The Art Ninja: Ben Collison
Written by Christine Joy Ferrer on March 31, 2009
(Photo: Courtesy of Ben Collison)
I was walking down the street when a little ninja girl on a T-shirt winked at me. So, I bought her. Her stylized, bold features caught my eye as I was sifting through an artist’s garage sale in San Francisco. A more badass character than any Powerpuff girl I’ve seen. A token to female empowerment.
Her creator and illustrator, Ben Collison, a local San Francisco Bay Area artist, is the founder of No Guns Productions. He’s been on his imaginative grind for the last six years — from sketching, stenciling, and indulging with silkscreen and acrylics to digital imagery.
“I think art got into me not me getting into it. It’s the only thing I give a damn about,” Collison says.
Name it: Clothes. Art. Skateboards. Figurines. Ninjas. Savage females donning Samurai swords. Old Samurais — the symbol of his inspiration. His designs materialize in various forms.
Collison grew up into ninjas and Bruce Lee. Then discovered I.F.C. Samurai Saturdays. He’s been published in a couple of books and magazines around the world. Billboards featuring his work held space in both San Francisco and Brooklyn.
If you’re lucky, you could pull a drive-by and maybe catch him selling his swag right outside his front door. Just remember no guns.
“There is so much bullshit out there that a little positively could go a long way. Besides anyone can kill with a gun. It takes a badass mofo’ to kill with a sword,” says Collison.
To check out more of his work, hit up:
