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Interview by Jeffrey Pena. March 2009.

Curbs and Stoops:   What is your art background? Was art a part of your life as you grew up?

Veng:   From early on I was interested in art. There was a show at the met on Rembrandt when I was younger and my mom and grandmother took me to it and from that moment on I was hooked and tried to copy what this amazing artist of the past painted. A little after the museum visit I started taking art classes at a local art league and continued with them for a few years. Years later, I enrolled in Pratt and then after not finding what I was looking for I joined an Atelier which focused on traditional techniques. It was here I learned about glazes, anatomy of the human figure and form, how light and shadow work, all of this taught me the steps in making realistic paintings.

Curbs and Stoops:   Your art blurs the line between graffiti and fine art. How important is it for you to have a foot in both of these worlds? Do you ever see yourself transitioning into a "gallery only" or "street only" environment?

Veng:   For me it has to be a balance, an interest in fine art was my first impression and what has intrigued me from early childhood to now, graffiti came around years later as an older teen. I always will want to have an interest in graffiti, but I don’t see myself strictly as a graff artist, nor will I claim to be just a gallery artist. The gallery has its advantages; the work has an archival capability, a chance to earn a living doing what I love. The street offers other joys, like seeing the decay of a piece of paper I painted rot and turn into something else, which cannot happen anywhere but the street. The street lets anyone who notices the art to view it without having to go to a specific place or pay to see it. Most importantly working on the street gives you experiences that working in a studio would never allow, which I feel enrich your creativity.

The work I do on the street and in the gallery I feel are two different mediums, the two cannot be mixed. The work might appear on the surface as the same but structurally they were created completely different.

Curbs and Stoops:    When did you start out doing graffiti? How did you transition into drawing characters?

Veng:   I found an interest in graffiti around my mid-teens; however did not produce work like murals until about the age of eighteen or so. The original graffiti stuff was all letter based, but after years of doing that I was losing interest in it, but at the same time loved working with the spray can, so I decided to start working with characters and was able to mix what I had been learning with fine art into my graff work and found a new love with it.

Curbs and Stoops:    Where did these characters come from? Do they resemble people in your life?

Veng:   The character work started with the ideal that I wanted something to be recognizable as mine, like letters are to a writer. So instead of doing regular portraits I worked to create a shape out of the face and add the features of a real person to something that structurally is not real. As time went on it I started to use the eyes of a friend or family member mixing one’s eyes with another nose etc…

Curbs and Stoops:    Who are some other artists that influence your work?

Veng:   From the past it’s Jan van Eyck, Hans Memling, Rembrandt, John Haberle, to modern artist like Chuck Close, Anthony Waichulis, Josh Suda, Istvan Sandorfi, fellow artist like Ecb, loomit, Swoon, Chris Chillemi , Chris Stain, Cake, Matt Small, Solovei.

Curbs and Stoops:    Have you worked with any of those artists?

Veng:    I have worked with Ecb, Loomit, Cake, and Chris C. many times over. With some of the others, things are in the works! I would like to work with Swoon, she produces some amazing works. Herakut would be great to collaborate with on something also. Maybe one day!

Curbs and Stoops:    What cities have you done work in and where would you like to go next?

Veng:    I have worked in different parts of Germany, Luxemburg, Spain and Ireland. I would like to work in other European cities, but have a great desire to go to places like Morocco and India.

Curbs and Stoops:    You are a member of RWK (Robots Will Kill). Can you explain what the collective does?

Veng:   Robots was started to give other artists a space to showcase their work without the politics. It has grown to great heights and maintained its core principles since it was founded.

Curbs and Stoops:    Where did your name come from?

Veng:   To be honest I do not remember, I know the first name I choose I couldn’t use due to someone else writing it. A friend of mine thought of it I believe and I enjoyed the way I wrote it so it stuck.

Curbs and Stoops:    Where else can we catch you? Are you published anywhere? Website? Any shows coming up?

Veng:   The most up to date website would be my flickr (www.flickr.com/photos/veng_rwk I had a show recently at the Carmichael Gallery in L.A. Some group shows in Brooklyn!

Curbs and Stoops:   What kind of stuff are you into other than art?

Veng:   A lot of my time is around art but I enjoy reading, hanging out with friends. Riding my fixie around, listening to music.

Curbs and Stoops:   Any final advice?

Veng:   Just learn the rules of drawing and painting so you have a good understanding when you break them.