Joshua Swetky 154025
Colorado State Penitentiary
P.O. Box 777
Canon City, CO 81215
My friends call me “Flip”. I was born in Colorado, where I spent much of my life in Denver, The Mile High City. I am 6 feet tall and weigh 235 pounds, covered in a full, head-to-toe bodysuit of tattoos. I’m incarcerated in Colorado’s most violent prison with little to no art supplies, only a pencil, flex pen and Q-tips to do watercolor. I am dedicated, determined, passionate, ambitious, and creative. I spend my time working out, tattooing, reading, and especially honing my skill of drawing and artwork. I am a self -taught artist, influenced and shown the ropes of art from my dad. I am an ink to paper skilled illustrator that has been creating semi-distorted art and gathering different artwork of drawings and paintings, comics and tattoos. I have a desire to create beauty despite having dark past. My portfolio showcases finely detailed black and gray characters with hints of a darker nature in some of my designs. I’ve mastered a variety of techniques which I interweave along with painting colors with Q-tips. I love to mix surrealism with neo-traditional. But my love for black and gray, which I do with many of my drawings is inspired by Bob Tyrel, Steve Soto, Andy Eagal, Salvador Dali, and tattoo artist Paul Booth. I truly enjoy creating female forms and faces. My individuality still stands out. I like to use heavy darks to add a sinister feeling while utilizing tones to cast lighter highlights to complement and lighten the mood thus trying to make my work well-rounded. I am practicing with different blends of traditional black and gray, portrait style with my new ways of pop art color and modern style, hence creating a unique yet familiar feel with my over the top designs. This blending of styles creates a piece with a multiple perspective that can maintain a unified theme. Art gives me direction and purpose and motivates me to keep my mind in check and my monsters at bay. Communicating my feelings has always been difficult for me, and art allows me to express those feelings more effectively. I strive to communicate the futuristic ideals of a utopian society with people who want to leave their anger, guilt, and chaotic pasts behind, and show the creative side of our darkest desires of the past and paint a vibrant future that rings true emotions that will make you think, wander and analyze.
