It is a truth universally acknowledged that car ownership in the city is a pain in the ass. Its attendant joys: traffic, expense, and, above all, finding parking—an endeavor that requires both Machiavellian strategy and Job-like patience. I recently spoke to R. Kikuo Johnson about his inspiration for this week’s cover, and why wiser New Yorkers know that the best way to experience the pleasures of summer in the city is on a bike.
The beach was a big part of your childhood in Hawaii. What about these days, now that you live in New York?
The first time I went to a beach in New York City was when my friends took me to the bay side of the Rockaways. I stepped into the water and there were jellyfish, jellyfish everywhere. I was totally freaked out—I’d never seen any before—but my friends said, “Don’t worry, they won’t hurt you. These are not the kind that sting.” So I kept wading in the water. And then I thought one bumped into my shin. I looked down—it was an inflated condom. I thought, I’m never going to a beach in New York again. Eventually, I discovered the beaches on the ocean side of the Rockaway Peninsula, where you can play in the waves. Since then, cycling to the beach has been a favorite summer tradition.
You have a good eye for telling details. Do you have a method for collecting them?
The seed for this cover came at the end of a long bike ride to Fort Tilden beach. I love biking in the city because you can go wherever you want. You don’t have to wait for the subway or be stuck in traffic. When my partner and I locked our bikes to a no-parking sign, it just seemed like a perfect New York moment. I snapped a photo and made a note on my phone.
Like many cartoonists, you used to work at home. Now you are renting studio space. Why?
A few years ago, my partner started graduate school and moved into the small, one-bedroom apartment that had doubled as my art studio. Fortunately, a co-working art space opened just a few blocks away. I rent a desk there, and it has provided my partner and I with a little extra space. And there is even wine at happy hour.
You published the graphic novella “No One Else” last year, while pursuing a busy career as an illustrator. How do you balance your time between the two?
“No One Else” was almost a full-time effort for about two years. It was scary to turn down commercial work in order to pursue my passion, but I had dreamed of making the book for so long. The two pandemic years I spent drawing it ended up being two of the happiest years of my life. The story is set in my home town on Maui. Spending my days imagining myself there was the next best thing to actually being there. Now I’m back to taking freelance illustration work —though I’m incredibly lucky to have clients who let me tell the stories that I want to tell.
See below for more covers about biking:
Find R. Kikuo Johnson’s covers, cartoons, and more at the Condé Nast Store.
