Sean Hartman: Would you classify yourself as an artist or a designer?
Both. I work where I'm solely creating a piece for myself, fulfilling nothing but an idea I want to see. Then there is the commercial work that looks like my personal work but it's on a poster, cd cover with someone else's name.

What is your dream project?
Something with Raymond Pettibon perhaps...

You've listed Ryan McGinness on your site as a client. What kind of work did you do for him?
I helped ‘pen tool’ a bunch of his sketches and scans into silhouettes and icons. I was still in college when I was doing this and traded work for work. I really looked up to him for how he was merging his design and art into one and continues to do so.


Do you tend to sketch your ideas first, or, do you prefer a "straight to computer" kind of workflow?
I do both, most of the time I'll sketch or write down ideas. It has become a lot faster for me to just use the computer in most cases to create the sketch. Command + Z is quicker than my eraser.

As you were developing as an artist who did you want to emulate? What artists/designers inspired you?
I'd have to say Shepard Fairey, who I came across in 6th grade. We've been friends ever since and I think just seeing him work always made me feel like I wasn't doing enough.

Who's inspiring you these days in the design world?
Non-Format, Geoff McFetridge, Apple.

What do you do when you hit the wall, when you're blocked creatively?
Get drunk with my friends who work on Wall Street and hate their lives.

Do you have any plans for art shows in the future?
I have a group show coming up in LA at Subliminal Projects on Oct 4th and a few more slated for 2009.

Is there any project, publication, or event upcoming that you'd like to talk about or tell people to look out for?
You can check out some stuff in Over & Over, a new book by Mike Perry about trendy design patterns. Another book about to release by Juxtapoz on Screenprinters, I'll be in that.

What advice do you have for students and young artists/designers who are struggling to find their voice?
Apply to Pratt and request you get on the waiting list for my class I'm hoping to teach in 2009.

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If you're interested in seeing more of his Blake's work, you can check out the Park Life group show coming up in LA at Subliminal Projects Oct 4th through Oct31st. Blake has also been recently featured in the book, Over & Over, by Mike Perry and will be in a forthcoming Juxtapoz book about screenprinting.

“Park Life is a series of exhibitions organized and curated by Studio Number One. Amidst a neighborhood defined by fluid and fixed identities and a creative crossroads of art, design, popular culture and technology, Park Life asks the question, ‘What defines a community?’”