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An Interview with Jacub Gagnon
As a chocolatier, I’m always looking for new ideas and inspiration. A few weeks ago I was looking for inspiration in the pages of Juxtapoz magazine when I came across the work of Jacub Gagnon, a young, pop surrealist artist. His work teases one’s perceptions of reality and challenges the status quo, which is what Happy Ending Chocolates aims to accomplish in the confectionary world. Jacub was kind enough to set aside a few minutes to chat with a fellow artist.
X: So are you a foodie?
J: Yeah, a little bit
X: What’s your favorite food?
J: Believe it or not, it’s chocolate. I have to have chocolate everyday and if I go a few days without it I kinda go crazy. I’m addicted(laughs)
X: Nice! I’ll keep that in mind. So you went to school in Toronto. Have you always been in Toronto?
J: No, I’m actually from a tiny rural town; almost no one has heard of it. Marmora.
X: Where?
J: Exactly.[…] It’s tiny. Maybe 1,200 people.
X: So why pop-surrealism?
J: I don’t really know. I’ve just always been a fan of surreal art. I just like to doodle without an end in mind. I just draw and paint whatever might be on my mind at the time. My mom would always look at my sketches and say, “What are you drawing? That’s gross” (laughs)
X: You say you’ve always been a fan of surrealism. Any particular artist that influenced or inspired you?
J Well of course, Dali. There are a couple of other artists, but Dali is the father of [surrealism].
X: I know you have an upcoming exhibit at Distinction Gallery in Escondido, but are you planning a visit to L.A. anytime before that?
J: No, I’ve actually never been to LA. […] I’ve never even been to the US. I get a lot of content on the web, so I’m able to see what’s going on [in L.A.]. That’s actually how I track the progress of my exhibits.
