I don't know Coop all that well, but he has taught me more than a few life lessons. It's a long story that I won't bore you guys with, but the end result says a lot abo...<P><P>To read the rest of this blog entry from The Jalopy Journal, click here.
He's a GREAT guy and I'm thrill I got the opportunity to meet him a couple of weeks ago and hang out. For sure one of the highlights of my summer.
Nice to know that I'm not alone in the respect that Coop gives to the style of the Early Times in the late 60's. I have fashioned my '34 sedan in that style and it truly is the car that I couldn't afford in the late 60's when I was hanging around with the Early Times. Ron Weeks '34 sedan, Jim Jabobs A pickup, Bob Darrahs '32 roadster, Bob Witt's T, Don Thelan's Vicky gasser, Leroy Smiths Fiat Topolino, Roger Brinkley's '32 sedan, Dan Woods T, all had "the look". One great memory was when I was 17 going with the Early Times to a three day car show in Eugene, Oregon in 1967. Great guys and great cars. I've always been a fan of Coops art, in fact I recently got the t-shirt he did for Bobby Greens Old Crow Speed Shop, not only to support a fellow HAMBer but because it was designed by Coop. Great artist, great taste, great sense of style...Thanks
Nice interview - I like his stuff also. Awesome explanation about why people are attracted to the Devil-girl!!
<TABLE id=HB_Mail_Container height="100%" cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0 UNSELECTABLE="on"><TBODY><TR height="100%" UNSELECTABLE="on" width="100%"><TD id=HB_Focus_Element vAlign=top width="100%" background="" height=250 UNSELECTABLE="off">I have always been a huge fan of the Coopsters art, so glad to hear he is the guy I thought he would be. Good Karma always comes around. Thanx R. for the great insite!!-Sololobo/Roadburners of Omaha </TD></TR><TR UNSELECTABLE="on" hb_tag="1"><TD style="FONT-SIZE: 1pt" height=1 UNSELECTABLE="on"> </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
Great interview Ryan, nice kick start to a 3 day weekend! I've been enjoying Coop's art for only 3 years or so, definetly a class act!
Meeting Coop was one of the highlights of the trip to Bonneville for me. He is pretty cool compared to most of the "Famous" people I have met. I still remember the first time I saw his stuff. It was around '97 so I reckon that was just when he was getting started. I bought a shitload of swag and have smeared it all over everything I own. I still have the Devil girl poster on the wall of my garage, I had the devil girl on the coil covers of my Harleys, and I have the Alien girl on the dash of the spcetruck..... I Heart Coop.
Some of that last black & white stuff reminds me of my mechanical drawing class. Always liked that kind of drawing. Of couse, Coop's is about 1237 times better than anything we did in high school.
I'm a big fan of Coop and his work. Ryan if you've got the time, I'd love to hear (read) your stories about Coop and life lessons.
Coop is one of many artists today that's keeping art and hot rodding alive. In his art and his own personnal passion too in the cars that he builds for himself. I have always admired his art. I myself, have a kool piece that he did for a logo on the back of a shirt w/ the devil girl' when down on Paramount St. now in the LBC. Love your work Coop!!!!! KNUX!
hail satin! look up the cd cover art for "Vuudu U" by the Lords of Acid for one of my first Coop exposures...bitchin'!
I've got a couple of Bobby Green's T-shirts with the Old Crow by Coop. One white for the garage and one black for formal occasions. Really like his work. Frank
Really good interview of a really cool guy- Coop is an excellent photographer, writer, and of course, illustrator. When I see the stuff he geeks out on 'positive ape'- like vintage tools and old signs- I realize how much I'm in line with his aesthetics. Talking w/ him at Bonneville also revealed that he's intelligent and yet down to earth, just like his art... Nice interview Ryan.
That Lords of Acid CD was my first exposure too! ...bad-ass art from a nice as hell dude. My girlfriend & I talked Boston Terriers with Coop a few years back at the MOON X-mas party and she just couldn't believe that here was the same man who painted those big, red devil-boobies that were all over my house at the time!
Great interview. If you're a big fan of Coop, get the Devil's Advocate book. Mine's setting on my coffee table as the center piece of the living room. There's a comment about "ritual amputation" being the next phase in the body modification genre. To quote Coop, "Blame me if your kid comes home with a wooden leg." I never laughed out loud so hard when reading a book in my life. I'm pretty sure that devil with the cigar will have lots of staying power. A fellow HAMBer did this one for me. At any rate it beats the shit out of a tribal arm band
At any rate it beats the shit out of a tribal arm band....Amen to that!!! God I hate those tattoos. KNUX!
Holy shit!, I just looked at my last post and it's number 666!!!!! How creepy is that??? A post about Coop and a picture of my "mark of the beast." I don't know if I should go play the lottery or not leave the house
Good interveiw. I enjoyed reading that. I like the Devil girl bent over the mag wheel and slick myself.
The hot Wheels thing was sort of a back door deal. The set was done for a Japanese collectors' show, so Mattel corporate was a little more cool about letting me do what I wanted, than if it had been for a domestic release. It was great working with Van and all the other creative people at Hot Wheels. They were just as excited about the project as I was!
Nice brush work ...i do agree Congrat's on developing a great talent and passion for art, very inspiring indeed. someday i hope to render hotroddin images with such grace with a brush, black ink and paper! ...other brush masters are Dirty Donny, Alan Forbes, Jimbo Phillips and Court Johnson (80's Powell Peralta graphics). thanks for the interview Ryan!
staring at that damned black and white drawing of the crager mag made my eyes hurt!. That sucker is shiny!
All those guys are awesome, but I must single out Jim Phillips as a big influence. That Screaming Hand is still one of the coolest logos EVER. Just like the guys who say "It ain't a hot rod if it doesn't have three pedals!" I think you don't really become a "real" artist until you learn to ink with a brush. Mastering that brush is one of the most challenging skills you can ever learn. You gotta keep doing it, too. I started inking something today after being away from the table for a couple of weeks, and it was giving me fits for a while, until I settled into my groove.