Omen Interview

Omen Graffiti

How long have you been involved with graffiti?

Omen: Me and graffiti have a love affair thats been going over 11 years strong. She’s awesome. I think she is the one for me. Sometimes we get really dirty and that when it gets real fun.

Omen

What was the last thing you painted?

Omen: A throw up of my screamer.

Zek & Omen

How did you first get started? What was your influence to start?

Omen: I think it came at the same time I quit drugs and booze and then had all this energy to do something. I was on a self destructive kick and then i had to channel that energy. So I channeled it for the forces of good. I was in Vancouver when I saw AA crews stuff down on the tracks off of commercial. I was blown away. It was the era of those massive as fuck burners (i miss those). I was blown away and I was all like, “yeah, this is it”…

Omen & Scan

Who do you consider an influence?

Omen: Graffiti wise its all the young fucks getting up all over the place. Where would we be without their brashness and craziness. My crews from Taiwan: 4crew. (Sayme, Fast, Bobo) & YIA (Dabs, Kurly, Chek, City stalker). Art wise I like a lot of weird stuff ranging from all over the place. Low brow, tattoo, graphic police photos etc. As well as a pretty broad and well understood view of the entire art scene in general. I loved art since I was like 5.

Omen Dabs Graffiti

Of all the paintings you’ve done is there one in particular that sticks out in your mind as a favorite?

Omen: hmm..tough question. *thinks for a solid 15 minutes*… so many… fuck… wellll… there is one that I did with my boy DABS in Taipei. It’s an awesome piece but that’s not what make it stick out. It’s that fact that it was like 35°C. We had to go to this crazy dusty place down these abandoned track and were attacked by a gazillion ninja mosquitos just to paint this hot piece that will never be seen by anyone in real life. I guess that is the essence of graff. I think…

Omen Bombing

You’ve done some painting in Asia. How is the graffiti scene over there? Was it much different then the scene over here?

Omen: Fuck yeah! It’s awesome there. I love it. I mean in my city of Taichung (REPRESENT). The cops leave their cherries on the whole time. I mean, how great is that? You can see them come for miles. No one knows how to take graff over there and they are pretty cool when they see it. A majority of Taichung is ghetto looking anyways so, like here, we aim to improve.

Omen Graffiti

What’s the graffiti scene like in Montreal?

Omen: Too safe. Too many people looking for the safe. a lot of writer hit all the safe spots over and over and over again. or they get contracts. I am not dissing that. I’ve done it. but the thing is that’s not all I do. The mayor spent 1 million to up the anti-graffiti campaign in the city and it seems its working. Some of our best stars work for the city or non-profits and it sucks the city dry. We look like a hick town when it comes to graffiti lately. I only say this because i remember when Montreal had the title of the most bombed city in North America…those days are gone. will it return is the question. A lot of the younger kids are bombing…maybe there will be another renaissance.

Omen

What’s the craziest thing you’ve seen or experienced while out painting?

Omen: Other and I were waiting to jump a freight on the outskirts of LA in a train yard. Out of the yard came seven massive dudes that started to walk towards us. They were dressed like dock workers or something. Lumber jackets and dirty jean. We were sitting on the embankment when they came up to us. The didn’t see us and only wanted to make their way up to the highway behind us. We had pegged them as illegal border crossers. Other says, “hey” to them. They look at us and go “Que?”. Then we felt the fear mount. The they-can-cut-us-up-and-leave-us-for-dead-and-no-one-will-find-us-again-because-they-have-nothing-to-lose kinda fear. Then after Other saying,” It’s ok. It’s ok” and them losing interest in us mixed with some spanish discussion we couldn’t understand, they left. Not before we noticed that they were carrying a cooler with them. Not the big plastic types but the fabric kinds that was about 1 foot cube. Like you could a basketball in it…or a head. We were freaked out and shaken but we decided to chill and bench a bit more waiting for a ride. But it was a no go because nothing was moving and whatever was moving out was leaving at 60+ mph… So we went back towards the highway figuring the guys were gone to try and hitch hike. On our way we noticed the head sized cooler bag sitting there on the side of the path leading to the highway and no mexicans. We kept walking… To this day I wonder what was in that cooler.

Omen