10 Questions (plus a few extra) with Thaniel Ion Lee

Outside of art, what hobbies do you have, or how do you like to spend your free time?

I like to make music and read articles on art. I wish I could say I gardened or cooked, but im bit of an art nerd. Almost all hobbies involve art making.

 

What do you like to listen to while working in your studio?

I mostly listen to either silence or paranormal podcasts

Do you have any pets?

I have three wonderful cats, and they are very much spoiled.

 

What is your favorite [book, movie, or television show]?

My wife and I are currently binging Shameless

 

If you could be any animal, what would you be?

I'd be either a house cat or a tardigrade 

 

Do you have a personal motto, mantra, or philosophy on life?

No. Mottos and mantras are for politicians, cults, and salesmen, but if I did have one, it would be,  Don’t be an asshole. 

 

Do you believe in the power of manifestation?

No. I believe in the power of hard work and networking.

 

If you could have one superhero power, what would it be?

Teleportation would be fun.

Do you ever play out any unusual fantasies in your head?

Yes, but who doesn't? My weirdest art-related one involves putting a work of art in space or staging a show in London, UK.

 

What is your quirkiest hidden talent?

I can play harmonica just good enough to fake it.

 

What is one skill would you like to master?

Networking with curators.

 

What is your favorite food/restaurant?

I’m a simple man, any decent steakhouse will do, but I also love indian food.

 

What is your favorite sport?

Roller derby 

 

What do you daydream about?

Having a proper studio and enough money/connections to accomplish some of my bigger ideas. That and traveling in a Winnebago with my wife and cats. 

 

What is your proudest accomplishment?

On a personal level, it's marrying my wife, on an artistic level its sticking at it for 20 plus years.

 

What is your astrological sign?

Gemini 

 

What is your biggest pet peeve?

Intellectual boring art, and the paint pouring art you used to see everywhere.

 

Do you collect anything?

I mostly just collect dust lol j/k.  I collect medical books made before 1980, and when I find them on the cheap,  I also collect M.U.S.C.L.E.S and other similar figures.

 

What is one thing you tried and will never do again?

Riding to AR and back in one day. My hips were killing me.

 

What is the weirdest hobby you’ve tried?

RC car racing, it's fun, but too expensive to be enjoyable in the long run

 

What is something you’ve always wanted to do but haven’t tried yet?

Pottery, I did some in college, but I didn't have a chance to really dig into it. That and metalworking.

 

What is the best concert you’ve ever been to?

I haven't been to a concert in years, but Weird Al was a blast. 

 

If you had a warning label, what would yours say?

May Contain Nuts 

 

What was your first job?

I've never had a day job, but I used to, on occasion, teach special needs students art.

 

What was the worst job you ever had?

For a very short period of time, I attempted to be a website designer, but the only customers I could get were the kind that were allergic to paying invoices.

 

What is at the top of your bucket list?

Visiting other countries and traveling in general.

 

What fictional character do you most relate to?

I’m not sure, maybe Pinocchio 

 

If you could meet up with any celebrity for coffee, who would you choose?  

Dead - Lawrence Weiner

Alive - Iggy Pop

 

Which famous historical person would you want to spend the day with?

Eric Satie 

 

If you could time travel, would you go to the past or the future?

The future

 

Above: Thomas Kinkade, Christmas Evening

Have you ever disliked something and then changed your mind?

I used to hate Thomas Kincade, I still hate him, but I don’t hate his art as much as I did.  He was an artist of his time and place, and if I can love Ad Reinhardt’s black works, then other people can love his art.  

 

Do you believe in ghosts?

Yes, i actually saw one or two, plus my wife used to live in a haunted house.

Do you think dreams have hidden meanings? 

No, but I wish they did.

What do you think happens after death?

We fuse with God, and we understand everything.

 

What is your most irrational fear?

That we are all just characters in someone else's dream, and at any moment they may wake up.

What would be the title of your memoir?

Keep your gimp hand strong

 

Where do you go when you need fresh inspiration?

Art history books, beat poetry, political speeches, and books on typography 

 

What’s your go-to guilty pleasure?

80s thrash metal, and ultra-lofi indie-rock

 

What is the best advice someone has ever given you?

Stick at it.

 

If your younger self could see you now, what would they be most surprised by?

That I’m married and living away from home. 

 

Do you believe in luck, or do you think we make our own?

Luck is for rich kids and people who live in LA or NYC. The rest of us barely sleep, network, and work our ass off. 

 

What’s a smell that instantly takes you back to a memory?

I grew up around old hippies, so it's the smell of cheap weed and bonfire smoke.

 

Do you remember the first piece of art that moved you?

Anything by Chagall  

 

What’s your go-to karaoke song (or one you’d secretly love to try)?

ICE ICE BABY is my go-to; that and just another manic Monday.

 

If money and time were no object, what hobby would you dive into?

Chapbook publishing

 

What’s the kindest thing a stranger has ever done for you?

Give me money when I couldn’t afford my medication, and let me show my art when I didn’t know what I was doing. 

 

What conspiracy theory (real or silly) do you secretly want to be true?

Bigfoot, or any large cryptid.

 

What’s the most unusual place you’ve ever felt inspired?

The bus

 

What’s a food you loved as a kid but can’t stand now?

Smoked sausage

 

Do you think your dreams influence your creativity?

Sometimes, but I usually can't remember my dreams. 

 

What’s one small daily ritual you can’t go without?

Checking my email, and/or sketching 

 

If you could erase one trend (past or present) from existence, what would it be?

Meme art

 

What do you think your life soundtrack would sound like?

1990s drum-n-bass, drone music, and early industrial music

 

Do you believe in fate or pure coincidence?

No, i believe in putting yourself out there and networking.

If you could bottle one feeling and keep it forever, what would it be?

Falling in love 

 

What fictional world would you most like to visit?

Star Trek or Blade Runner

 

What’s the best advice you’ve ever ignored?

Get a business degree

 

Do you have a favorite word or phrase that you just love the sound of?

May the road rise for you

 

If your art had a smell, what would it be?

Somewhere between freshly cut grass and sex.