Yep, we’re back with another interview - and this time it’s with someone whose work we at Springleap have been following since way back in the day when we were based in his hometown, Durban. If you don’t know Wes’s work by now, that’s about to change - here’s a creative whose work is popping up in all the right places, both in South Africa and elsewhere - and he snatched 3rd in last year’s Interpret Durban teedesign contest (if you didn’t know, we’re hosting this year’s, right here). Ladies and gents, wrap your eyeballs around our Wes van Eeden interview!   Howzit Wes, and thanks for taking the time for this interview with us. OK - right off the bat, who the hell is Wes van Eeden, and where’s he headed? I am a graphic designer, illustrator and artist. If I had a European visa I’d be in Berlin, Helsinki or Copenhagen but I have the green mamba so I am stuck in Durban for now.       Your style is quite unique in that it features different styles: sometimes it’s quite abstract and at others it can be quite character-based, and there are frequently icons and insignia. What’s inspired your style, and has it changed over the years?   Well to be honest the illustration market is a lot smaller in South Africa than in the States or Europe so its very hard to get consistent work based on a specific style. Often agencies or clients like something specific about my work but often ask to include other influences. Having said this originally I was interested in South African aesthetics and still am but I also like pushing concepts or ideas that might not have these aesthetics. I try and keep and open mind when working on an exhibition or creative brief. The Hardy Boys mural (below) I had to do had a very limited time frame so I had to work out an idea that would be quick to do yet also quite effective. I am always looking at evolving the work that I produce..just like a good band that evolves album after album I like to try out new ideas all the time. I am looking at pushing my work into more realistic imagery in the future - mostly because I find it a challenge.       We’ve seen your work both online and on walls - what’s your favourite medium?   I don’t have a preference. I really enjoy doing all types of creative work.     Quite a few of the characters featured in your work have tattoos - have you got any yourself?   Personally I would not get one. I get bored quite quickly with stuff and my taste’s change from time to time.I also see my body like a house - I personally like clean, minimal living areas..I hate clutter and to much visual stimulation. However I do love the aesthetics of tattooing and how it looks. Tattooing like most other art forms has become a money making machine so what it is today I can’t really relate to. I did stuff for Revolution a couple years ago that directly referenced tattooing and they wanted rockabilly girls so it was a fun project to explore. Also in the Locals Only Poster I did which represented my ideas of living in Durban reference Tattoos as well. The idea behind the picture is about my personal frustration of living here, the stagnation, the crime, the conservative attitudes etc..so the tattoos are more of a metaphor of eternity. The poster also is highlighting that Durban has a harbour and the reason for the city developing so all of that kind of represents why I am living here etc.     You were in a Durban hardcore band once - are you still into that scene, and what’s on your playlist these days?   Those days were fun. I’d love to have continued playing music..but it got a bit tiring with having over 6 drummers.I think the initial idea was to have a Straightedge band and over time we lost members which made it progressively harder to continue our original intention of the band. It was a lot of good fun though! I think if we had better clubs with amazing P.A systems and more kids that were passionate about music things would have turned out differently for me. I mostly listen to podcast interviews nowadays with visual artists I like, Digitalis Radio for instrumental music. The music that really gets me excited nowadays are those artists that push the medium into other areas..for example Consolidated (a very old band) interact with the crowd by giving a microphone into the crowd and have debates in between songs,  Andrew Telling is doing some interesting collaborations with Luccase.     You’ve lived and studied in Durban, but lately you’ve done quite a bit of work in Cape Town on a MyCiti bus station and exhibiting along with Paul Senyol at / A Word Of Art - what’s your take on the city’s street art scene, and have you any plans to do more work in the city?   I am not a street artist but I enjoy taking my creative ideas into it. I try and stay out of the politics of that scene and don’t know too much about it. I like to draw and that is all I know. The MyCiti bus project was really fun and I will be doing another one in Milnerton later this year.   Thanks for the interview. Check out my work over here:   www.resoborg.com www.facebook.com/resoborg https://twitter.com/resoborg   Loving Wes’s work? Check out this video of his time spent in Finland during his artists residency: