“I’ve always been into drawing and creating things,” said Joey Stupor, a 23-year-old, local artist “However, once I got to high school, painting became my main focus.”
Stupor has always moved to the beat of his own drum—growing up obsessed with the way things work.
“I used to take apart of all of my electronics as a kid,” he chuckled. “Then I’d save the little pieces to make into sculptures.”
When Joey was a junior at Newport Harbor High School, an art teacher commented she could envision his work in Juxtapoz. At the time, he’d never heard of the magazine, but it naturally became one of his new main sources of inspiration.
“[Juxtapoz] is an actual world of my style,” said Stupor.
Over the years, the artist has developed his own outlook on the world, one he works to express through his art. He self-describes as a “paracosmist,” a term he uses for “someone who creates their own world, not only in their head, but physically, too.”
Stupor’s paintings are a passageway into his mind. He chooses colors based on his surrounding environment.
“The sunsets of Costa Mesa have especially pushed my contrasting color palette,” Stupor stated.
From child’s play to artistic career, Joey has never taken a single day off. He stresses the importance of continuously creating and painting new pieces to combat the apathy, and impatience, of today’s society.
Stupor is most famous for his hand-painted, wooden rounds—adorned with galaxy and alien related scenery—which he refers to as “wood cookies.” He debuted them a few years ago during his first art show at the Living Room in Eastside Costa Mesa.
“It opened the door to galleries,” he shared. “I was reassured of my artistic journey when people actually started putting money toward my work.”
Me Want Cookie: Stupor Shows Off His Signature Pieces, Dubbed ‘Wood Cookies’
Photos: Joey Stupor
Stupor paints new wood cookies every morning; then spends the remainder of his day working on collaborations, murals, and pieces for future art shows. He’s currently involved in two major collaborations with Vestal Watches and The Painted Prosthetic Project.
The Painted Prosthetic Project selected over 20 artists, with an allotted 6 months, to complete an original prosthetic. The pieces were first displayed at the renowned Arch Enemy Arts Gallery in Philadelphia, PA on January 6th, 2017; followed by an online charity auction benefitting homeless and wounded veterans. Complementary to the gallery and auction, Juxtpoz featured the project—bringing Stupor’s childhood inspiration full circle.
Local Artist Joey Stupor Makes The World A More Colorful – And Beautiful – Place
Photos: Joey Stupor
The watch collaboration came about through an old high school friend of Joey’s, Chris Celby, who now fixes broken watch faces for Vestal Makers. Celby pitched to Johnny Gehris (President of Vestal) the idea of partnering with Stupor to paint a custom, watch-face series. Within days, Gehris approved the proposal and had custom leather produced for Stupor’s signature artist collection.
“I individually, hand-painted or air-brushed all of the faces for the series. Each piece is completely custom—no two are the same,” Stupor explained.
Watch Yourself: Stupor Shares One Of His Custom, Hand-Painted Watch Faces for a Collaboration with Costa Mesa-Based Vestal Watch
Photo: Joey Stupor
The Vestal series will be available soon; however, Joey has a booth at the upcoming Long Beach Comic Expo (February 18th and 19th) – so you can go check out his work in person. Stupor also strives to do several murals, gallery showings, and other conventions throughout this year. Follow him on Instagram and check his website joeystupor.com for updates. ♥
