Michael Sieben’s bright, vivid uncanny illustrated creatures and sardonically witty captions have graced the pages of Thrasher for over the last decade and serve as the aesthetic foundation of his brand Roger Skate Co.

So recently we thought it was the right time to hit him up to ask him some questions about how he finds inspiration and the continued motivation and energy to keep creating rad, imaginative illustrations and paintings, while running his own brand and managing the team.

But quickly after we did we were very surprised to find out that Sieben has now parted ways with Thrasher.

Wanting to find out more and recognising that he was open to chat about it all, we were curious to find out what happened and also talk about the exciting projects that he’s working on and details of new and upcoming creative work he’s been on the grind with lately.

Discover why Sieben is no longer at Thrasher, find out he first got onboard in Texas in the 80s and how he’s kept it rolling to this day, picking up a pencil and starting to draw as a kid, how he worked his way up at the mag from freelancer to managing editor, how making zines brought him to Ed Templeton and Michael Burnett, defining his style, his unforgettable advice from Jake Phelps, the reason he named his board brand Roger, his stories behind meeting the Roger Skate Co squad, thoughts on their most standout tricks, clips and edits, his latest projects and upcoming exhibits and of course, his favourite artists, videos, skaters, styles and spots.

Read Sieben’s Fully Illustrated interview below to find it all out for yourself and a lot more. 

 

 

What’s your full name?

Yeah, right. I know this scam. Next you’ll ask for my Social Security number so you can give me a million bucks from a generous dying widow. I’m not falling for it.

 

 

Okay Sieben, so where did you grow up and where do you live right now?

I grew up in Seguin, TX, which is the home of the world’s largest pecan. I lived there until I was 19, and I currently live an hour away in Austin, TX. I didn’t make it very far.

 

 

 

 

So you haven’t moved too far from when you first got into skateboarding. Interesting but how and when did you first see skateboarding and were stoked to try it yourself?

I first started seeing skate photos in Freestylin’ Magazine in the mid ‘80s, but I vividly remember buying a Transworld Skateboarding mag at a book store in ’86. It had Dan Wilkes on the cover. That was a real turning point for me; I was hooked after that.

 

 

 

 

Rad. So What was your first board and where did you get it?

I had a plastic, yellow California Free Former when I was a kid in the early ‘80s, but my first wooden board was a Nash Executioner from K-Mart.

 

 

 

 

Right. Where did you skate the most and who was in your crew?

My dad taught at a small college in Seguin and that’s where I first started skating in ’86 or ’87 on the sidewalks around campus.

I mainly skated with my stepbrother, whose name is also Michael. Later, we found our local crew: Jeremy Krause, Josh Steinberg, Brian Benson, Travis Collard, Mark Mitchell, John Johnson, and more people you’ve likely never met.

My friend Lance Norman joined the crew in the early ‘90s when he moved to Seguin. Gotta shout that dude out.

 

 

Sieben and Josh Steinberg, three-stair soldiers

 

 

Ok, it’s sick your stepbrother was onboard too. But skating aside, how did you start to make art and what kinds of subjects were you drawing?

I’ve been into drawing for as long as I can remember. My earliest drawings were weird cartoon-style characters. If it ain’t broke…

 

 

Don’t fix it. Speaking of being fixed on something visually captivating, what skate videos did you have on rotation the most when you started?

Early on, the only three videos my friends and I had were The Search for Animal Chin, Streets on Fire, and Wheels of Fire. Animal Chin was for sure my favourite.

I really liked the skits, the narrative, and the overall production value of it. We’d pretty much just fast forward or rewind the Santa Cruz videos to Natas’ footage.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

They’re all classics. So your artwork has become so recognisable and well-defined. You see a Sieben and you know its your work. What inspired you to define your art style?

All of my favourite illustrators have very distinct, recognisable styles, and that’s something I’ve always strived towards—I really wanted people to immediately know that something was mine based on the characters and the illustration techniques.

 

 

Your pieces combine bold, bright and often oppositional colours. Why do you like to keep your colour so vivid?

I really enjoy trying to find colours that seemingly wouldn’t work together, yet somehow mesh.

I think since so many of my pieces have heavy black lines dropped on top of them, that helps to make the colours feel cohesive—the black lines are the ties that bind.

 

 

 

 

For sure. So skulls, monsters, uncanny animals and fantastical beings feature in your work quite often. What inspires you to keep coming up with and creating new creatures?

Honestly, it was never a conscious decision to create this type of imagery. When I sit down and doodle in my sketchbook, these are just the types of characters that pop onto the page.

But I think my early influences are definitely a factor: Dr. Seuss, Maurice Sendak, Richard Scarry, and Saturday-morning cartoons. I also REALLY love Halloween imagery, so that seeps into my work, for sure.

 

 

Your creatures are always unique and emotive – your style is the thread that connects them. But what is it about making your cast of otherworldly beings that you find to be so interesting?

It just feels necessary, like these characters need to escape my mind and find themselves in the physical world.

 

 

That’s a great way to put it. You also sometimes write and position hilarious captions alongside your art. Why do you think humour is important in art?

I don’t think humour is important to art at large, but I generally try to incorporate levity into everything I do. It’s probably a defence mechanism, but it sure beats being bitter and angry all the time!

 

 

For sure. The circles surrounding the eyes of your characters
are so recognisable. Why do you draw eyes the way you do?

I started making those circles around the characters eyes to suggest that they were wearing masks.

I also sometimes draw tons of wrinkles around the characters eyes and give them visible wounds, like having knives sticking out of them. I want them to appear worn down by the world and injured, yet still optimistic.

 

 

 

 

Cool, as if they are from another world and have lived a life of their own. Never thought about that. What tools do you use to create your work?

Kinda whatever it takes to execute the vision. I use tons of ink pens and archival markers and paper, but I also play around with watercolour, collage, spray paint, and other mediums.

I hope to continue exploring different materials as I get (even) older. I really want to make some pottery. I took a ceramics class in college in the early ’90s and have always wanted to revisit that medium. Maybe this is the year.

 

 


When did you realise you wanted to make art for a career?

Pretty early on—probably in high school. Skateboarding and art were the only two things I was really interested in. I had no delusions about becoming a sponsored skateboarder, but I thought maybe I could draw skate graphics, T-shirts, stickers, or something along those lines.

I studied fine art in college and had no backup plan as far as a career. I dove in and hoped I didn’t sink. That being said, I was working full-time jobs after college while trying to figure out how to make any money creating art or doing anything skate-related. It took a number of years before I found any traction.

 

 

You sent a zine that you made called Programmed from India
to Ed Templeton, who passed it on to Michael Burnett and I believe this was what got you a job you at Thrasher as a writer and illustrator. How did you make that zine and what was in it?

I handed a bunch of zines to Ed outside of a Fugazi show in Austin. They were all skate or art zines. Content-wise, Programmed from India was a skateboarding zine with very few actual skate photos in it. It was humorous articles accompanied by illustrations I drew or images stolen off of the Internet.

Production-wise, I created the individual pages in Photoshop, then printed them out and made a master copy which I took to Kinko’s and made copies, then I compiled and stapled them at my house. And, yes, Ed Templeton showed the zines to Michael Burnett and he reached out and we struck up a friendship via the US Postal Service. We later met in person when he was on a skate trip in Austin.

He gave me a few illustration assignments for Thrasher and later offered me a staff position with the mag. I credit that moment with much of the success I’ve had within the skate world. Thanks, Mike, and Ed!

 

 

 

 

What year did you start working as freelance writer and illustrator for Thrasher and what was the first piece of art that you created for them and the first article for them you wrote?

My first column in the Thrasher was in the October 2003 issue, but the first assignment I had was doing some spot illustrations for a Bryan Herman interview, which I believe appeared in the April ’03 mag.

 

 

How did your initial freelance role evolve into a full-time one and when and how did you become managing editor at Thrasher?

I worked as a staff writer/illustrator for about a decade. It wasn’t a full-time gig; I just received a small monthly retainer fee. In 2013, they were looking to hire a new managing editor, and I threw my name in the hat.

In hindsight, I wasn’t really qualified for the position, but after getting the job I bought some grammar books and took a few weekend seminars to try to get up to speed on copy editing the entire magazine. I was in way over my head the first year or so.

 

 

What was your favourite article you wrote for Thrasher?

Probably an article titled “Stick ‘Em Up” which appeared in the June ’24 mag—it was a celebration of skate stickers. It’s super maximal with tons of rad images, photos, and testimonials from skaters about their favourite stickers. It checks a lot of boxes for me.

 

 

 

 

Sick. What’s your favourite piece you’ve ever made for Thrasher?

I made a series of illustrations for the April 2015 issue of Thrasher that were based on Loteria cards—they accompanied a photo feature. I think that article turned out really cool. Cameron Padgett—Thrasher’s senior art director—helped shape that whole thing up and made it look really cool. Thanks, Cam!

 

 

 

 

While chatting with you before this interview I was really surprised to hear from you that you no longer work for Thrasher. What’s the story there?

I was laid off in August along with some other mag staff. Unfortunately, the current print model just isn’t profitable enough to justify having a full-time managing editor on staff.

I was caught off guard, but not super surprised. I’m well aware that most people get their content from their phones as opposed to flipping through magazines.

No bad blood, though. I’m thankful for the ten years I had at the mag working alongside Michael Burnett and the rest of the staff. I grew up on Thrasher, so having the opportunity to contribute so heavily to its production will always be something I look back on fondly. And, from a growth perspective, I felt like I’d absorbed everything I could from the job, so it was probably time to set sail anyway. The universe gave me a nudge.

 

 

 

 

Do you have a favourite memory of working for Thrasher?

Probably skating the Pink Taco ditch in SF with Tony Vitello and Michael Burnett. After all, that’s what this whole thing is about—skating with your friends.

 

 

100 percent. What was it like working with Jake Phelps?

I rarely interacted with Jake, but when I did it was typically somewhat unpleasant.

I never got the feeling that he liked me all that much. Honestly, I was pretty intimidated by him, so I tried to keep my distance.

 

 

Ok but you must have a memorable story about Jake Phelps that you’d like to tell or something he said to you once?

He once told me that I should just stay in Texas and skate ditches, so I’m guessing he’d be pleased to see how it panned out.

 

 

Sieben, still in Texas, still skating ditches 

 

 

Haha for sure. So post-Thrasher, are you mainly working freelance again and running Roger full-time?

I’m currently juggling a bunch of things. I have a retainer position with Drink Weird—an organic beverage company based out of Austin. I do creative direction for them, and that’s super fun. And, yeah, I’m freelancing again.

Luckily, a few projects popped up right before the Thrasher news, so I was able to immediately shift gears.

Roger-wise, we are now distributed by HLC and they do seasonal catalogs/offerings, so there’s always work to be done for the brand. It’s for sure a passion project as opposed to a viable means of income, but it’s still super rewarding work, in my eyes. I’m also actively making more personal artwork now that I have the time to do so.

 

 

 

 

Glad to hear you have more time to work on your own projects. That’s always the most fun. But what’s the best way for brands or buyers reading this to get in touch with you for commissions or to hit you up with a new project proposal?

Email is good: [email protected] or DMs work, too: @sieben_up.

 

 

Cool. Are you a working on any upcoming group exhibitions or are you planning any solo shows that you would like to announce?

I’m currently in a group show in Austin at Preacher Gallery, next month, I’ll be in a group show in SF at Heron Arts, and in April ’25 I’m going to be showing at Flight Gallery in San Antonio alongside my friend Travis Millard.

My art career definitely took a backseat for the past ten years because the magazine required a lot of time and mental energy. I’m excited to be able to focus on some personal projects at the moment.

 

 

 

 


You’ve created a series of sculptures and installations over the years but what
motivated you to depict your art in a physical medium for your “It Will All Happen Again” exhibition’ at the University of Texas at Austin?

Honestly, it was just because there was an actual art budget for the exhibition which allowed me to hire my buddy Adam Young to collaborate with me on the sculptures. He’s a master woodworker, and it was so cool to see him take my drawings and turn them into large-scale three-dimensional objects.

If any museums out there want to recreate some of that magic, give us a shout. I’ll make sure Josh Johnson stays home this time…

 

 

Photos by Sandy Carson

 

 

You draw ramps and transitions, often with a lot of vert. What do you like about skating transitions and what inspires you to draw them when you put pen to paper?

Those drawings and paintings are based on memories of crappy backyard ramps which often ended up rotting in friends’ backyards. It’s a celebration of nostalgia.

But what do I like about skating transitions? The same thing I like about skating anything—it’s fun! And I’m also terrible at it, so it’s a constant, humbling challenge.

 

 

 

 

Agreed. Where is your favourite spot to skate at the moment?


I got my buddy Adam Young to build a mini box for me that fits in my car’s hatchback, and that’s what I’ve been the most stoked to skate lately—just me and my little box in an empty parking lot, solo sessioning like a 12 year old.
 

 

 

 

Sounds good. So why do you think creativity is important to skateboarding?

I don’t think anything is necessarily important to skateboarding—I believe it’s all about your individual relationship with the activity.

Some people’s connection to it is purely based on progression and athleticism, and that’s fine. My connection has to do with creativity, art and culture, so that’s what I’ve always geeked out on. But it’s not like there’s a wrong way to do it.

 

 

Right. At what point did you decide to call your board brand Roger?

When Stacey Lowery and I came to the realisation that we’d never come up with a better name for a skate brand than Bueno. So, we just decided to name it like we were naming a baby. We both love Roger Seliner, so we named the company, Roger after him.

 

 

 

 

What’s the toughest part about managing your time as an artist and brand owner?

Probably tracking down cheques from clients.

 

 

Roger is now distributed through HLC alongside Sk8mafia, Flip, and Plan B. I checked them out and I saw they have a manufacturing facility in Hutto, which is outside of Austin, TX. That’s sick. What has it been like getting Roger boards produced locally and how has it benefited you as a designer, brand owner and the team?

It’s been great to have a manufacturing facility so close to home, although I haven’t even been there yet! I’m going to email them right now and see if I can come take a tour.

 

I’m totally blowing it! I don’t know if their proximity to Austin has had a huge impact, but being distributed alongside those legacy brands you mentioned has definitely helped us sell more boards, which is awesome.

Thanks, HLC! If you own a shop, hit them up and order some Roger boards the next time you re-up on those Tom Penny Cheech-and-Chong decks or Sk8mafia tiny boys.

 

 

 

 

Which Roger decks are you most stoked on to have designed to date and why?

Nate Broussard graphics because he’s one of the best skateboarders ever and I love him as a friend. He’s just the sweetest dude. I’ve never made much money owning a board brand, but the friendships I’ve made along the way are invaluable.

 

 

 

 

Which Roger board series have you been most hyped on creating?

I recently designed a series incorporating small collaged drawings that I’ve been making, and that was super fun because it involved using scans of drawings as opposed to vector art. It was cool to play around with a different medium/approach. I think they turned out pretty cool and the riders where all stoked.

 

 

 

 

Any upcoming Roger board releases you want to mention?

Yes, Roger Seliner is currently designing a pro series for us. As mentioned, we named the company in his honour, and he’s a fantastic illustrator, painter, tattoo artist, and skateboarder. I can’t wait to see what he comes up with.

 

 

Sick, so Roger Skate Co has a stacked squad. Ryan Thompson has one of the biggest Ollies out there but he’s also got an interesting bag of unique, creative tricks to boot. How did you meet him and decide to put him on Roger?

I’d seen Ryan‘s skating for years on social media, but we officially met after Deluxe stopped sending him boxes. They had been flowing him since he was a kid, and when that well ran dry I hit him up to see if he’d be down to skate for Roger.

At the time, he was hoping to get on Polar, and that would have been huge for him, so I told him to pursue that and we’d always have a door open for him. The Polar thing obviously didn’t materialise, so I was blessed with one of the most amazing skateboarders on the planet skating for our brand. There’s no shortage of great skaters out there, but his explosive pop—regular and switch—is just really something to behold. And, more importantly, he’s just a really great person. He’s very intelligent and grounded. I value his friendship and I’m so hyped Pontus didn’t snag him.

 

 

What’s your favourite trick, clip or video part by Ryan and why?

I love seeing him casually destroying House Park on social media—just playing around and doing shit that nobody else could do. But as far as projects, I really like his Cold Brew part—but his Texas Three Step parts are obviously bonkers. Has anybody else ever released three parts in one week? Not to my knowledge.

 

 

 

 

Reese Barton also rips. How did he get on the Roger squad and do you have a favourite trick or clip of Reese?

If memory serves, I’m almost certain he asked the team—probably Max Taylor—if he could be a part of the Roger program. I always defer to those guys as far as who makes sense to add.

They were all vouching for him and I was a huge fan of his skating, so it was easy. Favourite trick: his Backside Flip at the end of his Cold Brew part. He lands so Fakie; it’s so cool.

 

 

 

 

Max Taylor has a great style and was a flow bro who got on
and went pro. When did he get on the team and was
there a specific turning point that you decided that he had to go pro?

Max was the second Austin skater to get on the team, after Josh Johnson who skated for Bueno, and I personally reached out to him. What struck me was how he would carve into tricks at a time when it seemed like a lot of younger kids were skating very linearly.

He just had this cool flow; very fluid. I don’t even remember what year that was. Maybe 2010? I also don’t remember the conversation about turning him pro. I think the time just seemed right; it wasn’t overthought.

He and Ryan Thompson turned pro at the same time—the night we premiered Pink Limousine at No-Comply. That was a really beautiful night in Austin.

 

 

Your footage in the Roger “Water Spirit” video on Thrasher is dope. What trick were you the most stoked on to film and why?

I gotta say, without Calvin Millar that part would have never happened, so I have to give him a huge thanks. I approached him and pitched the idea of filming a full part and he was totally down, and for that I’m forever grateful.

My favourite trick is probably the last one—the Ollie One Foot into the ditch to Backside G Turn.

We filmed it early on and when I watched it I was like, This might not be totally embarrassing to put out into the world. That part was my attempt at sharing my enthusiasm for skateboarding with the world.

 

 

 

 

Your Beanplant to Front Blunt on the bank to curb was rad. How long did it take to nail it and had you done that trick before?

I’d never done it; it probably took about 20 tries. I kept missing the blunt and going to rail. Once I landed in blunt it happened pretty quickly.

 

 

Your Back Disaster Manual to Rock Back In was tight. How did you come up with that move?

I’m pretty sure I saw Brent Atchley do that trick on a quarterpipe at some point. I really wanted to revert it but couldn’t get it. Maybe in Ditch Elf II… It probably took about 15 minutes to figure out the 360. It felt like a ditch ballerina spinning around on the deck.

 

 

Who had your favourite trick in “Water Spirit” and why?

C’mon, I can’t choose between Reese and David Langston, so I’ll just say my favourite trick was convincing Austin Amelio to act in the Ditch Elf skit alongside my daughter. Thanks, Austin! And thanks, Eve!

 

 

Any new Roger projects or releases on the horizon?

I want to make a Roger documentary. I’m gonna bug Calvin Millar about it next week and see if he’s down.

 

 

Look forward to it. So, what’s your favourite skate video of all-time?

Rubbish Heap. Jeremy Klein’s part is so great.

 

 

 

 

Do you have a favourite skater of all-time and if so, who is it?

Matt Hensley. I was at that perfectly-influential mid-teens age when he was at his peak, and I was a HUGE fan. And, obviously, he moved the needle so damn hard street-skating wise. I loved that he had a little sketch, too—like his hands dragging the ground, stuff like that.

 

 

 

 

He was really influential, from his skating and tricks to the fits he wore and now with his music. But who is your favourite artist and why?

Maurice Sendak. His illustrations are so beautiful and fill me with such a wonderful feeling of nostalgia.

 

 

 

 

Who’s got your favourite style on a skateboard and why?

Nate Broussard. I wish more footage of him existed, but what’s out there is just so casual and effortless. It’s like he’s part butterfly. Bobby Puleo is a close second.

 

 

 

 

Favourite skate spot in America and why?

C-Fan ditch, which is about thirty minutes south of Austin.

I’ve been skating there since I was 12 or 13, and it’s still so fun to me. I have a really cool memory of my dad driving me there to skate when I was a kid. He sat in the car and read a book while I skated it solo.

 

 

 

 

Favourite skate spot in Texas and why?

Sticking with my previous answer.

 

 

Ok but where is your favourite skate spot in the world?

There’s a pattern here. C-FAN FOREVER!

 

 

Ok, heard and received. Any last words for people reading this Sieben?

Increase the peace. Hate is a symptom of self-loathing.