“TOP CHOICE”, WHAT ARE PEZ’S PREFERRED COLORS?

We took advantage of the Barcelona artist’s Limited Edition presentation event to ask the artist about the colors that he likes the most. Photographs by Carmen Molina escort us through the lively celebration that marked 20 years in PEZ’S career.

Everybody has one or several favorite movies. The same goes for songs, dishes… and of course, colors. It just so happens that in the case of graffiti writers it’s easier to find out about these preferences for certain shades. Last month we presented the Pez MTN Limited Edition can at our official Montana Shop Barcelona – Gracia. So, it was no doubt the perfect momento for us to chat with the Barcelona artist about this very matter.

As you might imagine, color is a fundamental element in PEZ’S compositions, seeing as though it’s a mode through which he can cause maximum impact to the viewer in the most direct way possible. The character that made Pez famous was born from a yearning to provoke happiness in the viewer, an objective in which color becomes a key factor. “I always wanted to attract attention with my character, to provoke a smile, and colors help to attract attention. It’s really important in my work.”

“Right now I prefer whatever is most vibrant.”

Although thus idea guides the chromatic basis for PEZ’S artwork in general, his choice of shades in the compositions is much more spontaneous according to what he tells us. “I really like to choose colors randomly. I like contrasts, complementary colors and playing with a wide array of colors which all fit within the work and composition.”
If in fact he has worked with a more limited palette, tue Pez if today lots for the “more is more” option; the more colorful and vibrant, the better.

Amongst PEZ’S preferred colors the blues obviously stand out: Argo Blue, Electric Blue and Cyan are the ones that usually give life to his characteristic marine creatures. But there’s also other powerful tones like Hope Green and Passion Red that come in handy in his backgrounds, other characters and his charismatic devil fish.

“I’m constantly experimenting but truly, what I like the most and think is most effective is the black outline.”

If there is one thing that we believe is absolutely necessary in Pez’s imaginary world, it’s the color black which he uses to outline all his figures. He himself explains that in his constant search for chromatic contrast, black does the job the best. However, he’s not opposed to occasional experimentation; “Sometimes I like to use different outline colors. I like Vampire Violet a lot… and also outlining blue with red and blue with blue… in the latest mural I painted in Navarra, I outlined the whole thing in dark colors that weren’t black and it was a great experiment.” All said and done, he lets it be known that, “there’s nothing more powerful than black.”