Phil Morgan’s art embodies the spirit of punk. With a background as both a musician and skateboarder, he admits that his roots tend to sneak into his work, with punk rock nods to the likes of Henry Rollins, The Ramones, and Fugazi.
“I grew up skateboarding from the age of eight years old,” Morgan told Another Fine Mess, adding that he was in a band through his twenties. “Skateboarding actually got me back in to my art about six years ago when I designed a bunch of skate graphics for my friend’s skate company called Crayon Skateboards,” he notes. “I always dreamed of one day seeing my art on a wizz plank.”
Based in Wales, UK, his illustration style has quickly been picked up by a plethora of skate and surf companies, as well as some more mainstream brands such as Urban Outfitters and Dr. Martens. Aside from illustration, Morgan also does screen prints and murals. “I like keeping as active with work as much as possible,” he says.
Describing his work as the ultimate post-modern street art, Morgan takes well-known elements from worldwide pop culture and repurposes them with a wink and a smile.
“I try to add a lot of humor in my illustrations which I guess also reflects what type of person I am,” he says. “I don’t take things too seriously.” His work is also very much influenced by (and borrows elements from) ‘70s psychedelia, ‘80s technology, and ‘90s street culture.
Here are some highlights from his Instagram page.
