Meet B2rian LS | Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with B2rian LS and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi B2rian, what led you to pursuing a creative path professionally?
In all honesty- it happened by accident! I always enjoyed drawing and painting, but i thought that in order to make money with art, you had to either be in comics, animation, or tattooing, and frankly, i never felt i had the skill or discipline for those trades.
Though i had always uploaded my art to the internet (on MySpace or on web forums), it wasn’t until i started sharing my work on Twitter, that it gained any traction and was shared & seen by people. i was receiving messages from folks asking if i was selling my art. Initially, i hadn’t even thought about doing so, but upon seeing that interest, i opened up my Etsy shop, started getting prints made, and i’ve been on that journey ever since!
Art allows me to CONNECT with people. Most of my art is inspired by whatever i’m excited about-whether it’s a band i like, a movie i just watched, or a fascinating story i just heard. i can make a piece inspired by that thing, then someone somewhere will recognize the reference, and we can geek-out together. That’s such a beautiful thing, being able to bond over enthusiasm or to be able to teach someone or share a story by way of my doodles.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
i once heard someone say that every story’s been told, every picture’s been painted, the only creative act left is SYNTHESIS. We as artists and creators are informed by our environments, our influences, and each one of those ingredients helps us compose this unique product that is our ‘voice’ or our ‘style.’

In my case, my work is the blending of the pop culture i enjoy, the people/places/aesthetics that inspire me, and my love of history and the fascinating stories contained in all things. While there are a lot of throughlines and commonalities in my art, i also bounce around between styles and subjects. One day i might draw something super intricate with classic horror imagery, then the next day i’ll make a quick doodle to pay tribute to a movie or TV show i liked in my childhood, then the next day it’s someone’s selfie that i pulled inspiration from and just HAD to attempt to recreate their hands with my pencil. i think it’s so important to be excited about what you’re doing, and to make things that you just can’t wait to see out in the world.

There have been times in my career that i drew things because i knew other people would like ’em, and i worked on images based on popular properties because i thought i could sell some prints. These felt so hollow, and i just didn’t feel right after the fact. i told myself that if i wanted to do things for the money- i should just pick up more hours at the day job and work half as much for twice as much pay. But if i’m going to be up night after night, confronting the frustrations, the trial & error, the countless drafts, and all the problem solving that comes with drawing and painting, then it better be on things that i’m proud of.
That’s what i want people to know about my art- that every piece you see was worked on obsessively and born from a place of enthusiasm. In interviews, Guillermo Del Toro has said “you can’t fuck without a boner” in regards to his work, and i wholeheartedly agree. There’s gotta be passion in what you do, otherwise you can’t do it right

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
As someone who loves the city, i feel rather qualified to show folks around!
While i like to curate the experience to someone’s particular interests, i also feel like there are some places you MUST check out in LA. i like leaving the car in Downtown, and taking a short walk from the parking lot to the majestic City Hall. There was a time when this building was everywhere- from the Daily Planet building in TV’s “Superman” to the police headquarters in “Dragnet”- folks all over
the world had seen our art deco masterpiece!

From there, i take ’em to Olvera Street. Is it a romanticized version of El Pueblo’s origins? Sure! But it’s also impressive that this site has been preserved for the past century, and that there are so many historic buildings there that represent our metropolis’ humble origins.
After that, it’s Union Station- our cathedral to transportation, celebrating LA’s past (by way of the tile patterns that echo the art of the natives), present (at least it’s then-present, via the ‘mission revival’ architecture that defines the main structure), and future (as it was envisioned in the ’20s, illustrated by the streamline moderne elements lining this grand concourse )
Most people don’t even realize LA has a subway system, and how convenient it is, so i like to take ’em on the Metro to the Natural History Museum. The Expo Line drops you off right in front of the museum, and before even getting into the buildings, you get to bask in the beauty of the rose garden. Once inside, there are dinosaurs, bugs, rocks and gems, prehistoric animals, taxidermy displays, and my favorite exhibit “Becoming LA.”
“Becoming LA” is something every Angeleno should walk through, as it shows you how the grounds we stand on transformed, going from a little village, to a rural region, to the sprawling world-class destination it is now. There’s something for everyone to be astonished-by, from Walt Disney Studios’ multi-plane camera, to a scale model of the city (depicting City Hall, and other stops already seen on our trip)! Coming out of that exhibit, you see the city in a new light- it’s not just the luxury stores of Rodeo Drive, or the movie magic of Hollywood. Los Angeles is a miraculous place, a mecca that welcomes people from all over the world who dare to dream, who aim to achieve the impossible, and who are never content with a boring life.

After all that walking, it’s time to replenish some lost calories. Now i’d tailor my suggestions depending on the person’s dietary preferences, but on the Metro ride back to the car, i’d try to sell ’em on why the Original Tommy’s (and not In-N-Out) is the essential LA burger.
This just covers some LA history, of course. Every neighborhood has its gems, and it’s impossible to do it all in a day!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
i had a few ‘godfathers’ that set an example for me, as a creator.
The career of comic-book artist, Todd McFarlane is what got me to take my art seriously. He’s famous for revolutionizing the comic and toy industries in the 90s, for creating characters like Spawn and Venom, but he also has a Grammy for directing KoRn’s “Freak on a Leash” music video, an Emmy for his “Spawn” animated series, and he did all these things on his terms.
Though he is the first to admit his art isn’t the most realistic or anatomically accurate, it’s ALWAYS exciting and NEVER dull. McFarlane’s story is fascinating- learning about him, and how he stubbornly carved his own path, followed his own bliss, and became one of the most influential men in fandom inspired me to do things my way, and be guided by what i think is cool.

The same is true about Robert Rodriguez.
While so many of us talk ourselves out of things saying “well… i need X and Y before i can make Z” or “yeah i have all these ideas, i just don’t have the budget for something like that”, Rodriguez has taken the opposite approach. He doesn’t waste creative energy coming up with excuses, he instead asks “okay, what can we do with what we already have?”
His early movies like “El Mariachi” and “Desperado” were made with micro budgets. His flicks “Spy Kids” and “Sin City” were mostly shot on green screen, with hardly any sets, but he was inventive and resourceful in order to make smaller productions look like big movies! Rodriguez shows us that even if you don’t have expensive tools, or a team of people working to make your dream a reality, you should just take whatever you have available to you, and go out & make things!

Website: http://b2rianLS.blogspot.com

Instagram: @b2rianLS

Image Credits
photo taken by Alec Rubay (instagram.com/narahlikesfilm/)