“I Draw A Mouse For A Living” - A homage to the work of Father Steve.

WRITTEN by July Flowers

     Art has always been a key part of my life. Growing up, I was lucky to have had the chance to attend art centered schools, play instruments, and generally have a space that allowed me to be creative to my own degree. As I got older my fascination for things such as music , fashion, design, and art expanded as I began to dig through the many mediums that caught my attention.  One of those mediums being the work of Steven Savoca A.K.A Father Steve. 

     Steven’s work has a special place in my heart due to the amount of  inspiration and possibility his work consistently embodies. His creative medium is original and infinite. Consisting of various paintings, clothing collections, figurines, furniture , and products.  All centered around his iconic Mouse caricature.  

     I see Steven to be an important figure for those in the creative landscape to acknowledge for his ability to display both high levels of comfortability and versatility in his work. I found Steven’s work at a time when I found myself disillusioned with the music, clothing, and art I was struggling to create and follow through with. As one does, I began looking for inspiration. Searching for something to spark my motivation. Something to remind me of the potential that all ideas hold with the proper execution.  And so far , Father Steve has not disappointed.

     In my time collecting various products made by Father Steve, I have been lucky to acquire some key products that I believe display the infinite possibilities of the world Father Steve has created. 

Father Steve Blind Box #1- Released 3/18/21. This Blind Box contained the first set of 12 individually colored mice figurines released as a sort of “ collect and trade” collection. The colors featured in  this collection consisted of lime green, pink, royal blue, orange, black, white, teal, brown, red, yellow, polkadot , and gold. The ability to collect and trade these figurines comes from the way each Blind Box is curated to contain 12 randomly chosen mice of various colors . With the polkadot and gold colors being identified as rare colors to obtain due to the limited production quantity. Gold Mice in this collection were limited to 100 pieces, and contained a card that allowed the receiver  to collect a special gift at their next checkout. In my unboxing of the collection I was heavily surprised by the amount of detail that was put into the packaging. The box that all 12 mice were packaged in displayed a black and white collage design of Father Steve’s mouse caricature. Within the box,  each mouse came in its own individual box that mimicked the same black and white collage design and had a “menu” of all the colors that you had a chance to obtain. In my unboxing I received  2 pairs of duplicate mice which wasn't too surprising, Overall though I was impressed with this Blind Box. The colors were strong, the mice displayed no manufacturing flaws, and each figurine is fully articulated allowing you to pose and display them as you see fit. 

Father Steve 8” Vinyl Sitting Mouse Set - Released 4/29/2021. This set of vinyl figures consists of three colored mice ( brown, blue, and pink,) that are in a fixed sitting position. Compared to the blind box mice , these mice are significantly larger, and serve as more of a coffee table or shelf decoration. Various colors of these 8” mice have been released previously before this set, so when I saw that these figures were making another comeback, I had to jump at the opportunity. As expected, the packaging that these figures came in was beyond my expectations. The box containing the mice was designed to look like a small house, which included designs such as : a door, a water hose , a roof with a T.V antenna, and a window to view the figure inside. 

Father Steve Tripple Mouse Hoodies /  Dance Mouse T-shirts - Released 4/29/2021. These Hoodies and T-shirts were released alongside the 8” vinyl figure set. The hoodies were designed with a screen print of three sitting mice, colored to match the ones featured in the vinyl collection. With the brown mice figures printed on a black hoodie, blue mice figures printed on a white hoodie, and the pink mice figures printed on an orange hoodie. The screen print of the hoodie looked bold and felt perfectly bonded to the fabric. The blank carried a decent amount of weight for being a hoodie that was released in the summer, but I can’t knock its quality regardless of the season. The Dance Mouse T-shirts were also featured in this drop, which to me seemed like the dance shirts were meant to be their own stand alone garment, not necessarily having much connection to the hoodies, but more of a connection to the Blind Box #1 release. The shirts were designed with a screen print of various colored mice posing in different dance moves, while the colors used for the mice on this garment seemed to also represent the colored mice included with Blind Box #1.

Father Steve Blind Box #2 - Released 7/14/2021. This second blind box is very similar to the Series #1 Blind Box, the only difference being a new color palette, and new designs for the 2 rarity mice. The colors available for this box included: grey, purple, olive green, raspberry pink, brick red, indigo, athletic yellow, peach, dark brown, and pale yellow. The two special rarity mice came with a design of a white mouse in a tuxedo, and the second version was designed to look very similar to a T-800 robot from the filmTerminator. The packaging for this series #2 box was also designed different compared to the series #1 box, Substituting the black and white collage design for a more cartoon wooden shipping crate design. One thing I will note is that the colors included in the series #2 box seem to exhibit more of a matte finish and feel. As opposed to the series #1 colors, where the series #1 mice seem to have more of a satin finish.

Father Steve Village Trading Card Game 36 Pack Booster Box: Released 9/28/2021. Something I truly never expected. Trading cards , A realm that I feel many artists and creatives use to create bodys of work that are usually seen only as collectibles or commemorative works of art. In the case of Father Steve’s Village, this was not the case. Village is a complete trading card game, with set rules, a large array of playable cards varying in rarity, all completely designed in the style of Father Steve. As a kid I was always a big fan of collecting yu-gioh cards, and to see the direction Steven went with every card design and how he depicts his mouse caricature within every playing card. Really makes it feel like you are holding a small portrait that he drew. Those who were able to acquire a booster box on the main release day were given a card binder/ booklet with their order, to help start their card collection. 

Father Steve & Asspizza Collaboration Blind Box/ Hoodies / Shirts. Released 1/14/2022. This release is what I considered to be; as Ye would say , the best collaboration since Taco Bell and KFC. Steven Savoca and Austin Babbitt have been close friends throughout their early careers in 2015 as graffiti artists and fashion designers. In my opinion Steven and Austin both excel greatly in their own fields of perspective when it comes to art and design. To see these two friends come together and create a collection that I’d say many fans have been awaiting to see, is just what we needed to start the year off right. This collection consisted of a collaboration Blind Box, hoodie, and shirt. The mice presented in this Blind Box were designed differently from the original mice in the previous Blind Boxes. The mice have “angry” looking eyes , and the signature Asspizza Pumpkin Face across the torso of the mice. The colors available in this drop included: tiffany blue, raspberry pink, hyper green, white, gray/slate, red, and black. With the 2 rarity mice being one mouse designed to look similar to Asspizza’s Pumpkin Design. While the other mouse is designed to look as if it had been hit with graffiti from one of Asspizza’s denim therapy meet-ups. When it comes to the hoodies and shirts interestingly, they were released just like the Blind Boxes. Every garment purchased would come in your size yet with random mice printed on the front, which I found to be a nice touch for the release. I was lucky enough to get a hoodie and Blind Box from this collaboration and as I expected , the quality was A1 like the sauce. The Hoodie Blank was thick and heavy duty, the same could be said for the print in all honesty. The Blind Box was designed with Asspizza’s iconic Pumpkin Face printed all over the box, as well as the smaller individual boxes that carried the mice. All in all this collaboration was one that I hopped on to purchase as soon as I saw the post hit the gram, and can't wait to see what these two have in store for us in the next round. 

     There is so much more I would like to say regarding Steven’s work but I think I will save it for the next time I come around . I do want to show my gratitude to Steve for being present and a constant motivation to my work and creative ethic. Thank you cousin. And to those reading I hope you have a great day and do your best to stay safe. 

• July Flowers a.k.a Julio Flores Jr. 

Photos By Julio Flores