konami
(art
also available)
talking with konami,
ansi artist with legion, ascii artist, and all round artist
type guy..
Session Start: Mon Aug 31 18:58:28
1998
*** Now talking in #konami
*** Retrieving #konami channel info...
*** dngrmouse changes topic to "Konami interview for acheron.org"
Dangermouse:
Heyhey
Konami:
IRC SERVER DISCRIMATION!
Dangermouse:
I know. Shall we get started?
Konami:
They discrimate against users non-local! Okay well let's get on
with it!
Dangermouse:
Okay, acheron has been after an interview with you for quite some
time -- and tried :> -- so it's great to be finally talking to
you..
First off, how old are you?
Konami:
18. newly 18.
Dangermouse:
and.. what do you do for a living? school?
Konami:
artist/student.
Dangermouse:
ahh. Artist doing what?
Konami:
I'm an artist. it's my identity.
Dangermouse:
Do you hope to get into graphic art one day, in the digital arena?
Konami:
I hope that i'm into everything. :) As in anything i wished to
pick up artistically could be mine in an instant, or else i wouldn't
be an artist, right?
Dangermouse:
From the outset of you joining the scene, in 1994, what did you
think of the environment in which you were placed? Was it friendly
towards new artists?
Konami:
Well, it was mixed. at first i was kicked out of most of the boards
for not being a part of any legitamite art groups. Then there
where some who helped me out such as wator. as once as i was in
plain everybody rolled out the red carpet for me, since plain
was a very well respected group locally.
Dangermouse:
Yeah, what happened inbetween 1994 and 1996 though?
Konami:
Oh, well it was okay.. i had fun doing what i did.. most was just
messages and door games on boards
Dangermouse:
Basically you were just fukcing around then?
Konami:
I did draw ansi and cosysop as well.. ansi was just something
i knew how to do that a lot of people around me could not.
Dangermouse:
Tell me about Plain, and especially about wat0r, and how he helped
you out
Konami:
Plain was a revival of an previous group TOON ..where many of
my local artists where born out of, such as 4th disycple, armageddon
donut, wator and dieznyik. Plain like toon was purely a toon style
group, although i think sometimes wator wished it wasn't. Wator
was the man responsable for both groups. Oh! i forgot to mention.
kleenex came out of toon as well.
Well wator is a very good toon artist
who i still idolize.. i mean he did it all for me really, taught
me how to draw, inspired my early creations.. i can't imagine
if i would even be in the scene now if it where not for him. He's
a godly toon artist infact. i would say nobody comes close except
toon goon.
Dangermouse:
I agree. How did plain die?
Konami:
When echo was born, plain's name died. plain kind of merged into
4th and came up with a new set of ideals, and they saw some success
from it. early 1997 they where considered one of the best in the
world.
Dangermouse:
Echo was one of those groups that kinda made a few comebacks correct
me if I'm wrong?
Konami:
Yeh.. mid 1997 it stopped releasing and it had like, 2 comebacks
after.. but ah, since january 1998 it has been no where to be
seen. I'm going to assume it's dead but then.. i could be wrong,
maybe wator has an other one in store. The legacy of toon-plain-echo
is certainly a great one. many artists we know now started off
there. maybe even more so then dark, because dark didn't accept
so many new artists as they did.
Dangermouse:
Ok, so after the demise of Plain, you joined Dark yeah? How did
you find that, because I'malways being told of it's great comradship.
Konami:
Now i'm having a fit of nastalga.. thanks a lot. :)
Oh well dark is tight for sure.
it's the only real "community" left in our local scene. go to
#dark and you still have pure 905/416. Then there is the mini
community of me,prodigy,black jack serial toon and discofunk..
who are all local ascii artists. not so tight though.. but we
all connect in a way.
Dangermouse:
Hmm.. You quit dark didn't you? in 1996?
Konami:
No, i quit it in 1997. twice. joined late 1996
Dangermouse:
ahh. So why the hell did you quit dude? And where did you go?
Konami:
Well, the first time.. i was just messed up scene wise.. too many
groups, too many commitments. And well, second time around. i
was disgruntled.. i became a senior staff and started to hate
the way the group worked, wanted to change it. I just was in too
much of a rush though, i kicked out TGH and 4th, and caused quite
a stirr.
Dangermouse:
When was this, the second time?
Konami:
oh, like fall of 1997.
i think i may of been able to do
it, but i lost my nerve and skrewed it all up by saying i wanted
to resign as ansi senior. It's kind of a shame me and 4th had
to have dissagreements. we both wanted change and if we had worked
together, nothing would of stopped us. but then, something stopped
us from working together so it could never be.
Dangermouse:
Did you leave scene because of this?
Konami:
I left the ansi scene because of that, yeh. At the time, the ansi
scene had been doing very bad. do you remember late 1997?
Dangermouse:
very well, I was there dude, reporting about it..
Konami:
The amount of packs where dismal. groups only released every 3
or so months. the quality wasn't so great either
Dangermouse:
The scene was in turmoil...
Dangermouse:
Tell me about Odelay ascii actually.. and indeed, of your ascii..
Konami:
Well, i came back just at the moment things started coming around.
just about the same time the legion 01 came about.
Dangermouse:
Whoa, back back :)
Konami:
Heh, well odelay ascii was my first ascii group.. joined early
1997. i was in every pack from 06-17. Yeh me and prodigy had a
fun time. we kind of ran the group cooperativly for a year or
so.
Dangermouse:
How did you start drawing ascii?
Konami:
Odelay is the group i enjoyed the most.. it was when i was the
only one left to run the show when i got a little unbearable.
Oh, well i had not tried untill
fall 1996.. i didn't take it very seriously at first. Ansi was
#1 for me until the winter of 97-98
Dangermouse:
Heh, well you mentioned Legion #01 before :)
Konami:
Yeh, incase people have already forgotten.. LEGION01.ZIP was a
huge shocker for everyone when it came around. it wasn't only
a good pack, it was a come back for the intire ansi scene. People
hadn't seen quality like that for close to 2 years. it was the
answer to everyones prayers.
Dangermouse:
I'd have to agree.. People were talking about the scene, Legion
did something about it
Konami:
I just hope nobody ever starts to undermine the impact it had.
it would be so ignorant to do that.
Dangermouse:
Did you apply to Legion because of that first pack? or..?
Konami:
Oh, well.. i applied mostly because of milkmang. i didn't think
the legion was for me but he told me i had to join.
Dangermouse:
Because theres a rather funny story behind that app isn't there?
:_)
Konami:
Oh yeh.. maestro was so passive about the application. he was
like "oh, let me consult all my members and i'll get back to you"
...it took 2 months.
Dangermouse:
bwahaha.. I bet you were like "Shit, they must think I'm pretty
bad to take this long!"
Konami:
Fact was, he wasn't consulting anyone. he just kind of forgot.
i found him 2 months later and asked. The space between pack 1
and 2 was large.. anyway, i got in just a day or two before 02.
Spent 12 hours straight on my ansi just prior to pack time.
Dangermouse:
How do you find the Legion as a group.. A few people have described
them as being secretative and unsociable..
Konami:
It's all true.
Dangermouse:
haha. To your actual art - because that's what really matters
when you get down to it.. Your style certainly original - any
people you can tribute to inspiring you?
Konami:
Everything inspires me. i always got my eyes open. wator inspired
me, as did dieznyik(nootropic) silver spy and evil genius inspired
me techniqe wise at first. akira toriyama is also an inspiration
to me.. as is yoshitaka amano in the upper-world
Dangermouse:
I notice you also draw in two different ways - one more abstract,
and the other more of the usual scene stuff
Speaking of Legion, do you see it
continuing on as strong as it has? Do you see the downfall of
ansi happening any time soon?
Konami:
I don't believe in "downfalls" i think even when things look bad.
it's all still there. in our hearts. the scenes revival is just
a manisfestation of what was always there.. yet hiding from us.
Dangermouse:
Good answer :)
Well, that's about it dude. Any
greets?
Konami:
Propz to creator, trip, and milkmang.. who just left for the army.
I'll miss you milkmang..
Session Close: Mon Aug 31 20:34:58
1998
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