Buff Monster’s Japanese-inspired graphics of cutesy monsters bring a smile to the face. No longer considering himself a street artist, Buff Monster focuses full time on crafting fine art paintings, collectible toys and design projects, usually incorporating the color pink.

In anticipation of his upcoming solo show at the Corey Helford Gallery this Saturday, September 5th, we caught up with Buff Monster.

How do you feel right now?

I’m tired. It’s been a rather stressful and frustrating morning. But I’m going to get back to painting very soon!

If you could wake up in a different place tomorrow morning, where would it be and what would you do?

Wow, anywhere. I can’t even think about that though. I’ve been in full-on painting mode for so long. But the show is almost together!!

If you lost your creative skill, how would you see yourself making a living?


How would I lose my creative skill?

If you could punch one living contemporary artist, who would it be?

Oooh, a couple easy choices come to mind, but at the end of the day, I’m a lover not a fighter.

Was your first kiss worth writing a song about?


No. Is any kiss really worth writing a song about? Maybe. I don’t know. I don’t write songs.

At what point were you particularly happy?

I was particularly happy a few days ago when a few good friends told me how much they loved my new paintings. That was really rewarding and inspiring.

No regrets allowed, but there must have been one?

I regret how things between Juxtapoz and me went a few years ago.

What trait do your friends have in common?

They all like my art. Besides that, they’re all awesome in their own way.

If you had to evacuate your home or studio, what's the one thing you would grab?

I guess I’d have to take my computer and external hard drives.

Greatest love of your life?

Yeah, she broke my heart. Stomped it in a million pieces. So I’m going to say Heavy Metal music. I can’t tell you how much I love Metal!!! Metal will never let me down or break my heart.

What is your favorite vice?

Probably fast food. I don’t smoke or do drugs.

When you blow out birthday candles, what do you wish for?

Wow, I can’t remember the last time I blew out candles.

If you could play a character from a favorite film or TV show for a day, who would it be?

I’d be Ari Gold from Entourage. I love that show and I love the crazy shit Ari does.

Do you ever lie?


Maybe once every couple years…

Do you think viewers understand the intent of your work?


I think so. Now whether they actually understand the work is a different question. Either way, I’m sure my work resonates one way or another for people.

What virtue can you do without?

Can this be a multiple choice question? How about true/false?

Do you even notice when you're swearing?


Only when I’m around very uptight people.

What has been your proudest moment?

When my book, Life is Sweet, finally came out, I was pretty proud of that. Not only did I do all the work in it, I also took the majority of photos and then layed out the whole book. And dealing with everything else… it was quite a feat.

What would you like to be remembered for?

Being super awesome. And doing it on my terms.

How would you prefer to die?

I heard a news story recently of a couple girls who bet a guy he couldn’t last for some amount of time in a threesome with them. I forgot the specific bet, but he was bangin’ these two girls as long as he could, and then he died and they won the bet. Something like that.

For more on Buff Monster, check out his website.