Whoever can wear a vest, fedora and rock band shirts unironically deserves an honorable mention on this blog. And Steve Aparicio has all the honorable mentions.
Apart from his quirky fashion sense (that matches his quirky sense of humor), Aparicio's art reflects his peculiar view on the world that surrounds us-- a world he views through large, rose-tinted glasses.
Much like Douglas Rodas, Aparicio is a Universidad Jose Matias Delgado illustration graduate, who was working at a call center until he decided to take a leap of faith and illustrate full-time.




Now, I may be biased, but I don't think that work like his belongs in a call center. His play with textures and colors... Wow. Look at it!! Doesn't the trout just seem to be leaping? "The S Series" was Aparicio's capstone project; an examination of different techniques and styles, all celebrating the letter "S".
Other projects of his include the "Drawlloween" series:

Pink and black! What a difference from the drab black and white! Doesn't it give the illustrations a much more spooky feeling?
Steve's style is markedly different from the previous featured artists, but still shares some common ground; the slanted eyes on the characters, the "goth" undercurrent, Douglas Rodas's strong penchant for black, serious characters.
Furthermore, as well as Rodas, Aparicio favors drawing animals:


Halloween drawing series, 2015.
Something I really like from Aparicio's work is the variety of products he does:

The thermal carry-on mug (the last one, with the red lid) is actually engraved into the ceramic! How creative is that? And so polished too!
Steve Aparicio has also branched out into the land of creepy illustration:

As with Sonia Lazo and Douglas Rodas, Steve Aparicio mostly advertises and publishes his work through his Instagram:
Again, his drawings are predominantly black, with pops of color, which I think gives him a slightly edgy look, which I love.
Overally, I think Steve Aparicio is definitely a local artist worth keeping an eye on, for both his imaginative character, and daring pops of color mixed between the black.
All pictures from Steve's Instagram.
