On a Bender

Pumped-up pop art? Yes, please.

From andy warhol to David Hockney to Keith Haring, pop art icons have a special place in our hearts. It’s hard to imagine any artist modernizing the movement without coming off as cheesy, or even worse—a rip-off.

Maybe that’s why we’re currently obsessed with San Jose-based artist, Carlos Agrillo, who’s using cranked-up color and his own favorite pop culture icons to put his stamp on the genre.

Agrillo goes on self-described ‘art benders’: staying up for days at a time, agonizing over the placement of a subject’s eyes down to an eighth of an inch so it looks ‘just right.’

“It’s always fun when you’re doing [pop art] portraits because it’s a challenge. If you mess up, people always know. It’s like an instant ‘he fucked that up.’ ”

—Carlos Agrillo

We sat down with Carlos to talk about his approach, his inspiration, and why art matters.

You have a distinct style, especially because of your color story. Tell us more...

I love the way acrylic pops. I use a limited palette. I use the the yellow, red, orange blends for masculine [paintings] and then the violets and pinks for females. I go through phases, and what holds my work together is the style. I love music, love cinema and directors, and certain actors—I’m a huge Bill Murray fan—so there’s a lot of [my favorite icons] tied in [to my work].

What do you want people to take away from your art?

Each painting is a progression of the last one and I spend a lot of time figuring out what layout I want—what draws people to the painting and keeps your eye entertained. I have gotten some responses like, “Man, you really captured his/her soul in this painting.” I think this is my attention to the eyes in each painting.

Why is art important?

It lets people know it’s okay to create, to try something new; the ability to create is what makes us human. I could not imagine a world without art, without Matisse, or any other artist for that matter, big or small. This world is a beautiful place and art is a reflection of that. Even if you don’t like an artist, they are still creating an impact, and I love that. —ms