Kosick: Who are you?
Jericho: My name is Jericho Vilar. I’m just an average artist that has never done anything outside of Instagram, to be perfectly honest.
Where are you from?
I was originally born in the Philippines, but I grew up in Glendale, California. I relocated to Santa Ana when I got married and had a family.
When did you start drawing and doing artsy stuff?
I started drawing ever since I was a kid. When I came over from the Philippines I got super enamored by American comic books and cartoons. I latched onto that as a way to learn about the language and the culture, and it stuck with me ever since. I’m super into the storytelling and the colors, the creativity and the imagination.
How would you describe your style?
It’s been changing over the years. I’m self-taught and I never went to college for art. I’m into loose portraiture… a little bit realistic but not too in depth because I don’t think I have the acumen to get in there with super crazy details for realistic stuff. But I try and change up stuff up and keep my style as loose as possible.
Who are some of the other artists you look to for inspiration?
Tony Harris is comic book artist that I always love. He did Starman for DC. Gabriel Bá, he did The Umbrella Academy and Casanova. A lot of Instagram artists that I follow have been a great source of inspiration, too, and my brother is a classically trained animator. He’s actually animating the Unkitty on WB, so he’s always been a major influence on me. Obviously there’s always going to be a civil rivalry between us, but I’ve always been a huge fan of his work.
Well, one thing you got over your brother is he’s not getting interviewed today.
Haha… Thank you again. This is an unbelievable opportunity.
What made you want to draw all of the jackass cast members?
Earlier in the year, I did the same thing with The Lost cast. There are like 50 some odd creatures, so I went deep there. I did it for kind of a cool down, like a moment of relaxation, because I usually do this stuff at the end of the day just to wind down. I saw the episode of Epicly Later’d of Spike Jonze and that just kickstarted all of it. I was like, man, I have to revisit jackass, because it was such an important moment for me when I was in high school when I first saw it. Then I started watching all the movies and I thought, why not, I think it would be fun wind down my night by drawing the characters from jackass.
Who was the first one you drew?
Oh, it was Knoxville.
Where do you see yourself going with all of this?
To be honest, I don’t know. Recently in July I started a T-shirt brand on Instagram and that’s going okay. I just don’t think I have enough connections, because I came into this late in the game… especially with the social media aspect. I usually just draw for myself or my family. I was never really one for displaying my art to the public. A lot of it is just a hobby to keep myself sane and wind down. I guess I’m just focusing on the T-shirt brand and to put myself out there a little bit more. Hopefully something will pop and I’ll take it from there.
I don’t think it’s ever too late. It’s great what you are doing. I think if you’re consistent with it and keep going something will come from it, and right now this interview is a testament to it.
Awesome, and thank you again. I was completely blown away when you left a comment and liked my Instagram post.
Hey, you know what, sometimes it’s the little things that help people get going in life.
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