Profile - David Barnes

Eye-catching album art is just as important to a CD as the music. Illustrator David Barnes is well aware of that, having done artwork for his brother's band, Of Montreal. Barnes is a full-time artist based in Athens. When he's not drawing personalized portraits, or imagining the homes those portraits might hang in, he does illustrations for his website, TheBeeWithWheels.com. The site's drawings are based on Barnes' belief that "the idea is more important than the actual drawing."

Barnes' "comic book side" of his brain constantly tries to alter his perception of things. The more ideas and possibilities his mind creates, the more interesting Barnes believes his heaven will be.

He was introduced to art by his great aunt. She was a painter herself and made him draw for an hour each day whenever he visited her.

The only song Barnes ever learned to perform was the chorus to Poison's "Every Rose Has Its Thorn."

He's heavily influenced by religious iconography, but that doesn't necessarily mean Barnes is a fan of church. To this day, he still can't stand the smell of perfume because it reminds him of the Sunday drive to church as a kid.

He's incredibly interested in the composition of materials. As Barnes describes it, "cells totally get me excited."