02Monster maker

The artist has been all about monster lately.

Jan believes being creative is hard work, and keeping his brain sharp with mental workouts prepares him for challenges.

With this in mind, Jan once tasked himself to draw facial hair in different styles without repeating. He tried everything, even having them braided, but it turned out variation in facial hair is somehow limited, “whilst drawing monsters isn’t,” he says. This was when he started building his characters around monster creatures.

He draws inspiration from movies or manga, including “One Piece” and “Hunter × Hunter”, which feature outstanding characters with prominent traits.

“Some of them have three joints; some of them are fish-turned humans and some mermaids,” says Jan. “It’s mesmerising, creativity-wise.”

Wild animals featured in nature documentary, such as “The Blue Planet”, also informed his drawings.

“I once created a monster character that has pigeon eyes in order to portray a Cantonese phrase ‘eye of white pigeon’, which describes people who are snobbish.

“Other slangs such as ‘your eyes are on your nose’ and ‘daai sai ciu’ (a term that refers to something unjust) have also been translated into my characters,” he adds.

Jan directs his work with humour, turning even agitating subjects into something amusing.

03Less is more: from complexity to simplicity

“My old drawings were very much driven by complexity,” Jan recounts. “I tended to fit as much details as possible on a A3-size canvas.”

Most of his is early works are crowded with throngs of characters and patterns that call to mind the famous “Where’s Wally” illustration.

To create complex brush strokes, Jan gave up paint marker in favour of thin-tipped pen with a 0.5 mm needle, and at the end 0.1 mm needle.

“I was in too deep with details and I was depressed because of it.”

Was it a sign of insecurity? He wondered. It took him a while to realise his never-ending pursuit of details does not equal quality; the secret to better work isn't drawing more, it’s drawing less.

As one of the notes by Lin Zexu (a Chinese official dating back from the Qing dynasty) goes – be tolerant to diversity; the less you desire, the stronger you are.

Living without desire makes you become fearless and thus more forthcoming. This, he trusts, is the highest state of mind.

As an artist, Jan used to loath abstract paintings because he believed a couple of brushstrokes on canvas should not be considered as a form of art. Without even realising, he ended up prioritising craftsmanship over the message he wished to convey in his work.

“Voids in an artwork allow viewers more space to think. I wondered why I failed to be an art buff,” he jokes.

Less is more. Today, Jan strives to maintain a clean and monochromatic scheme for his drawings that devoid of complex brushstroke, even texture.

This approach extends to his music – from high-pitched tones and volatile melodies to a neat melodic style that, he hopes, can deliver his thoughts with one single note.

“There are Yin and Yang in our body. We’ve got to try both sides to be able to identify which one works better for us,” says the artist.

“The first 20 years of my life were complicated and buoyant. Now I’m trying to keep things simple, in terms of music, illustration or even the way I dress.”

04Capitalism corrodes music and painting

“What’s the most important piece of paper in your life?” we ask Jan and he replies:

“This is a tough question……”

Nothing is irreplaceable, he believes, as technology facilitates every aspect of our lives today.

“Everything can be printed out again if necessary.” Unless it’s a sheet of paper that contains historic values, which he doesn’t own any.

“So I’d say marriage certificate,” he says half-jokingly.

A frequent guest on media, Jan was once asked by a journalist: “what object is most important to you?”

The reporter was probably expecting something like a guitar, microphone or a drawing pen. But his answer was: “frankly, nothing is particularly important to me”.

The rest of Chochukmo members share similar thoughts, he acknowledges, and that’s why they try not to be too preoccupied with their own wishes.

“If our music band has come to a halt, then so be it,” he shrugs.

Just like his motto – less is more, he came to realise he can live his life and pursue art without restraint when he stopped wanting more.

05High on the travel list – Cuba

“We’ve always been told that socialism doesn’t work; yet there’s a state governed by communist party, so I’m up for a visit.”

“The motivation for pursuing art is supposed to be very pure. Sometimes I wonder if it is capitalism that makes musicians and painters so eager to make a name.”

When he stumbled upon documentaries or movies that capture the way Cubans indulge themselves with music and dancing, he would picture them playing guitar, dancing to music whilst enjoying cigar in groups on doorsteps.

“Unlike them, we go to concerts.”

In a world without capitalism, can music and painting be part of our lives? He ponders.

“Capitalism corrodes almost everything, skateboarding and Graffiti for instance,” Jan continues. “Graffiti is illegal, yet even designer labels are now embracing this form of art.”

Graffiti loses its essence once commercialised, he notes. But it is nonetheless inevitable, practically speaking, since many artists from a capitalist society are surviving on this form of art.