His amazing work can be found on t-shirts, skate decks, albums, and tons of other places, including on my wall next to my drawing desk. He has done work for Zombie Liquorice , a menagerie of metal bands, and his work has been featured in the Back in Black 2 T-Shirt Exhibit, and is also the featured artist this month on www.creepmachine.com.
In short, the man is a badass. Without further ado, here is the interview:
ZN: Greetings Mr. Machine! First off, what is your favorite zombie film?
GM: Night, day and return of the living dead. The first two because I don’t think I have ever been so depressed after seeing a film. I saw them when I was a kid and it totally ripped my heart out and left me feeling sad as hell. The only thing that is any comfort in death is that live will go on without you- that a memory of you will continue- now you take that away and suggest that all of humanity goes with you is frightening. And return of’…well that’s has all the best lines- I was a tad older when seeing that , skating and listening to black flag and was able to now understand why I was feeling these things about The Omega man and zombie films and so forth. The lines in that film are funny and classic.
ZN: How long have you been interested in art and design?
GM: All my life. I hate design though- or rather the classic sense of the word ‘design’ makes me think of people who wear shirts and clinical lines and sterile angles and vast huge spaces. I don’t really hate it- its just not for me. We managed to take ‘art’ off the lecturers and the teachers and make it our own- we made it so we didn’t need huge degrees to appreciate art- we have Banksy, we have pop art ner ner ner. But we can never take design away from them. My mate has posters of actual alphabets on his walls! I look for hours but cannot understand what is going on. He assures me its something to do with subtleties and …stuff.
ZN: Did your work always contain horrific imagery?
GM: I think so- not really horrific- but I have always been drawn to the more gory side of things. I think if I was to produce work for me and no one else it would consist of twisted ugly humans, after all as artists we ‘can only ever draw ourselves’.
ZN: What/who are your major influences?
GM: Klimt, Egon, Beardsley, Giger, Horsebites, Calvin and Hobbes and anyone who drew for 2000AD during the 90’s.
ZN: How long have you been creating art commercially?
GM: For about 2 years maybe less- I think its less. If I check when I first start posting work that is being bought it says 1 year ago. Things have moved fast and I don’t know why.
ZN: Who are some of your favorite clients?
GM: All the ones who appreciate that I work long and hard for them for less money than a lot of people charge hahaha. Seriously though I can’t answer that- there are too many to mention. Ones that bug me are the ones who think I sit around waiting for them alone and only have their work to do. Or ones that think my time is worth fuck all. Really though- you should ask an illustrator what/who bugs them the most- that could go one for hours. People who say ‘can you do it for less?’ or ‘its only a small job- shouldn’t take you long- go on do it for cheap’. Grrr hahaha
ZN: What is your preferred weapon against the legions of the undead?
GM: A working brain.
ZN: What is your favorite color?
GM: Green.
ZN: Got a lucky number?
GM: Nope.
ZN: What do you do when you are not creating killer artwork?
GM: I usually watch TV and flick from station to station- I tell a lie- I would like to do that but the Mrs. would tell me off so I scan the web looking for articles and videos and people that support my outlook on life- we all do that I have noticed: we form an opinion- then we look for arguments, videos, proof, etc to support that fact. Rarely are our outlooks unbiased and logical. Everything starts with and emotional seed. Sorry- off subject. I love YouTube- you get to look at all these people you would never normally meet- it’s awesome being allowed into other peoples lives. Have you noticed how many of the most scummy comments are on YouTube though? It’s like it’s a magnet for douche bags and racists.
ZN: Aside from zombies, what is your favorite monster?
GM: The human psyche. Some scary shit. Nietzsche said, "All great things must first wear terrifying and monstrous masks in order to inscribe themselves on the hearts of humanity."
ZN: How can people contact you if they want to hire your creative talents?
GM: Close your eyes and wish really hard or use the web and email me at www.godmachine.co.uk
ZN: Dogs or cats?
GM: I like both- but cats for me.
ZN: What kind of music (if any) do you get down to while working?
GM: I am gonna list some random stuff here: Soundgarden (blast from the past) Big Business, Blade Runner soundtrack, Krull soundtrack, Taxi Driver soundtrack, the Police, Goblin Cock, Beck, Bongzilla, The Fuck Buttons, CW Stoneking, Solaris soundtrack, Corrosion of Conformity, Chris Isaak, Kyuss, Hermano, Unida,…I will leave it there
ZN: What celebrity would you most like to see return as a brain-munching shambler?
GM: I think zombies are so appealing as it’s a form of life after death. Don’t you think? Oh, celebrity….um they are all the same when they are zombies- so it wouldn’t really matter- and as long as they are after my brains: no one.
ZN: Where can people purchase your work, be it prints or t-shirts?
GM: t-shirts- I haven’t got a clue- most bands get designs just for a tour- if you don’t go and see them live- you miss out- you really have to search for them these days- nowadays there are more merch companies that deal with it all that the bands so a google search will not always produce good results.
I highly recommend you buy posters from my shop- high quality goods for affordable prices: WWW.GODMACHINE.CO.UK
Godmachine, you fucking rule, sir, and thank you for your time on this interview!
For the LOVE OF GOD(machine) check out this man's website, and if you have any need for art done, hit him up!
Hope you all enjoyed,
RM
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