There’s no such thing as coincidence. It also happens to be the week of Halloween and we were granted the opportunity to have a quick chat with John Rogers the prolific artist behind Ghoulorama (cue The Munsters theme music.) Below is a brief pick of John’s beautiful brain about art life, process and inspiration for creating pieces which elicit a visceral response until thoughts invade the feeling party and the mind attempts to wrap its tentacles around them.

How’d you arrive in your current place of creativity? What have been some remarkable moments for you thus far regarding art as a father, husband and purveyor of Ghoulorama.

When I was younger I really wanted to be a writer. All the time I spent at bookstores, libraries, and poetry readings exposed me to art. I played with collage for a few years, and when I was 20 I decided to try painting. There was an immediacy I enjoyed about it and I was hooked. Almost overnight I was painting and drawing on a daily basis. I started buying and stealing art supplies and my mom gave me a ton of arts and craft stuff she had since the 90s when she was a Girl Scout troop leader. My skills have improved over the years and I'm even more prolific. I'm much more focused than I was when I was younger and much more confident in my abilities. (I turn 40 next month.)

I've had too many amazing moments as a husband and a father to count. As the purveyor of the entity "Ghoulorama"... (I really just prefer "John" but friends have been calling me "ghoul" for 20 years now), I think the most remarkable thing is that other artists buy my work. Many artists I respect and admire, who's work I love, have bought work from me and it's hanging in their home or studio.

Incorporating text in art pieces hasn’t always been accepted and or recognized as ‘legitimate’ in Art. Why’d you choose this means of expression? What comes first, the text or the image when you’re conjuring up new pieces?

I never really thought about the "legitimacy" of using text in a painting that much. When I started making art, I dedicated myself to studying it as well. No one was around to say "do this, don't do that". I saw text in cubism, pop art, conceptual art, and all over the art of the 80s and onward so I just figured it was fine. The text was very natural to me because I started as a writer. Some people think of my paintings as memes, and some are literally just memes I painted, but much of the time it's like a footnote. The text that accompanies a plate in a book, or handwriting at the bottom of a Polaroid. Sometimes it's my own words, sometimes they're from a song or a book. Sometimes the text comes first, sometimes the image.

Why do you create multiple iterations of the same painting? Has this action much affected your creative process outside of these works?

It started out as an exercise, just to see if I could do it. I always liked the idea of replication and repetition. My dad was a copier repair technician for a long time. Some of my favorite artists also have painted multiples of their work and have a strong work ethic, and I'm inspired by that. Andy Warhol and Steve Keene both come to mind. Different methods, different price scale, but hard working and no qualms about painting multiples.

To be honest, I also like selling ten paintings instead of one. I know I could make prints, but I would much rather sell you a painting. I can stand behind the quality of it and I think it's much more special. There's too much mass produced stuff, I'd rather sell you something handmade.

Is there something you’re interested in doing or plan to do you’ve not done artistically yet?

I physically can't think that far ahead. I take care of my kids during the day and paint at night. I'm kind of fried when it comes to long-term plans for art.

Is Halloween everyday for you Ghoulorama? 

No. I'm pretty normal looking. If I had to describe my clothes, I'd say it probably looks like I'm about to go hiking most of the time. I don't have any tattoos. Except for our two menacing black cats (and my studio in the basement), our house is fairly normal. My wife and I watch a lot of scary movies,  and I have since I was a little kid, but that's about as Halloweeny as we get.

Do you have one piece which was difficult to part with? What is your relationship with your work post creation?

Honestly, no. I can't think of one. I'm glad they live somewhere else where someone can enjoy them. My relationship with the work? I paint it. I let it dry. Touch it up if necessary. Take a picture of it. Varnish it. Let that dry. Bag it up and put it on a shelf. I need the room on my drying rack (i.e radiator pipes) for the next wet paintings. 

What knowledge from your experience would you share with any artist reading this text?

Don't quit your day job. I didn't come from money and I had to have a decent full-time job that I didn't particularly enjoy until my art could even come close to supporting me. And even when I quit my job, it was a gamble. It still is. 

Will you continue to paint till you cannot paint any longer?

That's the plan.

Add a original piece of John Rogers to your collection today.

You're welcome. 

My favorite moments painting outside involve engagement with children. Giving them permission to pick up art and ask questions is such a beautiful experience. Encouraging their creativity and indulging their wide array of inquiries is a delight. I’ve come to hold the belief that everyone is my sensei. No matter the age of the person I benefit immensely with each connection. There’s no such thing as small talk. It’s a matter of how you choose to appreciate or not, communication with others; especially with regards to Art.

A special bonus with youth is inviting them to paint too. It takes a village to raise a child they say and I fully support that notion. Through this action and giving children your undivided attention while chatting are invaluable assets when performing the role of an elder effectively.  Parents for the most part are tremendously appreciative of the time and care I take. I’m sure they even glean useful methods of communication with their children based on the examples I give.

On those days I’m out where the interactions with people passing by are sparse, it only takes one enthusiastic small human’s affirmation to motivate C. whilst reminding me of the value I bring to the world with this practice of simply being available.

C.

C.ommunity (for me at least) involves showing up and participating in any form of action which assists and or brings value to a situation. Being willing to step in when extra hands are needed. Eagerly a participant sans the motive of some sort of reward in return. 

Popped out to a pop-up in Crown Heights to experience an exhibit of art and music co-curated by Okai (@okaimusik), a member of my community in Brooklyn. I brought my camera because it would be a good opportunity to capture candids and I love being able to pass anyone photos documenting an event even if there are people there to document it. My friend Rich (@haitianrich) who’d normally be taking stills was filming. There was no dedicated photographer. 

Sometimes people have a difficult time knowing how to fit in various community situations. This for me always involves at minimum two things: 1. My awareness of what I definitely have to offer. 2. An awareness of what assistance is needed and whether or not I can wholly accept the responsibility of whatever work that needs to be done.

I'm a natural team player who by default arrives ready to get hands dirty. A success for the community is a success for C. 

I was able to contribute more than being a body in a space at the event which alone is valuable when we speak of community support, but I also have material to contribute in the form of documentation of this experience that for the most part will only be a memory for those who attended. The moment can live on through the videos recorded by Rich and the stills I captured. Also benefiting continued promotion of the album that was released which was part of this as well as the art on exhibit and it’s creators.

Think about how you can bring value to your own community especially through the things you enjoy doing the most and do well while also being open to assist in things which may not be in your purview, within reason. Engage in this exercise mindfully thinking on how you can show up in the healthiest way which suits the occasion and is comfortable for you. 

Sometimes just stick around to fold up chairs after the function or help tidy up to get the venue back in the order it was in before the engagment began. Simple.

C.

Recently I was thinking about the abundance of material I have which ends up in bundles each day I shoot. Folders full of potential fodder, likely inspiration for someone else. Strangers from around the globe who I'll never meet. Why not make photography, digital images of my creation as well as sounds available for free download? It's a way to invite collaboration or in the least give another being something to work with, even if I never see the end result. 

As much as many artists like to be perceived the epitome of anti everything, as denouncers of capitalism and feasting on the rich, most aren't willing to give any bit of art away freely and will argue with others about devaluing their work with accessible prices, regularly mirroring typical elitist sentiments contributing to more noise polluting our contemporary 'art world'. You don't have to give away art, but don't ridicule anyone else for their choice to do so. It will not adversely affect anything you have going on I promise.  

I don't hoard books and things someone else could benefit from so why wouldn't I release digital files I'll likely never put to use. I also started my research around stock photography and passive income, also more visibility. It's important for me to recognize the tools and resources at my disposal so I'm not complaining about what I don't have and to fully use what I do. The action of adding a collaborate page to this website as well as a links page is to continue what I do irl; invite community. Consider this post as your invitation to create with or frankly without C. using materials I provide freely. Assisting in the creativity of another is fine with me, even if I don't know I've done it which is often the case in general as I share free content across social media platforms. Why not do it on purpose?

I’ve always kinda been myself. Never tried much to fit in. My path since youth has been one of continued self discovery, comfortable just being me outside of the occasional teasing from family; who can be your biggest bullies. If you can persevere the ridicule of blood relatives chances are anything anyone says to you outside the walls of your home has little to no effect on you. 

In Highschool I had a teal colored Jansport. In the 90’s everyone had one, not so much a teal color way but the brand. There also were fakes and knock offs you didn’t want to be caught with. Right now you can find the backpack I had as a vintage item being sold for as high as one hundred fifty bucks on eBay. I’d likely fetch less for mine even in mint condition as I altered my bag just a bit. 

One day I took a seam ripper to the back pocket of this backpack, something you'd see from time to time, especially at Art & Design, some kids would do full art pieces on them. I wasn't one of those kids. No, I had another plan. I sewed a denim pocket from an old pair of jeans to the back and added a zipper to open and close this new pocket now occupying the once negative space. The responses from what I remember were mostly positive. It was different. I was exercising my creativity. I didn’t need permission. I wasn’t competing with anyone, anything or any algorithm. 

I've seen too many people stray away from their intrinsic nature of creativity in a pursuit to garner attention following and making content, doing whatever the current trend is, not in the real world but trends which only exist on the internet. When one hasn't found success in the thing they love, the great pasta toss begins. Let's see which one of these social media trends sticks. It's crazy, in 2024 there are people who still believe and actually say, "I'm gonna go viral!" 99% of the time of course they don’t.

At this point we’re all taking chances playing the lottery of visibility game in Meta apps. Still, not all of us have succumbed to the if you can’t beat’em join’em mentality. Many continue being true to self regardless of 2D red hearts and a bump of dopamine in our digital bubbles becoming more and more gamified each day. That's some insidious shit.

Some may read this ending as an Andy Rooney like open letter or the proverbial old dude, waving his fist, shouting at tresspassers to stay da fuc off his lawn. (I’m sure some don’t even know who Andy Rooney was.) 

It’s simply an observation. 

You don’t have to throw spaghetti at any wall. Just be yourself. Be remarkable. You weren’t born to follow online trends and compete with Al Gore’s Rhythm. 

- C.