Goons – 2776 N Elston

2776 N Elston, 2009

I saw this piece by Goons at 2776 N Elston, Chicago, July 2009. Photo by Felis Perplexis

What would you say your style is?

It has to be messy, or it has to look like it belongs on the street. Like my guys, I picture them living on the street, all messy and drunk. It’s got to be hand-made and limited to one, not just photocopied a hundred times. It’s gotta be placed in a place that is respectful to people. Those are the main rules I follow.

Does each character you make have a little story and/or do you ever “goonify” people you know?

Say, if my girlfriend is being annoying or something, so I’ll draw her in the goons style doing something, and I draw other people sometimes when I am thinking about them and it will come out, but they will never know it’s them because it’s so skewed. They don’t have a back story, I’ll just collect different things like different parts of them, like maybe they’ll be holding a sword.

You participated in an art show a couple months ago. What made you change your mind about taking a “goon” off the street?

I was under the impression we would be selling some stuff.

From Conversations with ‘Goons,’ a local street artist by Fruzsina Eordogh