial sparks of inspiration is given a fair shot, regardless of the ‘will this sell’ aspect. Did I answer you question?

KR – Since I know you are well versed in the music scene, what do you listen when working?
JR- A variety of things. I can’t name them all. For instance, today I’m working on turn-arounds for a new figure that will be the third release on my own label (DERO 72) this fall. If I look at my I-Tunes shuffle history for today thus far, here’s what I see:
‘Cuckoo’ – Analogue Bubblebath
‘The Scoop’ – Beastie Boys
‘Object’ – Ween
‘Sister Morphine’ – Marianne Faithful
‘Billy Jack’ – Curtis Mayfield
‘Du Liegst Mir Im Herzen’ – Marlene Dietrich
‘Return Trip’ – Electric Wizard
‘What You Won’t Do For Love’ – Bobby Caldwell
‘Madison Ave.’ – Gil Scott Heron
‘Empty Chairs’ – Don McLean
‘Food + Clothes + Shelter Pt. 2’ – Dead Prez
‘The Big Orange Love’ – The Flashbulb
‘Negative Creep’ – Nirvana
‘Eight Is Enough’ (Television Theme Song)
‘You Are What You Is’ – Frank Zappa
That’s just a taste. As you can see, there is no rhyme or reason…no connecting factor, other than they all fucking rule.

KR – With your immense depth in doing gig posters, what is one band you wish you could do a poster for that you haven’t?
JR-If we’re talking overall…across all of rock and roll history, there’s a bunch. I’d have loved to do a print for Hendrix, man. A Marvin Gaye print, right around 1976…that would’ve ruled. A Woody Guthrie print would’ve been awesome. The Smiths. Joy Division. It would’ve been awesome to do something for T. Rex, too. Anyways, that could go on forever. If we’re talking about bands/artists who still exist, top of the list is Aphex Twin. I’ve never gotten the chance to do anything for any of Richard James’ projects, and it’s hard because he really doesn’t tour a lot anymore. But man, the first chance I get, I’m on that.

KR – Ok time to nerd out, how stoked are you on the new Godzilla movie and the reboot of Star Wars?
JR- OK, so GODZILLA…you know, I’m really looking forward to it, surprisingly. I like GODZILLA: I still have my SHOGUN WARRIORS ‘Zilla in the box displayed in a case in my home. But, I’m always a skeptic when it comes to Godzilla reboots: that last thing in the 90’s really sucked. But this looks good: seems like it’s handled very seriously. The trailers look heavy, the way that shit would really be if it did go down. Plus, ‘Walter White’ is in it, so I’m in.
Now, Star Wars…dude, when they announced that Luke, Han, and Leia were back, they had me. The original trilogy is like religion around here: I’ve got an entire childhood invested. That stuff was foundation material for me, determining a lot of who I am and how I processed fiction and fantasy and storytelling and all of it. I’ve got a lifetime of man-love for Han Solo. My first hero ever. And I’m glad about the new mgmt. on those things. It seems the saga is in capable hands. So yeah, I cannot wait.

‘Live Suspiciously.’

The post Kidrobot Interview appeared first on Jermaine Rogers.com.

By Omar Afra

Most Houstonian’s are blind to the fact that their very own city was responsible for a resurgence in the medium of rock poster art. There was a ‘golden age’ in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s where Houston’s acid soaked psyche and garage rock scenes were propelled into the national consciousness with the help of such poster artists as Frank Kozik, Jason Austin, Uncle Charlie, and Jermaine Rogers. Rogers’ work has since become ubiquitous as he has been commissioned by everyone from David Bowie to Radiohead to Led Zeppelin to create original artwork for tour posters, albums, and just about anything else you can put a mind-bending image on. In 2009 he moved to New York City but has since decided to again make Houston his part time home yet keep his residence in NYC and jump between. We were lucky enough to nail him down long enough for a few questions.

How much does your own personal worldview inform your artwork?

Quite a bit, naturally. That’s the magic of any art, really. When I began doing posters and flyers for bands back in the early to mid-’90s, there was really no ‘plan’. There was no financially sound ‘street art’ or ‘gig poster’ market like the one that exists today. So I had no long-term agenda of any sort in the beginning. I just wanted to have a part in a scene I really enjoyed being part of. And lucky me: I could draw a bit. Those first few years were really about figuring out the craft. Learning ‘the rules’, and then figuring out which ones you want to break. You figure out who YOU are, and you learn to stop copying your idols. You learn to embrace some of your little imperfections on reality: these will become pivotal parts of your ‘style’.

Back in the late 1990’s, when I was getting my first big breaks, I received a lot of criticism for doing artwork that was too ‘self-centered’. I remember doing a poster for an ‘At The Drive In’ show where I indulged in some weird autobiographical imagery. Soon after, another artist (who I won’t name) said, ‘Your artwork should be about the band and not yourself. You’re serving your ego.’ I never bought into that way of thinking.

I remember being so mystified by artists not willing to totally indulge their ego in their ARTWORK. You’re an artist! Say your thing. You know, I’ve always made sure that the artwork I create for shows fit the vibe of the band. The bands were always happy. They always hired me again. That At The Drive-In print? They loved it. I worked for them again. I worked for Sparta AND Volta. Always doing my own thing. When it comes to gig posters in particular, you CAN do both: tag the vibe of the band and the event as well as be very personal and egocentric in your artwork. Raymond Pettibon did it. Frank Kozik did it, and personally encouraged me to keep doing it early on. If the band/client gives you the freedom, take it. Trust that you have the sense to know how far to go and when to pull back. Sometime, your worst impediment is other artists’ opinions. Study the art you like. Study the artists who create it. Think and listen. Train your gut, and then trust it.

Of course, when I’m doing art prints and paintings, I have total freedom. The same is true with my designer vinyl figures and sculptures. I indulge every aspect of my self in these projects. Your art should be the one place you plant your feet and hold your ground. It’s the one place you don’t turn and run from anyone.

An artist/musician/writer/film maker etc. is kind of like the shaman of a tribe. He/she has access to certain talents, which are just beyond the reach of most members of the tribe. He doesn’t necessarily describe events: he interprets them. He helps the tribe understand and process their feelings, beliefs, loves and hatreds. He is a conduit. And every artist is like that. He has his own little ‘tribe’. Call them collectors or fans…whatever. But there is a bond between the artist and his group. Degas called it a ‘trust’. The artist trusts his tribe. They provide for him. They indulge his calling. They give him the space to work it all out in his head and then they watch his journey carefully. They also pay his bills, give him food money, and finance his future explorations. In return, they trust that he will always be true in his work. He speaks for them. They trust that he will always honestly represent the tribe. It’s a very symbiotic relationship.

Trust your views. Shout them out in your drawings and paintings. Sing them and write them. Your tribe is out there. You speak for them. You owe it to them.

What have been the best/worst things you have discovered that have happened to the ‘old neighborhood’?

Well, my old stomping grounds (Montrose/Heights) have definitely changed. But, the writing’s been on the wall for a long time in the Montrose. I remember back in the late ‘90s, you could see things drastically changing. A lot of the artists, musicians and freaks that really made the neighborhood a center of creativity were already being priced out at that point. A lot of people I knew started relocating to the warehouses and old buildings behind the George Brown Convention Center, on the south side of the 59 overpass. A lot of folks moved out towards 5th ward, as well. When they cancelled the Westheimer Street Festival because of ‘neighborhood concerns’, that was a harbinger of things to come. It had never been a problem for the neighborhood before. But you know, things change. It happens. Artists, musicians, writers, and students flock to an area because it’s cheap. Typically these neighborhoods are run down, low-income places, and flavored with ethnicity, culture, and an abundance of truly open minds. In time, ‘young money’ discovers these hoods. ‘Wow!’ they think, ‘Just think how nice this neighborhood COULD be! And it’s so funky and artsy! And it’s cheap!’ Then the inevitable occurs. ‘Young money’ starts buying cheap land, and the big cheap old houses. ‘Old money’ follows ‘young money’ (as it always does). Old houses are torn down and replaced by big pretty, state-of-the-art boxes. And it’s all done in the name of ‘progress’. Meanwhile, all of those ‘funky’ folks who made the neighborhood so interesting? They can’t afford the rents anymore. Sooo, they go to another ‘hood’. And guess what? The process starts all over again. It is what it is. Have fun while you can: it don’t last.

That said, I will admit that the Montrose is SO NICE, now! (Laughs) I mean, when we decided to get a place and live here for half of the year again, I was hoping that the old neighborhood hadn’t changed too much. That said, some of the changes are really refreshing. I mean, it’s nice to see families and see people living and loving out on the streets. I’m torn about this neighborhood, and not ashamed to admit it. Back in the late ‘80s when I began haunting the Montrose, it was a really sketchy place. Part of that sketchiness gave the neighborhood its energy. It was dangerous, depending on where you were and when you were there. The Kroger on Montrose was totally not a ‘nice’ place to shop on Friday and Saturday nights. We used to call it the ‘ghetto Kroger’. I went in there the other day, for the first time in years. They’ve got a sushi bar. Sushi. Now that I’ve got a little 8 year old kid, I like the fact that the neighborhood is nicer. When I was 23 years old, I didn’t mind that the dude who lived next door to me was basically a low-budget pimp. I didn’t mind the kids upstairs who were always on acid and who would play Germs records really loud at 3AM. These days, things would be different. One big shock to me was discovering that the amazing Wilshire Village complex had been eaten by a big red and white thing called H.E.B. I had lots of old friends in that place over the years. A book could be written on the folks who moved in and out of that place over the years. Lots of talent. But things change. Strangely enough, the patrons of that H.E.B. remind me of the folks I see up in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Very pretty. Very stylish. Very ‘together’. And they sell fresh praline covered pecans there. Accept it: things change. But, you don’t have to.

How much, if at all, does the city you are in influence your work? If so, how does Houston ‘sneak’ into your work?

There is a certain amount of influence, I suppose. The city you live in has it’s own energy, its own little pocket of zeitgeist. For instance, up in Brooklyn, NY there was a very palpable thing in the air last year when the Occupy folks started doing their thing down in Wall Street, and eventually around Grand Army Plaza (just a couple of blocks from my apartment). It was in the atmosphere, and every other artist I know up there felt it. I instinctively began doing all types of confrontational artwork to support the ideas of the movement, even re-working older designs I had done to better coincide with an ‘Occupy’ theme. Even prints that I was doing for other unrelated events had a subversive air to them. With every piece I was sending to press, I was stripping these ‘Occupy’-type handbills and mini prints along the bottom and printing them out en masse. Those things got left on subway trains, in the parks, in bodegas, and on benches all over NYC. But, there is another point I’m trying to make here. What artists up in NYC were doing during the OCCUPY events was being done EVERYWHERE in the country. Everyone was being inspired by the same events. Geography was irrelevant. And that’s because we’re all connected, more so with each passing year. Due to global communication through the web and real-time information at your fingertips every second, the old geographically based art scenes have really begun to blur into one another. I think it’s a very historic time right now. I know some artists in certain cities who rarely venture out into the local scene where they live. They rarely leave their studios. Their primary contact with the outside world comes via the internet. And that’s a big deal, because the ‘scene’ is actually happening, existing, in a virtual environment. ‘Local’ scenes are being replaced by Facebook friend ‘trees’ and online forum boards. Artists are talking and trading ideas and stealing influences from one another in these very controlled and evolving communities. And it’s all happening in real time. It’s a very new and different thing in the art world, relatively speaking, and it’s happening globally every day. Naturally, you can understand how in this environment, many artists are not finding their primary influences locally. That’s a real development. Of course, there is still some local interaction between an artist and his neighbors and in certain parts of the world, regional heritage is strong. Texas is one of those places. I’ve always kind of worn Texas on my sleeve, primarily ‘Houston’, and have instituted some of that socially taught culture into some of my artwork. Many times, some of the ideology that was present in certain circles here locally is what I would specifically attack in my artwork. I would make artwork meant to chastise and provoke certain mentalities brimming with ancient, right-wing conservative, intolerant, racist, woman-hating, gay-hating, self-entitled bullshit. In the last few years (thanks to the Rick Perry’s and G.W.’s around here), forward-thinking, rational Texans abroad have had to consistently explain to their friends and neighbors that Texans aren’t all ‘like that’.

So, yes…there have been a few times when some vague ‘Houston’ aesthetic has entered into my artwork…but very sporadically. Of course, if there is ever a need or a situation that arises locally where my artwork can assist the greater good or help to educate, I’m all for it. I’ve done that type of thing many times. I am proud to be from here, and I’ll love this town until the day I die. But, I am a citizen of the world. I lived in various places all over the country, and I’ve lived in dozens of other places in my mind. My ‘view’ is so much wider than just ‘here’. And I think that’s how it should be. We’ve all got to start thinking like that. There is an insidious, tribal type of thinking that is crawling up from the mud again. It seemed to be retreating a while back, but panic and fear has brought it back from the depths of the sewage where it belongs. Fear always does that. Artists especially have to model behavior. It’s part of your job, artists. You’re a citizen of the massive outer world, and a timeless explorer of the infinite inner world. So fucking act like it.

I am gonna guess that at one point people assumed the digital revolution would have completely changed rock poster art. Nothing has changed. Am I right?

Well, it certainly has put the ‘gift of fire’ into the hands of many more people. Everybody’s a designer these days. And to answer your question, yes: things totally have changed. It’s easier now for certain folks to say their thing. And the new digital tools that many artists now include as part of their default palette have enabled them to focus more on the idea and basic crafting of their work rather than spending hours on the ‘mechanical’ work. In fact, I remember when I first started doing screen prints, having to create what were referred to in the industry as ‘mechanicals’. You’d do your artwork by hand, take it to some service bureau to have them shoot it into a film positive, throw that onto a light-table and began cutting your separations out of rubylith. This was incredibly time consuming. Hours were spent doing things which software like Photoshop/Illustrator now does in a fraction of the time. Now, there are some luddites out there who will forever argue that the old way was better…and to some degree, I get their point. You certainly understood the ‘bones’ of print making on a more intimate level. There was an art to building the physical aspect of the skeleton of the print. But I’m sure there was quite an art to washing clothes on rocks in a stream, too.

As one who was straddling that fence when things were switching over, I wholeheartedly embraced the digital tools. I remember in 1999, working on a poster for RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE, and I finally figured out a roundabout ghetto-style way to do color separations digitally, which significantly reduced the time it took me to do that process. I do not miss the old ways at all. Years ago, artist Mark Arminski told me how the hand-cutting of color separations is what he really enjoys. I just laughed and told him I couldn’t believe it. He’s a better man than me. I hated it.

The answer is never in the ‘black’ nor the ‘white’: it’s in that shade of ‘gray’. True, the digital revolution in poster art has ushered in a glut of mediocre work. It can be a perfect recipe for disaster to a young artist’s development: a copy of Photoshop and the internet, with millions of images at your fingertips. If one is not careful, they can become lazy. The term ‘designer’ is thrown around really loosely these days, though I am pleased to see that there is a modern melding of design and illustration ethos that is in progress. I’m excited to see where it will go. Digital technology is another tool. Artists will always find a way to squeeze every conceivable use out of these ‘extra hands’. They are gifts from the art gods, to help you hit your target…not to replace your ‘aim’.

You have the pleasure of dealing with some of the biggest bands of the planet. Has there ever been a time you wished you could choke one of them? If so please elaborate. If not, make some shit up.

I never kiss and tell. Sure, there have been some forgettable jobs. Sometimes, it was an issue with the band or a band member. Every now and then, you run into a performer who is so good at performing, he believes that he is just as good at ANY art. And, he/she has ideas. Tons of them. Many musicians believe they are incredible visual artists as well. Most of them are NOT.

Sometimes, the problem is with the bands management, or the merchandise managers. For the majority of my career, I’ve been pretty reckless with imagery. I’ve always wanted to make the print that the suit-and-ties in the band’s marketing department would never make. For instance, when I was a kid, my friends and I would love to spend summer afternoons in the den drawing these pictures of KISS. We’d make each band member a half-man/half-monster. I loved drawing Gene Simmons as an actual dragon-faced demon, with a tail and wings and breathing fire. The thing is, my friends and I never could understand why the folks at ‘KISS ARMY central’ didn’t get that this is what we wanted to see! I guess way back then, this battle between me and art-marketing departments began.

Fortunately, for the last half of my career (to date), I’ve been able to be very selective and work pretty exclusively with folks I’ve worked with many times before. The majority of these are people I consider to be friends outside of ‘business.’ So there is a comfort level there. I remember one time going to a show and taking a friend with me. I ended up backstage, and eventually ran into Josh Homme. I’ve known him for a while and have done a lot of work for him: Queens Of The Stone Age, Them Crooked Vultures, etc. going all the way back to Kyuss stuff. Around that time, I’d been having a problem with some folks in their merchandisers art department really slowing down the process, wanting to ‘approve’ everything. So after some small talk, I tell Homme, ‘Dude, what’s up? Why am I having to jump through these hoops all of a sudden? All this time, and now this?’. I was pretty aggressive, and my friend who was with me looked at me like ‘What the hell?’ Homme apparently had no idea about all of this. He gets on his phone right then, gives somebody the business. Then he calls some manager guy in and basically tells them that ‘Jermaine needs no approval.’ And then we go to some party. And ‘poof’, all those cats who had been hemming me up magically disappear. Homme’s a stand up fella…always has been. And that’s how it is these days. Even if I would tell you a horror story, I haven’t had it happen in years. Besides, in recent years, much of my work has been art prints, paintings, designer vinyl figures and sculpture. So, there is no one to answer to but myself in those cases. And I’m such a delight to work with…

The post Free Press Houston Interview appeared first on Jermaine Rogers.com.

Jermaine Rogers has been a mainstay in the rock poster art scene for over a decade. He works at his headquarters in Manitou Springs, CO, continuously crafting images that push boundaries, whether social, cultural, or aesthetic.  For a handful of years now, I’ve been a fan of the way he tends to prod certain issues, often provoking responses that radiate in every direction.  His prints are of the highest quality, color-fades and detail that make a $50 print feel like the find of a lifetime.  Jermaine’s been able to garner a steady following since the explosion of the rock poster/ screen print scene, and after a review of his work, it’s no wonder.  Covering everything from prints of Jimi Hendrix, to posters for the likes of Radiohead, Ween, and The Deftones, he’s more than established himself amidst a growing sea of talent.  His ability to as he says, be a “chameleon,” really allows him to cast a wide net.  His skill as an illustrator is exhibited in every print, as he’s in no hurry to crank out mediocre work.

Jermaine has also experienced staggering success with his vinyl figures, which have all sold out extremely quickly.  He’s proud of what he’s achieved, but exudes a desire to continue to evolve.  Rock poster art was born in a time and place where psychedelia was the name of the game, and Jermaine has been able to follow in that tradition.  What I appreciate, is that he’s taken the time to ask meaningful questions about the world around him, via his work.  Art’s not only about beauty, it’s also about sharing your view of the world.  Thankfully for you and I, Jermaine is dead set on saying what he has to say, through incredibly made, expertly conceived prints.

Here is  my interview with Jermaine Rogers…

– – – – – – – – – –

Evan: Alright man, you ready?

JR: Yea, I hope you don’t mind, I’m eating popcorn while I talk to you.

E: (Laughs) No problem at all brother…

JR: (Laughs) It’s the first thing I’ve eaten all day….

E: Word, do what you gotta do! I’m glad to do this interview man, I’ve been into your stuff for a while. There were a few prints that I thought were fantastic that you released a while back. I’m thinking of the “My Brother Was A Hero” print and it’s variant.

JR: Right…

E: As soon as I saw those prints, I liked that the variant that wasn’t the exact same image, and I immediately projected the Israeli/Palestinian conflict onto those two pieces.  I’m interested in what was going on in your head when you put those together.

JR: Yes, you were right: that’s what I meant to put into it.  For me, it was a statement on that whole thing. I used the rabbits in a few concert prints a long time ago, and then I didn’t use them for many years.  Then in 2004 I used the rabbit in conjunction with another character, called Squire, who’s been on several posters. I’ve also rendered Squire as a vinyl toy figure.  He’s a pig-like-creature with a human head.  In the story that I loosely told through several prints, he seemed to exercise control over this group of rabbits, and it seemed as though he was instigating some conflict between these rabbits and a wild band of raccoons.  The rabbits and the raccoons were primarily struggling over an area of woodland that they both felt entitled to. So, I already had that story kinda going, and I’m not done with it yet….the raccoons could in many ways represent the Palestinian people, while the rabbits are the Israeli people. Squire is representing an outside influence that’s manipulating both sides. I’ll let you guess who that represents……

It’s a very charged situation, to state the obvious. And I try to erase my programming, you know? All the rhetoric we hear on the news and from Washington can really steal away your objectivity if you allow it. Obviously, much of the western world has a decided ‘favorite’ in the whole deal. I’d like to really look at it from both sides, not just from the viewpoint that is popular to the particular area on the planet where I just happened to be born. I mean, can you imagine if somebody came into your town where you were raised and where your father was raised, and where his father was raised…and came into your house and told you that that land didn’t really belong to you?

E: It’s really beyond comprehension.

JR: Yea, ya know….then (imagine) they took your rights away, and maybe one of their soldiers killed your uncle, or did worse to other members of your family…you wouldn’t strap a bomb onto yourself just to make a ‘statement’.  That would be a very thought out, guttural act. Totally insane, but relative ‘patriotism’. In most of my prints, I’m not trying to score a point for either side, I’m just observing.  I think when I can take these heavy human issues and depict them in a world of little weird, albeit cute, animals, it really drives some points home in a way that is strangely poignant.

I do like to release variants posters from time to time, sometimes just printing the same image on a different color paper or changing a certain color here and there.  For a while, Id been thinking about doing a real variant…..where the image is an actual variation on the idea. So it’s an entirely different image. In ‘My Brother Was A Hero’, the variant depicted the struggle from a western perspective. There are a lot of heroic young men and women sacrificing everything so you and I can sit around and intellectualize about art.

E: Absolutely.

JR: I’m gonna do more of the ‘true variant’ thing, I thought people really dug that.  They’re truly variants, aesthetically.

E: Most definitely. I also wanted to ask you about Hendrix, you seem to come back to him every once in a while…..I think a lot of us have felt a certain void since Jimi Hendrix…

JR: Well, first of all from an artistic point of view, Hendrix is really fun to draw.  He has these standout features that you can anchor the drawing on.  Very eccentric and beautiful to look at. The dude was a modern day god of culture, like some creature from mythology… & he looked like it.  I really love the music and am a really big fan of what he stood for: true intellectual and spiritual freedom. Not being trapped by this big illusion all around us…cause that’s all it is. None of it is ‘real’.  In no way do I think I’m anywhere near as talented as he was, but I can identify with him as an African-American artist in a genre that is dominated by White Americans. True enough, you’ve got a couple other African-American guys working in fringe pockets of the rock/pop poster art field, but as far the art of modern rock crowd, I’m the guy. I find it interesting how he (Jimi) wrote about how he felt like he couldn’t connect with anyone. As a black male you often have to be a chameleon and sometimes people misinterpret that.  And a lot of times, because we’re only human, we may try too hard, or not try enough, or might come off wrong. So on some level, I identify with him there.

E: Yea man, that’s interesting to me.  I definitely think there was an aspect of Jimi that you’re alluding to, in that his ideas were different than most everyone’s, but that there was also a racial component to how Jimi thought about the way he fit in. You also did the print entitled “Uncle,”where you depict a black Uncle Sam. I also heard you mention recently that racially-based prints don’t necessarily sell as well….

JR: It’s funny because I know exactly who my target audience is. And primarily, concert posters appeal to white males 18 – 45…

E: I mean that’s who rock music is sold to…

JR: Right.  Definitely.  I did a print last year called, “To Be Young Gifted and Black,” where old Uncle Sam is saying to this black kid, “see boy, we’re building a prison just for you!”  When I did that print, it wasn’t long after Obama was inaugurated, so there was this touchy-feely honeymoon period racially. The day that I released the print, I was told there was a lot of talk online in different poster-art forums, and that some people were making what others felt were borderline racist statements, both veiled and overt. I got a few emails from people saying they loved the print, but I also got emails where people asked why I felt the need to stir it up, and asked why I couldn’t put that kind of negativity behind me. (One email I received) mentioned that the racial climate had definitely changed since Obama got elected, etc etc…..

What’s funny is that I can take you to neighborhoods back in Houston where, the fact that Obama got elected, changes absolutely nothing. They’re still gonna get profiled by cops, treated weird and what not. You know, a few years ago I was in Houston and we were coming home from a movie, my wife and I.  My wife is Italian. We’re driving home, through the museum district, which is pretty nice, and the cops pull me over. Now, it was the first time we had been pulled over in a car together.  The cop asked for my license and registration, I gave it to him.  He then comes back, gives me back my stuff. Then the cop walks around the side of the car to her window, looks around in the car, and then says, “Maam, are you sure you’re alright? Seriously, is everything ok?” At that point I just burst out laughing…see, cause I knew exactly what it was all about. She got very upset because that kind of thing doesn’t happen to her folks. That’s the difference, and that’s why some people see a print like the one I mentioned and give me an ‘Amen!’ and others see it and roll their eyes and are like, ‘Oh please…’. I understand what a critic of a print like that is saying, cause so many people wear that junk into the ground looking for sympathy or whatever. But, I think the recent atmosphere in this country demonstrates that the race thing never went away. It can’t, because it’s deeper than race: it’s very much socio-economic. So, I’m gonna continue to release those kinds of prints.  And I welcome the hate: I’d feel strange if I didn’t get it. You need some people to hate your art work! In many ways, those people legitimize you.

E: …and I think someone like yourself who is broaching social and cultural issues, is really an exception in the scene. I think the fact that art can reflect what’s going on in society is hugely important.  That’s why I’ve bought the prints you’ve done that make a statement. I think there’s a need for that.

JR: This is weird man, but early on my subject matter was all over the place, and it could be for any band. I would just do whatever I wanted to do, and my only water mark would be that the artwork had to, at the very least, fit the vibe of the band. It was total freedom, and many folks who really long for prints like the ones I did years ago will tell you that there is a difference. Here’s what’s interesting: all that was before poster art blew up. Suddenly things changed quite a bit. Before, the standard way to do prints was through promoters, who got permission from the band, and basically the artist would make money selling extra posters that he or she overran. The band always had the legal right to tell you not to sell, but the bands pretty much looked the other way because it gave them added credibility in the scene.

After things blew up, there was a need to get your self together. The business of posters changed, and so many artists who wanted more light shone on our little thing had to understand that with that extra attention came added responsibility. You have to do things the right way. Merchandise companies are now very much interested in how much money is being made on rock art posters. I know many merchandise suit-and-tie types, and they definitely watch certain artists who just do things through promoters and then sell thousands of dollars worth of product. And they just quietly record everything they see. Years ago, I decided to go straight to the bands, rather than dance around with a promoter who really doesn’t have the right to give you permission to make a print to sell for money.  I’d worked with enough people and formed enough relationships with bands and their managements that I figured I didn’t need to mess around. I was like, I’ve known Chino (from Deftones) for years, I’m gonna work directly with them.  I’ve known Josh Homme for a long time, Im just going to call him when I want to do Queens Of The Stone Age stuff.  Or I’m just gonna work with Ween, or Alice In Chains, or Tool, or Radiohead, or whatever.  This was a big change.  Now that I’m working directly with the band, they can call me up and tell me they want it a certain way.  If I’ve been hired directly, I feel like I’ve gotta do something that’s appropriate for that band.  When the barrier was lifted (promoters), cool, I’m working with the band, but the artwork is more band-specific. So right there, a lot of the art changed, you know. I can’t always make social statements or use recognizable personalities in culture, or slag some corporate entity…all the things I used to LOVE doing. Because Im working directly for a client that is paying me to be very ‘them-specific’. You know what I mean? But, I’ve been thinking about it. I’m gonna start pushing the envelope again. I miss the freedom of no accountability. (Laughs)

E: (Laughs) For sure man….I definitely understand, (laughs)….

JR: I’ve spent much of the last couple of years painting, designing toys, and only doing concert posters for my friends. I’m really ready to turn my attention back to poster art, we’ll see what happens…..

E: Sooo dude, are there anymore Jermaine toys coming out? I saw you were part of the film The Vinyl Frontier, fun flick…

JR: I’m fortunate, all of my figures have been successful. I think I did a few that will stand the test of time. I recently got an email from Paul Budnitz (president of KidRobot) being very kind about my toy history and saying how it was among a handful of things he really liked. That makes me feel good, because that guy sees everything. I can’t talk too much about what I’m doin’ now, though…

E: Fair enough! (Laughs)

JR: (Laughs) I just submitted turnarounds for two different figures…I’m in talks with a company that everybody knows (wink). Until it goes into production, we’re keepin’ it quiet.  I’ve also got a bronze figure coming out soon, and then another life-size Squire variant, it’s gonna trip people out…

E: Unreal man…

JR: The life-size Squire pieces we did a few years ago sold out instantly, so did the Comic-Con edition of 10. Well, we’ve got one more Squire variation coming. I also did a large fiberglass Dero figure that’s gonna be 3.5 ft tall: you can stand it up somewhere in your house, and it’ll freak people out when they see it (laughs)….

E: (Laughs) Oh man…

JR:  (Laughs) Yea man, the toy thing is going good. I’ve got a lot of stuff being made, it’s all in production.  So when it’s time to start releasing stuff, it’ll be like bam, bam, bam!

E:  You’ve also been involved in a group project with a few other high profile names in the art of modern rock scene, Justin Hampton and Emek, called Post Neo Explosionism.  I  wanted to find out a bit more about the project, how’s that been?

JR:  It’s been cool.  When PNE started, we just wanted to do something that was a celebration of each other’s art. We did a show in Seattle in 2002 and that went very well.  There was never any feeling that we had to prove anything to each other. At the time we started PNE, Justin Hampton had enjoyed the most success in the field. And then later on I was able to hustle and do a lot of stuff.  In the last few years, Emek has really blown up. People sometimes think that we have to outdo each other, but it was never like that.  Make no mistake, when you’ve got three ego’s in the same arena, things happen. There definitely have been times when each one of us has had an ego moment…

E:  You are humans after all…

JR:  Exactly, but ya know, it’s cool. If you’re not careful, other people can stir things up. I can’t read the internet poster forum boards anymore man. I love the people on those things, but there are always a few who voice their opinions in a weird way. Some people develop a hatred for your artwork that is puzzling to watch. It becomes personal. Every thing you do, they’ll find the flaw and point it out. When you do those really good pieces, the ones that everyone applaud…well, they’re conspicuously silent then. But, it’s all very necessary. Those people have a right to their opinions and that’s what art IS. Those forums are a good thing, but I personally don’t read them because I don’t want to be influenced. People will tell you what they want to see, what they don’t want to see, what you should be doing, what you suck at, why you’re one of the greats, why you’re overrated…you know. That’s their job, too. My job is to ignore all of it.

E:  For sure. It’s like if you were a ball player, would you want to read the sports section every day?

JR:  Exaaaaaactly.  I was telling an artist that the other day.  Just take one of the biggest rock bands out there, U2.  There are people who would pull out every tooth in their head and give it to you, if they could spend 60 seconds in a room with Bono.  You know what I’m saying?  By the same token, there are people that hate Bono. They hate U2.  They think the music, the pose, the whole package is crap.  I mean, what if old Bono took all of that stuff to heart? All the comments in forums on the internet, good and bad. He would go crazy!  Don’t get it twisted, every artist cares about what people think of their work. I don’t care what they say. You put your work out there, and that comes from deep inside of you.  You’re interested to see if people get it, or if people think it’s good.

If I release a print and it sells out, I’ll know that people liked it enough for it to have been worth my time. But I don’t read the boards because I don’t want to know what people want. I don’t want to know what people think I should be doing, it could inadvertently influence what I want to do. In the past, it has.

E:  Word.  And I think we both could point to instances with either artists or musicians, where you can identify a point in time when they started to create what they thought people wanted from them.  The work loses the life force that drew you to it in the first place…

JR:  Yea ya know, be true to yourself and do what you want to do. Some bands are weird tho. With some bands, hey, let’s face it, they start sucking when they start doing exactly what they want to do.  I mean, there was a point when that joker Sting was a pimp!  (Laughs)  And then he started doin’ what he wanted to do and…..(Laughs). Jazz-classical fusion Sting makes me nuts. I prefer ‘white reggae’ Sting. So, all that said, I fully accept that what I want to do might really, truly suck, but it’s what I want to do.  You’re blessed if anybody cares at all.  Things are always changing, but I think the key is to make art you feel comfortable with. So go ‘head on, Sting. Rule that adult-contemporary wasteland.

E:  It seems that you’re very lucky in that people respond to your work one way or another….

JR:  Yes, Im fortunate. That’s all I really wanted. Love or hate. Anything but apathy. I’ve fortunately always had enough people who like the stuff, and they are the ones who finance it. The prints still sell out. You lose some collectors, and they’re replaced by new folks. You know, whatever. I definitely had to learn to not take myself so seriously. When I look at things, I see that I’m not the best, I just have my own style.  That’s all that style is.  ‘Style’ is a really pretty word for ‘imperfection’.  Every artist tries to manifest his slant on reality, and the imperfections of that look, the deviations from the norm, are his ‘style’.  You just kinda learn to say, ‘you know what dude, I’m fortunate to be able to do this.’  You just relax and things don’t bother you. It’s been 15 years and I’m still here.

E:  Art is relative man. We all like different things. I think it’s a testament to your work that there’s disagreement about your different pieces….

JR:  I’d like to think so.  I obviously find some value in what I do.  I’ve always hated the idea that there was a ‘proper’ way to do things…or that there was ‘good’ art and ‘bad’ art.  That’s so stupid.  There are these self-appointed experts in every genre of art, you know.  They can explain to you why something should appeal to you and why other things are worthless.  It’s just so tired.  The work I do is very much a casual exercise. Nothing is extremely strategized. It is what it is, and it’s based on how I’m feeling when I do it.  And guess what, a lot of it is overrated, (Laughs) and a lot of it is a hustle.  It’s always been that way.  Whether it’s Davinci hustling for the Catholic Church or Warhol hustling New York City. I remember years ago in the early days online, I’d get on there and hustle. It was a much smaller place back then and the rock poster art community was much smaller as well. I was doing my little ghetto Warhol (Laughs)….making people think they needed what they don’t need, as he would say. I look back at some of that and cringe (Laughs) but realize that I was one guy and no one, outside of a limited circle of fans, was waving my flag. It was just me. So I worked it the only way I knew how. Again, sometimes you try to hard…and you come off looking like an idiot. I’ve been there. But, it’s all good. I really believed in my work, and I wanted others to see why they needed to believe in it as well. Honestly, there was a genuine earnestness to all of it. I was fighting for my life.

E: Gotta let people know what you’re up to! It’s been fun Jermaine. Thanks for letting me into your head a little bit…

JR: I appreciate it. Hopefully people won’t misinterpret anything, but I know they will (Laughs).

E: Peace dude….

JR: Later man…

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Artist Jermaine Rogers designs rock posters with a message. If you have heard Radiohead’s latest album, “Hail to the Thief,” you are sure to have noticed Thom Yorke’s prophetic voice belting out an eerie warning on the very first track. “Pay attention!” he repeats over and over again, as if the act of singing the words is the only thing keeping him from drowning in a world of complete chaos. This haunting phrase, “Pay attention!” is what struck poster artist Jermaine Rogers when he was commissioned to create one of his signature concert posters for Radiohead’s most recent tour date at the C.W. Mitchell Pavilion in Houston.

To look at this poster is to immerse yourself in a circus of imagery. Misshapen figures… take the forms of prominent personae in American life: A crooked priest, a drooling television executive, and businessmen with dollar-sign faces are just some of the characters who inhabit this creepy landscape. It is also dotted with images of a ghostly university, planes zooming overhead, and smoking twin towers. Lurching out from the center of this mayhem is a daunting creature with a drooling third eye who is labeled “protektor.” In one hand he holds a young mutant child, while the other arm reaches to engulf a sea of people who stand helpless, covering their eyes. In the very center of the group, one acutely animated face emerges, pointing at the “protektor” and the surrounding scene, emphatically urging us, pleading with us to “Pay attention!”

This sort of imagery may seem a bit scathing for a concert promotions poster, and it is. But that of course, is the point. Rogers is a man who refuses to pass up the opportunity to make powerful art. Poster artists and fans alike have speculated about this particular poster’s social and political implications, but Rogers insists there are none. “I basically looked at the world circa 2003 and drew what I saw” he says.

You would expect a man whose artistic translation of the world is so fraught with…imagery to be a pessimist at his core. Rogers, however, is a self-made man who truly believes that “you are only so much hard work and sacrifice away from anything you want.” There was no neatly drawn map to success for this African-American, rock and roll poster artist from the South. A Texas native, Rogers grew up in Houston where he discovered early in his childhood he had an artistic gift. He attended art school briefly when he was twelve, but realized, even at this young age, that he did not agree with the concept of grading artwork. Rogers received no other formal training in the arts. Instead, he drew inspiration from various forms of popular culture including comic books and his mother’s old concert posters from the 1960’s.

According to Rogers, “I used to create little psychedelic-style posters for bands that I liked. I must have been about fourteen and I created this flyer, and it was real psychedelic and trippy. It was a show for like ten of my favorite artists so it was like, Run DMC, LL Cool J, U2, Rush and Jimi Hendrix. And I just made this flyer.”

Rogers had been a music fan since first listening to records with his mother in the 70s. When it came to exercising his drawing skills, the marriage of art and music just seemed to make sense. Strangely enough, around the same time Rogers was experimenting with trippy concert fliers for imaginary festivals, another Texas resident, Frank Kozik, was distributing little black and white promotional fliers around the city of Austin.

Kozik, who over the years has become known as the “father of modern poster art,” began making black and white fliers for rock shows in Houston and Austin in the late 70’s, early 80’s. Kozik’s fliers, and later his posters and multicolored silkscreens differed dramatically from the simple-lettered, boxing-style posters of the 1950’s and the psychedelic concert art of the 60’s. (Silkscreens are very sophisticated, extremely high resolution prints that are created using a process that separates images by color layers. A poster is run through the press one time for every color in the design.) His bold, cartoony illustrations and high contrast imagery complemented the loud and rebellious image of the developing punk scene. Like many music fans at the time, Rogers was drawn to Kozik’s artwork and started a collection.

“I remember friends of mine had tons of Kozik posters. I was here in the town where most of those shows happened. I mean, I was there. I pulled my poster off the wall,” notes Rogers. Hording posters he tore from the walls of concert venues all through high school, he did not immediately recognize concert poster art as an professional avenue. He was working in the Department of Astronomy at the Museum of Natural Science, a job he simply fell into, (“I know a little about a lot of things,” he explains.) when the epiphany hit. The source of Rogers’ inspiration was a commercial for none other than the U.S. Army. Rogers recalls the ad’s tagline with perfect clarity: “The narrator said, ‘All your life, you’ve read the stories of other people’s lives. Now start writing your own.’ And it sounds corny, but I was like, I need to start writing my life. Pick up the pencil and go.”

Rogers promptly gave notice on his job and started living what he calls “a hardcore, starving artist kind of life.” Times were tough for him. He spent his days in a little 10 by 10 efficiency apartment, “eating once a day sometimes.”

But Rogers was beginning to carve a niche for himself in the underground rock and punk scene. He started to make fliers for shows around Houston, and in 1995 he created posters for bands like Fishbone, The Cramps, Belly, and The Skit Militia Rave Crew. He also designed a poster for KMFDM, a print that marked the first appearance of Rogers’ signature teddy bear, the image that would become his trademark.

His teddy bears are no soft and cuddly creatures. The bears tower over humans in posters. Some have bright red eyes and cavernous mouths full of… teeth, while some have round, sad eyes that reflect a sense of melancholy and foreboding. Others still with crossed and vacant eyes that suggest brainwashing, exhaustion. Rogers cites the old McDonalds commercials “with people dressed up in big suits in a world where everything was alive,” as his inspiration for these creatures. And, as with much of his imagery, a provocative and slightly cynical intent underlies these mutant forms. He explains that, “the bear thing started from the idea of taking something that most people had already been socially taught represented security and safety and innocence, and warping it.”

Rogers saw an increasing response to his bears and began to incorporate them in more of his posters. Ever the science fiction fanatic, Rogers penned a history of the bears, known as “Dero.” He began unveiling their story in the imagery and text of his poster art.

A Weezer poster for a gig from their 2000 tour, features an extreme close-up of a pink bear with bulbous red eyes that look in opposite directions, and the number 72 scrawled into his forehead (the number 72 is incorporated into many of Jermaine’s designs, the meaning of which Jermaine prefers to keep a mystery.) The bear looms over a young blond man, imploring him in a speech bubble that reads, “You have no idea what they are planning. You must come.” Scrawled white text at the top of the poster serves as narration: “I’d seen the bears many times during my childhood. Now, 20 years later, one of them has appeared to me again. He is more haggard than I remember. His eyes are full of fear.”

It is clear when examining the story behind the Dero, the entirety of which can be found on Rogers’ website, that this artist is an exceptional writer and well-read. Although he never attended college, he needs a great deal of philosophical and cultural stimulation. Art Chantry, colleague and poster design legend, describes Rogers as “an intense, complex individual with the worldview of an intellectual.” His posters reveal his cerebral nature, and he often gives nods to those whose words and ideas have influenced him.

For example, Rogers drew Oscar Wilde, Tolouse Lautrec, and Felix Feneon into a 2002 Morrissey poster. He justifies the sentimentally poetic inclusion of these three figures at the very bottom of the poster writing, “voices from another age implore me to see between the lines.” He explains, “Lautrec, Wilde, Feneon…along with others from history…they speak to us from across the years, I believe. They beg us to LIVE and THINK!”

Although he weaves complex and provocative messages into his work, he is adamant about creating art for the common man. His love of pop culture and resultant inclusion of nostalgic and iconographic imagery in his work, bring his posters back into the heart of the streets. It is not uncommon to find allusions to early television shows and science fiction movies lurking in the colorful prints.

In a 2001 poster for Ugly Casanova, Rogers depicts a profound conversation between Sesame Street’s Oscar the Grouch and Grover. Oscar, cynical as ever, provokes his furry friend saying, “but isn’t the entire concept of ‘God’ just a little out-dated?” Grover, starry-eyed and stamped with the ominous “72” replies, “Not at all! There’s so much evidence in all of nature that you just can’t ignore.” Far from the squeaky clean, politically correct exchanges about friendship and the alphabet, this poster puts Rogers’ scathing wit on display. Not even Sesame Street is safe from the artist’s warped looking glass.

Rogers continually challenges himself to forge links between popular culture and higher levels of thinking; between art and the intricacies of love and life. It is his unique illustration style, however, that initially piques curiosity and rocks the senses of the viewer. His posters are ferociously bold, colorful and creative; the embodiment of both the artist’s passion, and the music he seeks to represent. Most people have never seen anything like it before.

From the start of his career, Rogers embraced the linework-heavy style. His style maintains a similar cartoon and comic feel, but a soft sense of nuance and humanity inhabits the lines. Unlike the tightly-drawn, angular characters of Kozik, and the shiny, plastic women of Coop, (both of which bear a resemblance to the work of illustrator-genius Robert Crumb) his images are created in perfect looseness with emphasis on the thick curvaceous lining of shapes. It is a style that few other artists have the courage to pull off. There is something lush and obese about these illustrations, which are often defined by bold, yet slightly relaxed line work.

And Rogers’ artistic talents do not end at illustration. Never content to rest within the confines of past achievements, he began experimenting with new media in concert poster production about two years ago. A lover of the fine arts, and a lifetime admirer of Vincent Van Gogh, Rogers decided to picked up the paintbrush and extend the boundaries of his artform. The result of this leap into an unfamiliar medium has been a revolutionary body of work that stretches Rogers’ creative resources across a succession of prints. Like Van Gogh, he rarely adheres to the textbook rules of technique. The posters feature painted images comprised of an array of overlapping colors and brush textures. His paintings emanate a warmth not previously explored in his line work. The painted posters feel more personal, as if after all these years, he has finally invited us in.

Rogers’ assessment of his own progress is modest, as one would expect. His slightly cynical nature keeps the artist grounded, while his overwhelming belief in the value of hard work and sacrifice catapults him forward. It is difficult for him to distinguish specific works as being personal landmarks, sentimentally or nostalgically important pieces, unprecedented accomplishments. He views his work as indigenous to his being. “There’s so many, and yet none of them are really important, cause the way I view art is literally, sort of like breathing. You breathe in, and the air goes into your lungs, and your lungs keep everything that’s beneficial, and when all the processes have been done, then you exhale. And to me that’s what the artwork is. It’s exhaling all the things you’ve taken in.” “I mean there are certain prints I have little memories about and funny little stories behind, but none so important where I can be like, ‘now THIS print is one that’s so special because, ‘ It would be like me singling out a breath. Like ‘the third breath I took on August 15, 1982 was such a good breath and here’s why. ‘”

Only Jermaine Rogers’ body of work will tell the story. From the black and white punk fliers to the large screenprints, the warped teddy bears and pop icons to the dramatic line work and experimental paintings, Rogers is trying to tell you something. And you might just get something out of it, if you’re willing to pay attention.

The post Rock SmART Interview appeared first on Jermaine Rogers.com.

Jermaine Rogers had no formal art training, but in 1995 the Houston poster artist made the bold move of quitting a menial day job to hawk his bills around town, mostly for shows at Numbers. Work was so hard to come by that he had to sell the originals of those early concert posters just to pay for groceries.

“When I first started…nobody knew who Jermaine was,” says the artist. But today Rogers is a big-name concert poster innovator who has worked with such major acts as Radiohead, Tool, the Chemical Brothers and Tori Amos. He’s also created artwork for magazines and newspapers (including the Houston Press), CD covers, video games and movie sets. And there even are rumors that Tom Green may use some of Rogers’s work in an upcoming film.

One of the reasons for Rogers’s success is that his posters have a distinctive look. He pushes the boundaries of traditional poster art, discarding the flaming hot rods and big-breasted devil-girls in favor of fresher images. Influenced by ’50s comic book artist Graham Ingels, Rogers uses a bold-line technique to evoke emotion, from the haunting eyes of his human characters to the sinister expressions of his lifelike teddy bears.

While Rogers recognizes the disposability of concert posters, he believes his art will last because the music itself will stand the test of time. “I just don’t want to use it as a throwaway art, which I believe some artists have done in the past — to them, it’s all sex, drugs and rock and roll,” he says. “We are the first art that en masse has attached itself to these bands. Can you imagine Mozart event posters with abstract artwork that reflected what the people of the day were all about?”
Recently, Rogers has started to cross over into the more traditional medium of painting. During the last year, he did a series of acrylics depicting historical figures like Oscar Wilde and Leo Tolstoy. After selling the works, he realized the drawback of one-of-a-kind art: Once it’s sold, it’s gone.

So he’s started using parts of his paintings in some of his concert posters, a controversial move. Critics say the posters promote art exhibits rather than the rock and roll shows. Even so, Rogers’s recent Coldplay concert poster, which uses the partial image of a face from one of his paintings, sold out long before the band got to town.

“What I’m trying to do is join the two together,” he says. “Whoever wants to buy the painting has the painting, but everyone else can at least enjoy the image on a poster.”

What may be most enjoyable, though, is the sense of humor that pops up in Rogers’s posters. In a Jon Spencer Blues Explosion bill, a T-shirt reads, “I gave 10 years of my life to Enron and all I got was this T-shirt.” And in a poster for a Strokes concert, the artist pokes fun at himself. “This message has been brought to you by AACP ‘Artists Against Concert Posters’ cuz this stuff ain’t art!” As Rogers well knows, many people would disagree.

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Poster art has been around for years. When it really started to flourish in the 60’s with the psychedelic movement, artists and venues created posters that defined a musical era, marrying music with art for bands like Led Zeppelin and Jimi Hendrix playing at the Fillmore or the Palladium… the golden age of “rock art”. Then it seemed to all but die out during the 80’s. Until (it seems) about the time that CD’s began replacing vinyl, and the album artwork became smaller. I believe it was about this time that the ‘poster artist’ was reborn… or better yet, re-awakened. More sarcastic and straight-forward then their subtle predecessors, artists like Kozik, Coop and Derek Hess, drawing from what shaped their views of the world, started putting out vivid images, mocking late 60’s-early 70’s pop culture to promote their favorite bands. This handful of pioneers created quite an underground scene that re-paved the way for a slew of new and talented artists. Now the poster art ‘movement’ if you will, is back in full swing – and not just limited to independent bands – or even music for that matter. I’m sure you’ve all seen the “Coop Devils” or “Kozik Chicks” on stickers, shirts… hell, even Altoids ads, all born from small time artists, doing what they love for the music they love.

I’ve followed poster art for quite some time, collecting my favorite artists and getting turned on to new ones. Of the new artists, a few rise to the top, the “crème de le crème” if you will. At the top of the list is poster artist Jermaine Rogers. One of the more desirable artists working in his field today, Jermaine has helped set the curve in which all other poster artists are graded. Drawing more from the weird and ironic late 70’s and early 80’s, Jermaine warps and mutates images and icons that we’re all familiar with, showing us all what the “True Hollywood Stories” for Sesame Street or Happy Days might be like – or what it might look like if Han Solo told Luke who was really the coolest.

Jermaine allowed us here at RANT the opportunity to ask him a few questions about what he’s trying to create with his art, where he’s going next and why it’s important that the audience ‘gets it’.

RANT: I can’t help but notice your 70’s and 80’s pop culture influence and parody, which is what I find, draws others and me to your work the most. It seems that music fans of the genres you create art for, relate to the same influences you draw from. Is that what you are striving for? What other influences do you draw from when conceptualizing your work?

Jermaine: In many ways, I’m striving to do posters that people who are NOT artists would do if they were artists. Know what I’m saying? It’s like; when I was a kid there were certain things I always wanted to see. Like on cartoons, I always wanted to see that cat Tom finally catch Jerry and like… eat him or something. Or, I always wanted to see a scene in Star Wars where Han Solo and Boba Fett just throw down. You know what I’m saying? But, NO ONE ever gave any of my friends or me what we WANTED to see… mostly because the confines of the ‘story’ or ‘franchise’ prohibit it. Conversely, the ‘concert poster’ as a vehicle for artistic expression is SO wide open. You can do ANYTHING… and almost EVERYTHING gets done. I attempt to try and put myself in the position of the average ‘Joe’ on the streets. Someone with little or no artistic ability, what do they think would be ‘cool’ to see promoting their favorite bands? A lot of the content is born through this process. And it’s not really as ‘calculated’ or ‘planned’ as it might seem. It just happens. I do what I want, and as I’ve said before, I’m fortunate that other people ‘get it’.
There are some ideas that have been in my head for years and just haven’t been put on paper yet. Sooner or later they will… I guess. The SUPERCHUNK poster a while back was like that… the one with the scene of PACMAN being gang-attacked by the ‘ghosts’. I’ve had that scene in my head since I was like 10 years old. Literally, when I played PACMAN, every time PACMAN got ‘caught’ I wondered, ‘what exactly did the ghosts DO to PACMAN?’ It’s weird, but little things like that stay with you, and all that you need is an opportunity to let that stuff out. Poster art is my outlet.

RANT: Ahh, I totally see what you mean. Like if the computer in War Games hadn’t figured out there is NO winner in Nuclear Warfare and stopped the game before the Russians fired back? Or, what if Azriel actually DID eat the Smurfs? Or maybe I’m going a bit too far. What if KITT actually came to the realization that he didn’t need Michael? Feel free to use these Ideas…

Jermaine: KITT not needing Michael? Get serious. But yeah, those are good examples. Right now, the ‘stage’ of poster-art offers an artist the opportunity to play with such ‘copyright-protected’ subjects and get away with it… most of the time.
In addition to all of that, I just keep my eyes open. The NEWS is important. I watch and read lots of it. To me, the secret is elevating the viewers of your artwork to a level of control over the art. You’ve got to put your artwork in a context where the viewer can ‘own’ it, mentally and emotionally. The average person wants to feel like they ‘get it’, you know? I think that’s where some artists make a big mistake in this field. They try to out-think their audience. Why would you do that? It’s suicide, professionally speaking. No one cares about how smart you are. I prefer to sort of lead them along by a familiar thread to the ‘idea’ I’m trying to get across. Give them some familiar ground to tread… so the poster feels ‘close’. They ‘get it’. Social commentary always does that. Like, you could do a poster where you explore all of the ins and outs of Kirshner’s ‘alternative reality’ and ‘connected event’ theories and try to force your audience to wrap their brains around THAT, OR you could do a poster image asking, ‘What if Kurt Cobain had never married, and therefore, Kurt never died prematurely? Where would he end up?’ Like, you’ve covered the exact same themes… but you’ve given your audience the power to ‘own’ your poster through familiar content: Kurt. They ‘get it’.

RANT: Is there significance in the re-occurring numeral 72, the Bears or the Aliens?

Jermaine: Yes, yes and yes. Keep up with the DERO storyline that pops up from time to time in my posters, and you’ll see. ’72’ is a tragic number, the ‘Bears’ are NOT ‘bears’ and there are no aliens.

RANT: The DERO storyline? What is that? I’ve seen the ’72’ and have my own conceptions of what it might signify, but it’s best to let each come to their own conclusions, right? Does DERO stand for something? And should we watch for more installments in the DERO storyline?

Jermaine: The story of the DERO is a tragic one. I don’t want to reveal too much, but basically, the ‘bears’ are not what they seem to be. There are malevolent and benevolent bears, as many people have now noticed. The malevolent ‘bears’ are actually ‘breeders’… but more than that. They are ancient. They have affected much of human history. They have caused wars. They have prevented wars. And a few times, the veil has been lifted, and some of the ‘surface folk’ have become aware of their existence.
They’ve bred a race of beings much like themselves, but with a unique difference, that I wont go into here. These bred beings have appeared as the pink, ‘friendly-looking’ bears. There are things going on in their communities down below… beneath the surface of the earth… and when the entire thing is revealed, then the answer to what the bears ‘are’ will be evident.And there are NO aliens. There will be more installments. At first, I wanted to rush it… but I’m taking my time. They’ll be popping up in the regular rotation of my poster jobs.

RANT: What kind of training do you have in your craft?

Jermaine: I’m fairly self-taught… and there are some who would say that that’s obvious. I learned most of what I know by looking and copying and a whole lot of trial and error. In some ways, I realize that I am very rough around the ‘technical’ edges. There are many things that I don’t do by the ‘book’. It’s funny, but there’s a fellow artist in the western USA who told me that my fundamentals were flawed: from line-art style to layout skills. Then, I showed them my early work, most of which is not up on my website (I’m lazy) and they were shocked. I did most of the work from 97-99 with a brush. I adhered closely to the ‘rules’. Nowadays, I just don’t care. I certainly am still learning constantly. I talk with EMEK, and I learn something about better linework. I examine Hampton’s originals, and I learn about better layout. Frank Kozik recently gave me a chastising over the phone about ‘color’. I study Kleinsmith, FACTOR 27, and Aesthetic Apparatus and learn more about ‘design’ and the finer points of ‘text’ usage. The cool part is that you never stop learning, and you’re never expected to. To me, the final test is whether it works in the minds of the people. If I do everything ‘wrong’, and there’s an overwhelming positive reaction from the public and the client, why should I change… unless I personally wanted to? Who determines what’s ‘wrong’?

RANT: You say you talk with EMEK and Kozik, are you close with the other poster artist out there? Which artists that are out there right now do you think are putting out good work, or maybe there are some artist that are out there that we haven’t seen yet that you know about. Anyone you think we should be on the lookout for in the future?

Jermaine: Yea, I’m pretty tight with a few people out there. Justin Hampton and EMEK are pretty close friends. We recently did a major show (‘Post Neo Explosionism’) in Seattle and it was a huge success. POST NEO EXPLOSIONISM 2 will be held this coming year in a very cool city, but it’s still in planning.

I’m also good friends with Frank Kozik. In the loosest sense of the word, he’s been sort of a mentor to me. I’ve spent hours in ‘one-on-ones’ with him. A lot of real knowledge about this business: he’s ‘done it’. He also ‘gets it’. I mean that, it’s not about this being some ‘career’… it’s about doing what you love. ‘Getting paid’ is like a bonus.

I’m also really tight with Jeff Wood and Judy over at Drowning Creek. Same deal: they ‘get it’. Rob Schwager, also known by the name ‘Trucker’, under which he designed a slew of good posters.

Really, there are several people that I’ve become friends with. Brian Ewing, Mike Fisher, Mike Murphy, the Factor 27 guys, Kleinsmith… I could go on. There are lots of really good guys doing this work. I think right now, there are so many different looks and styles, so there are so many people to watch. The California guys who’ve started in the last couple of years are all talented. Ewing, Fisher, and Murphy are all honing their style. They’ll get there, and fast. The Factor 27 guys, along with Aesthetic Apparatus and Methane Studios are really doing revolutionary things. They’ve sort of come full circle, I think… and it will be interesting to see if they can now step into something completely new. That’s what will equate into longevity, obviously.
And there are tons of other folks. Tyler Stout, Leia Bell, the amazing Print Mafia… and guys like Mike King and Kleinsmith who just continue to evolve that ‘northwestern’ look.

Then, you’ve got www.Gigposters.com, which is like a ‘base station’ for this entire movement right now. There’s never been another time in this field where massive interaction was so easy. It’s an exciting time.

RANT: What artist have influenced you that say, don’t do poster art, but work in other mediums?

Jermaine: Most folks know my usual list. Vincent  Van Gogh, Gustav Dore, Graham Ingels, and Harrison Fisher lead the list. Many comic book artists from the golden age of comics (late 40s-50s) influence me. Obvious direct influences like Frank Kozik and also the 60’s guys (Griffin, Mouse, Wilson, etc.). There are so many. I’m forgetting a lot. That guy who did Subhumans covers in the 80s. Mark Dancy. Arthur Triedler. More. Also, Wieslaw Walkuski. He’s an amazing polish poster artist and usually does work for high-end stage productions and film. He is, in my opinion, the best poster artist working today. Period.

RANT: Do you create art for anybody who approaches you? Or do you limit your work to bands and venues that you enjoy yourself?

Jermaine: Obviously, we all need the occasional dollars to keep mind and body in harmony. Thankfully, I’ve been fortunate enough to not HAVE to do anything I don’t want to. I’ve turned stuff down before. Stuff I don’t respect or that I just find boring. And, unfortunately, I turn down some really sweet stuff that I just don’t have the time to do.

RANT: Do you take on projects other than poster art, like album covers or fine art?

Jermaine: Yes. I’ve done several covers. T-shirts. Magazine covers and artwork. And yes, I paint. I’ve sold more than a few pieces in the last year or so. My latest significant sale was in Amsterdam last month. Before that, there was a sale of an acrylic piece called ‘Tolstoi’s Pain’. It was a painting of Tolstoi seated in a chair sobbing while looking through a telescope at death. I reread his diaries recently, and he always seemed to ‘see’ death coming… like, right on the horizon. I’m slowly making the shift to painting the majority of the concert posters I do. Recently, I used painted imagery for both BRAD and COLDPLAY posters. They were paintings that were done very quickly, in a Wulverton sort of method: very fast, muddied stokes, corresponding color tones. Some folks loved them. Some folks hated them.

RANT: Being familiar with your work, I know that you work with a broad range of artists from indie acts like Zeke all the way to your arena rock acts like Radiohead and Weezer. Do these bands come to you and ask you if you’d like to work with them, or do you approach the bands you yourself would like to work with?

Jermaine: It happens a variety of ways. Sometimes bands approach me. More often, it’s by promoters or labels. Then there are times when I see something I want and make a few calls to get it.

RANT: Do clients come to you with pre-conceived ideas about what they’d like to have you do for them, like themes and colors? Or, does the client usually leave it up to you?

Jermaine: Again, it happens both ways. I’ve had bands approach me with their whole thing ‘mapped-out’. I try to compromise when and where I can, but they usually end up giving me the control I need. I can understand the bands being that way. It’s their ‘face’, so they are genuinely interested in the process and want to ensure that they don’t come off looking like dorks. I get it. But, they soon see that I know what’s up. Fortunately, 90% of the bands I deal with know my work. They approach me because they like what they see. They are glad to let me run with it. These days, most of the ‘requests’ I get from bands are along the line of, ‘Can you put one of those tripped out bears in the poster?’

RANT: What are you working on right now that we need to watch out for?

Jermaine: More paintings. More DERO. More posters. SCREENPRINTS of my paintings. That one’s coming soon. Toys. Yes, teddy bears, Jigris, and MERB’s (these are new characters yet to come). You know, just whatever I feel like doing. That’s the cool part. Half of the time, ‘I’ don’t even know. I’ve been accused of ‘shameless self-promotion’: so there will be more of that. I’m pathetic.

RANT: Are there any acts or venues you haven’t worked with but would like to?

Jermaine: Johnny Marr and Morrissey need to reunite and do something so I can do the poster. Wouldn’t a big SMITHS poster be sweet? I’d really like to do something for Richard James (APHEX TWIN). I would love a Bowie poster. I also would like to do a poster for Pete Seeger or Leonard Cohen, two legends. I never got to do anything for The Subhumans a few years ago when they toured again, and I hate that.

Check out Jermaine’s site at www.jermainerogers.com, you’re bound to see something you like or that jars a memory of your past. Make sure you check out the “links” page on Jermaine’s site… it might open doors to a vast world of art you didn’t even know existed (or maybe you did). Thanks again for everything Jermaine!

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