Interview with Miller Rodriguez

By David James

Based in LA, photographer/artist Miller Rodriguez – aka Pretty Puke – has been notable for his lo-fi approach to documenting general bad behavior using locals and friends posed in arcane activities. MR exaggerates the themes of nudity, drug-use and violence in a beautifully playful way. If anything MR’s work is a purposeful mess of ideas – drawing on a wide variety of influences and held together coherently in his own visual language. His images are a prophetic vision of a possible future: the party after an airborne virus has killed off the prefontal cortex.
I have been a fan of MR’s work for a while and asked him to discuss his work for Ladygunn.

How do you spend your day – got a day job?
I kinda live a double life /// by day I help slow kids make art in a after school program called beyond the bell .
Has anyone had a go at describing your photographic style?
my style can B all over the place I don’t think people can pin point why they R intrigued by it . 1 description I get a lot of the time is that it’s offensive:(

You are very prolific, where does your energy come from?
I’m 1 of the “lucky ones” that suffers from O.C.D. //// I make myself sick with visual thoughts that the only way 2 cure this feeling is by making a visually aesthetic image. I guess I would say my obsessive-compulsive personality fuels my creative process.
You use cheaper cameras: Is that an aesthetic choice?
YESS. I don’t want fancy lenses or expensive cameras to veil the flaws in my subjects or subject matter.
Do you art direct all your shots? Or do you like to improvise?
when im under the influence my shots R very in the moment and real . I act on impulse but for the most part I make it easy to work with because I tell my subjects exactly what to do
Do you see yourself staying in LA?
I wanna get the fuck out of here 🙁 and document messy people somewhere else .
Got anything on the cards coming up?
I make moves in the dark
Where do you see photography heading? Is it doomed to failure?
t takes a certain type of person to take the type of photos that I do and I would say yes I am DOOMED because I am choosing to do what I want in a unconventional way making it hard to B marketable. I rather have a cult following then be in limelight .
Catch Pretty Puke here:
http://prettypuke.com/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/prettypuke/
Facebook.com/prettypuke
Instagram @ prettypukefool
Twitter @ mrprettypuke
Pretty Puke’s work has also been showcased in issue #3 of Teicam Books. See Teicam Books at: https://www.facebook.com/teicambooks