The Man Behind The Monsterball Darbotz
Darbotz started doing graffiti in 2004. He didn’t find his characters immediately. But in 2005, as he was traveling, Darbotz came across the idea of a deformed squid that he called Monsterball. The initial form was a masked head – only the eyes and nose are visible – along with a varying number of tentacles. The idea went through several evolutions to become what it is today, a monster ball with black and white tentacles and spines.
The public responded positively to Darbotz’s work. People started recognizing Monsterball, and it began to be used commercially. For example, a Monsterball project at Artotel Sarinah, in Jakarta, covers three walls. Dozens of tentacles wrap around the hotel, from the top of the building to the street-level entrance.
To celebrate his outstanding work, Pablo Art Paints also collaborated with Darbotz. The company released a specially packaged collection of Pablo X Darbotz, where Monsterball covers a can in elegant black and silver colour.