About the Artist

        As you walk into Djon’s small childhood bedroom you are welcomed by numerous peculiar cartoon art covering the walls. Immediately after gazing, your youthful mind will drive you through memory lane beating down bad guys and saving peoples lives in a hopeful fantasy world from simply recognizing characters such as Pokémon, Spiderman, X-Men, Sonic, and Ninja Turtles. This is the exact state of mind the artist seeks to put you in. However, Djon puts a unique twist on it by choosing a specific cartoon character and incorporating a rap song into the final piece.

        Entering Djon’s studio, you would typically find him painting on a canvas while watching a cartoon with his old school charcoal grey Panasonic stereo blasting his favorite rap artists such as Travis Scott, Kanye West, Lil Wayne, Kid Cudi, Lupe Fiasco, J Cole, and Lil Uzi. As you are watching Djon bump his head up and down in rhythm to “90210” (by Travis Scott) and watching a cartoon at the same time, it’s hard to ignore his physique. Djon is a 6’6” black 28 year old with a full tattooed sleeve. It’s an interesting sight to see him in action; he makes his studio chair look as if it belongs to a toddler. As Djon towers over people with his height and exhibits his body ink, you will be surprised by his personality. As I sat in his studio interviewing him, he would thoughtfully ask me about how I felt about certain topics and made sure I was being taken care of and comfortable in his environment. 

         Djon Ellams was born and raised in downtown London. Growing up in this complex, beautiful and diverse city as a child played a big part in his passion. He vividly remembers walking religiously to his aunty’s small gallery two train stops away from his home. Walking through the neighborhood and taking the train was a big cultural moment for him. He was able to experience the raw city with its beautiful neo-gothic architectural buildings and sketchy people. Djon remembers there were frequent stabbings and robberies in the neighborhood he grew up in. However, he never thinks of this as a negative childhood memory. He said it builds character. As Djon and his aunt passed through part of the neighborhood and arrived at the gallery, his aunt used to inspire Djon with all of the different types of Japanese, modern, and abstract art. Once the lesson was over, his aunt would put him to work by having him help hang, clean, and store the pieces. Surprisingly, Djon never complained doing these duties as a young child. He loved it; feeling as if he was part of the culture was satisfying to his growing artistic mind.

CHILDHOOD

        Djon mentioned as a kid he didn’t have a lot of artists that looked similar to him when he was growing up. Not that he was aware as a child, but he was always looking up to Caucasian artists; not a tatted black man with a paint brush in their hand. Knowing his place in life now, he wants to give inspiration to the young black kids who want to do what he’s doing; pursuing his dream as a black contemporary fine artist. 

         When Djon wasn’t at school or at the gallery as a child, he was geeking out in all of his comic books and cartoons. The other classmates knew the basics, but Djon knew the little details such as the backstory, character backgrounds, settings, etc. Due to his deep fascination in cartoons, he felt he didn’t relate to other kids in his grade. Other kids thought he was strange for being so enticed to cartoons. But this didn’t make sense to him. He thought, “If you love something so much, don’t you want to know everything about it?” With or without friends, Djon continued to draw and geek out on his cartoons. When Djon had his comic books, he didn’t feel alone. His craft was his tool to escape some of the childhood problems he faced.

CHALLENGES

        Social media is a love / hate relationship for Djon. He appreciates what social media can do for his work in terms of exposure and communication to fans. However, Djon stated he was refusing to use social media during a period of time since it was giving him too much anxiety. “Man I just felt that I was posting just because that’s what I'm supposed to do. Not because it’s what I wanted to do. I felt as if I was making art for the Instagram and not for myself.” Djon stated. As he was expressing this, I can tell how much discomfort that period in his life gave him. As of today, Djon said he got a lot better in terms of his social media usage. “I’m finally getting it under control and posting for myself, not because it’s what I'm “supposed” to do.” Djon contently expressed. 

       In order to make ends meet, Djon works as an ABA Therapist (Applied Behavior Analysis) taking care of kids with autism and other special needs. Additionally, he works as an Assistant Design Director for FOX studios producing creative for TV and film properties. Djon says it is really difficult to have to work two jobs to pay bills and also make time to pursue his real passions. However, he is extremely hopeful and confident of his potential. “When you find something or someone that you love, you will always make time for it. No matter what,” he stated. 

LEARNING

     “I meditated the fundamentals of the process. It’s all about expressing yourself and showing who you really are. It’s simple, I know. But it’s so easy to forget that and allow your subconscious to think negatively. You can’t let yourself care about what other people think. Yes, it can be hard to be authentic since so many people are constantly judging but you have to do it for yourself. If others hate, then fuck em. They are the ones who are letting their insecurities get the best of them. My mission is to find the ones who see what I see.” - Djon

         If Djon could go back in time, one thing he would change is pursuing his craft at an earlier age. Since Djon was a star basketball player in High School, art wasn’t his priority and was never able to notice his strengths as an artist. Believe it or not, he has never taken a single art class until he was at Glendale Community College. He then continued to take a few more intro classes when he transferred to Long Beach State University. His real education was in his childhood bedroom in London drawing cartoon characters from his favorite comic books. Djon believes that if he had an earlier start and went to art school he would’ve had a stronger footing in the culture.

MESSAGE TO THE WORLD

         With all of the challenges and day-to-day responsibilities Djon endures on a daily basis, he soulfully knows art will always be his passion and main focus. Though Djon is still underground and trying to make a name for himself, he won’t stop until he achieves his dream of displaying one of his pieces in the BROAD in downtown Los Angeles. I told him maybe he should take the Banksy route by just sneaking one of his pieces into the museum and displaying it as if it were meant to be there. Djon laughed but immediately gazed into the air as if he was fascinated into the scheme. 

         The Sango brand looks specifically for artists who convey an important message through their designs. Djon’s message was exactly what the brand connects to. Immediately after asking Djon about his world message he quickly spoke about his adulthood and the realities that come with it: paying bills, family drama, multiple jobs, horrible bosses, saving money, mental health, etc. Djon says passionately, “When people look at my collection, I want them to immediately reminisce on their childhood memories. I hope they remember what it was to be a child. I don’t want them to ever let that go. When you’re a kid, anything is possible. It’s such an important and blissful time in life for most people. If there is one thing someone takes away from my work it is to retain their inner child playfulness and to never let it go.”

Written by: Kai Matsukuma