Last week I had the chance to sit down with Mr. AbiLLity, and this is what transpired. Enjoy!
JCG: How did you get into this?
Mr. AbiLLity: As a kid, I loved to draw and still do. I got into painting a year and a half ago, trying different styles, and really got into spray painting. I like having a can instead of a brush. For the most part, I like to draw in pen, occasionally marker, and ya know, spray paint here and there (laughs).
JCG: You have a lot of work around here for only working a year and a half.
A: Whenever I go out, the plan is never to do one piece, it has to be four or five.
JCG: Why the name Mr. AbiLLity?
A: Before I started doing street art, I rhymed (and still do) and my rhyming name was AbiLLity. To me, the highest compliment is saying something is “Ill,” so I wanted to put that in my name. I was looking through a thesaurus thinking about how to tie “ill” with “skill.” Ability is a synonym for skill, and there you have it: Mr. AbILLity.
JCG: You have a lot of words and images. What would you say is your overall message? What are you trying to do?
A: If I had to sum it up, I would say it’s “Follow your dreams.” I think the number one problem in the whole world is that people don’t follow their passions. People do what they’re supposed to do: get a job, get a place. You have those things in mind that you want to do but never do. And then you have an emptiness and become bitter. It’s people like that that F the world up, because they’re not following their dreams, man. People following their dreams aren’t f-ing shit up.
Click below to read the rest of this involved interview and see more images…