When not creating and posting whimsical illustrations under the Instagram handle soulfuzzy, our artist of the month Stephen Dewsnap plays guitar and sings in the Floridian collective The Dreambows. Music fans know Dewsnap as a Dreambows compatriot of Surfer Blood members John Paul Pitts and Tyler Schwarz. They’ve played Bumblefest, Respectable Street, and the Music Heals 420 Fest, and have released numerous singles, EPs and albums of wistful indie pop and rock going back to the beginnings of the COVID-19 pandemic.

But art is more than a sideline for Dewsnap, who tells PureHoney that he “draws all of the time, everywhere, on everything.” And it’s not so neatly separated from his music. As Dewsnap discusses his creative life, the line between making pictures and writing songs becomes intriguingly blurry.

The Cocoa Beach native describes a kind of artistic awakening that happened for him at age 12, when his mother introduced him to LPs and, by extension, the world of album art. “Holding the physical covers in my hand and looking at art while drifting off into this new world of music was wonderful,” he says. “My style grew from the music, skateboarding community, and the artwork of the mid-late ‘90s.”

The candy-colored figures that populate his Instagram — be they melting, vibrating, picnicking or traveling to outer space — often come with beguiling captions such as, “Insecurity and FOMO, leading to the formation of cliques, poison a local art community, Dream Dream Dream …,” or, more succinctly, “Simulation Break.”

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What moves him to muse over these topics in his art? “I think the idea of being in a simulation is interesting,” Dewsnap says. “Technological advancements and the hands-free way of life can make people feel like they don’t have much control. We naturally want more of everything that either benefits us or entertains us. The people who make money off those things will feed that fire as long as they can. Eventually, there’s going to be a hard turn in the opposite direction.”

Asked how his artwork and music correlate, Dewsnap says, “Music is always involved in what I draw. I draw the feeling I have or the world I see. Most times it’s less about the actual drawing and more about the colors. It’s cool to think about a drawing being a vessel for color. Writing music and lyrics to me is the same thing as creating a visual. The visuals I create are bubblegum wrapper versions of songs.”

He views The Dreambows as “more of an evolving art project than a music project: I’m not drawing as much, but I am while writing the music.” He could be talking about both when he says: “How do I paint a picture of our insecurities in physical form and in a purple furry room but with a happy undertone that makes you want to let loose?”

For visitors to his Instagram, he hopes to only draw a smile. If there’s a therapeutic aim for himself in his art, it’s to find playful ways to distract from negativity.

“One of my recent pieces was of the characters I draw having a picnic — all the while, look what’s actually going on around us,” Dewsnap says. “I was basically saying: We just want to feel wanted by other humans, to be nourished and be both physically and mentally comfortable. We tend to make a mess of everything and over-complicate when forgetting our basic needs.”

Dewsnap’s playlist for drawing is eclectic: “I love listening to long drawn-out songs with a rhythm that never changes but the layers build and peel off intermittently. They’re perfect for letting your mind wander. Fela Kuti is really great to draw to, or some adventurous ’60s garage stuff. Currently, I got into this band called Berliner Doom dry cl. I’ve also been in love with Dry Cleaning, The Wytches, Omni, and Being Dead over the last few years.”

His secret to staying fresh creatively is to keep it moving. He says, “I spent most of my 20’s in Los Angeles and my early 30’s in Massachusetts, Colorado, and some places sprinkled in-between. I moved back post-COVID to Florida to be closer to family. I love uprooting and experiencing new places outside of my comfort zone. It forces you to have to live differently, adapt, learn, and feel new things.”

Stephen Dewsnap is on Instagram at @soufuzzy and at thedreambows.bandcamp.com. ~ Kelli Bodle