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Scratching The Surface:
Brandon Sines


November 11, 2014 | Aymann Ismail

ANIMAL showcases a different street artist regularly in our feature, Scratching the Surface. This week, we profile Brandon Sines and his mysterious alter ego Frank Ape. Frank Ape is his signature character, and can be seen all around the city in the form of stickers, wheat-pasted posters, or spray paint on walls.

Name/Alias:
Brandon Sines / Frank Ape

Frank is a skunk ape. He lives in New York. He’s got a lot going on.

Decade you were born:
1980s

City you currently live in:
New York

Drugs or natural highs?
Natural highs (weed is natural, right?)

How did you get your name?
Frank is his own person and pretty much told me his name. Brandon is the name my Mom gave me – Sines comes from a tattoo I got when I was in high school of my initials in sign language. People started calling me Signs and I decided to spell it “SINES” cause it rhymes if you spell it out: s-i-n-e / l-a-n-g / u-a-g-e.

frankeape2-nov11_animal

Why do you do what you do?
It makes me happy and I can’t really imagine doing anything else.

How does your mother feel about your art?
She’s super supportive – I’m really lucky.

Are you making a living off your art? How’s that working out so far?
For the most part I am… over the past year it started to take off. People started emailing me wanting to buy stuff and come by the studio. Of course some months are slower than others and I’m always investing whatever I make back into newer, bigger projects. It’s kind of like a snow ball rolling down a hill getting bigger and bigger.

Fuck the art world or embrace the art world?
I say embrace it. I mean I’ve seen some super minimalist stuff… like an all white canvas- and fuck that, but for the most part I like what I see. I get the most inspired by other artists.

frankeape1-nov11_animal

Do you bring your smart phone into the bathroom with you? Why?
Definitely. That’s prime Instagram time.

Do you ever feel like giving up?
Never.

Suggest an artist to follow.
You’re probably already up on this dude but I’m really digging Shark Toof at the moment.