The streets of Shaolin are riddled with creatives of all sorts! Some stand in plain sight while others take to the shadows. We were lucky enough to find Arjuna Routte-Prieur in the back alleys of Staten Island and bring his art to the light! Unfortunately, due to coronavirus we were limited to an email questionnaire interview but we still manage to get a feel for the man behind the canvas. Check out our full interview below and some unreleased pieces that he shared exclusively with us below! Welcome to Arjuna's Secret online art Gallery!
Its almost as if this artist is living in between worlds with his ability to switch from abstract art to an extremely precise realism. Take a look at some of these drawings and paintings and let us know what you think!
Who are you?
"Arjuna Routte-Prieur"
Where Are You From?
"Born in Manhattan, raised on Staten Island & LES"
Who raised you? Were they artists as well?
"My mom, my grandma, my dad & my uncle. My mom & dad are both artists, my uncle was a musician and my grand parents on my dads side are artists too."
What kind of art do you make and how would you describe your style?
"I change what I do all the time, but you could say my main thing is Drawing & painting."
Where do you find your inspiration?
"I find inspiration everywhere. I find ways to surround myself with stuff that inspires me."
Why do you Paint? How did you get into it?
"Its really just what's natural man, it just makes sense. You feel inspired, you find of a way to express that inspiration. My form happens to be drawing and artwork. I kinda got into it cuz I was surrounded by artists, musicians, and graffiti writers. "
How many Projects have you completed/Sold since the beginning of your career?
"Oh, I don’t know. I've had around 11 shows, some were secret lol."
How/what do you feel when you're painting?
"Hard to describe. Also changes from time to time. I usually say the artwork itself is the explanation of what I'm feeling. That's the closest I can get to making sense of it hahaha."
Who are your favorite painters?
"I love Klimt, Fernand Khnopff, James Ensor, Bacon, Yoshitaka Amano, Michael Lau, the list goes on. I also have time periods where I’ll be really into a certain artist. It rotates. I also have to say some musicians and filmmakers have the same level of importance to me in terms of what I love."
We've heard your beats, are you still making music?
"Yes. I have some projects in the works. One personal project, another a kind of group, and sending some beats to some rappers."
We've included a Soundcloud link to one of his beats at the bottom of the page!
How did you get into music? What are your influences?
"Music has been in my life just as much as art. Both my parents are music lovers. My mom and uncle were at the beginning stages of early hip hop, and the punk scenes in NY in the 80s. My dad also is a huge music fan, he’s a Jazz lover, and use to play the saxophone. My uncle has worked in the music business for years, in particular hiphop. So just being around Hip hop and punk has had a huge influence on me. "
When was the last time you were truly happy?
"Yesterday, earlier today"
How has your artistry been impacted by the coronavirus pandemic?
"Its given me time to think about where I belong in it all, what I wanna do with some work. Time to contemplate projects I wanna do."
Are you Scared of death?
"I think every one is on some level. I try not to think about it that much in that way. There are other ways to think about it that doesn't have fear attached to it."
What do you think your purpose in life is?
Definitely to be a creative.
What would your message be for other upcoming artists ?
"Just go for it. Express exactly what you feel, what you wanna see and hear. Get specific and dive in. If there's something you wanna see or hear make it yourself."
Is there anything else you would like to let us know about that you have going on?
"I have a few shows in the works and a few collections. I will also be having some prints available that I’m really excited by. Other things too!"
Be sure to check out all this artists work and follow him on all social media platforms by clicking here!
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Here's some audio versions of our interviews below on Soundcloud!
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