Australian artist James Jirat Patradoon gets bored easily, so he finds it necessary to frequently switch up his style a bit. While most of his work is recognizable due to his use of bright, neon colors, he’s been known to switch it up, as he did for his “Death Metal Hands” show in 2018, where he used ballpoint pens exclusively. He works with acrylic paint for his murals and paintings but also creates high-res looping GIFs of some of his pieces, which you will sometimes find projected onto the walls at his exhibits. Those digital creations have naturally progressed into the dipping of his toes into the NFT art game as well. A regular collaborator with the Superchief folks, he notably worked with them and their NY location, participating in the first NFT gallery in Union Square.
You can also find him making smirk-worthy patches that combine punk & metal fonts with musical artists of different genres. I picked up an Eazy-E patch in the style of drone metal group Sunn 0)), and my wife grabbed a Jodeci patch at his Superchief LA show, “INFERNO” back in November of 2019, a mere couple of months before an explosion in Downtown LA damaged the gallery so badly that they had to close the location.
His collaborations with big-name brands such as Coca-Cola, Facebook, HBO, Microsoft, RVCA, Fool’s Gold Records, and Mishka have helped spread his blend of 80s aesthetics, 90s fashion, comic books, tattoo design, and cyberpunk far and wide.
Check out more of his work over at his website or via Instagram.
First album you bought?
Cassettes of Prodigy ‘Fat Of The Land’ and TLC ‘Crazysexycool’ at a market in Bangkok that the guy at the shop recommended to me when I was around 10 years old for some reason.
Last album you bought?
I haven’t bought a physical album since Slipknot’s self-titled back in 1999 but the last album that has been on rotation from start to finish for me was Turnstile’s ‘Glow On’.
First concert?
Limp Bizkit
Last concert?
Speed, hardcore from Sydney
Was there one album that made a significant impression on you?
Deftones ‘White Pony’ for sure, I’ve strived to make work that makes me feel the same way I felt when I first listened to that album!
Who is your musical hero?
Doyle Von Frankenstein, not so much for his music but it’s inspiring that he is still pulling off being a ripped ghoul well into his 50s.
How important is music to your creative process?
The music I listen to every day is every song I’ve ever liked in my life on shuffle so it goes between a lot of different genres like 80s, rnb, metal, electronic, emo, etc. Sometimes people really hate it because it jumps around so much but the consistent thing is I love the songs and know the words to all of them and nothing puts you in a great flow state for working quite like that.
BONUS: What is your favorite album cover of all time (and why)?
The bruised Madonna from the Crystal Castles EP that they stole from the artist Trevor Brown. I always loved the stark graphic nature of it. Glad Trevor Brown finally got paid too!
BONUS #2: Any visual artist(s) you’d like to see answer these questions?
Chris Yee, Andrew Yee, Gerald Leung, Lauren YS.
Check out James’s playlist below on Spotify. Be sure to like Background Noise on Facebook for updates on future episodes. You can browse ALL the Background Noise episodes right here.
