Hair Pop Out Mania!

interview by  Jorge Perezchica

Meet Dylan Smith, equal parts artist and dancer. His career has come full circle interconnecting the two mediums and fusing fine art with fashion. As a youth, Smith grew up drawing and illustrating with markers and crayons. Later, Smith’s creativity evolved through dance and entertainment, performing on Broadway and cruise ships that traveled around the world. As an adult, Smith’s life came to a crossroad after he rediscovered childhood drawings in his mother’s attic. Suddenly, his passion for visual arts was rekindled anew — and naturally picked up where he left off. Inspired by 80’s and 90’s pop-culture, Smith lives by the mantra, “Every child is an artist.”

Prior to landing in the desert, Smith had two solo exhibitions at Studio 35 and Starling Bar in Sonoma, California as well as a group show at Rancho Maria Winery. Dylan was honored to be part of the 50th Anniversary of Stonewall exhibit at Art Queen in Joshua Tree and is set to have a solo exhibit and performance.

Dylan Smith is kicking off 2023 with “Hair Pop Out Mania!” a pop-up inside Ball Beachwear on Areanas Rd. Palm Springs, CA. The wearable art collection encapsulates Dylan Smith’s unique realm between fine art and fashion.
Read on for the Coachella Magazine interview and get to know the artist.

Coachella Magazine: Hi Dylan, Happy New Year! Tell us about yourself and your art.
Dylan Smith: Firstly, thank you so much for expressing interest in my art and for this tremendous opportunity. I am truly grateful. I was born and raised in Long Branch, New Jersey and upon graduating from high school attended Marymount Manhattan College in New York City majoring in Dance.

I went on to perform in Broadway tours, cruise ships that traveled all around the world, regional theatre and now television and film in Los Angeles. In fact, the lead choreographer I assisted on the live action reboot of “Fairly Odd Parents” and nominated for an Emmy this year. It was the first ever Children’s Family Emmy Awards ever. So, the whole experience of being nominated and attending the awards was quite thrilling.

I grew up drawing and illustrating as a little boy and after discovering my childhood drawings in mother’s attic as an adult, I picked up the crayons and markers and picked back up where I left off. I found that the whole journey from drawing as a kid, to a professional career in entertainment and a circle back to visual art was both fascinating and thrilling.

CM: Your new pop-up show inside Ball Beachwear runs from January 5-7, 2023. It features art and fashion. What is “Hair Pop Out Mania!” about?
DS: The actual name “HAIR POP OUT MANIA!” References a drawing I did when I was ten years old. All the characters I illustrated had these hair clips that gave them the fountain hair do or “popping out” effect that was very popular in the late 80’s and early 90’s. When I started toying around with drawing again and making product with these now vintage images, the name just stuck. It is an homage to where it all began… on lined notebook paper with Crayola markers on my neighbors porch in New Jersey summer after summer. It has since evolved into a fine art, clothing and accessories line. I also had the great opportunity to work with the Palm Springs Public Arts Commission to create two pieces of public art for the City, so I guess I am a public artist as well.

CM: Your work ranges from illustration to mixed media. When did you get started combining art with fashion? Walk us through the creative process from concept to finished product.
DS: I always had the desire to put images of my fine art onto clothing, so in the summer of 2021 when I was working for Nickelodeon on Fairly Odd Parents I ordered a mock up sweatsuit from a company that made apparel in the All Over Print process. I wore it on set one day and everyone went nuts for it. I thought, “If all these Hollywood actors and crew members like it, I must be on to something.” 

Basically I take high resolution images of fine art I have created and send it to a company that makes clothing and accessories in the All Over Print process. I mostly sell on my website but I have apparel in various stores across Los Angeles and here in Palm Springs as well. Beyond that, I throughly enjoy wearing my own art and creations and am thrilled that it sparks joy and happiness for others that either come into contact with me or who order for themselves.

CM: Ball Beachwear recently opened a couple months ago in November 2022. How did you get connected and how does it feel to showcase your work on Arenas Rd., the epicenter of LGBTQ community in Palm Springs?
DS: The power of social media! I was looking for a place to pop up and so I posted an inquiry to the “Gays Men of Palm Springs” Facebook page and immediately someone tagged Nicholas Wilkinson who owns Ball Beachwear. We started chatting and the whole process of getting to this point was unbelievably seamless. He was and has been a true gem. Nick is amazingly kind and accommodating and had been wanting to collaborate with other artists for pop ups and such, so it was meant to be. To be on Arenas in the epicenter of Palm Springs gay culture is just fabulous and I am so grateful for this venture.

CM: You are equal parts artist and dancer. As I glean through your illustrations, I gather a sense of rhythm, motion and dynamic gestures from your design. How would you draw the line between the two mediums? How does one influence the other?
DS: It’s funny you ask. My goal this year and beyond is to merge the two realms. I want nothing more than to choreograph a show that has costumes, set pieces and designs made by me. Even actors and dancers with body paint in the shapes and patterns that are synonymous with Hair Pop Out Mania would be fire. I am obsessed with merging various forms of art, collaborating with other artists and expanding my own limits by creating in all kinds of mediums.

CM: The human figure dominates throughout your work in bold lines and colors. Who is the muse that inspires your creativity the most?
DS: 80’s and 90’s pop culture has had perhaps the most influence on my artwork. My older sisters yearbooks, the female characters in the X-Men comic books, Jem and the Holograms, Barbie, Bette Midler in the movie Ruthless People, and Beverly Hills 90210 are just a few inspirations that sparked this little gay boy to start drawing these images of what I deemed to be beautiful and popular divas. I feel as if I willed these women into my adult life through these drawings. I would would say 90 percent of my closest friends are female identifying or trans. They are some of the most beautiful, stylish, creative, accomplished and amazing people I have ever had the pleasure of encountering.

CM: What do you love most about Palm Springs and the desert community?
DS: The support in the Palm Springs community is truly a gift. During the pandemic I was selected as one of the artists to refurbish the benches downtown with my artwork. This opportunity was so integral to my mental and artistic health. My entertainment career was wiped out and so I really leaned into creating visual art. This opportunity gave me an incredible outlet to channel my creativity and in such a high profile way. It gave me purpose and confidence during a time when I desperately needed it and for that I will always be extremely grateful and humbled.

CM: What other projects are you working on in 2023?
DS: I am starting the 2023 off with a bang having this pop up here in Palm Springs, so things are looking promising! I hope to do more of these but on a larger scale by adding live performance and creating an immersive experience for the audience. My hope is to also parlay my Emmy nomination into other choreographic projects in LA and beyond. I intend to keep creating new pieces of fine art and new designs for the clothing and lock in a partnership with a corporate partner like Lulu Lemon or Capezio.

CM: Anything else you would like to mention about “Hair Pop Out Mania!”
DS: Hair Pop Out Mania! Is for everyone. Diversity and inclusion is extremely important to me, so I always try to create people of different shapes, sizes, color, sexual identity and so on. My hope is to bring color and joy to peoples lives and to remind them that art is not just for a select few. We are all artists and have to tap back into our childhood mind when we created free of judgment and self criticism. A quote that drives my process, and that I would love to share is “Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up.” — Pablo Picasso

WHAT: Hair Pop Out Mania!
WHEN: January 5-7, 2023 | Reception Friday January 6th from 6-9pm
WHERE: Ball Beachwear – 170 E Arenas Rd, Palm Springs, CA 92262
SOCIAL: @dancerdylan