AP: How did 40 oz comics come about?
JM: I went to the Kansas City Art Institute in 1993 and met this cat named Mike Huddleston. We started hanging out, drawing comics together, listening to hip hop and funk, drinking 40s and such, so we named our studio 40oz Comics. We produced a bunch of comics together, most of them never published, but we're still best friends to this day. Mike is amazing.
AP: You’re a Comicon vet. How has the Con evolved over the years?
JM: Well, unfortunately, it's not really a comic book show anymore. It's more like a big Hollywood movie show now. But it's still fun as hell and a good place to expose your work to new people.
AP: Who are your art cronies and what are you guys up to right now project-wise?
JM: Mike Huddleston and I are doing a collabo sketchbook project together.
He does some pages and mails it to be from Chicago, then I collabo on them and draw some new stuff for him to respond to and mail it from LA back to him. When the whole book is filled we're gonna publish it as an art book.
I'm also doing a new hardcover artbook for IDW. They're a comic book publisher. The book is called Sparrow and my pal Ashley Wood is editing and designing the whole thing.
AP: What do you think about the contemporary art world crossing with underground comix to create pop icons?
JM: It's a beautiful thing, man. It's about time!
AP: If you had one tool to make art for the rest of your life, what would it be and how would you use it?
JM: Straight-up pen and ink and blank white paper would be my thing. Pure and simple.
I could still do my illustrations and my comics and everything.
