Refueled ONE Series / Mason McFee by Refueled

REFUELED 03 T H E M A Y

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ISSUE NO.03

ONE COMMUNITY. HERITAGE. DISCOVERY.

TEX.USA

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MASON McFEE

CHRIS BROWN, Publisher/Creative Director ÂŠ 2016 Refueled Magazine. All Rights Reserved. Any commercial or promotional distribution, publishing or exploitation of contents, is strictly prohibited unless you have received the express prior written permission from our authorized personnel or the otherwise applicable rights holder.

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THE REFUELED ONE SERIES The Refueled ONE Series. One single subject, photographer, craftsman or artist. A modern take on the printed paraphernalia of my youth. The faded pages and colors of LIFE magazine. The satirical tone of MAD. The low-fi quality of comics. The rebellious feel of the 60’s and early 70’s. The size of vintage scout manuals and Stuckey’s road trip souvenir activity books.

Third in the series is artist/designer/illustrator Mason McFee. A doodler and drawer since a child, McFee combines his love of hand drawn and hand built objects. Interested in the past, present, future, science, mystery, nature and the unknown, McFee is inspired by the graphics and popular culture that he has been surrounded with during his life. An Austin resident for 10 years and a Texan since birth, McFee lives and works out of his studio down the street from the house he shares with his wife and two cats.

What first struck me about Mason’s work is how it perfectly represents my own youth growing up in the 1960’s. The vintage vibe of his doodles capture exactly what this series is all about.

This issue is like sneaking into your older brother’s bottom drawer, finding his notebook hidden under a stack of Playboys and a bag of weed, and getting a glimpse into his head and world. It’s life, sex, innocence and “Honky Tonk Woman”. It’s the Summer of Love and The Winter of Our Discontent.

Buy the ticket. Take the ride.

- Chris Brown, Publisher

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fig. 01 Illustration by Mason McFee

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Photo by Autumn Spadaro

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“CARTOONS, COMICS, AND SKATE GRAPHICS WERE MY INTRODUCTION INTO A WORLD OF ART THAT WAS DIFFERENT THAN THE THINGS I’D LEARN IN ART CLASS.”

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WHERE DID YOU GROW UP, AND WHAT WAS YOUR CHILDHOOD LIKE?

outlets for making things. My dad is the master of invention and my mom a great creative teacher. Cartoons, comics, and skate graphics were my introduction into a world of art that was different than the things I’d learn in art class. They were accessible to me and I would try to replicate them in my margins of my notebooks. Music was also a big influence, mainly album artwork from the records my parents had from their younger days.

I grew up in the Texas Hill Country in a town outside of San Antonio called Boerne. My parents moved our family there when I was a couple years old and have lived on the same property as my grandparents since. We have a creek on our land that we could fish when there wasn’t a drought and room to run around and enjoy the outdoors with my three siblings. My interests growing up were sports, skateboarding, playing guitar and general trouble making. My dad and I restored a 1971 Volkswagen Beetle that was my vehicle into exploring the great state of Texas. I would drive all over in it for a variety of adventures.

HOW LONG DID IT TAKE TO SAY TO YOURSELF “HEY, I MIGHT BE ABLE TO DO SOMETHING WITH THIS”? My parents friends owned a business and one time at dinner they brought up that they paid someone decent money for a logo for their business. They called him a graphic artist, which sounded cool to me, but I never really thought it was what I would do until much later. I had always enjoyed the idea of being an artist in a big studio making things with no purpose but to make them, but graphic design was something I could do in tandem to provide a service and make a living.

WHEN DID YOU BECOME INTERESTED IN DRAWING AND MAKING ART? My parents were very supportive of the arts and I have always been a doodler and drawer. It was something I just liked to do. My dad taught me how to draw Roadrunner and Kilroy early on and my mom showed me block letters and bubble letters at an early age, as well. Growing up where we did provided many

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I followed a girl to college at Baylor University (we broke up the first week I got there, but I stayed cause I was already there) and got a BFA in studio art and graphic design. I know, people always say, “Baylor? You’re too much of a hippie for that school.” Truth is, if I hadn’t gone to that school, I probably wouldn’t have received a diploma. I had a rocky path to graduating, but made it out after being suspended a couple times for partying too much. It only took me 5 years that I’ll be paying for the rest of my life.

After graduating, I was on the ground floor of a small advertising agency in Austin where I put my skills to work for 7 years. I learned the ins and outs of doing design work and how to collaborate with clients on projects. It was then that I thought, “I could do this myself.” I was burned out on the agency world and left my job to start on my own. Three years later, I’m slowing building towards that goal of a big studio, but will probably always hang on to doing work with a purpose. It balances me out and keeps me in a rhythm.

YOUR WORK BRINGS ME BACK TO MY CHILDHOOD GROWING UP IN THE 60'S & 70'S. WHERE DO YOU DRAW INSPIRATION FROM?

WHY HAND DRAWN?

Music has always been a part of my life. I’ve played guitar since I was a child and always wanted to be a musician. I finally figured out my desire to perform in front of large groups wasn’t something I enjoyed as much as coming up with the songs in the first place. Art was more my style since I could hole up for a while and then present the work without having to be the center of attention. I still love music of all sorts and still spend down time playing. As for influencing my artwork, the culture and graphics that surround music show up in my artwork from time to time and I work with musicians frequently to help represent their work in an original way.

Nature, music, folk art, modern art, psychedelics, counter culture, DIY anything, cartoons, found objects, magic and much more.

HOW MUCH DOES MUSIC, IF ANY, PLAY INTO WHAT YOU DO?

Hand drawn is what I’m used to doing. Starting out with a drawing allows you time for your brain to shut off and really dive deep into ideas. I wouldn’t say that hand drawn is always the answer, but I enjoy it the most.

W H AT W E R E S O M E O F YO U R FIRST JOBS? Construction clean up, Lifeguard, Cave Tour Guide, Margarita Mix Maker, Antique Store picker, Swimming Lesson Instructor

ÂŠ 2016 Refueled Magazine. All Rights Reserved. Any commercial or promotional distribution, publishing or exploitation of contents, is strictly prohibited unless you have received the express prior written permission from our authorized personnel or the otherwise applicable rights holder.