Why did you choose the name ‘Don Mateo’? Is there a story linked to this name?
I lived in Spain in 2006. The name Don Mateo is a reference to this period of my life.

What was your first experience with street art? What did you paint?
The very first time I painted something in the street happened when I was 12. I tagged a golden ‘fuck’ on my teacher’s car. That was stupid of me. Some years later, I carried out projects connected to the city. I remember painting a tank pink the day Mister Sarkozy became the new French President.

Why did you choose painting in the streets? How could you define your connection to the city?
I have been painting for 20 years now, but painting in the streets is for me a perfect balance. I feel no pressure, it’s a space of total freedom. Also, I have been hanging out in the streets since I am 14, this is where I have spent most of my time, with my friends.

What inspires you when you create?
Nothing special to be honest. Art is a means of expression, I need it.

We can notice that most of your works focus on female characters (women and little girls) What is the reason for that?
I find poetry, sweetness and strength in women. Unfortunately, I can’t find those in men. Since time immemorial, painters have been inspired by women, for example Ingres, Manet… Surprisingly, I focus on male characters when I have dark thoughts, but in general those are ideas I quickly get rid of.

In 2013 you made a collage ‘Fuck You’ in Lyon. To whom is it addressed?
I painted a character giving a finger on a wall. I liked the contrast between the grace of the character and the rudeness of the finger. The gesture is just a symbol to express angriness and rebellion.

What are your future projects in years to come?
Paint again and again.

To finish, we heard the police arrested the JAB collective in Lyon (April 26), with more than a million euros of damage to pay according to French media. What is your reaction to this?
I don’t react to this…. I am not interested in this. This kept the local press busy for a couple of days. I would rather read articles on good local artists but never mind…

Don Mateo,Submit or Fight, in Lyon (2015)

Don Mateo,Athena, in Lyon (2016)

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Father Smith, also known as Fighting Father Dave is the only Australian in Holy Orders to have won state and national boxing titles. He’s been fighting the good fight for over two decades; using boxing and martial arts to steer youth away from a life of drugs and crime.

E.L.K and Father Smith actually know each other quite well after recently returning from a mission to Syria called Boxers For Peace, which Cornish said was a life-changing experience. I bet.

This installation is part of a streetart project being launched by the Australian bank, ANZ, on unused walls across Sydney, recognizing local people with inspiring stories to tell. In addition to E.L.K, three other of Australia’s most celebrated street artists Stormie Mills, Adnate, and Kaff-eine will bring to life portraits of those who have made strong contributions to their communities. It sure is a great way to connect the Sydney community through street art. Brilliant stuff.

I’m hoping to interview E.L.K soon, so keep an eye out.

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Check out the newest edition to the website. Guilio’s fantastic biography and interview from last month is now live. We need to get him to both New York and Berlin, and start to see a lot more of his brilliant artacross the world.

Go to the homepage and look for Guilio Vesprini!

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Go to the homepage and look for Sepe!

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Who are you? And where are you from?
It would be too long to answer the “who I am” question, but in a nutshell, I am an artist locked in a human body. That body was born and raised in Paris, but the artist broke his chains on a glorious summer in Black Rock City, Nevada. 

What does codexurbanus mean?
Codex Urbanus is originally the name of my street art project. A Codex is an ancient manuscript with drawings, and urbanus means urban in latin. Altogether it was to be (and is) a handmade bestiairy on the walls of the City of Lights, with an infinite number of chimers. Later on, people took pictures and started calling me Codex, which over time became my own street art name… 

How and why did you get into street art?
I’ve always been drawing, since I was old enough to hold a pen. Unfortunately, being an artist was not even a possibility in my culture, but I couldn’t help it. My class notebooks or my corporate meetings notes are sketch books, and I was always drawing, all the time. At one point my professional life changed, and I started working outdoor, so I could not doodle any more. That’s how, once, in the middle of the night, I started painting on the walls.

Spray cans or brush?
I almost only use paint markers in the street. I’ve tried spray cans 3 times, and I love it, but I need to get a better grasp on the technique, and spray cans are not complient with my way of life: I must have my paint with me at all time and you can’t fir spray cans in your pocket. 

Colors or black and white?
I mainly work with grey, black and white, to recreate the impression of a medieval print. 

Who are the artists that have influenced you?
On my style, and topics, I am influenced by renaissance painters and artists (Durer, Da Vinci, Bosch) and the surrealist crowd (Dalì, Magritte). But I would never have thought and have the guts to work in the streets if it wasn’t for some graffiti artists I admire, mostly DaCRuZ and Seyb. 

Are there any artists that you would like to collaborate with?
Well all of the above! I love collaborations as they forces you to go beyond your world and meet with the others. Today I have already worked with Bastek, Oré, ShadeeK, and more, and I hope there will be a lot more of these! 

What do you think about graffiti? 
I have a huge respect for graffiti. I do not consider myself as a graffiti artist, in that I am not a writer, but I think not only all of the street art scene is standing on the shoulders of graffers, but graffiti is by far the art movement that is the most interesting and the most typical of our era. 

What is the question that I did not rest to you and has which one you would have liked answering?
What is my favorite animal? Hehe

Blog: CodexUrbanus

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