We were lucky to catch up with Gaetano Vicini recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Gaetano, thanks for joining us today. We’ve love to hear an interesting investment story – what was one of the best or worst investments you’ve made? (Note, these responses are only intended as entertainment and shouldn’t be construed as investment advice)

I can’t say I’ve made investments in my art with my own money but I have invested a lot of time in my art. I think photoshop was a major investment, not monetarily but dedicating my time to learn it. Before that it was cut and paste with a scissors and rubber cement. Photoshop and programs like that are paramount when creating for instance an assembly of images, moving things around, re-sizing or to help clean up work. I absolutely love it. Another investment I made which was monetary is the Wacom Cintiq drawing display. It was a life changer. For a while I was using a Bamboo. You would have to draw on a flat surface and guess where you are while looking at the screen! I never got used to it and dreamt of a time when we could be drawing directly onto the screen and eventually that did happen. It was a god send!

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

 I go by Tom, but my given name is Gaetano Vicini. My website is www.drawingfool.com  I came up with the name drawing fool because, for one, a fool indicates a certain naivety, as in… “He’s a damn fool!” and two, it has a nice ring to it, like… “Damn, he’s a guitar playing fool!” And third, The Beatle’s advertising artists in London were called “The Fool” (coincidence).

        I’m basically self-taught. I’ve been drawing since I was two, I was told. I’m not a skilled drawer in the sense of any kind of traditional training. I don’t start with shapes etc. and I don’t pivot my arm like a pendulum like other artists do. I basically start from one end with nothing in mind till I’ve made something out of it. That’s the fun part for me, as well as the challenge. Going into it blind with hardly any preconceived ideas or preliminary drawings (that’s why they look as unprepared as they do).  It usually doesn’t work for me when it’s all planned out. Like with some actors, it loses the freshness and spontaneity when overly rehearsed. I’ve seen really good artists and they’re finished compositions look preconceived. When I was 21 I had an offer to work as an apprentice under a master oil painter. He painted something like 4 huge, beautiful preliminary oil paintings before the “real” one. Even those looked finished. That scarred me off. Even if I had all that wonderful fine art technique under my belt, its tedious repetition would have bored the hell out of me. Same thing happened when I was in grade school. I wanted to be an animator. Then I found out how many cells it takes to make one second. 

    Ok, time to rant because the interviewer fell asleep. Most of my favorite artists are in fact traditionally trained, and of it really shows! Some are not, and I can’t believe they weren’t. I don’t like repeating myself in terms of a style. But I have to say, it is better to have one style to find a niche in the market, and is better than not having a some kind of consistent style. I love surrealism, cartoon and the artists of Mad and Punch from a longtime ago. I like to use my sketchbooks and keep that stuff as references and finished art. If I need a character or something, I search my stock (sketchbooks) till I find something that might fit the project I’m working on. If I don’t find something, I just draw it. Sketchbooks are particularly useful when looking for a brand character or assembling a collage besides sketching, practicing, working out problems, etc. I like drawing the unposed real side of life. I like drawing imperfect teeth, the macabre mixed with the beauty and ugliness of nature with humor more so than puppies and kittens, flowers and butterflies. I much prefer a caterpillar or a moth…and oh those gorgeous dragonflies! I’m not into drawing fairies, angels, and unicorns. I much prefer bat wings, demons, and rhinos.’ Super hero comic book art does nothing for me. I liked it when I was in grade school. It just looks too much the same to me and stylized. I can appreciate the technique to a degree. I’m not into anime and manga art and digital art that looks digital. I’m impressed by a lot of tattoo art, but there’s also nothing worse than bad tattoo art and the common subject matter people choose (angel wings, flowers, skulls, etc.) some of that tattoo art is drawn so poorly. I’m embarrassed for people when I see them wearing bad art permanently engraved on their skin. 

     When people look at my art, I want them to laugh or hopefully it strikes some kind idea, or triggers some kind of emotion. But mostly I hope it entertains. I always liked the instant gratification and shock and awe when creating something. What is it going to be? Will it suck? Will it be good? I was always able to draw and look at something and copy it really well since I was young equally as well from memory, and never really worked at it in the beginning. It just naturally came out. I developed it by drawing all the time, constantly as a child, always taken by that element of surprise and really loving the fact that I was able to do it.  Later on, I increased my work ethic by taking sketchbooks with me everywhere I’d go. I think the reason I never pursued it academically is because I didn’t have the desire for school. I always thought it wouldn’t be fun anymore. I guess I didn’t love it enough to take it up academically as some people do. I don’t have an art degree.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

Drawing for yourself. Creative without limitations or barriers and without censorship. I draw a lot of comical stuff that would be regarded as sacrilege. But it’s all in humor. I’m sure Jesus had a sense of humor no one was informed about.  I collaborated with comedian John Podlesnik on an episodic comic book available on line called the adventures of Porko the Meat clown. It is politically incorrect on every level. And would be love to get some funding to create more episodes. It would be nice to widen its distribution and get the word out and make him America’s number 1# Super Zero! Just had to plug that here of course.

           Expressing oneself artistically is so much more fulfilling than having to do commissioned work but sometimes you have no choice. You’re basically told what to do and adjust for the client. Some clients will give you freedom to do what you do, but I’ve found some unrealistic clients who picture things in their head that can’t be translated into pictures. I’d rather draw what I like, what hits me and if it touches some aspect of you as well as much as it touches me, then I’ve done my job. Creating for yourself, you are the casting director, the director, department of photography and the actor. But most of all, you are your own audience, because you’re never drawing for what you think other people want. You’re drawing what you see and feel in its sincerest form. I’m not saying I dislike commissioned art. I am totally open to it and do commissions all the time. But I’m also selective. If someone wants an illustration of a granny holding her dog, I much rather draw someone a drunken Pope holding a bottle of Absolute Vodka. I enjoy T-shirt illustration, brand labels, almost anything that could employ my own style of illustration and humor. One thing I’ve learned over the years is being aware of my own limitations. I won’t do something just because it pays well knowing that I’m not able to pull off. In other words, leave the superhero style to the superhero artist and the fine art oil paintings to the experts.

Have you ever had to pivot?

I’ve been an artist my whole life and never stopped. Besides art, I’m a musician and songwriter. I’ve worked as an actor for many years, worked for a company retouching 8×10 headshots, was an office manager, a bakery janitor, a bus boy, a hooker. But one thing that is always been constant throughout all those occupations is having that unsettling creative energy underneath. My friend Jeff Hawks started taking up water color and said to me, “I really think I’m starting to become an artist.” I said, “You are an artist!” Once you say you are, then you realize that you are one. Because inside, he always was an artist and is now really making some incredible strides by believing that and applying it. It’s always a struggle in art and you always strive to be better. But if you can find and develop your own style, then you can’t really be judged, can you? Unless you belong to a certain group or society that does the same copycat kind art style, then you better have something that’s as good or a cut above the rest. And who wants to be like everyone else anyway?

Contact Info:

• Website: www.drawingfool.com
• Instagram: 1drawingfool
• Linkedin: tommy drawingfool