Who’s Issac Pelayo you ask?
Splashing third eyes across hip-hop legends and cartel queens, LA artist Isaac Pelayo is having a moment. His paintings? Think Renaissance techniques cranked through a blotter of modern mysticism, where Tupac rocks a third eye and infamous cocaine godmother Griselda Blanco gets wrapped in golden light. Born in ’96 and raised in the city’s art-soaked streets by his fine artist father, Pelayo was geeking out over 15th-century Florence while other kids were playing ball – a obsession that birthed what he calls “Street Baroque,” his signature style that’s got the art world in a chokehold. After Westside Gunn slid into his DMs, Pelayo’s work started popping up everywhere from rap album covers to museum walls, making him the go-to artist for anyone who wants their portrait done with a metaphysical twist. His latest moves? Casual stuff like visiting cartel graves in Colombia and prepping for a museum show that’s about to flip his whole aesthetic on its head. Not bad for a kid who turned a spare canvas into gold during lockdown.
We had the opportunity to meet up with Pelayo during his first time presenting a booth at ComplexCon, where we secured an exclusive interview.
When did you start painting and why did you pick this style?
PELAYO:
“Well, I’ve been doing art my whole life – a solid 20 years of professional art. But the work I’ve been doing lately, I started that in recent years, especially after 2020…2020 really was the catalyst for this smiley face stuff. It was something that just came subconsciously, and I ran with it.”
PELAYO:
“The first portrait I did with a third eye was Tupac, and that’s how Westside Gunn found me. He found me because HipHopDX posted it. He saw it, thought it was fly, and was like, ‘Yo, let’s work!’ And here we are today!”
Why do you pick these characters/ people to paint?
Pelayo:
I paint people who influence my work and who I am as a person – people that I look up to and that I believe deserve to be painted.
Forgive the audio, it totally sucks, but I really want you to get to know the great Isaac Pelayo.
What influence does Griselda(the cocaine godmother) have on you?
Pelayo:
“Well, you know, the fact I’m Griselda-affiliated through Westside Gunn’s label Griselda Records, which is named after Griselda Blanco, it only made sense for me to do a portrait of her.
I actually went to Colombia recently, went to her grave, paid my respects. Her son Michael Corleone saw the painting – he loved it. I might go to his house… we’ll see.”
What did you think of the Griselda series on Netflix?
Pelayo:
“I mean, I thought they did okay. They definitely left out a lot of details. I think they could’ve added a lot more information, but I love Sofia Vergara and I think she gave an amazing performance.”
What’s next for you?
Pelayo:
That’s a good question. I have a museum show next year in Arizona in Bisbee, at the Artemizia Gallery, so stay tuned for that because it’s a whole new body of work, different from this stuff, so I’m excited for it.”
Pelayo’s self-portrait exudes immense power. It poses a challenging question: Are you prepared to risk everything, even if it means annihilating your past self, to achieve greatness?
Written by Kimberly Mortensen
Videography by Nico Riley