Oct 27, 2014 8 Questions with: Philip Lumbang
Philip Lumbang is an accomplished young artist, based in Los Angeles. When we first met about a decade ago, Phil was art assistant to American stencil master Shepard Fairey (of OBEY fame) and also interning at a mutual friend’s clothing label. It’s been amazing to watch Phil’s progression and growth as an artist: developing his style, fleshing out his Happy Bear characters, building an impressive following, and generally repping his “HUG LIFE” mantra to the fullest. In many ways Phil is disrupting the old gallery world – he’s found it more lucrative and rewarding to produce & sell art via his own online store, and hasn’t paid much attention to the traditional exhibition route so far. Assessing the situation bluntly, Phil said, “The era of the gallery-driven artist is over.” Read on to learn more about Phil’s fascinating role as a talented creative and stay tuned to his Instagram account for more on upcoming projects such as his mural at Spotify’s new HQ coming this fall. And you can check out his brand new merch store too.
What are you currently working on?
I’m working on my juggling act! Three kids, a wife, and a freelance career is a lot to keep up with. Kids-wise, I’m trying to see if i can raise some decent human beings who hopefully contribute great things to society. Wife-wise, working on keeping the flames of love fanned. Career-wise, I have a few things I’m working on. I’m most well known for my happy bears, so pushing that is top priority and getting freelance gigs like the Vince Staples “Hell can wait” EP cover. I guess I really want to work on diversifying every artistic outlet I can.
How would you describe your job?
My job? Let’s see…I’m like a “not-so-stay-at-home dad/art guy.”
What does your average work day look like?
I wake up about 8am, to one of my crying twins, make her a bottle, then 15 minutes later, her sister wakes up. Go back to bed around 9-ish and siesta till noon. My wife is on maternity leave still, so we kick it throughout the day, taking care of all the kids. When my 3-year-old takes his nap around 7pm, that’s when art stuff takes place. I’ve got a studio in Downtown L.A. where I get all my work done, so I’ll either be painting, designing or shipping for about 3 hours, then head back home to a cranky toddler, 2 crying babies, and beautiful lady. Watch Netflix or Amazon Prime all night, put the girls to bed around 4am, and BAM all over again. I mean it’s not the most exciting life but, shit, someone’s gotta do it.
Where do you find inspiration?
The Internets, LOL. No, but seriously, everything is on the Internet, so why go anyplace else? My search history is pretty funny…anything from “HIGH RES FOREST NIGHT” image searches to “FROST DK ROTATION.” Ok, but seriously, seriously, inspiration is all around me, my best ideas are kind of the “AH HA” moments where it just hits me out of nowhere. I’ve always got ideas running through my head – the hard part is filtering out the winners from the losers.
What’s the best thing about living and working in LA?
The best thing about living and working in LA has to be LA right? I mean my god, what a place to be, what ever you want, LA got it. Whats your flavor? You got it! I’ve been in here for almost 8 years now and the energy of the city, the people is electrifying. I’ve lived all over the greater-LA area, from Van Nuys to Silverlake, Monterey Park to Burbank, so many different cultures and communities it really keeps you motivated; you are part of something bigger.
As a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?
I grew up in the early ‘90s, like when Food Network was a new thing, and I remember watching Emeril Lagasse, and being like, “Damn, that’s what I want to do.” And I was completely serious about it up until high school and realized I drew on EVERYTHING. I’m talking about homework, agendas, desks, and chairs. Teachers would get hella mad at me. But yeah, I was really ready to go to culinary school and start working my way up to becoming some dope-ass chef at some dope-ass restaurant. I still cook like every day and I’m pretty good at it, maybe that could be something I could do still, hell I’m only 28!
What are you reading at the moment?
I’ve been into Reddit for a bit now, and slowly over time it has become my one-stop-shop for all my news, and entertainment. The front page is sort of like this meta Internet world where the most popular news, pictures, trends etc of the day are marked and labeled ready for consumption. Other than that, I really enjoy reading tech reviews, I am a huge gadget buff, and I love speculating about new devices and what next big thing is coming, like smart watches. I’d totally get one but the battery doesn’t even last a 24hr day with moderate use…See what I mean? Interesting stuff.
What’s your favorite post-work destination?
I’m an avid gamer, I even built my own gaming PC, so that’s what I like to spend my free time doing. Other than that, going places with the fam is always fun. My son likes to go bowling and mini golfing so we try and do that as much as possible. I always try to be as far away as possible from all things work, all work and no play makes Phil a sad boy.
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