Indole Magazine, one of Italys leading Urban Art Publications did a 12 Page feature about SEAK,

aswell as a Interview (English/Italian) about the recent years, and his Style Influence in the Community.

Feel free to check out the Full English Translation here:

Source: Indole/Different Signs Magazine No.2 from Italy

Indole: Your style is so unique and not like much of the graffiti you see or
what people associate with graffiti. What influences your style of artwork?

SEAK: I made my incapilities to my advantages, for example not doing straight crisp lines to get an honest soft roundish stroke in my way of painting.
Basically accepted my personality and my popcultural background as part of my identity, and were honest enough to show it. And mix that with the skills i was really good in. Like doing fadings, playing with light and colours,
I was searching in my own personality for my content. The toys i played with as a kid, all the years playing computer, a bit of biting other rolemodel writers in inthe beginning, and later conciuosly refelecting the zeitgeist/ contempoary vibe of the society i and we were living in.

Indole: When you were young did you see yourself as being an artist when you
got older or did you have other aspirations?

SEAK: I guess i valued my creative output with the same importance like for example an maurizio cattelan does too. I just had different names for it. Instead of using the word „visual language“ i would have used the word „style“, to give you a very easy example.

Indole: What’s your favorite medium to paint on and why?

SEAK: I love canvases. A very honest possiblities to define your personal boundaries, and show where you at right now as an artist besides that…
Virgin walls on a main street crossing, an end 2 end leaving venice central station over the bridge of the lagoon while the sun is rising up, and you are driving in a car with your italian homies, taking photos, (shit i got goose buns now all over my back and neck 😉 on the parallel car bridge. I love italy.

Indole: I’m not sure if this is the case but you seem to be the originator of
the style of graffiti you are doing.

SEAK: My semi unconcoius goal was to become a style leader, i guess i realized that i wont become a big tagger or huge bomber.
That „ there is new kid in town“, „zorro“, „banksy“ effect on a style level.

Indole: I’ve seen numerous people with similar styles these days.

SEAK: Yeah, well…. that was a lot of work. 😉
Vulcan, the 70ies old school legend from nyc, said recently to me in frisco that i leaded the new school in the wrong direction, and messed them all up. I take that as huge compliment. 😉 always loved the „oppostion“ position. A visual punk rock rebel in scene.

Indole: Does it flatter you to see others imitating
your style or does it bother you?

SEAK: Well it goes both ways. Ive they know the roots, and give me props on there websites ist cool. I just get mad and loose respect when they get abit older start to outsmart everyone, by out of nothing start referenceing to famous architects or this and that contempoary classical artist,…ladida.

Indole: Who were some of your artistic influences growing up?

SEAK: talking about honesty i should go out like that by myself too, and give props to those which inspired my:

Henry miller, the creators of the oldschool playmobil and lego stuff, the artists behind starwars, dozens of arcade games on the amiga 500, world of wonders, quartex, r-type, xenon, georg lucas, steven spielberg, henry chalfant, martha cooper, bando, kingpin, pcp, fernando rubio, juan gimenz, boris tellegen, zaha hadid, mirko reisser, frank gerry, mathias koehler, markus müller, bitmap brothers, oliver gelbrich, knalli, sunny, fedor wildhardt, sander pappot, sandro, siggi van koeding, bates, joel butcher, activison,

Indole: Do you have a favorite piece that you have done?

SEAK: Hard too tell, too many variations. Best case, would be the last piece ive done.
Usually that feeling lasts for maybe 2 weeks. I have a few canvases which are my favorite, but ill dont show them publicllay on the net.

Indole: How has or has the graffiti scene grown in the many years you have
been involved with it?

SEAK: I dont know ive it changed so much. We all have become wiser, smarter, and the spraycans which are nowadays be produced are much more easly to handle. People are getting fast technically good, put are mentally still in a biter, toy, psyeudo hardcore state of mine.

Indole: Where do you see it going?

SEAK: Depends on the indivdual artist. Does he feels comfartable in scene, or does he wanna, or will leave the scene. Banksy is good example for taking things in different directions. I was in show with him years ago, and already back then you could see where he will end up. Great stuff.

Indole: Who are some of your favorite artists (graffiti and non graffiti related)

SEAK: i guess i answered that one already. Personally iam a huge fan of handstyles, tags, throwups, bubbles, dubs, blockbuster, etc.the easy illegal scribbled stuff, so they are too much too mention. I totally dig contempoary art too, it refreshes my mind.

Indole: If you didn’t become an artist what direction do you think your life
would have taken?

SEAK: Realistically, or in a romantic couldbe secenario?
I guess i would have ended up in prison for some fictive bigtime coke deal, or
In a romantic dream an freelance airplane captian in southamerica

Indole: What does Seak like to do when he’s not painting?

SEAK: Going to crazy sex partys, experimenting with different drugs, fighting with my girlfriend, travelling, sitting in a cafe and sketching in my book…there you go. Not much of private life. It all ends up pretty fast again with being „Seak“, and after mr.cartoon tattooed my name on my back the crazy sexparties becoming a bit of problem too. 😉

Indole: Are those sex toys in your paintings ,if so why do you paint them?

SEAK: This kind of a threeway, on the one hand iam child of the „aerodynamicspasceship“ 90ies, then there are the redlight-kink-fetish-d/s years, and then ive never wanted to compromise my letters in painting them from above, or out of the bird perspective. Which makes it all in one pretty phallic.

Indole: How would you describe your color choices during your career.

SEAK: The older you get the more sophisticated you get. And cause life goes in circles you will reach a point when you go back to the „childish complimentary“ color combos. The biggest challenge is to stay motivated over the years and dont loose your mojo. To reach that, or to keep that, anything is possible.

Indole: Does your mood effect it?

SEAK: Arrgh, iam cancer. Big big mood changes. No fun at all. The human is the human`s worst enemy and also best therapy.

Indole: Without color, everything remorsefully would be beige?

SEAK: Maybe, or just black.

Indole: How has there introduction of the internet changed your art?

SEAK: Not too much. My roots where very early founded with arcade games.

Indole: where do you draw your inspiration for your installations?

SEAK: Good question, email me on myspace.

Indole: how do you come up with your ideas?

SEAK: Hmm reflecting myself, my sourrounding, being aware of the current society iam living in.

Indole: interpretations from real life of do the images come from deep within your psyche?

SEAK: For sure. But i wont give you the key here. I rather send you on journey thru my paintings.

Indole: I have noticed that your installations have a some what futuristic look to
them – perhaps an object floating in space or a space station ?

SEAK: hey, we both used to write graffiti when we were young, right. 😉 So we are collegs, mate, we in the innercircle, run the same subculture. Right? So wanna know my secret? Ist all letters!

Indole: how to do think your traditional graffiti period influenced your
today creativity?

SEAK: Just doing it, mixing agressivness with soft and sensitiv parts, going for it, networking. At the moment i dont really to seperate myself from yeah this is my art and this my „graffiti“. I value everything i do as valueable. its a bit like with afro americans in the states, as a white person you should use the „N“ word.
So as a „non graffiti writer“ dont label me with the co-term „graffiti“, cause its ment usually as downgrade.

Indole: Is there any chance than we can your work in 3 demensions. Not
necessairely sculpture but why not installations?

SEAK: Psssst.. we can talk about those kind of things when the interview is over.

Indole: How do you think your traditional graffiti period has influenced your nowadays creativity?

SEAK: Just doing it, mixing aggressivness with softness and sensitive parts, going for it, networking.At the moment i haven`t really separate them, like: this is my part and these are my graffiti. I value all that i do as precious A “not writer” should not classify me with the common term “graffiti” because usually it means to downgrade.

Indole: Do you still painting some night time pieces and if yes, can you
tell us about your deep feeling doing it?

SEAK: It happens. Iam strangely calm and concentrated while doing. Like a very short compressed holiday. Got too refuel.

Indole: Why, always this obsession of travelling the world to do paintings?

SEAK: As an italian living in such a beautifull country. You know the old story the food, the women, the architecture, the nature, the history,…. its clear your asking met that. I just love to expand my horizon, and spread my content.

Indole: Do you still paint some “night pieces”? If yes, can you tell us about your deep feeling doing it?

SEAK: It happens. I´m strangely calm and concentrated while doing it. Like a very short compressed holiday.Got to refuel.

Indole: If you got the opportunity to collaborate with another artist on a
giant canvas, who would you like to choose?

SEAK: Ouuhh thats a tuff one. gursky, neo rauch, meese. Besides the artistic output of opponent is the the supervisual „social“/establishment background/contrast interesting. Ill like it when my audience just founded a box for me, and finally they have to build a new box, and reframe, cause you suprised them.

Indole: Would you like to add something?

SEAK: Yes, visit my websites:

www.seakone.com

www.myspace.com/seakthing

www.flickr.com/photos/seak