Have No Fear, NewBrand is Here: An Interview with Up-And-Coming Artist Jonathan Haines

Jonathan Haines (a.k.a. Jonny NewBrand) is a self-acclaimed renegade artist and digital surrealist who hails from New York.

Following in the 90's DIY tradition, Haines dabbles in graffiti, illustration, and most notably, graphic design. He is particularly known for his involvement in the underground hip-hop scene, designing album covers and helping market emerging musicians. He received his first bit of exposure last June when his solo exhibition, "NewBranded," opened in Liverpool, New York.

Aside from creating traditional art, he recently helped launch the Canadian streetwear label Golde Clothing, which will soon be releasing its summer line (you can find out more about it here: http://golde.bigcartel.com/). NewBrand, which started up in 2009, is a culmination of Haines' work since then and is focused on self-empowerment.

It seeks to reinvent definitions of fine art, explore the way we interact with popular culture, and above all, make viewers question their surroundings.

NewBrand is all about semantics. It takes well-known brands and immediately recognizable references from popular media and turns them on their heads: Mickey Mouse becomes a tattooed punk, the Adidas logo becomes an advertisement for Wu Tang Clan.

Taking a cue from Andy Warhol, NewBrand blurs the lines between art and pop culture, making viewers ponder the meaning behind symbols they encounter every day (and often take for granted), and forces them to see them in a new light.

It is steeped in consumer and street culture, and is heavily influenced by rap and indie music scenes.

Heavy lines and stark colors compromise Haines' work and give it a distinct look. His pieces often bear resemblance to vintage war and propaganda posters, with their bold compositions and almost overwhelming symbolism.

It is unapologetically in your face, and that is just how he wants it.

Empty Lighthouse recently had the chance to interview Mr. Haines and get some insight into his work.
_____________________________________________
Empty Lighthouse: What does NewBrand stand for?

JH: Back in 2009 when I first created NewBrand I wanted more than anything else for the art to stand alone and take prominence, unlike most brands which lean on their name or their logo to gain momentum, I was sure that I wanted the art that comprised my brand to be the main attraction so to speak. So after some mulling over I settled on the simplest solution, this brand was new, so I called it NewBrand. Literally a brand for the future, unlike any other.

The funny thing is that it has caught on, more so than I thought it ever would honestly.

What NewBrand means to me, most of all I suppose, is a change in how people perceive and view brands as a whole. Change above all else.

EL: Your work has been compared to Shepard Fairey and his brand "OBEY" in the past. How do you respond to these comparisons?

JH: Honestly--and it does embarrass me a little bit admitting this--until someone first made that comparison to me, I knew nothing about Shepard's work. The man was making art pretty much from the day I was born, but I was never exposed to him in any informative manner. I remember as a child seeing the "Andre the Giant" face stickers on bridges and highway signs a lot but not knowing what they were.

But when I started developing my style for NewBrand and people started mistaking my work for his, I did some research. To be mistaken for an established and very iconic artist was kind of a huge compliment.

In the past 4 years I have started to develop my style to separate myself from him--not because I am trying to be different, but simply because my style has grown immensely.

It is a small goal of mine to one day be as recognizable as he is.

EL: There appear to be a lot of political symbols in your work (i.e.

bombs, flags, religious iconography). Would you say that your work makes a political statement? If so, what kind of statement(s) do you hope to make?

JH: That is really a tricky question, because I have no political affiliations, but much like all Americans, politics affect me. I wouldn't say that my art is specifically political, so much as it is humanitarian in effort. Symbolism is a big deal to me.

My education in Branding and Advertising in college led me to appreciate a lot of iconography that we take for granted. The American flag, for example, is one of the best known brands of our century, people see the American flag and instantly think "America." That is a powerful brand.

I am American and proud to be one, even though I'm not always proud of what our country's leaders choose to do with their power.

The characters I create for NewBrand all have some kind of deeper meaning that extends beyond just looking good. The bomb, for instance, is symbolic of me; he is sort of a blend between the obvious--a bomb--and a Japanese wind spirit called a Tengu, which is where his long nose comes from.

The intent behind his design is that he is full of energy; at any moment a spark can set him off, but he is wise and in control like a wind spirit, and does not abuse his power or lose control of it.

At the end of the day I do not intend to do harm with my art, although the avid use of weapon looking characters does net me some criticisms on that matter, I'm just trying to show that things aren't always as they seem.

As for religion, I don't follow any. I was raised a Christian and I do believe in a lot of the philosophy behind that sect, but I don't try to push any religious agendas with my art either. When I use a symbol like a cross or more so the Manji, from Buddhism, I do not intend to suggest those religions should be followed, so much as I use the image as an image and what it stands for.

The Manji appears in all but a few of my personal pieces as a backdrop, because the Manji represents peace and I want peace to be behind all of my art.

Although literal, it is a subtle and often times overlooked sentiment in my art. I like to make people look hard for deeper meanings because it makes my art more interesting I think.

I have done a few pieces about Obama that were directly political, and the one poster I made in regard to SOPA. Few political topics set my mind ablaze and warrant a response, but overall I try not to make any political statements with my art.

EL: You kind of segmented into my next question. There are a lot of reoccurring characters in your work (i.e. the red bomb man, the horned creature, etc.). What do these characters signify to you?

JH: Well as I said the bomb represents me. The little red guy with horns I named "King Ja," he is kind of like NewBrand's Bugs Bunny or Mickey Mouse, but more so he is almost like a period at the end of a sentence. He doesn't appear in too many pieces of mine but he is always at the ending of my books or stamped on my site as a sign that this is NewBrand. He is more of a logo than "Bomten" (my bomb-tengu character) is I would say, representative of the brand and less of me.

I also have "Astro," the Astroboy/Mickey Mouse lookalike, he only shows up on pieces at the end of each year, he symbolizes moving forward with NewBrand. A less obvious but ever present character in my artwork is the one I refer to as the "Ignorant Masses," or IM. It is a play on words because people who think the world revolves around them travel in flocks and it becomes a redundancy. IM is the character with the bland expressionless stare and creepy half-moon grin.

EL: Your work has a very distinctive color palette. What is it that draws you to red, black, and white, specifically?

JH: Well there are a few ways I could answer that question. The simplest being that Germany's war flag was black, white and red, so turned on its head it becomes red, white and black. A more designer response would be that red, white and black are essentially grey, white and black, in that the tonal value of red is the same as 50% grey, and thus it pairs well with black and white.

Also, red as a color has the same weight as black, so it stands up against white. It also has the same vibrancy as white, so it stands up against black.

These three colors are versatile and, if used properly, are the only three colors a designer needs to create an effective image. That, and red is my favorite color.

EL: You do a lot of collaborations with musicians, specifically hip-hop artists. What is it about the hip-hop industry that speaks to you?

JH: I think hip-hop represents individual struggle better than most genres of music. My generation was born in a time where rapping was looked down upon and in order to make it as an artist you had to really push yourself and sacrifice a lot. I guess that struggle resonates a lot with me as a graphic artist.

There's an old track by Lyrics Born and Dan the Automator, called "Always Fine Tuning," which was recorded in 1999 that really pushes this point. So I guess I chose hip-hop as my target audience above all else because of how similar the two industries are.

As a professional designer, I enjoy the diversity I get from clients who are rappers.

Some of my favorite and most original pro-work has been a product of the hip-hop industry; it is the ever changing pool of new ideas that keeps me coming back for inspiration.

EL: Besides music, what inspires you?

JH: Branding inspires me a lot. I recently did a case study on popular brands and hip-hop mainstays that got a lot of traction.

I'm not ashamed to admit that women are also a huge inspiration.

Maybe it is the classically trained artist in me who slaved over models and charcoal through college, but anytime I am lacking ambition or inspiration a beautiful woman can usually set me straight.

EL: Do you have any projects that you're currently working on?

JH: My goal for 2014 is to release a 5 year Anniversary art book on the 30th of December.

It will be a huge undertaking because I want to categorize and showcase everything I have created since 2009, even works that have never seen the light of day, so that is my biggest project in the works.

Other than that, I am working with a start-up clothing label out of Canada called Golde Clothing. We just released our first line this winter and are currently getting ready for summer. I also have a physical art series in the works that is code named "Temporary Walls," which I hope to have done sometime in the near future.
____________________________________________________
Mr.

Haines is currently residing in New York and is accepting commissions. To view his portfolio and contact him, check out his website: http://www.jonnynewbrand.com/.

You can also follow his updates on Facebook and Tumblr.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NewBrandDesCo
Tumblr: http://jonnynewbrand.tumblr.com/.