Check out Wizard of Barge, Dakota Cates’ Artwork

Today we’d like to introduce you to Dakota Cates.

Dakota, we’d love to hear your story and how you got to where you are today both personally and as an artist.
I’m an artist originally from Houston, TX that goes by the name Wizard of Barge. Yeah, weird name I know. I’m completely self-taught and have drawn and painted since I was a kid but later in my teen years I got kind of lost and misguided until I finally realized that the only way out of a “normal” job like I saw all the adults in my life working, would be my artwork. From then on, I’ve been totally obsessed with creating a life where I can just make things all day everyday surrounded by people who do the same.

I started reaching out to other artists, galleries, and companies that I wanted to work with and for every 100 “no’s I would get a single yes. But after doing a little bit of work here and there and meeting other creatives in my city and getting advice I slowly grew and started traveling and doing art shows out of state. I finally made it to the point where I was making as much on my artwork as I was at my job and realized it was time to make the jump and quit my job! It’s been a rocky path with tons of freak outs and failures but I wouldn’t trade it for the world. I’ve now been completely self-employed for 4 years and just moved to LA in November to further this weird art journey and so far, it’s going way better than I could’ve anticipated!

We’d love to hear more about your art. What do you do you do and why and what do you hope others will take away from your work?
I make paintings and illustrations about the inner fantasy we all have somewhere deep down. A lot of it is dark subject matter, but I always try to make it fun and whimsical and hopefully with a bit a humor thrown in there. I really want to put out the idea that you really can make a living just having fun and making things that you love and putting it out into the world. It’s not easy and you probably won’t be swimming in money, but it’s super fulfilling and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Reject mainstream reality and dive deep into that weirdo fantasy that you’ve got floating around in that freakin’ noggin, baby!!

Do current events, local or global, affect your work and what you are focused on?
I’ve thought about this a lot but still have no idea of the answer. I’ve gotten so mentally and emotionally drained from news and tragedy and politics that I realized I think my best way to resist the sucky forces of the world is to create things that make people feel relieved for a bit and stoked again. I hope that when you come into my fantasy dimension you can forget about all the madness, if even just for a second, and tap back into the childlike wonder we all used to have.

Do you have any events or exhibitions coming up? Where would one go to see more of your work? How can people support you and your artwork?
You can see my work on my Instagram @Wizardofbarge, buy weird junk that I make at Wizardofbarge.etsy.com OR hopefully pretty soon I’ll be doing some art shows and pop ups around LA! I’m still super fresh moving here and just got my studio set up but definitely plan on having some community art nights up here once we’re fully settled so keep an eye out!

Contact Info:

• Website: Wizardofbarge.etsy.com
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: instagram.com/Wizardofbarge

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