Maxx242
Though I’m not much of an author, Maxx asked me to write his bio for this website. I was hesitant at first but super touched that he asked me. I guess I’m a good candidate to write it, we know each other very well. I first met him in 1990 so it’s been a while now. We were both in high school and interested in skateboarding, comics, art and had some common friends. Someone introduced us and we hit it off well. I’d begun dabbling in graffiti the year before and Maxx was interested in trying it. Before we knew it we became good friends- we were hanging out together, we started a graffiti crew, and we were ditching class to go do graffiti. After a couple years Maxx had developed a distinct style of clean letterforms and vividly detailed characters. He began to make a name for himself and quickly earned respect as a talented graf writer. At the time I was astounded at how fast he mastered the spraycan. For those who don’t know, it’s a very difficult and unforgiving medium, it takes a lot of practice to make clean smooth lines. When I watched him paint I was astonished at the effortless way he worked.
I soon found that Maxx had a real talent for all things visual, and that he was a quick learner in other things beside graffiti. He began honing his skills in drawing, typography, photography, tattooing, design, and painting. About ten years ago he started working with the computer and I’ve watched him develop into an amazing designer. I think this is where Maxx shines- his bold letterforms and sharp linework. He is currently working for Travis Barker’s Famous Stars and Straps while also freelancing and working on personal projects. Make sure to check out his client list below!
There’s much more to Maxx than his art. Here are some things I find interesting: He had a big interest in skateboarding (and was the best skater I knew!). He’s of Guatemalan descent. He has a large toy collection, mostly Macross, Spawn and Star Wars figures. He collects comics. He has a love for Tim Burton’s imagination. Back in the day he could easily kick my butt in Street FighterII. He is happily married to his inspiration and muse, Rosie. We used to work a fast food job together at the ‘Burger Palace’ and made a boring job of cooking hamburgers actually fun. He was once accidentally punched out in the face at a party and suffered amnesia for about a month! He tattooes the dad (Paul Teutul Sr.) from American Chopper and was on one of the episodes. He was born in Trenton, NJ, moved to NY, then moved to Los Angeles, then lived in Anaheim CA, then moved to Riverside CA and now finally resides in the San Diego area. He used to wear two pairs of socks at all times.
Some of Maxx’s future plans include working on a custom set of graffiti inspired fonts, and completing designs for a pair of shoes, vinyl toys and skateboard decks. Maxx is also currently working on paintings for two upcoming shows. I’m looking forward to seeing what his creative brain comes up with next!
-Jeff Soto, April 2006.
Maxx’s clients include Famous Stars and Straps, Tribal, 3rd Rail, Orange County Choppers, ODM, FOX Racing, Choppers Inc., Miami Ink,New Found Glory, The Used, Bad Religion, Sublime, Box Car Racer, Yellow Card, Van Halen, Blink 182, Transplants, Hart and Huntington Tattoo Co., Vivid Video, Local Motion, FEA Merch, Soul Assassins, Guinness, Corona, GMC, Cadillac, and Vans.
