Oren Haskins

Born in the UK to Israeli and South African parents, Oren Haskins is a self taught artist and designer that has been living and working in the San Francisco Bay Area for the last 8 years.

I remember the first time I met Oren. There was some kind of Adobe event or meetup and they took a group of us out for dinner in a fancy steak restaurant in Tokyo. I was lucky enough to sit next to Oren and we talked extensively about art, creativity and what moving to Japan was like and how I had done it myself. I really had hoped he’d moved but he ended up going to California instead. I still hope he might come to live in Japan in the near future.

Oren’s work is remarkable. He works at Google and makes art at night when he gets home. Every time he posts something on socials I really love it more than the last post. There’s poetry, and a mastery of the craft that is rare to see in others. On his way to Taiwan, Oren came briefly to Japan for a few days and we got the chance to catch up.

How do you describe your profession, what you do, to a taxi driver? And someone you want to impress?

To a taxi driver, I'd say: "I'm a designer." To someone I want to impress, I'd say, "I'm an art director at Google, working on VR and AR," but honestly, back home in the Bay Area, no one's that impressed by it.

Tell me about, if ever, the first time you remember consciously understanding about the power of drawing or what you could do with it.

It's a good question. I grew up around creatives in my family, so I feel like art always had value in my life. But probably the first feelings were that my drawings could make people happy, and I got validation from that. In hindsight, that's not the healthiest relationship to start with art, and I'm still trying to rewire that part of my brain.

What would you do if your job wasn’t drawing?

My job isn't really drawing; the ability to sketch out ideas is only a small part of what I do. 3D design, UI, photography, videography, art direction feedback, presentation design, etc.—I've always been interested in multiple disciplines, so I love that my work supports that, although I feel like I can context-switch myself into oblivion sometimes. If I weren't a visual designer, I'd maybe be a chef or a therapist.

How often do you draw for yourself (not for clients or bosses)?

For personal work I go through phases. I have a lot of 3D side projects that serve as a way to explore my own passions and make me better at my day job. The other phases I’m sketching in the evenings when I'm in more of a bluesky phase of my ideas. But I have a deep compulsion bordering on a obsession to constantly create and explore new ideas, so it will never stop unless I’m totally burnt out by a crazy deadline. But even then I will try and push new ideas out.

Is there any magic to drawing or is it something more earthly, you think?

I think anytime anyone makes something that truly resonates with people it's like magic, even if I don't like the art.

Did making art save your life? And if so, how?

Yes, I'm a school dropout. I never went to art school or college, but I kept creating, and it led to a great career that took me to a place I love in California and gave me a strong foundation of stability and inspiration in my life. And I also started teaching from time to time, getting called a professor as a dropout is still surreal to me.

How much value would you give to art in the whole scheme of things in this world?

We can’t process life or understand each other without art.

What’s your favorite drawing medium and how did you arrive at it?

I primarily use 3D as my main tool. I often describe it as a combination of many passions: sculpture, lighting, photography, and motion. Although I was once a 2D illustrator and concept artist, my current job and personal interests have led me away from that path. For sketching, I almost exclusively use my iPad and Procreate.

Imagine I am a genie and give you a lot of money right now, so much you wouldn’t need to work a day in your life, would you still be making art?

That’s easy. I would be making art, films and maybe games with friends full-time.

Tell us about something you are completely UNABLE to draw without a reference.

Something I have never seen before. I could probably draw most things really badly, but since I don’t have a photographic memory I need reference to do anything decent.

If you were to make your last drawing, and you know it’s the last, what would you draw?

That's too poetic and existential for me to even think about.

Would you consider arrogant the artists who think art is immortal and that by making art they’ll never die?

I mean it’s true if we are lucky enough to make something timeless. We are living in a world of ideas, science, art and technology from the generations before us. But if you are going to spend your life making fan art then probably not.

What is your relationship to Tokyo, what brought you here?

I began visiting Tokyo on my way to see family in Australia, and it started a deep love for the city. I am both intensely inspired and overwhelmed by the city yet I feel at home here. It’s such a unique stew of feelings that never goes away with each visit.

You can follow and see more of Oren's work on his Instagram.

Luis Mendo ⊙⟀⊙