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"The design community out here is a little more sophisticated," Murphy said by telephone from his San Jose studio. "In the Midwest, design is not really on the radar screen as much as it is here. Here, everybody's cousin, everybody's mother knows and thinks about design." Best known for a theme calendar he designs each year that is illustrated by various artists, Murphy recently completed a similarly styled book titled "Guapo y Fuerte, which documents the Mexican wrestling phenomenon known as Lucha Libre. Altpick.com spoke to Murphy about his book and his unique brand of collaboration:
I was trying to research this part of the world, and I was really taken by the passion and theatric expression in Mexico. I was amazed at how brightly colored the houses and the towns were. They are really in tune with art and design -- all the posters and murals just made such a decorative fabric, and that expression is really felt in San Diego, Los Angeles, and other parts of [America's] West Coast. Why did you focus on the "Lucha Libre?" When I went to see a match, I was just so taken. To me it seemed like Halloween. To them it's a pretty serious political representation of good versus evil -- a way for the common people to feel triumph over their often corrupt leaders, because the good guys always end up prevailing. There's so much pop culture around it -- action figures, posters -- basically like our super heroes here.  So what did you hope to accomplish with the book? I thought it was kind of a gift to the culture, to actually record it in the pages, to make this beautiful, hand-held book to look at. I thought if I invited the right artists -- illustrators and photographers -- to interpret what it meant to them, the phenomenon itself could take on another life. It was a a self-funded piece, meant to showcase individual talent. I had approached publishing companies, but they couldn't see the marketing advantage in the project. I kept going ahead, because the idea wasn't really to manufacture money, it was to manufacture a dialogue and a response that was pretty unique ... As professionals we have to do things for our clients, but then as artists we have to do something for our souls. This was just something I had to do. With your calendars -- this year's was "Superhero," next year's "Outer Space" -- and now with the book, you bring divergent artists together under one concept, instead of doing all the work yourself. Why? I learn a lot from other artists. Simply, it's good to trade talents. A long time ago, I learned I was only good at so many things. I realized how great it would be to get other ideas involved in projects, that it's better for the client and better for the creative process as a whole. I love calling illustrators or photographers and saying, 'I've got this idea,' and they say, 'What the hell are you talking about?' Then they do something with it, and it's like Christmas, because their interpretations of my idea start pouring in, and I feel so lucky.  Illustrations by Charles Glaubitz (left) and Rick Sealock, appearing in Guapo y Fuerte What's next? I've assembled an Mexican wrestling exhibition in conjunction with the book -- 64 original paintings that I hope will grow to 120 by the end of the year. It's already shown in San Jose and will show in San Diego, and I hope it will be accepted by major museums as a big exhibition. I just really hope to use it as an example, to say to other designers, 'Hey, you can do this, too.'
- Contributed by Kelly McEvers >> See other member spotlights on the artist spotlight index >> Find out more on how to become an altpick.com member |
