I'm Ali Spagnola, the artist that's been taking requests for what to paint for over 6 years. I've just reached 2,000 Free Paintings paintings mailed all over the world to the strangers that requested them. AMA

Hi Ali! I don't have a question, but I just wanted to say congratulations on winning your Power Hour case!

Heck yeah! Good to know another username that I can check off as not Steve.

Edit: Added link to painting of Steve

Why is your neighbor so good looking?

That's a great question

OMG my childhood and current neighbors are having a neighbor-off on reddit

I have one of your paintings (moth riding a bull). I requested it while drunk, late at night on my birthday in 2010 while on Reddit. I totally forgot about my request until you emailed me almost exactly 2 years later asking me if I still wanted it. It blew me away! You're awesome!

I love hearing this!! Lots of people (like seriously, most) don't email me back once they physically get their painting. I always wonder if it's because they feel guilty for not donating or something. So it's rare to hear I'm appreciated :) and it makes my day. Thank YOU for being a part of this project.

Ali! I got one of your paintings a few months ago. I just want to say thanks, and that as of now it's literally the only art that I own.

Also, my name is Steve and I hope I don't get lumped in with the other dickbutts.

Oh thank goodness. I don't want to have a painting for a dickbutt on my record. Glad you like it!!! Which one did you get?

So what do I gotta do to get you to let me take you on a date?

Prolly comment on reddit. I like that quality in a man.

You could say it's Sleezy.

I do love me some Ke$ha

After quitting your job, were there moments when you questioned the painting and music thing? If so, do you still have moments of doubt?

Heck yeah there are moments of doubt. I only left my job in February and I'm still figuring it out. I mean... I'm pretty awesome. But it's hard to be sure of that aaaaall the time.

Agreed. Anyone who does 2000 free paintings is pretty awesome... let alone all of your other artistic avenues! If pressed and you had to go back to "normal" work, what kind of work would you choose? ...Actually, let's skip that question... negative thinking is not allowed! Even hypothetically!!!

I'd be a space ballerina. I was a competitive dancer until I went to college and I absolutely loved it.

Also, now that it's 2013, I feel like every profession should have "space" in front of it. So I'd be a space ballerina.

Woot! I remembered to get on. Now, it's my understanding that you are a baller, but how does it feel to also be considered a shot caller?

Also, any chance that you and Dual Core will collaborate on something? That would be sweet.

Hi moose-shark! Why, yes! I am, in fact, a baller. Thank you for noticing. Shot calling is also enjoyable.

Dual Core collaboration? There maaaay already be something in the works ;D Plus we're both playing at Defcon this year!

What do you enjoy about the painting project?

I really like making jokes about the paintings every day on my blog. It's a seriously fun challenge to see how funny I can be using the painting as a specific subject matter jumping off point.

Have you ever received a request for a painting that you just would not/could not do, for reasons of content or otherwise (pornographic, questionable theme)?

Not yet. But I wouldn't put it past reddit to make this happen.

What's the hardest and or most unusual thing you've been requested to paint?

Edit - Grammar.

Combining hard/unusual, I'd have to say this Daft Punk painting. I was based on an illustration that's based off of those scratch drawings we did as kids. So I imitated and artist imitating a weird medium.

Could you paint me a self portrait of you painting that Daft Punk painting?

Close enough?

Would you rather fight 100 duck-sized horses or one horse-sized duck?

I would challenge them both at the same time. When the battle gets so confusing they start fighting each other, I'd step back and paint it.

Which painting that you've done is your favorite and why? Oh, and for the hell of it-favorite drink and drinking game.

I hate to choose but my Self Portrait II was a really tough one to give away.

Favorite drink is whatever everyone's having. Haha you know my favorite drinking game!

She once drew me riding Virgin Galactic like a horse. I think it was the high point of her career.

Ah yes, he's correct. I forgot that was when I peaked.

You know how I found out about you? YOU started to follow me on Twitter. I have yet to do your drinking game with some friends but because you're follow you're probably the coolest person to interact with on the internet. Keep up the hard, badass work.

Haha aww thanks! I love new connections on Twitter :D Tell your friends I demand they play with you

I want you to paint me like one of your french girls.

Let me grab my Heart of the Ocean

What inspired you to decide to not only start painting for complete strangers, but to offer them for free?

Also, what's your favorite type of beer?

When I studied abroad in Italy, I created a series of clay robots for a gallery. Since I had to fly home to the US, I couldn't bring them with me so I invited people at the gallery to just take them. It was super fun! So when I got back to the US I started creating paintings for people to take from galleries (scroll down a bit on that page). From there I wanted to grow the project even more so I took to teh internetz.

Hi Ali, ZombieJesus here...and I wanted to inquire on if you will be returning to Dragon Con this year to rock out with more amazing music...perhaps at a <> club party?

I would freakin' love to return :D

Hey Ali! Congrats on 2,000 arts! And the freedom of PowerHours and a sucessfull IndyGoGo campaign!

What are the chances of the tour getting anywhere near Lincoln, NE?

<>

Thanks!! It was successful because of people like you!!

I'm hoping to hit as many cities as possible. Still nailing down all the dates so, sorry I don't know yet. But I would love to Power Hour with you. Let's make it happen

Given that you seem to get soooooo many requests, and have a tiered donation system, how much would someone have to donate to realistically be moved up on the list (& on what kind of time frame would that be?)?

...On that note... how long IS your waiting list?

The waiting list is about 1,500 people now. Most of them are non-donations so donating anything gets you moved up to waiting about months as opposed to years.

Question: What is the best town in the world and why is it Beaver, PA?

Because I went to high school there and we actually have a "Beaver diving team"

Are there any painting requests you turned down? If so, why?

I haven't yet. But I'm not opposed to saying no if some subject matter is absolutely objectionable. I just haven't found anything I'm offended by yet.

Note to reddit: This is not an invitation to try to offend Ali.

Do you drink as much as your twitter implies?

No, sometimes I'm painting. Well.. sometimes I'm drinking while painting. Lots of times I'm working my butt off but no one wants to read 140 characters about that!

When will you be going on tour or did my dumb-ass miss that?

Also, whooooo reddit is not blocked at work.

No, you didn't miss it! I haven't announced yet. Should be starting in September. I'll make a bunch of noise about it when everything's nailed down.

Do I remember correctly that you cant do your power hour in Michigan? I think I saw that on Facebook.

Correct.

Nothing to ask here, I'm part of your big group of fans in Germany (even tho I'm French). You're a fine piece of brave lady and an inspiration to follow our craziest dreams Ali!

Awww thanks!!

Where on earth did you get the idea for a shot glass/USB album? That's so kickass.

Glad you like! I came up with it because I knew no one wanted to buy CDs anymore but I wanted my album to be an object for people to physically desire. I was actually a sculpture major so that's where I get my drive to create something more than a digital file.

So what cooler way to make a Power Hour Album physical than to allow you to drink out of it?? The Shot Glass USB was born. (After a couple years of hard work developing it haha)

Although the subjects of your art in this project are driven by request, there's a clear understanding of just about all the pop culture involved, tying into the blog entries and the visual qualities of the art (e.g. pixelation). Have you ever had to research any of your subjects, or do you pretty much know all of them already? Also, I find it to be an example of how art inspiring art inspiring art can produce originality. What are your thoughts about original ideas, derived works, inspiration, and their circular relationships?

Oh man, I research all the time! Thank goodness for Wikipedia and Google Image search. And I think it's absolutely crazy that when I image search something for reference, in a few days, my new painting will show up under that same search!

This question totally leads me to think copyright law immediately. Innovation is recombination. Those inspirations and circular relationships are integral to creativity. Of course, there's a certain famous mouse that's trying to put a halt to that.

What's the weirdest painting request yet?

Bruce Campbell as a robot, maybe? Poodle In A Vest Juggling Four Elvises was also pretty darn strange.

What's the strangest request for a painting you've received?
What's been the most challenging painting to make?

People give me weird combos a lot. Here's the most elaborate...

Mess: "I would like a painting of teetering stack of pies with a shark looking at them with a hungry and mischevious look on his face with maybe some rainbows in the background. And the lucky charms cereal marshmallow shapes floating i nthe sky. That would be pretty rad. Oh and if you can maybe Christopher Walken on the other side of the pies also looking hungry. And somewhere on the paintign it should say 'Oh crap.'"

Then someone topped that with Mess in Space: "A stagecoach being driven by the Aladdin Genie, pulled by a pack of Yodas, in Hot pursuit of a Viking robot on a Unicorn. The trail of the unicorn should be all rainbowy and sparkly. The setting of this portrait is clearly in space."

Challenging for me is when people ask for landscapes or environments around their characters. I do best when its a single character that I can put on a bright background.

If you had to pick only one beer to drink for the rest of your life, what would it be?

PBR light. Cheap, low calorie and a good stunt beer (for Power Hours, funneling, shotgunning, etc.) But that's only because it would have to be light to drink it at all occasions. Normally I like stouts and porters.

How much do you reckon it's cost you so far? I imagine 2000 paintings adds up to a whole bunch of time and money for the materials and shipping.

2,000 x $2.00 per canvas = $4,000 2,000 x $1.50 for packaging = $3,000 1,500 x $3.10 for shipping = $4,650 500 x $8.80 for international shipping = $4,400 I'd say paint has been about $500 so far Total: about $16,550

Not including the cost of all my time and talent ;)

I requested a painting from you 2 years ago, you said I was about 200 away, yet I've never heard back/received my painting. I've had friends request paintings since then and they've gotten there's. I'm not upset, I'm just wondering what happened? :)

Oh no! Did you change your email address? There's also the possibility that my email got marked as spam. "Your Free Painting is done!" is a really suspicious subject line. Message me your email and I'll look it up!

What happens to paintings like that?

Do you archive them or do they end up going to good will and people wondering "Who the hell made that?!?"

I email the person about 3 times, a few weeks apart. If I still don't hear back, I usually send it to people that ask for charity auction donations or requesters that say I can send them whatever I'd like.

A few times I've been able to find people who changed their email addresses by hunting them down on Facebook, LinkedIn, their personal website, etc.

This is a really great idea. Do you ever get tired of painting all the time? Do you ever take a painting break?

Yeah sometimes I get fed up with it. Sometimes it's this weird thing where I feel crappy when I haven't done it but I don't necessarily feel accomplished when I do it. Like brushing your teeth. When you brush your teeth at night, you don't say "WOO! Kickass! I brushed my teeth! Go me!" but if you don't do it you think, "Crap. I realllly should have done that."

But recently it's been really rewarding because of this big 2,000 milestone so I've been excited

Do you really pay for shipping? Do you use UPS, FedEx, USPS, DHL? Do you use a shipping tube?

I use USPS and I pay for shipping. I can't use a tube because they're on thick canvas boards, so I mail them flat. Me and my postman are good buddies now because I go so often. We've even drank together. Though he does dread when I walk in the door because I usually wait about a month and then mail 30 all at once. The people in line hate me.

My question is: where do you get the money to ship all these paintings? Shit's expensive!

Heck yeah it is! At first, it was coming out of my own pocket. Now, some people are nice enough to donate so I pretty much break even. I'm pretty sure I'm the reason the United States Postal Service hasn't gone under yet.

No question, but I will say I just can't bring myself to request a painting since there are so many awesome people out there that I think might need one more than me. oh, drunk guilt...

BTW.. Thank you Ali for the signed poster, it is going up in our new Phase I brewery this weekend! Party on Spags!

I'm going up in a brewery?? My 2D self is honored!

No question, just wanted to say thanks for the painting you had sent me! :) took a long time but it was worth it.

YAY! Which one is yours?

did you ever regret doing all those paintings? and what kept you funded?

I do sometimes wonder if I could have been really super successful at something else had I put that much effort in a different direction. But it's been fun and I'm pretty proud of this 2,000 milestone so I don't regret it at all

Donations from generous people that liked their paintings has kept me going. People paying it forward has basically allowed me to break even and I <3 them for that!

Is there a painting you've secretly wanted to make but nobody has requested yet?

Congratulations on your creativity and work ethic.

Someone requested a painting of the "badass over here" Rage Comic not too long ago. It really made me want to paint all of them haha

Do you ever receive [ask for] assistance in the work of painting, research on them, or even just cleaning up or physically purchasing materials?

Sometimes I have my dad pick up my canvases because I'm too lazy to drive to the art store. Plus I buy them in bulk and 100 canvases at a time are heavy! So, thanks dad! (I hope he's secretly a redditor)

Other than that, all of the work is my own!

The next time you come to Oregon can I take you out on a date?

Is this just an elaborate ploy to get moved up on the Free Painting wait list?

Where can I ask you for a painting?

There's info on how to request under the Free Paintings section of my website

I have one of these paintings, it's the lil surfer guy! It's up in my room in Sydney. Thanks so much!

Oh man, he's surfing upside down right now!

How do I request an awesome painting from you?

Check out the Free Paintings section of my website to see how to request!

Edit: Fixed link! (I'm no trickster)

First off, thanks for being so damn awesome.

Where can we ask for paintings from you?

Check out the Free Paintings section of my website to see how to request!

Have you painted an asshat? Also, hi Ali!

I've painted an asshat!

Great work Ali!

Am I right in saying that there is 2024 paintings in that one big 10mb image?

Yepppp. Darn you mathy people. I added the 24 that came after the 2,000th painting because I wanted it to be even rows.

What inaccuracies! These are 2024 paintings! Do I win a painting for discovering there are bonus paintings in the painting atlas you linked? :)

Haha I was waiting for someone to call me out. I added the 24 that came after the 2,000th painting because I wanted it to be even rows.

Pants check? Also, how has the indiegogo aftermath been treating you?

Screw pants! So far so good :) Getting psyched to start my tour!

How long does it take you to do a painting?

Depends on the subject. I'd say I don't go much over any hour on average but there are some that take me lots longer

You have favorited a few of my tweets. Makes me feel special. :)

That's cause you are special!

will you come on our show, Writing on the Floor? www.writingonthefloor.com

Yinzers, eh? Ok! Hit me up and we'll talk

How much do I have to donate to move up the list? I'm not very good at waiting 3+ years.

The waiting list is about 1,500 people now. Most of them are non-donations so donating anything gets you moved up to waiting about months as opposed to years.

Have you ever considered painting a house with no doors or windows on the first floor, but has several windows and one door on the second with only a down escalator leading from the door.

Um... I have now I guess.

I think what you do is great! Good for you from an admirer. Would you be willing to come do a TEDx talk in our next event?

Ah, interesting. That could be cool... Where's the event?

Awesome, Ali! I probably missed it in this long thread or the video (dogs barking) how did you decide on 2000?

I didn't stop at 2,000 or anything. I just made that video to mark that milestone. I'm still painting!

I love the lizard painting you did for my little girl, a few years back. It's displayed prominently in the kids' room. Thank you for it, it's the only real art we own.

Sweet! That's so cool. Tell your daughter I said hi :)

If you could create your paintings with any material(s) in the known universe, what would you use?

Fabergé eggs and bald eagle heads

This is a really awesome project. I really like your style. I'm currently debating if I should email you a request, mostly because I know it'll be a long time before you can paint me something awesome. I'm a broke college graduate so money is tight. Can you put on your Ron Popeil hat and explain why it will be worth it for me to donate? Also, how far up the waiting lists do donors go?

Don't donate! Haha I'm already getting overwhelmed because I've gotten some recent press about my 2,000 milestone. I'd much rather you keep your dough than me convince you that you need my art :)

I don't know what to ask Ali. X)

Hey, I know you!

http://imgur.com/a/iPx6X - I have recently been working on a similar project

Taking random suggestions from stranger, and it is hilarious the requests I get. What are some of the most absurd requests you have gotten? Or ones you had to turn down because of how ridiculous they were? For instance I was recently asked to paint a giant godzilla penis attacking a city... which did make me laugh. But I don't know if I am really ready to handle a cock that size.

Haha I've not gotten requests as weird as you have

What do you like most about what you do? Also, you are fantastic, keep it up!

Never having to put pants on. Like... ever.

Thanks!! ;)

Hey Ali, <> club friend here. Congrats on all the things. Did you ever decide if you're coming to SDCC this year? And if so impromptu low-key drink up? Chinbeard is crashing at my pad for the weekend and I'm sure if you were added to the mix we may blow the roof off the place ^_z

Gah! I wish I could have worked out going but I didn't get a show lined up in time. I'm so jealous. You guys are going to have a blast

Sorry I missed your Philly show! When are you playing the Pittsburgh area again?

PS: Thanks for TARDIS 4!

:D Glad you like your Tardis! My tour should be starting around September so I'll be playing in Pittsburgh and probably Philly again after that

Hi Ali -- Just wanted to stop in and say thank you for my painting a few years back. You did an awesome Purdue Boilermaker train for my soon-to-be-wife and we love it. Here it is in the wild!

Oooo framed! I'm honored :D

I live in Asheville, NC, and we have our very own Spagnola artist!

Here's his page. He does some amazing commissioned murals around town.

http://www.dustinspagnola.com/artwork.php?picdirectory=2012_1

No one click on that link! I don't want him beating me for search engine results of "spagnola artist"

Who can i speak to about selling your power hour cd. We have a chain of 13 beer stores around me i know would by a ton.

Cool, I'll message you my email and we can discuss

Has anyone ever done a painting for you? Would you like one, or another one?

Yep, people have painted for me before. Are you a painter, too? After some research in the field, I totally suggest charging for your work.

I'm so glad your indigogo campaign raised enough funds. Hardly any votes from Canada unfortunately but I'm sure you'll find your way up here eventually! Steve sucks. Thanks for following me on twitter.

Woo! I love connecting on Twitter ;) And yeah, I do aim to get to Canada some time soon! Stay tuned

Also, is Bud Lite your beer of choice? WHYYYYYYYYYY

Heck no it's not! As stunt beers go, I like PBR light. (Stunt beer being something with which you can do a Power Hour, keg stand, funnel, etc.)

Ever had any controversial painting requests?

Ok, maybe more than one. I'm not sure if this one is controversial or not. I do believe it's based on a conspiracy theory around Obama.

Just one. Someone asked for Anna Nicole Smith in Clown Makeup right after she died. I felt weird about it and almost didn't do it. Then it ended up looking really crappy so I felt even worse about it hah! Perhaps venting about it on the internet will help me feel better.

Edit: It did not.

Other than money, is there something else you need gear wise or? that we could send?

How do you deal with health insurance being self employed?

Haha will paint for food? Nah, I usually just ask for monetary donations so I can keep the project going.

Yeah health insurance sucks. Sucks all the money out of my bank account.

What is your favorite thing to drink at 10 am on a Friday?

Anything that doesn't require me to put pants on to go get it.

Do you know the muffin man?

Sadly, no. But I know the Cupcake Kid.

Two questions: 1. Would you ever consider painting for a diehard fan of both you and the Seattle Seahawks? 2. Next time you're in Seattle can I take you out and show you around?

1) Duh! I'd love to paint for you. I'm a Steelers fan but the requester is always right. 2) Double duh! I should be hitting there on my concert tour this year :D

I went to high school with you (though I am much younger), and you were/are good friends with my older brother. No question, just good luck in your future endeavors and congratulations on winning your lawsuit!

P.S. you should have put something about your Power Hour/Shotglass USB in the title too!

Yay! Go Bobcats!!

Artist Ali and Power Hour Ali must remain separate people :)

Why?

Because people have a hard time wrapping their heads around it. You need to put yourself in a box and be an easily-digestible elevator pitch. Being an "artist" and a "party musician" is hard to make sense of in an instant. I feel I can't have dimensions to my personality on the internet so I try to keep the project separate. It's not that I like it that way, I just know I have to yield to what is the best way of getting your message across.

Do you take requests that are surprise gifts for someone other than the requester? Just wondering.

Also, how many requests for a copy of that Reddit Alien are you expecting in the next 24 hours? LOL

Yeah, people request for others all the time! It's actually really common.

I decided the first person to ask me a question about the reddit alien painting gets it! You're the winner :) Message me an address so I can mail it to you... if you want it

I know they're not ready yet - but is there a ballpark on when we can expect those Power Hour pint glasses? I'm feening :P

Gah! I'm so anxious about them, too. I'd say I'll be mailing it to you in under 2 weeks! If not, it's the factory's fault and we should party together in protest. That'll show them.

Have there been any painting ideas that were too out there or dificult? I tried to throw you a curve ball with Gizmo riding Falcor.

Haha yeah yours was definitely weird :) "Mess" and "Mess in Space" were weird and difficult for sure. More about them here

John Weeast here.... Who would win in a fight... Grilled Cheese or Taco?

Taco. Protein ups the asskickingness.

Say Power Hour takes off like wild fire and is a hit across the country for decades. You'd basically be the sans-margarita/cheeseburger Jimmy Buffett of our generation. How would you feel about that?

Pretty darn freakin' good.

Ali, would you marry me? I'm already married, but I may be able to talk my wife into joining the LDS for you.

Sweet! I love open bars

When you visiting the jersey shore so we can go drunk running down the boardwalk?

Yes please

I don't even drink, but I love the idea of your power hour game. I might even play it if you came to town.. so, if a freaking teetotaler loves your product, I'd say you won at life.

How many blunts would you smoke with snoop?

Wow, that's probably the most flattering thing I've heard about my album :)

All.

What made you want to start painting?

I like making nice things.

That sentence should just be my artist's statement.

Oh! One more question: What would you do if someone requested something like a single line in a single color just to have the type of art a pretentious asshole would have in their house?

Haha I would oblige said requester desiring to be a pretentious asshole. "Single Line Blue" sounds like a gorgeous piece.

How long would it take to get a painting if i requested one today?

There are about 1,500 people on the wait list. One a day puts that at a bit over 4 years. Then you have to account for people skipping the line with donations throughout those years. So a looooong time.

Have you ever finished a painting and though...im keeping this!

Yes! I've kept the first one, the 1,000th one and the 2,000th one.

Other than that, I'll occasionally think one is extra cool and feel a little twinge of desire to hang on to it but that's promptly replaced with a bigger desire to get it out of my house and make someone else happy.

so not including the three you kept, have you had a favourite painting that you loved doing? and what is your favourite subject matter to paint?

I've painted more fishbowls since my first one and this version turned out really nicely. I had a tough time parting with it.

I like painting anything that allows me to be creative with character design. Landscapes and environments make me very un-excited.

Painting...beer...music. rank these in order of importance to yourself.(please. sorry that sounded very rude)

Music...painting...beer. That was actually really hard. Why did you make me do that?! I'm so sorry, beer!

hi ali! I received the comedy & drama masks from you, and then got another one (robot?) for my husbo. sometime after my requests, I got a job and gave a small bit back to the cause. just wanted to say congrats on the success of this project and thanks for paying it forward.

Aww thanks :) You rock!! I'm so glad you're happy with your paintings. Thank you for being an awesome part of this project

I'm a doodler, and I usually stick to sharpie. I'd love to try goofing around with paint, though, because the colors are so vibrant! What type would you recommend mucking about with at first? Acrylic? Oil? Fingerpaint?

Definitely acrylic. I hate that oil paint is bad to inhale. I'm not about to shorten my lifespan for a medium.

Go Pens! And who could forget about the Bucs this year? Wahoo yinzers!

Go Pens, Pens, Pens, Pens!

Go Bucs, Bucs, Bucs!

Go Steelers, Steelers, Steelers, Steelers, Steelers, Steelers!

Favorite kind of cookie?

Those ones that are cake sized

so tell me, what's it like to be a professional drinker?

Probably almost as cool as rollin balls deep

Love following you on Twitter and watching your videos!!! I know you like your own music but do like karaoke?

Haha yay! I'm glad someone's paying attention to what I'm putting out there :)

Karaoke is pretty cool if you limit everyone to 60 seconds. Then drink in between performers.