There was a cool crowd up in East Harlem. The National Black Theatre was presenting an art show, Change: Conversations with the Creator. There was a range of work, much of it focused on the black experience in America, with themes exploring ideas of social justice and overcoming adversity through creativity.

I was there on the invitation of FunQest, a Japanese artist whose work takes heavy inspiration from the Harlem scene. Everyone was getting on well, and at the end of the night, I asked FunQest if I could stop by his studio for an interview.

Uptown Funk

Out front, two vivid portraits guarded the entrance. The intricate flow of colors and lines popped up on the white wall. Between the two, a Nipponese style logo. I continued to the second story walk-up.

FunQest let me in, and I checked out the space. Several in progress and recent pieces hung the walls, older canvases stacked in the corner. I noticed a handwritten scrap of paper that read “absolute power, corrupts absolutely." He offered a drink, and we sat to chat.

FunQest explained the origins of his name. The fun, because he likes to have fun, and the Qest, just like a quest: “a secret journey.” For aesthetics, he prefers it without a "u" and the big "Q." Alternatively, pronounced funk-est, a play on the funkiest.

“I really love black culture and black music.”

R&B, hip-hop, soul, and funk — his style lets music be the muse. Before getting into street art, he pursued life as a singer, but gave it up when he came to Harlem. He joked that he could not compete with the local scene. “The quality is so high!” But to FunQest, East Harlem is home, and it is where he wants to create.

As a street artist, he has worked with organizations like the 100 Gates Project and East Village Walls, painting low in the Lower East Side and up in the Bronx, but the heart of his work remains in Harlem. FunQest lamented that much of the uptown scene has moved to the Upper East Side, but his ambition is to be part of the movement to rejuvenate a new artistic renaissance.

“I want to shine in Harlem.”

It is “the rhythm and feeling” that attract FunQest to the black culture. His aesthetic is based on a sense of respect and tribute to the African-American history. FunQest is fascinated by the Black Panthers [the political movement], and the Harlem Renaissance.

“Black people are so strong… they have a strong heart, and good pride.”