Retelling Myths

Evi Doe

Interview by L. Valena

June 24, 2022

Please start by describing the prompt that you responded to.

It looks like it was made with fabric. It was a sort of monster or Cyclops with green hair and red skin and its tongue out. I couldn't tell if it was art made out of fabric or a costume, but it was quite a playful piece. That mood really stuck with me when I was thinking about my own one. It also reminded me of Cyclops and Medusa from Greek myth. So I was really interested in that, and this modern interpretation of those two influences.

Where did you go from there?

I really ran with that playfulness, and how these ancient stories get retold over and over again, and the way that we think about myths and monsters and storytelling. I had this image of a woman taking off a cyclops mask because of the costume element I saw in the picture, and I ran with that. So the idea I went with is this playful exploration of how myths are retold. Even in modern times, you can see these long lineages of storytelling going back.

I started off with this idea of the mask and then I just sketched it out because I don’t do a lot of planning. When it comes to art, I start off with an idea and then let it evolve on the page a bit. If you see in the video, I kind of jump all over the place because I'll get an idea for something else, or once I've drawn something down, I can see if it works or doesn't work and then I can adjust it. I work that way, just letting things evolve as they go.

I'm wondering if you have a specific narrative in mind in this piece, because it feels like a snapshot in a larger story. Do you think of it that way? Do you know what's happening in this scene or what’s going to happen next?

That's really interesting! I think that might be because I often draw storytelling pieces, so they often are snapshots of larger stories. With this one, I didn’t have a narrative in mind as such, but I really developed her as a person. I wanted it to be that she's about to act, or she's just finished acting. She's a storyteller herself and she's playing with those rules. That's a costume she made. It may be just before or just after a performance, and she's telling this very modernized story. She's acting out the stories and the elements that are in the picture.

Oh cool! Is storytelling something that you’ve explored in other works?

Storytelling is a really important part of my art in general. The reason why I started drawing is because I really like communicating ideas and stories to people, and it's probably why I focus so much on figures. I really love being able to draw something and other people can see their story unfold, like you could almost see what was going to happen next. I love that they've been able to ignite other people's imaginations. I've always felt like my work is a first step, so I never really minded too much what other people interpreted from my work. I always loved that ignition of other people's interpretations. Sometimes when I've drawn online, it's become a bit of a back-and-forth: I'll draw something and someone will comment on it, and I'll respond to their idea because I thought it was interesting. I really like how collaborative story is and I think it's always been what's drawn me to drawing. It's a way of really pulling in other people's imaginations and having a bit of a play.

Oh that's awesome! I love that you’re doing that call-and-response thing in your own practice. It's really exciting.

It's what really drew me to this project. Sometimes art can feel very solitary, but it's quite a social thing. It's more joyful when it's a bit social. I've always loved when you can find ways to make it a social activity.

Absolutely. There's something about talking to other artists that’s pretty wonderful. And unless you have found a community that already exists, it can be hard to find. I agree.

It can be. Sometimes the worst time to find an artist is when they're done finishing a project and it’s a different mindset. The best time to find an artist is when they're creating because that's when they're at their most social.

Another really cool thing about this piece is I get a real fashion vibe from it. Is that something you think about?

It is. One of my other creative pursuits is sewing. I do really love fashion and fabric and how clothes fall, so I think it does come out in my work. I love making clothes that look nice. I make my own clothes, and I'm slowly transitioning my wardrobe into only clothes that I've made. It’s another passion of mine. Creating useful pieces of art that you can wear every day is something I really enjoy.

I do too! I actually make all my own clothes and made that transition about six years ago to an entirely handmade wardrobe. And it's just awesome, you know? Even your underpants can fit perfectly! Everything can fit perfectly and they can look exactly the way you want them to.

Yeah! When I was shopping, I’d always think, “I like that pattern, but I really dislike the fabric,” or “It doesn't quite fit in certain places.” But you can make it fit perfectly. You can choose the fabric you want, the colors, the materials… I try to be quite sustainable and only use natural materials, which makes sewing expensive, which is why it's taking me a while to do it. But I'm trying to make a Forever Wardrobe. It's so great that you can have this all this power and creativity when you make your own clothes. It's amazing.

It is amazing. When people compliment me on my outfit, I just revel in that compliment. You know? It really means a lot. And I find it lasts so much longer when you make it yourself.

You're picking for you, so you don't get sick of it the same way. But also, you take the time and the care to make sure it's great. I think I spent six months making a coat, because I only really had a little bit of time to work on it, but I love it! It's my favorite piece that I've ever made.

I love that. I just bought some wool for a winter coat that I'm really excited about. I'm so nervous because it's expensive!

Oh, that is so exciting! I hope it goes really well for you. I feel the same way. If you get a siren call with a piece of fabric, you have to do something special with it.

Absolutely. I really love the colors in this piece. Is this a palette that you tend to work with a lot?

It is. I've got a few that I tend to go back to. I work digitally, but I don't like just picking up the wheel because then you end up with really murky colors. I've got a collection of pallets of quite nice colors that I use often and sometimes I develop my own if need be. This is one that I come back to quite a bit. I chose that because it's very reminiscent of the piece that came before it in terms of reds and greens. It's very fun and playful and bright, so I didn't blend out the brightness that much when I used it. It's a lot of colors that I really like, so I was quite happy to keep it. I think the only color I really introduced that wasn't in there was that orange, which I really thought was important because I was trying to reminisce about those Greek paintings, to bring that into it.

Is there anything else you’d like to mention that we haven’t covered?

There was something that came up yesterday that I was thinking about, and I thought maybe I should mention. In New Zealand, it's our first-ever national holiday for Matariki, which is Māori New Year. And that's made me think about this painting in a very different way. As I talked about it, this painting is about celebrating this oral tradition going on and on and on. I was watching a panel with some Māori talking about how wonderful it was, celebrating Matariki in their own traditions, in their own voices. It made me think about how they'd been cut off from it for so long because of colonialism, and they had to rediscover it. It made me think about how privileged the West is in that we have this long, unbroken line of storytelling that, and how we really should cherish that. But it also made me very pro-Matariki! We really need to celebrate other cultures, especially if they've gone through the trauma of colonialism and been able to find their traditions again, celebrate them, and create new and interesting things with them. I don't know how much that is related to my piece, but it happened just afterward. It was a really interesting message that I feel strongly about and wish I could have incorporated into the piece, but I’d finished by then.

That's right on the money. All of this stuff is such a long time coming. It's a big deal.

Yeah, it is. I thought I'd mention it because it's probably something that the rest of the world didn't know happened. But it's an amazing, groundbreaking, historical thing that happened. We now have a public holiday that's for an Indigenous spiritual festival. That's just really amazing.

Do you have any advice for another artist approaching this project for the first time?

I think what you put in the email really helped me. Just have fun with it, don't try and make your best piece ever… I found that once I just relaxed and did something, something quite cool came out of it. It's just about letting the playfulness takeover, really. Just enjoy it and have fun.

Call Number: M51VA | M53VA.doeRe

Eviko (Evi Doe) is an artist living in New Zealand. Active in online art community spaces for most of her adult life, she produces both original and fan illustrations and comics. Her work often is digital, stylised to look like traditional mediums.