I met Chris Logan at his stand in the mall. He was painting a shirt when I walked up. He says July 4th is the busiest time of the year other than Christmas. Luckily, he was able to stop and talk with me for a while about his art.
Smile Politely: How did you get started making art?
Chris Logan: I saw some guys on the street in Chicago using airbrushes. I really like it. That was my initial inspiration. I’ve never taken any classes, I pretty much taught myself.
SP: What do you like to airbrush best?
Logan: I really like portraits. This is my latest, Gambit. I really like to do super heroes. I aim for a simple and clean style.
SP: How do you go about airbrushing a design?
Logan: I free hand most things, like the portraits. For stuff like hearts and symbols I use a stencil. But its mostly free hand. A lot of what I do is just what I think looks cool.
SP: I hear music, what do you like to listen to?
Logan: I listen to everything — alternative, hip hop, classical, etc. I put my Pandora station on shuffle.
SP: Tell me about your murals.
Logan: Yeah, I’ve done some murals around town — at some churches, the Mahomet Family Restaurant (below), Side Tracks in Tolono, and a golfer at Orange and Brew (below). They’re a lot of fun. The bigger the better.
SP: Do you work anywhere other than your booth in the mall?
Logan: Yeah I do all sorts of festival for churches, county fairs, birthday parties, baseball tournaments, you name it. People have a lot of fun telling me what they want on a shirt then watching me paint it. It’s a lot of fun for both of us.
SP: How can people contact you or see more of your stuff?
Logan: I’m on Facebook, look me up under Chris Logan Grafx. Also, just come out to the mall and see me.
