|
|
mike ciccotello
hometown: highland park, nj
website: www.ciccotello.com and www.schoolhousedaze.com
Albus Cavus: How did you get into arts?
Mike Ciccotello: I've wanted to be an artist as long as I can
remember. Well actually I wanted to be an astronaut first and then a
race car driver, after that a magician, but then I wanted to be an
artist. Creating is something that I have to do, it's who I am.
AC: So your dream came true...
MC: Yes I think it has. I know that I'm happiest when I create artwork so I believe that makes me an artist. I remember riding on the train to NY one morning and a little girl was watching me draw on my sketchpad. She leaned over and asked me if I was an artist. I paused, looked up at her, smiled and said yes I am. That was the first time that occurred to me that actually was an artist.
AC: What is your work about? Where do you get inspired?
MC: My work is about what I know and what I see. I create
what I feel comfortable creating. I've turned down a lot of freelance work
because it didn't feel right or it wasn't a good fit. You need to
believe in what you do so if anyone ever questions it you can defend
your beliefs.
AC: But at the same time your work is not only about you. It involves
everyone around you. It's like a gift to everyone else...
MC: When I create art I am creating it with the idea that I am doing this to please myself and not to please someone else's idea about what I should be creating. That was a very hard thing for me to learn. I was constantly trying to create what I thought people wanted me to create up until my senior year of college. I sell prints and have shows because I like to share the work with people and have them interact with it. I make live art to feel the energy of a crowd and channel that into the piece.
AC: You' ve been in Jersey for most of your life. Most artists just
move to NYC...
MC: I've been in Jersey all of my life. I didn't plan it that way, it
just happened. For a while I thought I needed to move to make things
happen and to find a job when I was just out of college. Really all I
needed was a kick in the ass to get my work together and put myself
out there. You can make things happen wherever you are. I like Jersey
because I have family close by and I can get to NY and Philly on the train.
AC: Tell us what special is happening in your life right now.
MC: My fiancee, Anne-Marie, and I are getting married in November and
we're buying a house at the end of May. It's an exciting time for both
of us and we're looking forward to the adventures that lie ahead. It's
times like these that make you want to try to get everything to slow
down so you can watch it all and really enjoy it.
AC: And you will have a new huge studio in your new huge house...
MC: Well I guess anything will be bigger and better than having to fit everything into the corner of the living room in our current one bedroom apartment.
Eventually I would like to have a real studio where I can go to create my art whether it be painting, drawing, animation, sculpture, photography or music.
AC: You have a comic strip, you paint, work full time as a graphic designer/animator for a
major news network... Where do you find time for all this?
MC: Balance is the thing that many people struggle with day to day. The balance dance is relative from person to person. We each deal with it in a different manner.
Currently I'm reevaluating my current projects to see if I can find a little time to slow down. It's not an easy task, but I know eventually I will figure it out and all will balance perfectly again.
AC: What's next?
MC: My next projects will be two animated shorts. One is based on when
I was a mime at an amusement park the other is of my daily commute
into NY. They most likely will not be done anytime soon. In the mean
time while I'm trying to finish those I'll also be working on some
snowman cartoons, another children's book about a handmade doll and
some longer format Schoolhouse Daze stories.
|
|
|