I found Marilyn Rondon somehow lurking my way through Instagram… I don’t know when, but it’s been a while now. I was drawn to her personal look and her style of art, and within the time, have come to notice other things about her that make her really cool. She looks fun. She DJs. All DJ’s are fun! She has a soft spot for kids. She’s an artist, and creates bold, colorful, bright drawn and painted murals. She doesn’t seem to have any boundaries, but feeds off inspiration. She has a skunk tattooed on her, and has a fucking neck tattoo – I’m a big neck tattoo fan over here, that does not have one (yet?). Marilyn’s a talented babe you’re probably going to dig, and you’ll probably be inspired by. Que chido. I’m pretty happy to have her included Bird Trouble The Rad and The Wild series – my little place dedicated to those who do what they love to do. Enjoy the read!
BT // Hey Marilyn! How’s it going?
MR // Wassup! Life is chill.
BT // Tell us about yourself and your thoughts on your week.
MR // I’m an artist/ DJ and happy to be alive.
BT // What projects are you currently working on?
MR // I’m currently working on several projects. I’m working on 3 different photo zines, one of them is all selfies I’ve taken on film with friends. I’m writing a memoir and finishing my first children’s book. On top of that I’m also working on 3 different color studies and small portraits on wood. I don’t have any show’s lined up which takes a lot of pressure away and allows me to explore further with my work. Luckily I have a ton of time right now to work on these projects I’ve been wanting to do for about a year. I’ve also been lucky to have a practice wall in my friends studio where i’m currently working on a mural and will be changing out the wall from time to time. Painting large scale is such a privilege. I’m also collaborating with a friend on a children’s clothing line set to debut later this year.
BT // What can spark inspiration for you?
MR // I’ve currently relocated back to my hometown, Miami after living in New York for 8 years and the slower pace really allows me to have the head space and silence I’ve craved. Being around kids has totally changed my outlook on life and my work. I’ve become totally inspired by kids. Seeing my friends do what they love and succeed is also insanely inspiring.
BT // If you could work with one person, who would it be?
MR // That’s a really tough question because there are so many amazing artists and so many possibilities when you open your mind. I would love to work with Drake. His music has inspired my writing and a lot of my paintings. I would love to collaborate with him.
BT // Who have you worked with that you really, really dig?
MR // I was really lucky this past summer to get a job at The Newsstand.
If you don’t know what the Newsstand is, here is a link to the project. http://thenewsstand.co/
I met a lot of amazing inspiring artists, learned A LOT about art, books, and culture that I never really exposed myself to, but also had the opportunity to do something that not a lot of New Yorkers get to experience, I worked underground in a subway station for 5 months!
It was rough, some days it was so unbearably hot and the space was so small that I would get cramps all over my body from trying to adjust to the space. Spending 10-11 hours underground is really intense and really affects your mood.
It was really cool on a lot of levels. I would go in, open the shop and meet every single kind of person. Friends would wave on their commutes to work, we had regular neighborhood Kooks that would roll through and talk my ear off, I got to do some live painting while being on the clock, it was a huge community project and if given the chance, I would totally do it again. Working alongside of Lele Saveri was really an amazing experience, the man is a nut! I mean literally takes on 5-10 projects at a time and makes them all work. I learned so much with my experience at the Newsstand and owe a huge thank you to Nick Sethi, Priscilla Jeong, Nathaniel Matthews, Jen Shear, Aria Mcmanus, Eddie Goldblatt, Julian Gilbert and Adam Rossiter for being a really amazing team. They are all amazing artists!
BT // Create a playlist with your current favorite songs.
MR // Here’s a link to my latest mixtape on soundcloud. https://soundcloud.com/totallystoked/quickie-mix
BT // What kind of clothing are you sporting right now?
MR // I’m wearing a white tank-top, black sweatpants and slippers. Very chill.
BT // What is your favorite vintage item, thrifted, or handy-down that you own?
MR // I have this old school map of South America, it’s from the 70’s, It’s beautiful and one of the only things I’ve ever really hung on to.
----BIRD TROUBLE ----Collection + Blog Narrated by Alexz Sandoval 
Whoa she is rad as fuck. Her paintings are gorgeous and would make fantastic tattoos. I clearly have a thing with floral tattoos 😉 I’m interested in what she has tattooed on her forehead? I’ve never seen that placement before either.
It says “thoughts become things”