Featured Artist Update: Gotoup

Try walking around backwards all day so that you can see the world from a totally new point of view! Or – if you’re afraid of bumping into people and embarrassing yourself – enjoy a new perspective with this week’s Featured Artist Gotoup instead! The returning artist’s lovable quirky designs offer a surprising perspective of the world, whether it’s a book reading a book (gasp, how meta) or a wave relaxing on the shore, you’ll find yourself uplifted by the bright graphics and you’ll be ready to tackle the world with a renewed optimism.

The longtime DBH artist Gotoup, or Alexander Medvedev, is a retiree who dedicates his free time to drawing and painting. He appreciates that in retirement he can devote much of his time to creativity and shares, “I'm in no hurry to finish the job quickly.” In the past, he always found himself drawing “on sheets of paper, in albums, in school notebooks ...”. However, it wasn’t until recently that he was able to fully devote himself to pursuing art. He admits that although he doesn’t have a specific style of art, it is the act of creating that “gives more pleasure than its result” and he loves losing himself in the artistic process.

He confesses that if he could give his younger self any advice, it would be to focus “more time to professional painting training.” Today, he believes he has many ideas that he cannot execute due to his lack of “artistic skills” or training. Still, he loves his life and imparts an inspirational quote to be appreciated by everyone: “My future is here and now. I am many years old and I try to live every day to the fullest.”