The stencil artist PaperMonster has an upcoming art show titled “PaperMonster Ate That Little Boy” opening tonight at the Vincent Michael Gallery in Philadelphia. We caught up with PaperMonster to ask a few questions about the new show. Read what PaperMonster has to say:

What can we expect to see in your latest work?

This solo show is by far my largest yet. It combines over six months worth of work with pieces on canvas, wood, and a massive mural piece that is over 12 feet tall. I have never been prouder to show my work than I am now. Everything has gone up several notches from the quality of the canvas, size, textures, colors, collage, and of course the stencils. At the end of the day the real judge for how everything has been laid out together is the audience and I hope they enjoy the work as much as I enjoyed creating everything.

How did you come up with the “PaperMonster Ate That Little Boy” title for the latest show?

For the name of the show I wanted to have a title that said something about myself and was powerful at the same time. “That little boy” is who I used to be and it refers to when I was younger and had no clue of what I was doing. Now “that little boy” has evolved and grown up and formed up what people now known as PaperMonster. I have taken all of the mistakes and lessons learned over the years and used them to my advantage. I think in anything in life you have to look at what you have done to see where you are going. “PaperMonster Ate That Little Boy” is a metaphor for feeding off your youth and experience to gain knowledge and power to continue to create work and never slow down.

Is this the first time you’ve showcased your work in a Philadelphia gallery?

This will be my third time showing work on Philadelphia, but it will be first solo show in the city. The Philadelphia art scene is incredibly strong with new galleries taking on some exciting and talented artists. Vincent Michael Gallery is a massive space. It has gigantic walls and huge amount of space in a beautiful plaza surrounded by other great galleries and restaurants. The staff at Vincent Michael Gallery is by far the most enthusiastic and driven group of people. They have given me the freedom to do everything I wanted while at the same time pushing me to go one step further. They understand what artists need and that is the most important part.

Do you have a favorite piece you’ve put in the show?

I have several favorites in this show. By far “Battle-Hardened” was the piece that started it all. It was a jump in this exciting direction where it is full of such powerful expressions not only with the girls face but the wolf half as well. It is hard to pick one favorite from all of the 25 pieces but if you get a chance to see the show make sure to look out for “Striking Beauty”, “Queen and King”, and “Battle-Hardened.” Those three together really capture some great moments and artists jumps.

What do you want people to take away from your show?

Overall I want people to take away two things. The first is this sense of chaos as to what to start with first; the collage; the portraits; the textures, and just dive deep into each piece. This is the perfect time to just spend hours exploring all of the pieces together and there are some real surprises in this show. The second thing I want people to take away is a sense of inspiration. At the end of the day that is what all artists are trying to do; to inspire ordinary people to express themselves in unique and artistic ways. I have never taken any classes and have NO art training, so if I can be that example that anything is possible if you put in the time and continue to be determined then that has made everything worth it. Come check out the show. You will not be disappointed!!