Meet Morley | Street Artist/Author

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

Hi Morley, what matters most to you?
To me, the most important aspect of creating anything artistic is being honest and vulnerable. It’s the exchange we have to make in order to earn the privilege of someone’s attention. Embrace what makes you distinctive. We all want to be cool – but ‘cool’ is boring and so easily forgotten. It’s un-cool to celebrate your frailty, to raise your weak humanity like a flag and carry it into battle. The great thing is, even if you lose the battle- no one will forget the bravery that it takes to enter the fray as you are, without a justification or an apology. And really- isn’t that the kind of glory we all want to be remembered for?

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
What inspires me to create my art is the hope of offering someone solace in discovering you aren’t alone in your struggles, which is why I include a portrait of myself in my pieces. I want my messages to come from another person, someone they share the trenches with. Los Angeles, like many major cities, is packed with people on the verge of giving up or questioning why they haven’t yet. I know these feelings well and if I can offer a few words of hope, encouragement, advice or even just humor, then my mission and my art has value. Whenever I experience art that articulates something I felt but couldn’t express, there’s such a sense of relief. I strive for that in my work first and foremost. The fact that I express these ideas in an illegal fashion, as opposed to through art that is commissioned, is important to me as I have no commercial filter, no agenda beyond creative expression. The fact that people may see it one day and the next it’s been painted over or torn down speaks to the temporary nature of things and the need to be awake and alive in each moment because it won’t last long.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I’ve lived in Los Angeles for almost 20 years now, but I moved to Highland Park in 2016 and have a ton of great spots in my neighborhood. If I had one free day to spend here, I’d get breakfast at Bagel and Slice, go record shopping at Gimmie Gimmie Records, satisfy my sweet tooth at Scoops and Donut Friend, grab lunch at Maciel’s Plant-Based Butcher Shop, dinner at Joy, then head out to catch a concert at The Lodge Room.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I’d love to dedicate what I do to the city of Los Angeles and its indomitable spirit. There aren’t a lot of cities that allow you to create art in environments as varied as Beverly Hills and Compton in the same day. I do enjoy spreading my wings a bit into different cities, states and countries even, but as I’m so intimately familiar with the people and places of Los Angeles, speaking to them is where I’m most practiced.

Website: https://morleyart.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/morleyartist

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MorleyArt/

Other: https://vimeo.com/iammorley