Featured Artist: Von Hep

Hold on to your hats!  You're about to enter the weird and wacky world of pop-surrealist illustrator Von Hep, where you'll find burlesque dancers from Venus, luchadores wrestling intergalactic monsters, Elvis, flying saucers, and even the creature from the black lagoon chilling with a well-mixed Mai Tai - or in the words of the artist himself: Think of The Cramps, but on canvas!

A mad mash-up of mid-century aesthetics and vintage B-grade sci-fi and horror films, the Beat Generation, tiki kitsch and pop culture, Von Hep's contemporary-meets-retro style is a playful ode to the space-age optimism and campy coolness of the 50s and 60s.

After two decades of toil in the straight-laced world of corporate graphic design, (and with a healthy sprinkling of self-doubt), Von Hep stepped away from the safety of client briefs and poured himself into work that truly lit him up, finally unleashing the retro oddities inside his brain upon the unsuspecting world.

Keep a keen eyeball on Von Hep as he continues to create his offbeat artworks in preparation for his upcoming, aptly-named solo exhibition, Mid-Century Mayhem, which will be debuting on December 12th at Unicorn Lane Gallery in Ballarat.

So on that note ladies and gents - polish your ray gun, strap on your jet pack, and follow us into the strange and cosmic world of Von Hep, as we chat about monstrous muses, burlesque aliens, and the curious creative chaos of his mind.

What motivated you to step away from corporate graphic design to pursue an illustration career more fully?  Was there a specific moment where you realised it was time to take a different direction in life?
Truth be told, I haven’t fully stepped away from the corporate graphic design and content creation world - it still consumes about 50 hours of my week! Graphic design is a career I’ll always love; it’s the perfect mix of creativity and problem-solving, and I’ve always been fascinated by its power to shape how people think and feel through visual storytelling.

But illustration has always been tucked in my back pocket - a secret weapon I’d pull out for design projects whenever I could. Over time, I realized it was the scribbling, and character-creating part of the brief that I loved the most.

So, there wasn’t one big “aha” moment that pushed me toward illustration. It was more of a slow-burning realization that after 20+ years in the corporate design trenches, I needed to give art - and my imagination - a proper chance to run wild. No clients, no briefs, no deadlines. Just me, some pencils, and a rocket full of crazy ideas ready to blast off into the Milky Weird.

And to my absolute delight, there are folks all over this crazy globe who’ve decided to come along for the ride. I’m beyond grateful to every one of them.

What has been the most rewarding, and the most challenging part of building an art practise and business on your own terms?
Chipping away at my mountainous self-doubt has actually turned out to be incredibly rewarding. It was only around September last year that I decided to take the plunge - put myself and my kooky art out into the world and see what might happen. To my surprise, I’ve found an ever-growing, international tribe of people who genuinely connect with my offbeat creations.

A major confidence boost came from the wonderful folks at Unicorn Lane Gallery in Ballarat, who have offered me my first-ever solo show. It’s an outdoor exhibition space right on the main drag of this lively old gold-rush town in regional Victoria. The lightboxes are on display 24/7 - lit up at night - so thousands of people walk past and get a daily dose of my particular brand of weird. I love everything about that concept.

As for the hardest part? Definitely the accounting side. The second I see a spreadsheet, I basically enter a fugue state!.

Groovy space-chicks, aliens and monster-busting luchadores (oh my!) – how did you come to be drawn to your retro mid-century oddball aesthetic and what does it say about you?
I can't remember a time when I wasn’t drawn to the energy and unapologetic weirdness of mid-century culture - the bold colours, dramatic themes, and that sense of atomic-age optimism tinged with Cold War paranoia. There’s something magical about how the era mashed together sci-fi futurism, beatnik rebellion, tiki escapism, and campy horror - it wasn’t afraid to be strange, stylish, or theatrical. That mix of cool and kitsch has always spoken to me.

I think my work reflects a love for storytelling, humour, and a refusal to take things too seriously. It’s nostalgic, sure - but it’s also my way of keeping that playful, offbeat spirit alive in a world that often feels too polished on the surface, but terrifying when you scratch deeper.

Coming up later this year is your first solo exhibition, Mid-Century Mayhem, which is a huge milestone – congratulations!  Can you tell us a little bit about how the show came about, and what kind of strange madness viewers can expect to see?
Thank you! The exhibition will be at the Unicorn Lane Gallery in Ballarat, which is a space that is open to local artists. I submitted a proposal stating who I am, what I do and what the exhibition will be about. And to my utter amazement and joy they accepted my proposal, and gave me the much coveted Christmas-time slot! It’s an outdoor space, viewable day or night, right in the heart of this bustling gold-rush town, so it felt like the perfect setting to unleash some full-throttle retro weirdness.

Mid-Century Mayhem is a deep dive into my favourite obsessions - classic sci-fi, monster movies, beatnik cool, tiki kitsch, and all the gloriously bizarre design tropes of the 1950s and ’60s. Think bug-eyed aliens, luchadores tackling monsters, cocktail-fuelled chaos, and cosmic femme fatales, all wrapped up in a riot of colour and mid-century swagger.

It’s going to be cheeky, nostalgic, and a little unhinged - in the best way. I wanted this exhibition to feel like a pulpy Saturday matinee collided with a tiki bar in outer space. Hopefully, viewers feel like they’ve stepped into another dimension - somewhere between vintage, and very, very weird. Think the Cramps, but on delectable Hahnemühle stock instead of wax.

Given your strong foundation in graphic design, I imagine this has strongly guided how you approach creating your art.  What does your creative process look like, from initial inspiration to final result?
Totally! I always write myself a brief before I start scribbling. The only thing I don’t give myself is a deadline.I actually have pieces that have been 99% finished for over a year, and just require that magical little stroke or (usually) an extra flying saucer to give me the confidence to send it out into the World.

From there I do some rough thumbnails or loose sketches, just to play with layout, flow, and character energy - always with that bold, punchy mid-century style in mind.

Because I come from the world of briefs and deadlines, I still tend to think in terms of design principles - balance, hierarchy, colour theory - even when I’m letting my freak flag fly. The final result might look like a pulp-magazine fever dream, but behind it all is a pretty intentional process rooted in design thinking. I love that sweet spot where wild ideas still sit on a solid foundation.

What kind of weird movies, books, artists or media have been feeding your imagination and creeping into your work recently?
Lately, my imagination’s been fed a steady diet of retro oddities - think flying saucer invasions, rubber-suited monsters, and ray-gun wielding Space heroes. I’ve been rewatching old B-movies like The Brain That Wouldn’t Die and Invasion of the Saucer Men - the kind of films where the budget was low, but the style was ‘chef’s kiss’. There’s something about their earnest weirdness and DIY charm that I really dig. The streaming service - Tubi - is a treasure trove of B-grade weirdness!

I’ve also been flipping through vintage sci-fi / horror comics - I guess those bold colours and exaggerated expressions sneak their way into my work whether I mean it or not. And musically, I’ve had a lot of surf rock and exotica on loop - it’s like aural fuel for the visual madness.

It’s all a bit like shaking up a snow globe of mid-century madness and seeing what freaky shapes fall into place. That’s the fun part - it never really stops mutating.

The mid-century aesthetic is undoubtedly a huge influence on your work – what are some stand-out design moments from the mid-century era that resonate with you the most?
I’m a massive fan of Atomic Age art and Googie Aesthetics. Post WWII to the mid- 1960s was a time of optimism,change and an explosion in pop culture. Bright colours, futuristic motifs, starbursts, boomerangs, and space-age fonts defined advertising, animation, packaging, and signage. Add to that the magic of Horror, Sci-Fi B-Movies and great music - take my money!

I also adore the Mid-Century phenomenon of Tiki! Utterly unhinged in the best way - exotic cocktail-fuelled escapism - full of Rum-soaked, over-the-top charm.

Self-doubt can be part of the creative process for many artists, especially when taking a leap of faith starting a business from your art.  Has it ever shown up in your journey, and what helped you overcome it?
Oh, absolutely - self-doubt has been a constant companion on this wild creative journey. But honestly, I think a bit of self-doubt is just part of being human, and maybe even more a part of being an artist.

What’s helped me push through is focusing on the simple act of showing up - putting my work out there even when I’m not completely sure, and trusting that the right people will find it. I also remind myself that every artist’s path is full of weird detours and “failures,” and that those moments often lead to unexpected breakthroughs.

And honestly, connecting with a community - whether it’s patrons, other creatives, or supportive galleries - has been a game-changer. Knowing I’m not alone in the struggle makes the self-doubt easier to manage.

What’s your secret recipe for a productive day in the studio?  Are there any conditions or routines that ensure you’ll do your best work?
For me, a productive day in the studio usually starts with embracing a bit of chaos - because that’s where the magic often hides. I like to keep my workspace messy enough to inspire, but not so much that I can’t find my favorite pens or sketchbook.

Music is a must - usually something vintage, like surf rock or jazzy exotica - that helps set the mood and keep the energy flowing. I’ve also found that working in bursts, with breaks to wander or doodle something completely silly, helps keep the ideas fresh and the pressure off.

I’m definitely a creature of habit when it comes to rituals, though: a strong coffee, a quick warm-up sketch to loosen up, and a clear plan for what part of the project I want to tackle that day. But I always leave room for the unexpected - a spontaneous idea or a sudden urge to dive into something weird and off-script. That’s where the best stuff lives.

What was it like to first experience your artwork as a finished, tangible printed piece? And how do your customers respond when they get to hold a piece of your art in their hands?
Seeing my artwork come to life as a finished, tangible print for the first time was honestly a bit like holding a little time machine. It’s one thing to create something on a screen or paper, but when you hold that vibrant, colourful piece in your hands - and feel the texture, the weight - it suddenly becomes real in a whole new way. It’s thrilling and a little surreal. Especially with the exquisite quality that you guys at Imagescience consistently produce. The paper and ink quality is next level, and has given me complete confidence that it will always wow the patrons!

Speaking of patrons, their reactions never fail to warm my heart. There’s something special about owning a physical piece of art that resonates with them - the quirky characters, the nostalgic vibes, the bursts of bold colour. Knowing my work connects with people like that makes all the hours and doubts totally worth it.

When the creative mojo dries up, what do you do to coax it back? Do you have any fool-proof remedies for becoming unstuck?  
When the creative mojo dries up, I don’t fight it - I lean into the weird stuff that first lit my fire. Sometimes it takes stepping away and watching an old B-movie or listening to a lounge record to reconnect with that energy. But honestly, even doodling something absurd or over-the-top can kick start the engine again. It’s about loosening up and letting the weird stuff flow.

Finally, what are you cooking up next in the studio? Any wild ideas, new directions, or upcoming projects you’re excited about?
Currently I'm working mainly on the Mid-Century Mayhem exhibition in December, so I’m pretty much fully immersed in that world. There will be some very large pieces - that I will need the guiding hand and advice from the good people at Image Science!

I’m always cooking up a batch of new illustrations that dive even deeper into my mid-century weirdness - think more groovy space femme fatales, radioactive monsters, masked luchadores and tiki-infused chaos.

So yeah, lots of  wild ideas are swirling, and I’m loving every minute of the creative chaos. Stay tuned!