ARTIST INTERVIEW: DIETY

Jul 14

painting of a pin up style woman sorrounded by glowing light and flowers on a wall with barbed wire on top of it — PINUPS AND PANELS: INTERVIEW WITH DEITY

For those who don’t know—who are you and where do you come from?

My name is Deity, I’m an Artist and painter of things. Born from immigrant parents, I’m a first generation Mexican American. I was born in Hollywood, California and I grew up in Covina’s suburbia.

What attracted you to graffiti, and how old were you when you started bombing/painting?

Growing up, I always saw graffiti all around the highways and it was always something I liked staring at. My brother taught me how to draw, and I’ve been drawing since I was little. I was 23 when my homeboy introduced me to the art of Miss Van, that I became obsessed. It was the colors that she used and the edgy lines that hugged her characters so tight. They were provocative, sensual and feminine. Definitely different than your average boring Disney character. What attracted me the most was the fact that she was painting these characters all over the world in some of the grimiest places, and it made the contrast very alluring.

Painting of a pin up style womans portrait on a concrete wall next to bright graffiti art and plants surrounding the wall

What does “style” mean to you—and what separates something average from something that burns?

At the beginning I used to think that style was the most important part of painting, and I remember feeling like maybe my approach was too soft and too delicate. With time I learned that “Style” was an accumulation of experience, technique and individuality. I feel that some of the stuff I’ve seen over the years that really burns are from artists that have stayed consistent and have incredible work ethic. Something average meets expectations but something that burns means going above and beyond.

You’ve seen the culture evolve—what’s your honest take on where graffiti is now compared to before the internet?

I feel like before the internet, graffiti was an underground culture and now it’s become a very global thing. Back in the day, if you painted a train or an alleyway you’d have to wait for a magazine to put your stuff out or depend on physical photos. Now your stuff can be seen by thousands in minutes on Instagram and TikTok. This can be a great thing but I also feel like because of the “instant” fame it’s taken away from the real reason why people started doing graffiti in the first place. The internet created a generation of manicured influencers that make content just to be liked. Graffiti is raw, it’s rebellious and non conformist, it’s not meant to be filtered and polished.

painting of a pin up style womans portrait on a concrete wall with flowers and leaves painted with spray paint — DEITY

What’s a piece or moment that really solidified your name?

A piece that I feel solidified my name was a whole car that I painted with my crew mate FedUp. I painted a huge pinup girl laying sideways next to his name. I think people were used to seeing my stuff on walls but now my Art is traveling to places I’ve never even been to.

Who did you bite early on?

I’ve definitely always been a huge fan of Miss Van. My homeboy introduced me to her work and I became obsessed. I’m also a huge fan of vintage pinup art and I think everyone can tell haha. Some of my most influential pinup artists are Alberto Vargas, Gil Elvgren, And Olivia De Berardinis. Just to name a few.