Featured Artist: Cho-Chan

Gender: Female
Age: 25
Location: Osaka, Japan

About Cho-Chan:
Happy and Funky. Cho-Chan creates characters that are funny and interesting. Born in 1981, she was influenced by the street artists and graffiti in Osaka. She has both American and Australian influences, and they, as well as the street art of her home town, have all impacted her drawing style. Her unique, twisty typographies help to express the paradise in her paintings. Her western influences have helped create a style that is not "typical Japanese", but more cartoony.

She began showing her work in Japanese night clubs, selling original work and sweatshirts, and then passed the digmeout audition in 2005; she was featured in the digmeout06 magazine. She has since become more well-known and very, very busy. She has art collaborations with both Nissan and Sony.

10 Questions with Cho-Chan:

1. Your artwork is so fun; what are some of your influences?
A: I get inspiration from music, dance, architecture, fashion, plants, as well as the people who i hang out with. I try to create something that makes me feel happy as if it's a present from the environment around me.

2. What motivates you to begin a piece?
A: I always think about the opportunity of meeting other great artists if I keep drawing and painting. Also, I think about how much fun I'll have with my friends in my free time after I finish a piece.
3. What other hobbies do you have other than art?
A: Going shopping, going to the book store, and people watching.

4. Do you like to travel? What's your favorite place you've traveled to so far?
A: I love traveling!! The first time I've gone abroad was to Australia, Keans, and the Gold Coast. Everything about that trip was new to me and i enjoyed every bit of it.

5. What's your favorite memory from when you came to the US for the "Digmeout Strikes Back!" show?
A: It was my first show outside of Osaka city, and it was sooo Different. First of all, everyone there was so nice. Since I could not speak English, some of the patrons who were bilingual in English and Japanese were being my personal translators and helped me understand what other customers were saying. Also, I sold several of my pieces at the opening, which I never expected to happen!! It was an amazing experience.

6. What are some of your current projects you're working on?
A: I am working on some CD cover art work which will be released in October.

7. What do you want your viewers to feel when they see your artwork?
A: I want them to get excited and I want it to make them smile.

8. Does anything from your childhood influence how or what you paint now?
A: I don't think i have that much influence from childhood in my art work...

9. Are you a city or a small-town girl?
A: Definately a small-town girl.

10: Do you have any US artists you are very influenced by?
A: Barry Mcgee and Margaret Killgallen!! Margaret Kilgallen has influenced me very strongly. Her unique touch and sense of style and also her being in the street-art scene made me rethink my views about that genre of art. I had seen their art work on the streets of Osaka, (they came to Osaka pretty often when they were in Japan) and I always felt that I would like to do the same thing, but the graffitti scene in Japan is so male-oriented, I was afraid to attempt to enter into it... Margaret's existance in the scene encouraged me to be a painter.

visit Cho-Chan at:

www.digmeout.net