Streetwear and illustration go together naturally, it doesn’t even really need explaining. When you look at the work of Gerone Perez, the connection between the two is obvious. He’s not the only one doing it, but he’s definitely doing it right. Labels provide crucial texture for his work. “I try to put everything and anything onto my characters and hope it works,” he says. “Most of the time the words and logos are just about creating aesthetics and layers.”
He spends most of his time in front of a screen, waking up at 8 a.m. to prepare for his day job in animation and broadcast at The Acid House and then coming home afterward to work on personal projects until about 3 a.m. As a kid growing up in Bulacan, he was always drawing, although he drifted away for a bit during high school when music took priority. But after enrolling in IT for college, he realized it was time to get back into art, so he dropped out and began studying fine arts. Other artists on Instagram have been a big inspiration as he’s started developing his personal style for freelance projects but’s also influenced by old anime, science fiction flicks, and cyberpunk stuff.
Once he got the Procreate app and started drawing on a tablet, his whole style switched up and it was the birth of his Instagram account. “I can draw anywhere, anytime,” he says. “It’s getting to the point where I feel like I’m drawing because I want to, with any free time I have. Now it’s a must… Drawing and designing for my day job and then drawing even more when I get home.”
