LOCAL ARTIST
PAINT & PARTY
A local artist has made his mark on countless walls in San Marcos — literally, as many of them have been painted over time and time again. One might even argue that the fleeting nature of street art adds to its charm. Austin Sepulveda’s work toes the line between realism and surrealism “with a graphic edge,” which incorporates vivid pops of color that seem electric, giving the appearance of neon lights coursing through the image. Or as he put it, it’s as if he “brought a cartoon to life.” It is mind blowing the amount of detail and grandeur he is able to achieve with just a can of spray paint and even more astonishing that those awe-inspiring murals often have an expiration date.
If you’re curious to see him in action, Sepulveda and a group of 19 other artists will be painting the alleyways behind Cats Billiards and Stinky Dawg with a Halloween theme from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m on Oct. 5, and the public is invited to attend. Halloween Jam will be held simultaneously with an event at Sean Patrick’s, so there will be live bands as well.
“Basically, that whole back section behind Sean Patrick’s, Stinky Dawg and Cats Billiards is going to be a big party,” Sepulveda said.
Austin is originally from Houston, which he seemed proud to say has its own vibrant and incredibly di- verse art community. He’s married with two kids and enjoys fishing and building DIY skateboarding spots, when he isn’t painting.
Austin Sepulveda is a local artist whose work falls somewhere between realism and surrealism. He has painted many murals all over the city and often paints murals on the walls of the alleyways by Cats Billiards with a group of other artists. That same group will be hosting Halloween Jam on Oct. 5 where they will be painting the alleyways with a Halloween theme. Above, is part of a Mars Attacks themed mural that Sepulveda painted on the alleyways behind cats. Below, pictured is Austin Sepulveda. Photos by Austin Sepulveda
“I started painting when I was really young. My parents were both super supportive of my artwork. They always made sure I had paints and canvases and stuff like that. When I was little, my mom used to let me draw on the walls of my room,” Sepulveda said. “Growing up, I liked skateboarding. I was always skating in ditches and random places by train tracks, so graffiti and skateboarding kind of melded together. I started doing graffiti when I was really young and still did regular art as well.”
Apparently, many consider graffiti and art on a canvas to be part of “two different worlds.” And at one point, he kept them separate as well.
“I would do my quote, unquote, ‘regular art’ with a paintbrush, and then I would do graffiti with spray paint,” Sepulveda said. “Then I was like, ‘Why am I separating these things?’ I started doing my regular art really big with spray paint and incorporating graffiti, and it just kind of went from there.”
Around 2021, Sepulveda decided to walk away from his fabrication business and pursue his art career fulltime. The transition has “worked out great,” particularly for San Marcos, which is now adorned with around 15 to 20 of his murals; it would be about 25 to 50, if he hadn’t painted over many of them in the alleyways where they regularly cycle through murals with various themes. His favorite mural featured a war scene with aliens from the movie, Mars Attacks, with UFOs shooting at the graffiti elements. That is the one that is being painted over in preparation for Halloween Jam.
“It's the nature of the alleyways and the nature of graffiti too,” Sepulveda said. “A lot of graffiti — you paint it, and then it's either on a train and it's gone forever or someone else paints over it or the city paints over it. So it’s really not that upsetting to me.”
Of the 20 artists in their upcoming event, David Perez or “Flaco,” is the reason they’re all able to paint on those alleyways. He has been a major influence on Sepulveda’s art in addition to some non-local artists like Drew Brophy and Ed Roth.
“Flaco showed me a lot,” Sepulveda said. “A lot about how to create art in a different way, how to incorporate a lot more of the graffiti stuff that I like into my regular art as well, giving us a place to go make giant murals… that a lot of people don't have access to.”
Sepulveda said it’s great that a lot of cities are embracing the art culture, but he’s hoping to see more diversity of styles in their choices — similar to what he has seen in his hometown of Houston, where the art scene is “super dynamic.”
“They pick artists to come and make statements. To me, that’s what artwork is supposed to do. It's supposed to make you think, or it's supposed to be impactful, whether that's just visually or the way that you think about it,” he said. “In the future, it would be cool to see more cities embrace that idea of bringing artists in to really do something, instead of just putting something up just to say that you did it.”
Follow Sepulveda on instagram @ost3nart and buy a print or book him for a custom mural or art piece at osten-art.com. Halloween Jam will feature live painting by Sepulveda, aka Ost3n; Paz, Spikolie, Howler, Philly, Kane, Thic, Bunce Art, Indigo Icarus, Triz, Dane, Michi, Belief, Sham, Nsane, Banks, Remote, Rage, Scipe and Chris Mendoza, and it is by sponsored by Alchemy Records, CCI Computer Services, San Marcos Film Lab and Stinky Dawg.
Above, Pictured Sepulveda has started the Halloween themed mural. The smaller walls will be painted live on Oct. 5. Below left, is a section of a mural Sepulveda painted in St. Louis.. Photos by Austin Sepulveda
