San Francisco based artist Danyol was born in 1970 in Orange County, California just a stone’s throw away from Disneyland. So it’s no wonder after growing up on on a steady diet of pop art, cubism, and sarcasm that his work is compared to pop art greats like Andy Warhol & Roy Lichtenstein. An-Mag.com recently sat down with Danyol to discuss his art, his technique, pop art & how Mr. Warhol influenced his work.

I like the fact that he realized his impact on the art world was huge but he never took himself too seriously.
- Danyol on Andy Warhol

An-Mag.com: Describe your work to someone who has never seen it?

Danyol: I paint figurative pop art works which explore the use of colors and textures while adding elements of my life in the form of decoupage to create stories behind each piece.

An-Mag.com: How has pop culture influenced your work?

Danyol: Growing up I was what you would consider a latch-key kid. Both of my parents worked until late in the afternoon so when I got home from school, I would fix myself a bowl of cereal and plop myself down in front of the television for hours. This was the impetus for my fascination with popular culture and how it influences peoples lives. I used to make up different plot lines to Three’s Company and Alice, and I would draw and color different sets for Mr. Belvedere and Small Wonder. The bright and eye catching commercials that were made to draw you in inevitably influenced my artwork in so many ways. Today, I draw figurative portraits and place them in popular settings or situations. I make up elaborate stories behind each one, almost to keep me company in a sense, just like all those Brady Bunch episodes did when I was a kid.

An-Mag.com: Would you consider Andy Warhol an influence on your work?

Danyol: In high school I was the kid that everyone liked to pick on and make fun of so to keep myself safe and sane, I hid out in the art room. We ended up going on a field trip to LACMA in 1986 and this was my first time going to a museum. At the time, the art world was going through a major Pop Art revival and I was exposed to Andy Warhol, Jasper Jones, Jean-Michele Basquiat and Robert Rauchenberg. I was blown away. Especially by Andy Warhol. His use of repetition of image and color blocking and especially size of canvas were huge influences on me. I like the fact that he realized his impact on the art world was huge but he never took himself too seriously.

An-Mag.com: Tell me about the technique of creating your works?

Danyol: I usually start with a pile of trash or mements or something that I have acquired that I want to put into a piece. I place the decoupage elements on the canvas, not sure of what the final image or theme will be. This stage is my mental regurgitation stage of the piece. I try and think as little as possible as to where I am placing the elements on the canvas, knowing that some things will be painted over completely. Same with color. I want this stage to happen organically.

Once that is complete I start to think what sort of image do I want to place over the top. What is the combination of decoupage pieces telling me? Once the images is chosen, I draw it on the canvas, mask out the background and the piece is done. I then write a story about the piece which ties the whole thing together.

An-Mag.com: Whats next for you?

Danyol: I paint nearly everyday and I love that fact my work is evolving. I have no idea where it will take me but I love the journey. With me it is all about the process of what I am doing and how the end result taught me something along the way. I am currently working on a few installation projects in large scale spaces and I am eager to see where that ends up. I am also in a band in San Francisco called Adonisaurus and I look forward to see how being in the band changes my art as well!