Danish artist Pabi has a fascinating vision. His work is startling and grabs your attention. Colorful and chaotic, he depicts what makes us tick as people, what lies beneath, what pushes or pulls us.

Intentionally complex, Pabi strives to show the connectedness of everything by blasting us with bombastic imagery of seemingly disconnected things. By placing them in juxtaposition in his paintings, they gain an odd feeling of connectedness as they sit in the body of his composition.

I had the opportunity to ask Pabi what motivates him as an artist and how he approaches creating his work.

TH: When did you know you wanted to be an artist?
Pabi: I guess it’s like being homosexual. One day you realize what really turns you on. I might have been born an artist, but it took me some time to convince myself and the rest of the world that I’m 100% dedicated.


TH: I saw on your website that you teach art in high school and taught at a prison. Do you enjoy teaching? What about the process of creating do you try to impress on your students? What part of teaching do you enjoy the most?
Pabi: I enjoy teaching art because I can take the students somewhere unexpected. It doesn’t matter if they are hardcore inmates or small girls with ponytails.
I usually base my teaching programs on the student’s individual story, personal background, and emotions. To me, art is strongest when is personal and authentic. Also, by teaching art I can cooperate with the students to create art and expressions I couldn’t make on my own.

For me making a piece of art is like a journey. You never know where it ends. The coincidences and obstacles gives energy and surprises to the painting for me and for the audience. I call it serendipity.

TH: Do you have a favorite artist that has influenced you?
Pabi: I have many. Art is so many things and is so divided in genres, styles and expressions. I have my old heroes like [20th century artist Francis] Bacon and other masters that have made a huge impact on the art world. But most interesting is who will be the masters of tomorrow. Nobody knows and that is fascinating.

TH: Is there a particular person who inspires you?
Pabi: Not God because I don’t believe in him. But maybe he is inspired by me!

TH: Do you listen to music when you work? Any particular kind? A playlist maybe?
Pabi: I like to put my huge playlist on random. Then it is always a surprise and my mind and mood change and that creates an unpredictable energy which I can transfer to the canvas.
However, I mostly listen to Danish talk radio and the news channel, P1. It is a fantastic way to get knowledge and information while you’re doing what you’re best at. At the same time it sharpens my critique on politics, society and systems that we are all a part of.

TH: Do you have a favorite museum or art space that you love?
Pabi: I think a museum is like heaven to most artists. We want so badly to be there, lucky to be featured before we die. But when we get there, we often get disappointed, ‘cause it´s all white and boring.

TH: How do you go about composing your work? Do you start with smaller sketches and put that on the canvas or do you start right on the canvas? Is there an initial plan for a painting that develops over time or is it set in your mind when you put brush to canvas?

Pabi: Well, it depends on the work, of course. But I am not the biggest sketcher in the world- I mostly use sketches to develop the idea and concept.
When I painted [my most recent series,] the medical posters, I saw the pre-print as a DNA. Like humans we all come with something determined, which we can develop upon and create a unique story.
Sometimes I simply throw a lot of paint on the canvas, again, to get a foundation that I can create from. In order to make figurative elements on top of the chaos I use a projector to get the outlines correct.
For me making a piece of art is like a journey. You never know where it ends. The coincidences and obstacles gives energy and surprises to the painting for me and for the audience. I call it serendipity.

TH: What upcoming projects do you have that you might care to elaborate on? You mention something on your website that you want to “fuse the art with the artist”, but I wonder if you may care to expand on that?
Pabi: Yes, I want to print my own skin, in order to make a piece of art with only my DNA. A new bio-printing technique makes it possible to print skin and organs with your own stem cells.
Very soon these products will be available on the market for everyone who can afford it. This will radically change the way we perceive ourselves as human beings. We will be more like cars. If you can afford to maintain and replace used parts with new, we might last forever!
I find this project very important. Because it raises some fundamental questions about science and the possibilities for our nearest future. We don’t know where the technology and the possibilities will takes us. Just like Facebook and TalentHouse.

To see more of what Pabi has in store, visit his website.