Art and music have always been equally essential parts of Justin's life. If he's not playing and recording songs then he's listening to music while making art. If he's not creating art, then he's making music in a studio surrounded by art. It's something of a symbiotic relationship, these loops of art and music bouncing off each other. He relishes the work of finding the tangents where they meet, or if they don't already exist, creating ways to combine the two passions.
Justin first got involved with modifying guitars while working for the guitar company Ibanez as a guitar checker in the early 90's. He was generously given access to the workshop, where he re-built and altered his first guitars. Being a music-lover, both playing and listening, Justin sees the guitar as a unique canvas for blending art forms.
With acoustic guitars, the front of the guitar body is the primary canvas. Justin is fond of collage, and old wallpaper designs are some of his favorite materials. Several of his acoustic guitars feature remixed, collaged wallpaper almost exclusively. Others use prints of art and photography and other collected materials. Because the sound of an acoustic guitar depends largely upon the top, he makes every effort to keep layering of materials to a minimum. This is accomplished by "nesting" the collaged elements into each other so that they fit together like puzzle pieces, without overlapping. He finishes each collaged guitar with numerous coats of sealer so they will withstand normal usage and can be cleaned with a damp cloth.
Guitars covered with embossed metals or detailed ink designs add yet another dimension to the work.
With electric guitars, he removes the finish, changes the shape and softens the feel of the guitar - removing hard angles and creating contours that mass-produced instruments rarely exhibit. His favorite materials for accentuating electric guitars are inks and a woodburning tool.
Altering each guitar's headstock, both in shape and with added designs and embellishments, is integral to his process. A new pick guard is also created for each guitar and found objects embellish the majority of them, turning them into mixed media functional art pieces.
You can find Justin's art-ified guitars at artfulmusician.etsy.com and many more angles and details at flickr.com/justinpotts
