Sean Madden

Sean Madden VS. Constant Collaboration is in the works and you better believe it will knock your frilly pink socks off. Here’s a Q&A Constant did with Mr. Madden:

Where did you grow up and where do you currently live?

I grew up in an absolutely insane neighborhood in Buffalo, New York during the 60′s and 70′s. There was lots of crime, violence, and drugs. I stole my 1st car when I was only 12. My friends and I were evil drug fiends who broke into stores and stole everything. We broke into the corner drugstore once, and the entire neighborhood was filled with tranquilizers and pain killers for weeks.

During one break-in, I got loaded on downers and wine and couldn’t walk. I was 14. It was the middle of the night. My friend and I were crawling around in the ceiling of the store. We were headed toward the back of the store to the beer coolers. I fell through the ceiling because I was so messed up. I flared my elbows out just in time, and caught myself before falling straight through to the store aisles below. I remember looking down and seeing my feet dangling in the aisle. Hefty bags and Planters peanuts. My friend pulled me up, and we escaped—somehow– with 2 cases of beer.

The next morning, we had a huge party with all the pills from the drugstore, and the stolen beer, and 2 gallons of wine. We had some pretty girls with us. We were in the back of a school, in a playground. I had to take a shit really bad, so I broke into the school to use the bathroom. The girls split– and my buddy came in the school with me. After using the bathroom, I walked out to see my buddy kicking in the school office door to get at the typewriters. We figured we could sell them on the street. When a cop walked into the hallway and saw us (silent alarm?), he pointed the gun right at us and said, “Freeze!”

My friend ran– I followed. I couldn’t run because of all the downers and wine and beer. We made it out the school doors, across the street, and over a fence or two before I collapsed in the snow. My friend got away. I blacked out in the police on the way to the station and don’t remember much after that.

So that’s pretty much the way it was from age 8 to 19. I spent my entire adolescence on probation for various offenses. My brother and I were in constant trouble. As far as an emotionally fertile background for creating art– it was perfect.

Currently, I live in a 3000 square foot house with snapping turtles and deer and a pond. A stream runs through the property with salmon from Lake Ontario in it. Rural splendor everywhere. I’m on a different planet completely from where I grew up. I escaped.

What’s Your Artistic Background?

I’ve been doing this since I was 4. My mother was an artist, and had me painting at a small easel next to her in our apartment. She didn’t try to control it— she just let it happen. As a teen, I was sent to an alternative school for juvenile delinquents. They hooked me up with an art teacher there– a well respected educator in Buffalo. He recognized my talent and worked with me closely. He taught me how to draw, and how to use light expressively. The work he did with me was very important. It turned my art from angry impulse to disciplined craft.

My first paying gig as an artist was when I was 15. I did murals and signs for a restaurant that was owned by a mentally ill, criminally insane (I’m not exaggerating), drug-crazed older brother of a friend of mine. He was 30 at the time– and had a lengthy arrest record. He was constantly in and out of jails and mental hospitals. He was a legend in my neighborhood. I did a lot of crazy murals for this guy’s place. The restaurant looked so insane and surreal and psychedelic because of my work, no one would eat there. They’d just stare at it from the parking lot. This business failure made the owner go back into a self medicating depression, and he disappeared for a while. He got into trouble with some mafia hit men, (probably because of the funds to open the restaurant), and no one knew where he went to. I didn’t get paid what I should’ve– but I learned a lot! To be honest with you, the 4 months I spent skipping school to work in that restaurant would make a great short story. There was this parade of gun toting derelicts– friends of his– that were in and out all day in this place, doing business with him. It was a little scary.

In my 20′s I had to quit painting and drawing while I was working my through college. After I got my masters degree, I began to paint and draw again. I studied with some local artists in my spare time. When I was 30, I was published for the first time. I did a cover for a psychiatric journal.

Why do you create?

I don’t really have a choice in it anymore. It’s such a huge part of my identity and daily routine– and I’ve been doing it for so many years. It’s also a mixture of two different muses. The first is simply the mind I was born with (I’ll explain), and the other is my endless hatred of normal society.

As for the first muse– even as young as four, I was drew weird stuff. It’s like I was born with a Bosch painting in my head. It’s simply who I am and can’t be changed– nor would I want it to be. All of these twisted creatures and colors and sounds were in my head, and they’d all come out in my drawings. The other kids loved it, but it freaked a few of my teachers out. It caused me to be looked at as a weirdo— which leads me to my other muse—my dislike of conformity and regimentation.

You see, I’m kind of dangerous in my nonconformist views because they don’t stem from the babblings of an angry idiot who can’t fit in. Quite the contrary– I graduated summa cum laude with a masters degree in counselor education. I worked my up the ladder in society, from mopping floors, to serving in restaurants, to becoming a respected counselor. I’ve spent years working with the most violent, disturbed families and kids in the system. I’ve been in high demand throughout my career, as I’ve worked with the toughest cases. For many years, my specialty was working with emotionally disturbed kids in institutions. I’ve worked in classrooms that many people were too afraid to work in– the kids were too aggressive. I have so many scary stories to tell!

So—what I’m saying is–I’ve not only fit in quite nicely, but I have the goods, or the proverbial “inside scoop” on nice, upstanding, bible-thumping citizens. What so-called “nice” people do to their families would turn your stomach. I see it everyday. I could write a book on it, and probably will, but I prefer to use it as delicious inspiration for my paintings!

What’s a normal day like in the life of Sean Madden?

I play jazz fusion guitar in my own trio, so as soon as I wake up I begin running scales and chord progressions with my metronome on and a cup of coffee. Then, I go to my day job as a school counselor in a rural elementary school. These days, I do a LOT of drawing with my students so I’m really creating all day long.

After work, I turn up the music in my van real loud. I forget about all of the crazy parents and neglected kids at the school during the ride home. When I get home I head for my studio and start painting and drawing.

My kids are both creative as well. They’re both successful musicians with a lot of stage experience.

Would you say you’re a free artist, without constraints of trying to appease someone or anyone?

I am these days, yes. But, there have been times when I tried to soften things up to conform and make some better money at it— and it just doesn’t work. Like, I did a series of jazz improvisation paintings years ago– largely because of the trio I played in at the time. They were nice paintings, and they all sold well, but they looked like they came from someone else. I hate that. You can’t regulate your soul.

How’s your children’s book series going and can you give us a bit of info on that project?

The children’s books were not a conformist sell-out for me. I genuinely loved doing them, and would do it again. It was great! I loved doing readings at schools and libraries. I’m really great with auditoriums full of kids and parents– you have to be to sell in that market.

However, the children’s book scene is not a friendly place. I love the kids and the parents, but the librarians and the bookstore clerks are very tough to deal with. I get tired of fighting my way through snobbery at times. I have very little patience for it. I don’t wag my tail for anyone, especially some spoiled brat librarian.

I’m in no hurry to deal with that scene again, as the galleries and art fans treat me like gold. Young art students ask me for advice in the galleries. There’s very little snobbery there. When my band plays in a club, the crowd goes insane. There’s no snobbery there, either. It’s too bad the children’s book scene couldn’t be run by better people.

Anti Catholic, would you care to elaborate?

I’m anti-Christian because I’m pro emotional health. To be fair, Christianity is not the only unhealthy belief system– it’s merely the most prevalent on this continent—and, it’s far more entangled politically than any other belief system. The effect this has on our world is horrible, as it keeps a large portion of society stupid and grounded in childish wish-thinking.

Every time a Christian argues with me they lose. They lose because they haven’t done their research. They don’t understand their own religion. It’s pathetic. They tell me I’m going to hell for my art, but if they had done their research, they would realize that by doing my art I’m merely following along with god’s divine plan. If god is all knowing, then he knew I would do a painting millions of years before it was ever created by me. The painting was predetermined to happen by god.

Do you feel clowns are prone to suicide or is that wishful thinking? Personally I’m baffled at the whole clown culture and would freak out to put it mildly when ever I saw one as a kid.

I hear that they’re making clown porn these days. This is absolutely brilliant! I think we love to see grotesquely innocent things engaged in nasty activities. We find it funny— and it is. Nothing’s better than a killer puppy or a murderous bunny. I think it’s kind of like that whole “Chuckie.” series, or “Bride of Chuckie.” Killer toys. But clowns are just creepy and I hate them.

Has the recession affected you? if yes then how so?

It’s effected everyone writing new books– because no one’s buying them. All of the small presses are laying off editors. Major bookstores are closing or are getting bought out. It’s pretty rough in children’s book publishing now– especially if you’re new.

As far as my other work– no problem at all. I have enough folks out there who love my work. I’m lucky in that way.

I also have a very stable, very solid day gig. I love the school I work in, and they love me. I can paint and draw whatever I want, and I can lay back and wait for things to get better. No sweat.

When you exhibited your work up here in the great white north how was your work received? How would you compare art goers in Canada vs. The Us or other countries?

Well– Canada is a far more progressive culture than you’d find here in the U.S. It’s healthier emotionally– not as uptight and brainlessly rigid as the U.S. I have relatives throughout Canada and we talk about this when we get together. I lived there as a small boy, and my father grew up there.

So, my art has gotten good feedback in Canada. People are hip as hell there–especially in Toronto. I love that place! No one’s scared off by what I do there. In the U.S., I make people mad. I’ve been told that my work is evil and bad and unpatriotic. Galleries in the U.S. want to know if it will sell, or if it offends—not whether it has artistic merit.

Australia also seems to be a pretty open-minded place– I’ve had good feedback there.

I see that you’ve been published in numerous, well publications. Are most of those commissioned works or your artwork featured since it fit with the

Both. I did very well years ago on the horror scene because my work was so dark already. It fit well, but I was also hired to do specific covers for publishers, especially HP Lovecraft publishers. My work fits well with Lovecraft’s writing because of the acid greens and oranges, and the weird, twisted creatures. I discovered, however, that it can be tough illustrating someone else’s muse. There’s no way around it– your work has to conform to what they like. I don’t like this, and financially I’m not in a place where I have to do it. The better arrangement is to have a publisher seek you because they like your work already– in my opinion. Again, you can’t regulate soul– at least I can’t. There were publishers that said, “Here’s the idea– do whatever the fuck you want with it. We trust your vision.” I like those publishers– but good luck finding many of those. I did some really insane comix for Delirium Books years ago– twisted, surreal stuff. Really whacked drawings. I loved doing it because the editor was crazy about that kind of stuff, and he just let me do my own thing.