“I came out here in search of answers to questions, but I’ve realized there’s really no questions. You just be. I don’t need to have a name, a race, or an age. Those things don’t matter. So freedom brought me here. Georgia is still racist. Here I have amazing beautiful people coming up and talking to me, that would never happen in Georgia. “
“I would rather create things than be talking about issues all the time. I use my art to create and provoke positive thought. I feel like I’m doing a positive contribution for the world. My art plants seeds in people’s minds and if they water it then they let it grow.
I can’t install any positivity in anyone, the responses I get tell me it’s positive or not. If people cry over my work or hand me a green piece of paper as a reward that tells me its positive.”
“There’s no such thing as homeless. We all live on the Earth. There’s just some people who decide to pay more money for square footage. Ten miles down the beach you see people paying millions of dollars to wake up to an ocean view. I sleep in the alley in my tent, its not luxury but I know I don’t have to pay to wake up close to the shoreline. Nature provides everything we could possible need. Our Earth is the only thing we need, people just found a way to monetize parts of it.
We use these languages that we are taught, we use the term ‘homelessness’ to downgrade people. People can call me homeless, but I’m not. I’m here because it’s what is best for me. I’ve lived in a house, I’ve lived in an apartment, I’ve done that. Now I’ve chosen to come live on the land and now I have everything.”
“‘Nigga No More’ means ‘Ignorance No More’, ‘Over-Sleeping No More’, ‘Self-Sabotaging No More’, whatever you want it to be. It’s a message to yourself to do away with your detriments. I’m just appreciate that people take the time to give this art a second thought because in a way it’s offensive, but in music they’re saying this all the time. People need to understand I had good intentions putting this art up.
If we continue to hate each other over skin color the world will fucking crumble. They say be the change that you want to see. That’s what I’m trying to do. My impact might not matter but as long as I’m getting up everyday with that mission then I’m happy.”
“You can have colors, but if you don’t have perspective then what you got? People are like ‘I love your hair’, ‘I love your outfit’, if that’s what you love then what do you really love? When people ask me how I am in the morning, do they really want to know? Or do they just want me to say ‘I’m good’. I’m not up for this surface shit, I want to really get into people’s thoughts, I don’t care to do with that. I care to create. I want to create positive thoughts and create more beauty in a world filled with beauty”
“Someone came up to me the other day and told me a kindergartner could paint this and that was really the first time I looked at this painting as something special, that’s when I started to love this piece. To be able to recreate anything with the mindset of a child is special to me, it’s innocent. Everyone needs to try to hold on to the kid in them because that’s where creativity starts.”
Amazing! Where could someone go, other than Venice Beach to see Lee’s work?