Introducing Artwork by Johnny Vex Mariah Beckman Artist Interviews

portrait Introducing Artwork by Johnny Vex

by Mariah Beckman

Published in Issue No. 238 ~ March, 2017
With aboriginal influence, soft lines and exuberant emotions, John Sevey creates bold expressionist artwork. We caught up with John Sevey, AKA Johnny Vex, to learn a little bit about his background, his artwork, and his aspirations. 
 
 

Three Nudes

Picture 4 of 10

 

 

I was born in Oceanside, N.Y. on September 23, 1975. (Interesting side note: this is the Wiccan holiday called Mabon, and it is also the day of the Autumnal Equinox.) I am of Scottish, Irish, German, and Russian descent (kinda sounds like a four-course meal, huh?).

Oceanside is part of Long Island, N.Y. and located in Nassau County. I spent time growing up in New York, Texas (Houston, Pearland) and California (Oxnard, Ventura). I’ve had many interesting jobs, among them an expert auditor, a bouncer, a librarian and veterinary technician.

My years growing up were spread out across different states and three major cities, which instilled in me a sense of adventure. I went to school in N.Y., California, and Texas, and college in California (Ventura College) and Texas (Houston Community College, San Jacinto College). I’ve always enjoyed working and I’ve always been really into the arts, but nothing manifested till about four years ago. I lived in Pearland, Texas at the time, as did my family, who I saw a bit. They’ve always been some of the harshest critics of my art. I have a bunch of friends who are artists and we get together to do art, especially Art in the Park at Hermann Park (Houston, Texas), which is a very spiritual place for me. That usually consists of me and my best friend, Rebekah Castro, who is insanely talented.

For the future, I plan on putting my backbone into a ten-year onslaught of my will, focusing heavily on creative endeavors. I am a very patient man and it rocks because I plan a lot for the future. From the time I get up until the time I get up again. I really want to paint some very shocking and insightful religious paintings. I already paint gods and goddesses, angels and demons, devils. Religion is very important to me, and I have a fondness for secret societies and am even a member of some of them. My next move is to get some really big canvases and dedicate a couple of years to perfecting these 8 x 6 big boys. 

The Occult really influences me to paint. I have many plans artistically based on magickal studies. I have done pantheonic work with paint, new groundbreaking work with themes like fire, brimstone, storms, angels, grace and retribution. I use acrylic mainly, but I mix my paint tubes together now, so I have oils mixed with watercolor and acrylic. I also like to wax my paintings down with candles to add a certain flare, although I don’t apply this technique to all of them.

 You can check out more of Johnny Vex’s work at the links below.

http://www.artmajeur.com under the name Johnny Vex

Vexe’s Hexes on Facebook @ https://www.facebook.com/Vexes-Hexes

On Instagram @ johnsevey

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Mariah Beckman is a Seattle-based writer and editor. A transplant from the cloudless skies and arid heat of the Arizona desert, Mariah spends most of her time trying not to feel soggy. Mariah holds a bachelor’s degree in English from Arizona State University and spends much of her free time with her beau, her family, and her pot-bellied pig, Bebop. When she’s not pretending to know how to knit, she loves to run, hike, kayak, shop, snap photos, and explore the nooks and crannies of the Pacific Northwest.