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The Creative Orbit of CANTSTOPGOODBOY
Finding the Balance Between Art & Business
If the name catches your attention, wait until you see the art. Very few artists' work will stop you in your tracks like CANTSTOPGOODBOY (CSGB). A ménage à trois of color, nostalgia, and refinement applied in an artist brand never before seen packaged or presented to the masses and the art world.
Nick Simon, a 31-year-old Californian from Malibu, had by all intention the perfect start to becoming one of the most internationally recognized and respected street artists. And before we get too hung up on labels — no need to correct me on how I title CSGB's work. Any of the following monikers — mixed media artist, modern artist, or contemporary artist — would do. You would be correct if you chose any or all of those labels. In the best way possible, Nick is the product of his time. Culture became a lifestyle; an entire generation learned the cliché, "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder." That generation also happened to be raised in an era where marketing, branding, and social media became a habit.
Nick at 17 was attending the University of Boulder studying business when opportunity literally knocked at his door — he was not pursuing art in college. It wasn't until he decided to paint portraits of his roommates and himself that anyone had any idea of the depths of his creativity. Years earlier, an experience with an art teacher left Nick with a bitter taste for the craft, and he shelved his artistic expression. He focused on sports and excelled as a goalie for his soccer club. Inviting me into his home, Nick rolled his right shoulder a few times, stretching it out. "I dislocated my shoulder last night — it's an old injury from being kicked as a goalie," he explained. Injuries such as these rarely dissipate with time, and even painting with a passion can "pop" it out with the right power stroke or paint spatter.
Those portraits Nick painted of himself and his roommates happened to be visible through a large bay window in their house. Opportunity knocked in the form of an art enthusiast and the owner of a billboard company in Los Angeles who happened to be walking down the street. Nick tells me his roommate called him to the door after the passerby was compelled to approach the house and find out who created this amazing piece of art. In what could be a scene from a John Hughes movie, Nick recalls the conversation:
"Hey, who painted those?" "Uh, I did…" "I'm from Los Angeles…" "Heyyy, I'm from Los Angeles." "I own a billboard company and would like to commission you for some work." "Great, I'm in!"
Nick knew never to turn down an opportunity. Seconds after closing the front door, Nick called his father, Adam. The two have a unique relationship — Adam's entrepreneurial past in entertainment finance provided the perfect mentoring tools. And who would we be without our mothers? Nick's mother was an artist working in the field of fine art restoration. Nick points out a framed sketch of a nude woman laying on a couch: "That piece is by my mom. She would take me to her work, art exhibits, and museums. I would always be around art — I learned to appreciate it. My mom and dad would ask me to 'draw this' and 'draw that.'"
When a young Nick showed interest in art and the female form, his mother made a move that must have made her more popular than Stacy's Mom in the neighborhood. She supplied Nick with all the art supplies a young artist would need — and a stack of Playboy magazines. "So as a teenager, I was like, Oh yeah! But the only way I would be allowed to see them was to copy them. So I originally got into drawing realistic nudes. That's how I learned to draw. Other than my mom and dad's encouragement, I'm a self-taught artist."
Born on a Stop Sign
Nick's street moniker was born from the nickname his mother called him and with the unknowing help of Boulder, Colorado's department of street management. If you lived in or passed through Boulder in the late nineties, you undoubtedly witnessed stop signs with the words "Good Boy" plastered beneath the word "STOP." Forty-seven stop signs later, the local buzz of this hot new street artist began to pick up.
The first step — the pinch of salt in his creative recipe — was to add the word "Can't" above the "STOP." He realized he had caught fire when he began to overhear conversations in class. Nick vividly recalls: "I would go to class — the one time I would go to class — this guy next to me goes, 'Hey man, did you see that stop sign that says Goodboy?' And another guy chimed in, 'Yeah, it says Can't Stop Good Boy.' I knew that was it. CANTSTOPGOODBOY."
Nick's emergence manifested at a crossroad of an era that recognized the value of talented artists not exclusively hung on gallery walls. His vibe comes directly from the artists of the 60s that flooded the city of his birth, yet much more modern. Street art would be the major influence that guided Nick to become the talent he is today. Compared to artists of the past he might stand with Picasso — another street and mixed media force. Today, his peers include Shepard Fairey and Banksy. Much like the latter, CANTSTOPGOODBOY would be a faceless artist on the street art scene. While many street artists remain anonymous for a variety of reasons, Nick's was simple: "I was still in school and remaining an anonymous street artist just worked better." With the coming of age of social media, his anonymity became part of his brand — by covering his face with his trucker hat, he created the mystique.
The Room Where It Happened
I'm not sure Nick needed to major in business. He was a natural in leveraging his artwork very quickly. He dominated the street art scene from his home in Colorado. "Many people assumed I was living in Los Angeles. I was flying back and forth from Boulder to LA. One of my first shows — I remember showing up to see a line of people waiting to get in," Nick happily recalls. He later learned all his art had sold first. More than impressed, the gallery and its sponsors immediately booked a much larger show, and Nick was barely past his 17th birthday.
The next expo landed CSGB among giants. "I get a call from this guy asking if I want to be part of a show he's putting together. He says he's doing a show in LA with a couple of artists I may know. It was Banksy, Shepard Fairey, Mr. Brainwash, and a bunch of top artists. I was like, no way. He says, 'You'll be the youngest guy there and nobody will know who you are — but your work meshes with everyone.' I come in to drop off my paintings. Shepard Fairey's there hanging paintings, Mr. Brainwash is running around being crazy, and a team of people — I don't know who they were — come in and hang Banksy's work."
The day of the show proved another affirming experience. "I walked in and found out I was the only artist to sell all their work." All the momentum led to a magazine cover and officially taking his seat at the art world table. "Fifteen years later — I've worked with Atlantic Records, Sony, Warner Bros., Serj Tankian, Absolut Vodka, and Converse."
Art, Business & The Long Game
One of Nick's good friends happens to be a member of a very successful rock group. After some convincing, Nick designed their album cover — which led to designing the tour's full aesthetic, including merchandise and stage design. This led to other tour work for major artists, including Bruno Mars. Along the way came Coachella, and a little show called American Idol. Nick designed an entire season for the singing competition, and was even a guest on opening night, joining Ryan Seacrest to open the season's premiere.
Nick's business-minded approach is something to be marveled. Many of his peers never found the comfort zone walking the fine line of art and business — Basquiat comes to mind. Nick's artwork perfectly meshes with the timely need and demand for merchandise. The items found on CSGB's website all come with the same authentication as his fine art — be it mugs, trucker caps, or hoodies. Creative appreciation happens in many forms, because not all purchase power is in the $10,000 to $25,000-plus range normal for CANTSTOPGOODBOY fine art.
Nick understands that value is in what each of us places in what we like. He offers smaller pieces of affordable art to his followers. You can pick up respectable fine street art for $25.00. "We just released these prints, 8 x 10's for $50.00," Nick's father, Adam, is sure to mention. "Just because it's $25.00 or $50.00, the same amount of blood, sweat, and tears goes into it." Nick agrees — and yes, those authentications come with the 8 x 10 prints as well.
Nick loves what his art does for people. What makes his art work? What makes Miles Davis' concoction of licks and outbursts work on Bitches Brew? I'm surely not able to intelligently point these things out — not because of a loss of words, but because while we can stand shoulder to shoulder viewing the same artwork, without question we would have two entirely different perspectives. CANTSTOPGOODBOY takes you on the journey you did not know you needed.
— Nick Simon / CANTSTOPGOODBOYMany people assumed I was living in Los Angeles. I was flying back and forth from Boulder to LA — and I walked in to find out I was the only artist to sell all their work.