Rift: Is art and illustration full time for you, if not, what's your day job?
Josh McKevitt: It's sort of full-time ... I mean I'm constantly doodling on anything and everything; I draw everyday. But to answer the question, I work for a place called Apropos Painting Studio. We do mural work, hand-painted wallpaper, faux finishing and 3D work.
Rift: Tell us about your creative process.
JM: My creative process is based around my influences. I love monsters, movies and especially music. Halloween always gets my creative juices going; I love monster masks and costumes and I'm really into retro Halloween stuff right now. I've also been skateboarding a lot this fall. That always sneaks around in everything I'm interested in. A couple of weeks ago, I took a digger into a pothole and cracked my ribs and busted my elbow, but I got some Vicodin, so that was okay.
Rift: What mediums do you work with?
JM: I basically work with anything that inspires me or I can get my hands on. I've been painting for gallery shows and I've even had my own solo show, but I work with music and film/video quite a bit as well. I can't just focus on one thing because the world is small and time is short. I want to leave a legacy of variety, not repetition.
I make music, too, and I'm trying to finish up my album. I come from a school of rock, thanks to my dear ol' ma, but I've been experimenting with different techniques to producing and making music. I'm really excited about it because I'm trying a lot of new things as a musician. Keep your eyes and ears peeled for DANGER HAVOK!
Rift: Are there any local artists who inspire you?
JM: I'm really into this dude Eric Inkala, I think that's his name. He does these amazing color schemes and his line work is really dope. It's got a kind of retro vibe to it, but it's very much his own thing, he owns it.
Just like this other artist who goes by 27; he's got crazy style, too. He makes these crazy characters with plump turnip-looking little faces. I didn't know the dude, so I'd always refer to him as, "the guy who makes 'Pringles® can-guy' faces" because his characters reminded me of that.
Oh, also check out Aesthetic Apparatus and the Charles S. Anderson design group. These people get it!
Rift: What do you think of the local art scene?
JM: I like this town because I feel everyone supports each other when it comes to art, music, etc. I feel all of those creative outlets are tied together at the wrists. For me, to be living among like-minded people is very cool. I love you Minneapolis!
Rift: Is there anything else about yourself you'd like to share?
JM: I've been exhibiting at gallery shows, which is kind of new to me. Having a solo show has been pretty rad. It's been interesting to have my paintings on exhibit; I've always kept the painting aspect very private prior to these events. But I feel very comfortable at shows – I don't ever feel flustered or anxious. I want people to know they can experience something I hope influences or motivates them to do something funky or important. Power to the people – I think we need to stick together because we're living in some dark times.
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