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Art

Interview With Turtle Wayne

12:00 PM PDT on October 16, 2015

Turtle Wayne draws turtles. More than 80,000 people have subscribed to his Instagram to get the latest turtle drawing, and now you can own your own turtle drawing by Turtle Wayne, because he's having an art show this weekend at Rolnik Gallery. The show opens Saturday the 17th at 7pm, and will offer original art, stickers, sketch books, shirts, and more.

We wanted to find out more about the man behind the turtle, or the turtle behind the man, so exchanged the following interview with Turtle Wayne while he drove from his home in the Bay Area to Los Angeles...

You're on the beach, walking along in the sand when you look down and see a turtle. It's crawling toward you. You reach down and flip the turtle over on its back. The turtle lays on its back, its belly baking in the hot sun, beating its legs trying to turn itself over. But it can't. Not with out your help. But you're not helping. Why aren't you helping?
I'm not helping because my body has been possessed by a spirit that hates turtles. Turtle Haters going to hate.

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Are you more of an artist/turtle or a turtle/artist?
I am more of a turtle/artist because I go by Turtle Wayne (

Do you have a favorite piece of art of all time (not your own)?
My favorite piece of art is Dave Choe's signature and little munko whale drawing on a Turtle Wayne sharpie. (Not sure if that counts as not being my own, but it's definitely my favorite art piece I have right now)

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What's a typical day in the life of Turtle Wayne like?
I do the typical human hygiene stuff and then draw a lot. I'm either drawing for various companies, restaurants, and clients or turtles for my Instagram (@turtlewayne). I also try to run for at least 30min a day because once I stopped growing and started aging...my belly gets big if I don't exercise.

What do you love or hate about Los Angeles?
I don't love or hate anything about Los Angeles...yet.

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Complete this sentence: "We're living in the golden age of ______________."
We're living in the golden age of selfies.

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Do you have a lucky number?
Yes.

What kind of work will you be showing at your latest show at Rolnik Gallery?
Originals, Prints, Sticker Packs, Shirts and Sketch Books will be available!

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What's your favorite place to get a taco?
There's a tacqueria near my house that has tacos for only a buck!

What is your motto?
I draw turtles.

turtlewayne

The Daniel Rolnik Gallery is located at 1431 Ocean Ave #1800, Santa Monica, CA 90401

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