Singer, Composer, Eyewear Designer, Devo's Mark Mothersbaugh Does it All

Lead singer of a critically-acclaimed band, composer of Wes Anderson scores, gifted photographer—it seems there's nothing Mark Mothersbaugh can't do. His latest endeavor comes in the form of a book, Mark Mothersbaugh: Myopia, which highlights his diverse body of visual artwork, including drawings, sculptures, photographs, videos, prints, artfully crafted rugs, and a new retail line of custom designed eyewear. Mothersbaugh will discuss this body of work next month at Dwell on Design Los Angeles.

In a short cartoon (below), Mothersbaugh speaks on the evolution of Devo and briefly shares some history on the medical condition he had as a child: high-degree myopia (legally blind nearsightedness). New corrective lenses prescribed to him at the age of seven changed the way young Mothersbaugh looked at the world—both physically and creatively. "It was the most incredible day and the most incredible feeling in my life when . . . I saw what a roof of a house looked like," he says. Soon after, he started drawing, and with a complimentary nod from a teacher, his focus shifted toward becoming an artist. 

Some sixty years later, and many musical lifetimes in between, Mothersbaugh’s journey appears to have come full circle. On Sunday, May 31, he will speak on his decades of creative work, his recent exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art Denver, and his new line of eyewear.