Illustrator and Collage Artist Donny Robinson Turns All Walks of VHS Cover Art into 3D Pop-Up Sculpture! And it Rules!
A look at the 3D pop-up analog alteration from Donny. Damn, I'm still stoked on it!
Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your creative history? Been scribbling as long as I can remember, but I’ve been pretty serious about making stuff for over a decade now. Bit of a jack-of-all-trades, but most notably, I made some zines: Razor Burn, Zombies Attack and Vortex. I also churn out a shit-ton of collage and try to get my drawings into the fancy-pants galleries whenever I can.
Some rippin' illustration and color from Donny himself! GET SUCKED IN, MANNNNN.
A totally far-out and GROOVIN' piece from DR. I wanna hang out here. RIPITUP5EVA.
Your illustrations are obviously awesomely bitchin’, but your collage work rips hard, too. When did you start doing those, and what inspired you to start stickin’em together? Why, thank you! I’ve always had a fascination with taking things apart to see how they work--old analog junk that no one wanted anymore. Old 8-track players, T.V.’s, beer cans, etc. Now people don’t want books anymore, so I’ve been scooping up all their cool-ass trash, cuttin’ it up and makin’ new, arguably better trash.
A couple of collages from Donny featuring out-of-this-world worlds and fancy females. You know I can dig it.
Your newest digs are these analog amazing VHS box pop-up sculptures. What gave you the idea to carve ‘em up and re-animate them in this way? More circumstance--the first one I did after seeing mold in a copy of Gleaming the Cube. I noticed all the little stills on the back of the box were squares, so I started slicing it up to make a cube, cuz, well, just cuz. It’s like trashy alchemy--taking this object that has effectively been rendered obsolete, and reconfiguring it, to celebrate it in a different light. VHS boxes, back in the rental age, served just as frames do in the art/gallery-sense--the buyer effectively choosing the one that most strikes them. As such, VHS box art pandered to a very base level--compositional-ly, typographically, and sexually. Bottom line: these things were supposed to pop off the shelves--so I’m just poppin’ em something extra, now that they’re no longer even on the shelves.
All stuck together from a VHS box. This one can't house the tape anymore, but damned if it ain't mad groovy.
You’ve done a bunch of groovy boxes thus far, brother. Will you take custom requests? Could you soup them up a bit, adding your illustrative flair and Frankenstein-ing two boxes into one insane magnetic mash-up? Oh, I can get crazy--ya wanna get crazy?!
Probably one of my personal favorites by DR: CONQUEST! Bottom flap in tact, too! Flip it up to score; flip it down to store. That's right.
You’re a collector. What is it about the VHS format that does it for you? What kind of tapes do you go for? What other groovy collectibles are you attracted to? I grew up renting these damn things like crazy, so ultimately, as the video stores died off, my stash thrived. For me it’s the auteurs: Sam Fuller, Scorsese, Kubrick, Russ Meyer, David Cronenberg--stuff with vision!! I’m also a sucker for anything sci-fi, post-apocalyptic, or pre-age-of-enlightenment, i.e. swords and sorceresses. Escapist stuff--which is also why I’ve always dug comix and books.
One of the more elaborate analog box alterations from DR. And look how it still houses the tape! YES.
You’ve also been known to shred some street with some gnarly old-school skateboarding action. What’ve you been pulling off lately? Any scabby spills of note? Yeah, I’m totally over 30 and still shredding. Usually, you’ll find me in the skate parks at appropriately old-man-hours of the morning. No road rash of late--couple of dented ribs come to mind. Falling hurts.
Here's a sample of a little analog reconstruction in the name of laffs. COCAINE WANG, ANYONE?! Hardy-Har, indeed!
What’s next for you, duder? Where can we keep up with you? I need a drink; I’ll be at the bar. Oh, and I’m also on Instagram @vortexcodex!
Some mega-groovy magnetic case mutation by the hand of Donny. WATCH OUT NOW!
Anything else you wanna shout out to all the Videovores eyeballin’ this blog? Keep yer eyes peeled for the upcoming Thrash Cards sticker set. It’s like Wacky Packs, Garbage Pail Kids and skateboarding on hallucinogens!!Dig that, Donny! Can't wait get my hands on a stack of those bad boys. DR is one groovy dude, and as you can see, he’s a most radical artist with a multitude of talents. Big analog ups to Don for re-crafting our favorite format’s integral outsides into a pop-up piece of celebratory art that’s sure to look analog glorious on any collector’s shelf. What’s that? You wanna get a hold of Donny so he can cut, shape and soup up your favorite case into these 3D jams? Just give him a shout at donny.robinson
Groove and Groove and GLEAM THAT DAMN CUBE!
Josh Schafer