Editor’s Note: For this installment of Personal Space—StockX’s intimate look at the spaces that inspire our favorite creatives—we talk to visual artist and creator Louis De Guzman in his hometown city of Chicago, IL. Read up. (Note: This interview has been lightly edited for brevity and clarity.)
Despite obtaining new levels of success and notoriety in 2018, Louis De Guzman’s Personal Space is all about his team, his city, and his background. We met up with the Chicago artist and creator at his manager’s apartment on the Southwest side to talk about how this space fosters his growth, the importance of staying true to Chicago, and a sneak peek at what’s next.
Lizzie Kassab, STOCKX: Can you introduce yourself?
Louis De Guzman: My name is Louis De Guzman. I am a visual artist and creator from Chicago, Illinois.
Lizzie: Can you give us a quick rundown of where we’re at right now? What is this space that we’re in?
Louis: We’re here in our HQ, it’s actually my manager Austin’s apartment, but this is our team’s personal space. This is where we hang. Kick it. Meet. Get work done. Play Mario Kart and have fun. Just really be about our business.
Lizzie: 2018 was such a massive year of growth and redefinition for you as an artist – it’s been super interesting to see how your work has evolved into that self-defined geometric/abstract space. What really pushed you to hit reset and go into this head-on?
Louis: It was me kind of honing in on my style, and having Austin Neely and Bradley Butchko cornering me and saying this could be more. We always talk about new mediums and one day I told them I really wanted to do sculptures. I kept saying it. I’m very persistent on what I want to do. Austin found a guy that could help us get started. I was like, let’s test it! It was brewing. While we were working on it, I just kept thinking that this was going to be insane. We kept saying everyday, “this is going to change everything.” What everyone saw at ComplexCon in November, before any of the other big press, we knew it was going to shift a lot of things for us, and for myself as an artist. Last year was all about stepping out of my comfort zone and really expanding the mediums – doing everything from installations, prints and 2D, to digital renderings and product design. Turning my skillset into full-time artistry.
Lizzie: Your sculpture work was a huge turning point – that’s such a traditional medium for so many people. When people hear “sculpture,” they think marble, antiquity, Renaissance. With you specifically sitting at such an interesting intersection of fine art and streetwear culture, especially with your history with RSVP Gallery – do you feel that benefits you or is it a hindrance? As far as straddling that line between the two worlds.
Louis: I don’t think it holds me back, it definitely benefits me to step forward across that line because we live in an age where everything is available within the palm of your hand. Instagram wasn’t around when we were first creating. It was really just us showing up to spots, walking endlessly to Fulton Market and showing people my work in a little portfolio book. Now you post one thing and the response is, “wow, this is art.” People appreciate it. When we saw the turnover initially, we were like “this is going to be something.” This digital media age – it’s all we got.
Lizzie: It seems like with “Elevate,” that’s such a topical pop culture piece that people can immediately connect with the concept, regardless of their experience with art.
Louis: Yeah, it’s not just connecting with those familiar or unfamiliar with pop culture, but also bringing them into a fine art experience. I’m all about what can we do to curate a space to bring people together. The way that the team sees it, we like to welcome everybody. Fans of fine art. Fans of pop culture and streetwear. Mesh the worlds together, have people escape and be happy. Enjoy themselves for that very moment. Connecting people. That’s what I see through my work.
Lizzie: Talking about your creative process in general, when you’re working on something completely new, how do you get started? Do you have any creative rituals that are super important to your process?
Louis: My creative rituals… I just go for it. As a kid, you’re always drawing and you’re always concentrating so hard. You just want to scrap that piece of paper because you’re like, “Oh, I can’t get this.” I’ve learned to just let it free-flow. Now it’s just embedded in me where I wake up in the morning, get my oatmeal in, my coffee and then I text these fools on our group chat like, “Whatup, what’s good for the day?!” Same thing, everyday. I’m energized. What I’ve learned as an artist is to not think too hard and just have fun with it. Always remembering where I came from and what brought me to this point. That’s my process – this is my little zen zone. I just clear my head and get down to it. Get the music going. Get the pencil going. Get my laptop going. Just go.
Lizzie: You’ve mentioned in past interviews that you define your work as a collision of past and present. Especially being a 2nd generation American, how does that translate into your space? How do you honor those roots while looking forward to the future of you as your own person and own artist?
Louis: I’m all about family. It’s all about my past. A lot of my art has derived from my childhood, especially from my mother taking me to craft shows with her. She’d be the only Filipino-Asian woman there. I was exposed to a lot of intricate patterns, pillows, and textures. My mom would do custom ribbons and all that. It just stuck with me. I just loved those details.
I think that’s what transitioned from my past to my present. To where I can share those memories I had, and those feelings I had as a child, but now as an adult in the art world. For us, it’s a story. Where we started and where we’re at now, and how I can progress and transition to really broadcast that story louder.
Lizzie: A lot of your work is so layered, especially with your signature colors and perfect symmetry – does that balance translate into your personal life too?
Louis: I’m not insane *laughs.* It’s like a high for me. It’s a natural high. For me, it gives me this feeling of like how I act in the everyday world. Right now, speaking with you and having the team here – it’s how I interact with people. I’m a very open person. I love learning about people, off the jump. For me, when I create those abstract patterns, and the layered things – it’s like the layered memories I have. My sculpture that we released is called “Elevate,” because I was able to take what I learned and what I’ve gone through over the years in my personal life through art and design. Through wins and losses I was able to lift myself up, work with amazing people, and we were able to elevate ourselves to the next platform of what it means to be coming out of Chicago. What it means to be an artist. What it means to be here for your community.
Lizzie: As a solo artist with a rapidly growing list of clients and collaborations, how important has your team been to you?
Louis: I don’t want to be cheesy but there’s no I in team. *laughs* They’re my brothers. They mean so much to me. We’re always together. We’re always talking about what the next thing is. I want to surround myself with those who believe in themselves more than they believe in me, because that means they’re in it to win it too. We just want to keep winning together. We want to share these memories and moments. 20 or 30 years from now it’s like, “Man, you remember that one time we showed up at ComplexCon with a sculpture?” At the end of the day, it’s important because you can’t get anything done without a team. You can’t get anything done without your friends. The most beautiful thing is being able to establish something with your homies, guys that have been with you through thick and thin, and being able to win together. Making a moment and establishing a movement for our beliefs and our city.
Lizzie: You’re from Chicago, you’ve lived in LA, and have been traveling a ton. With the global art world and your own experience expanding so much across that market, why come back to Chicago? What does this place bring to your work and your process that LA or NY don’t?
Louis: Man, Chicago’s where my family came from the Philippines. They came here to escape. They came here for a better life. They came here in search of what the American dream was in the 80’s. They had me here and I grew up not really knowing my background. I remember my father always driving me to the city and I would always see the skyline. Growing up in the suburbs, we’d just go on 290 and come up to the city. These big buildings would just rise up. That always evoked a feeling in me. I remember working as a stock boy with Oscar Castillo from Modern Notoriety. I would always meet the guys driving up in my minivan because I had no whip yet. *laughs* Just seeing those buildings rise up, it gave me goosebumps every time. There’s something so special about this city. It literally just skyrockets your inspirations, your motivation, makes you want to rise up to the challenge and kind of be your own person and be somebody. Chicago breeds a lot of champions.
Lizzie: What’s your history with Fulton Market?
Louis: Fulton Market is where I got my first start as a designer in Chicago. I was a freshman at Columbia College. This guy Pan Hompluem, who owns a restaurant in Chicago called Low Country, gave me my first job as a designer. I was that young kid with a fake ID who went to a club with my brother and his friends. They introduced me to him and he was like, “Are you a designer?” I’m like, “Yeah.” He goes, “Alright cool. Meet me at my spot on Fulton.” He had a shoe store back in the day. I didn’t know my way around the city. I literally walked from Columbia College to Fulton Market. If you guys know that distance, it was nuts. It’s far. It’s far as hell. I met him there and he gave me my first shot. He was like, “I want to see what you can do.” From there, that’s when it really started for me. He gave me an opportunity where I met other people. I met Easy Otabor who owns Infinite Archives – me and him go way back. Easy called me one day and said they were looking for a freelance graphic designer at RSVP Gallery. From there, I met everybody. I met Austin and we all started working together.
Fulton is just very historical for me because not only did we start there, we’ve been able to have shows there. We had something at The Dalcy last year and also had my latest solo show there, In Between The Lines, which meant a lot. It’s crazy coming back to do your thing where you started.
Lizzie: How important is it for you to stay true to Chicago in that hometown vibe and give back to the community?
Louis: It’s super important – I’m always going to see myself as that young kid. That young adult looking up to guys like Don C, Virgil Abloh, Hebru Brantley, and Chance The Rapper. As someone who’s a minority, I want to be the next advocate as an Asian-American to show my culture, my friends, my family, and my peers that you can do what you want. You can really pursue your passion. You can really flex your dreams as long as you stick to it and be cutthroat about it. Just wake up everyday and say, “Alright, I’m gonna seize it, I’mma do it. We’re going to show up.”
Lizzie: When you really look at how many great artists are coming out of this city, it feels like everyone keeps coming back here. There’s that hometown hero aspect. It feels like it’s either an undercurrent of the city or it’s the people coming out of here realizing how much the city has shaped them and their work. Do you feel like that same kind of thing resonates with you?
Louis: I really do. It’s home. It’s where we grew up. It’s like seeing all of these other guys, women, legends, everybody just rising up to the occasion above and beyond the city. It just motivates us to do more. Every time Austin, Brad and I speak, they’re always like “this is beyond Chicago.” We gotta go beyond our city. That makes us bring the trophies back home.
Lizzie: What characteristics make up that Chicago-bred creative scene?
Louis: Cutthroat. Confident. Humble. Outspoken about what they do and want to give back to the community. Being a Chicago creative is about having a lot of pride, not just about what you do, but where you came from, your background, and standing up for your beliefs.
Lizzie: What’s next for you? Is there anything crazy we don’t know about? We need to hear about your upcoming solo international show!
Louis: Man, we have two things that I can’t mention now on this interview. We’re super excited. You can ask Austin himself. He’s getting like 50 or 60 calls a day from me. Texting Brad everyday. I’m very persistent, like when can we announce this? When can we do it? So we’re really excited about a few things coming up, which you guys will see soon. My first international show is March 31st. It’s in my motherland, the Philippines, where my family is from. It’s been a dream to do a solo show internationally. We’ve done so many here and it’s very humbling, but to be granted access and for them to be like “Hey, we want to invite you to a gallery in Manila” was like, wow this is crazy. It’s more than us just going there, spending time together and broadcasting the art more and showing our work. For me, it’s more about my family. I have a lot of family, a lot of cousins who are my age, aunts, and uncles who have never stepped foot on U.S. soil because they don’t have the means to. They don’t have their papers and they can’t make it here. Knowing I can have this show there and invite them as my special guests, it just means the world to me.
Lizzie: That’s a whole new definition for personal space. You’re going there and creating a space for them to experience your work.
Louis: Yeah, my personal space is not just us hanging out in one area. My personal space is the city. It’s where I travel. It’s everyone around me that I meet. Everything I experience. That is my personal space because it motivates me. It gives me a memory to take back when I go back home to create.
