I’d like to introduce my good friend and creating powerhouse…. Tripper Dungan, who is actually the third John…. which became Tripper since he was wee small. This became more convenient since his brother was named John too or II. Anyway here he is:
Why is your art so positive, is this done on purpose? I think at first it wasn’t… then it was… and now it’s not again. When I think about life and what I want to bring to it, it’s usually a positive thing.
What does your art do for you? It excites me when I see a painting coming together. Sometimes I stop and do a couple jump kicks of joy in the middle of it. Creation is a very satisfying thing.
You call your house the Cartoon Bungalow, obviously your are inspired by cartoons, what are some of your favorites and why? I was raised on Bugs Bunny, Merry Melodies, classic Disney, and Popeye. I love those guys. Some of the old Betty Boops are pretty rad; so creative. People growing beards in the middle of sentences, shoes talking, ghosts dancing. The musical integration of the old Fleisher, Van Buren, and Ub Iwerks cartoons is unmatched. As far as modern cartoons John K (Spumco), and there’s the Cartoon Exprez collections that are pretty cool and Devin Flynn’s Y’all so Stupid is sheer mind numbing weirdness. Not for the kids but if you like psychedelic low brow it comes highly recommended.
I’m going to name some common themes in you art, why are you attracted to these?
robots? They’re pretty.
music? Sounds good.
animals? They’re just people with fur.
gnomes? I like the little guys.
mushrooms? They amaze me.
UFO’s? They intrigue me.
You seem to always sketch out your ideas first in your drawing pads and then transfer them into paintings. What is your reasoning? Give away all my secrets why don’t you.
What is your favorite thing to do in Portland? Anything involving my friends and beer. Honestly the first thing to come to mind was paint.
How has the recession effected you? As far as the money goes It’s been steady but I think that might be because of the time I’ve put in.
What are your plans for 2010? I’d really like to get some gallery shows outside of Portland with some friends and rock some kind of installation. And I want to build a shed in the backyard where I can Paint.
What are you mostly hungry for? I just ate, but metaphorically I want to make enough money with my art that I can give a little to charity. I know that sounds a little Miss America of me. I’ve always aimed to inspire people and make them happy but beyond that my art is what I have to give and if I could do a little more and be comfortable that would be nice.
Check out some more of Tripper’s artwork in the Hungry Eyeball Gallery or his website numberstar.com.
Twitter@HungryEyeball
Eyeball Photos on Flickr
@HungryEyeball on Instagram
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