Art Brute No. 1 / Gold Teeth

Jim Mahfood (also: Food One) is an illustrator with a style that straddles between angular charm and a grafitti molotov. His past clients have included Marvel, Playboy, and, yes, Colt 45. Earlier this year, Mahfood took part in The April Flores Toy Show at Los Angeles' La Luz de Jesus Gallery. The show tasked eight artists to paint limited-edition plaster molds based on the first ever sex toy of adult film starlet Flores', er, parts.

Ever think it would come to this?
Yes, I always knew deep down that my career would lead to painting on vaginas, whether real or plaster.

How did you get involved with April Flores and the first exhibit at La Luz de Jesus?
Through my man (filmmaker and exhibit curator) Carlos Batts, of course! Good guy. Talented motherfucker.

What kind of challenges did a sex toy present?
The only thing tricky about it was the curvy-ness of it. Typically, I am drawing and painting on flat surfaces. This was pretty much the exact opposite of that. Sort of challenging but still fun as hell.

How did you decide on this concept? I mean, teeth...
I accidentally turned the whole thing upside down and noticed that it sort of looked like a mouth to me... So I painted it blue and added the teeth, and bam! There you go.