It’s been a little over a year since our favorite Irish visual artist made his debut in Solana.

Trev El Viz completed his genesis series ‘Analog Nights’ and soon began collabs with big artists like Kev the Cactus, Scum, SVPLY CHVN, and many more are sure to come.

Before Solana

Things hadn’t always been the way we see them now.

A month before coming onto Solana in 2023, Trev was in a much darker place than his images portray.

He was unsure if he’d continue to create and illustrate but decided to take one last chance by joining Coach Scotty Russell's 12-week Alumni Coaching program.

Doing so, changed his way of seeing things and he began to create again.

Inspired by his past, he created a 10-piece collection that became a love letter to his youth.

Trev El Viz at Play — Street Art and Graffiti

Trev had been a freelance artist for over 10 years and was inspired and heavily influenced by 90s cartoons, movies, comics and punk rock.
At a young age he would watch cartoons and draw the characters while also using comics as a reference.
His drawing style developed from comics and cartoons and very much the Lowbrow Art scene he describes below.

“Lowbrow is actually a derogatory term for artists and art that doesn’t fit into the established fine art scene.
After WW2 the fine art scene really pushed in the direction of abstract expression and downgraded representational art to ‘illustration’
A lot of these artists had to find work someplace else, so they became tattoo artists, comic book artists, designed movie posters, made toys, pinstriped cars etc Collectively this became Lowbrow art.
I make art for the kind of people who would never step foot in an art museum. My gallery is the comic book, my museum is old tattoo flash sheets.”

His color palette now has become merged from his graffiti and spray paints he used.

When asked about his merger of Graffiti and NFTs in the future he let me know:

“I still love using those bright pinks and purples and greens I use to use on the street. At the time all the young guys were painting with black, red and chrome.
I hated those colors and wanted to stand out and grab attention so I painted with pinks and purples.
I’d like to paint some more street pieces again, especially in the style of my newer NFT work, and maybe photograph them and mint them as gifts to collectors.
That’s about as much thought I’ve put into it. But I think that would be cool.”

Beyond the Valley of Springfield

The final piece in his latest series dropped on April 19, 2023 via Exchange Art.

He describes the collection as a whole as '“a love letter to the Simpsons, grindhouse cinema and bootleg culture.”

“Each piece is a landscape or still life that occupies my version of Springfield mixed with a number of cult cinema and pop culture references. + the Simpsons has a rich subculture of bootlegging that has taken on a life of its own and transcends the TV show itself.
A lot of the art and memorabilia I collect is Simpsons bootleg.”

Every landscape tells a story with different genres being referenced such as science fiction, horror, revenge movie, etc.

Amazing Tales From The Mediocre by Trev El Viz — Amazing Tales From The Mediocre

April 20th will marks the bittersweet end of the last auction to his series.
He knew from the get go he wanted an Apocalyptic battle.
He referenced the mini series V, which in its own was an invasion of aliens disguised as a call for help.
Trev referenced the guerrila marketing tactics in the posters in his illustration and much more.
You can even see his tribute to Orson Well’s *‘War of the World’.*

Trev is truly a master of hidden messages and meanings in all of his work, even referencing themes of isolation and anxiety through the pills he scatters in many of his work.

With such vivid colors and nostalgic themes it’s no surprise people miss this hidden message of self medication.

We spoke about this topic and whether it was a taboo subject and how it affects his creative process.

Trev explained his view

“ I dunno to be honest.
I add prescription and recreational drugs because we tend to medicate with both.
Alot of people self medicate, and I’ve definitely self medicated a lot.
At its worse it kept me from creating.
I’d also go through phases of thinking I needed stuff like weed to be creative.
I guess it’s always gonna play a part in my life and art.
Even if I don’t admit it, they turn up in almost every piece.
So I’m clearly coming to terms with needing to be medicated.”

There’s not one inch left unused, not one reference left unheard, especially in his marketing and promos.

Here’s his advice on promoting and marketing your work.

“I think if you’re doing what you truly love and making the kind of art that speaks to your soul it’s hard to stop yourself, even when the piece is finished.
That’s how my promos started.
While working on a piece I’ll come up with some expanded ideas, or I’ll want to explore a section of the piece more so I’ll use that the framework to create a small promo to advertise the art.
I see it like making a small teaser trailer.
I figure I have to promote this so why not make the advertisement fun.
I see it as a value proposition. Here’s s little extra if you take the time to watch my promo.
My advice is to try to stand out.
I made animation promos because everyone was doing still picture promos.
Don’t do what everyone else is doing, and don’t follow the crowd.
Figure out a different way to promote yourself.
Try to entertain.
Remember it’s a value proposition.”

Whats Next?

Trev has mentioned he has a few ideas in mind.

As the master of promotion and marketing, he definitely wants to take a step further into animation and see how far he can push it to another level, using it as a tool to tell stories.

And last but not least hinted at returning to character design.

Could that possibly mean season 2 of the The Kevtrevs?

I guess we’ll have to wait and find out.