South Wales Street Artist Mons Art Q&A

Emyr Evans asked the Anonymous south Wales street artist Mons_Artist some questions recently, which he took the time to answer, he also sent some pictures too, attached to this post are just a few pictures he took.

Here are the 9 questions and answers.

1. How old were you the first time you tagged a wall?

I first started tagging things as a kid, the usual name tag. Part of growing up with not a lot to do and always being out and up to mischief with friends. I also made my first stencil back then but it quickly got confiscated by my parents because it was of my surname which made more sense why they done it as I got older. I’m not in to tagging as such now though, I like my pieces to mean something.

2. What got you in to street art?

I have always been into drawing from a young age and found i would get lost in it for hours on end. As I got older I loved hip hop and rap music which also came hand in hand with graffiti so I started looking more into it and looking out for it whenever I was on the bus into Swansea. All the tags written on the electric and phone boxes stood out to me usually done in thick black marker. It opened my eyes to this underworld and the colourful corners of the city.

3. When did you do your first mural?
My first mural came the beginning of this year, really late considering. I was struggling with my mental health and was going through a lot so I started drawing again but needed something extra. I craved adrenaline!! I wanted to feel alive, so I decided now was the time to push things a little further and see if I could get my buzz from something I loved to do. So I hit the streets.

4. How many walls do you do a year?

I try to get out once a week if I can, with working and other commitments it’s hard because the style I do takes a lot of prep (drawing, cutting etc). Plus the weather and trying to get the placement right so it can vary at times.

5. Can you describe what it’s like being a street artist in wales?
I really enjoy it, the support I get is fantastic so it pushes me to do more especially when I get sent pictures of people with my pieces because for me that’s what it’s about. You do get the odd negative comment or I might upset people at times but the positive outweighs the negative. You also have people go over your work but it’s all part of it. Recently I have been made to look frustrated with Swansea council but it was blown a little out of context as I was on about one piece that I had done but it was worded as though I was angry about all my pieces which definitely was not the case.

6. Can you tell us what it’s like for you when you do a wall?

As an anonymous street artist, for me it’s all about the buzz. The high I get from taking that risk to put my work out there. I’m trying to put them in the most public of spots so they get the most views and to put a smile on peoples faces as they pass. There is not any other rush like it, when you know your against the clock and things could go tits up pretty quick.

7. What is your take on street artists?
I think we should be embraced. We want to make the world a more colourful place . I understand different people have different tastes and different styles suit certain areas better than others but we all just want our work to be seen at the end of the day. It’s like, I’m not a massive fan of tagging In public areas but I do like wild style big colourful graffiti murals. Each take skill but the latter is more pleasing to look at. That’s only down to opinion though.

8. Who do you use as inspiration?

People instantly think Banksy and yes I follow his work and have done for a long time but there are so many good stencil artists out there now. You have Blek le rat who is like the godfather of stencil street art, Nick Walker, JPS, Dot dot dot and loads more. I also follow quite a few graffiti writers such as Voyder who does big glitched pieces that are amazing.

9. What’s your favourite piece of artwork?

My favourite out of all the ones that I have done is a toss up between two. The little boy throwing out a one fingered gesture with the slogan “screw you perfection” taking aim at the amount of vanity and self-doubt on social media and in the world in general or my mental health piece of a boy sitting in the corner and his brain exploding with the slogan “don’t believe everything you think”. Something close to my heart.