GALO: Do you have a favorite piece that you’ve created over the years?

KW: My Favorite piece remains my early Dies Irae. I have made many nice pieces since then, but the thrill of discovery was so intense at that moment that the experience has remained hard to beat.

GALO: How would you say your work has evolved since your first started?

KW: In my youth I made a frenetic, energetic, and sometimes undisciplined attempt to have the widest possible number of experiences in the visual arts. I tried to stretch the different disciplines I engaged in to the furthest limits of my capabilities, making the broadest impact possible. Now I feel the need to focus and direct my physical energy to writing, teaching, and creating lasting images that will be a record of my philosophy and ideas as well as my graphic style. This creates many new difficulties and challenges.

GALO:Do you have a favorite memory of a viewer’s reaction to your artwork?

KW: My favorite reactions from the public were in the earliest years of my work when seeing the images was always a surprise. Sometimes people would genuinely be dismayed to see the work on the ground, or truly marvel at the experience. Now people mostly understand and anticipate what they will see, and I am spared the drama, but also some of the fun of the surprise.

GALO: In a past interview you expressed that street painting is more physically demanding than most other visual art forms. Are there any other difficulties that you have personally experienced whilst creating your works?

KW: Almost all of the art I did in the earlier years was subject to great difficulty; even the permanent works were huge and would sometimes get damaged in transport, or lost. Pavement art was so dependent on the environment, including the surface, weather, and occasional vandalism that it sometimes even felt strange when a project reached completion with no obstacles. It is also the sheer number of hours and intensity that distinguishes pavement art from other art forms where you can take a break when you are tired or just need time to think about the work.

GALO: You’ve said that to create a chalk painting much like yours requires one to visualize their concept and sketches in their mind instead of using blueprints, and that there is no time to stop and examine the piece once you start working on it. Is this due to the changing surroundings that often go hand in hand with public art?

KW: Mostly the intense visualization is due to the fact that I am sitting close to very large forms that are stretched out across a horizontal surface. I literally cannot see the work as a whole while I am executing a detail. Many artists can step back repeatedly, even every few minutes to judge the effect of their work, but this is not the case with pavement art. Interestingly, large ceiling frescos have the same problem, as the scaffolding obscures the work from the primary point of view during the execution.

GALO: In a recent interview with REAL Magazine, you mentioned that you are currently writing a book on artist geometry, specifically its beginnings and use in modern times and the importance in understanding the concepts. What prompted you to pursue this endeavor?

I think that nothing I have achieved as a visual artist comes close to what this text can offer. It is a topic that has great importance for the next generation, because it redefines the relationship between geometry and human creativity. I think it will be my major contribution to the arts. Sadly, I need to do it in my spare time because I am a working artist rather than an academic and, therefore, I have no tenured post that gives me income while I pursue this.

GALO: This isn’t your first literary venture. You’ve written a book in the past entitled Asphalt Renaissance: The Pavement Art and 3-D Illusions of Kurt Wenner. Do you find it important to express yourself in other forms of art such as writing?

KW: It is not really a matter of expressing myself, although, I enjoy the process of writing. It is really a matter of a sense of purpose and responsibility. Pavement art and the illusions have become a global phenomenon in the past years, and have evolved radically from the roots of the art form. I think it is important for young people to understand the roots and significance of pavement art. I also believe that the art form represents a viable option for self-expression for many young people in many different and sometimes challenging environments.

GALO: Are you working on anything else currently?

KW: I am currently preparing permanent works for an art gallery. I have wanted to do this for a long time, but it took many years for me to develop a permanent pastel technique that had the same depth and richness of color that I was able to produce on the street. I am very excited about the possibilities this new technique presents, and I really appreciate spending more time in my quiet, heated studio after decades of doing works in noisy and uncomfortable environments.

GALO: Apparently you tend to paint and work on most days – even when you have no prior project or commissioned commitment. Why do you find it essential to work on a daily basis?

KW: Today I started work at 4:00 in the morning. There is no particular reason to do this, as I do not have a specific deadline for the works I am creating. In general terms, the art I do takes a huge number of hours, and there simply are never enough of them in the day. It is great to be able to concentrate and enjoy the quiet before the business part of the day begins, although in today’s world, I can often find urgent emails awaiting me even in the early morning hours and on weekends.

GALO: Looking at your creations, many of them resemble real-life situations or people. Are most of your inspirations derived from real life or are they sparked through the constant workings of the imagination?

KW: I have always been concerned about the juxtaposition of what we call the “real” world and the world of the imagination. The most interesting thing about the 3D art to me is the ability to literally combine the two realities into a single image.

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