MANILA, PHILIPPINES – Back for round three, visionary artist and design innovator Joshua Davis returns to the Graphika Manila stage. Much like his groundbreaking work, which has graced spaces both massive and intimate around the world, his presence on the first day of Graphika Manila 2025 in SMX Convention Center in Pasay last March 1, left a lasting impact.
With a career dating back to 1995, the California-born artist and innovator traced his journey back to the fundamentals — hand-drawn art that evolved alongside technology. As he reflected on the decades since the turn of the millennium, Joshua underscored the power of relentless creativity, firmly believing that “weird jobs yield good money.”
The Praystation founder had a laugh at the sheer variety of projects he’s taken on over the years – designing T-shirts for small businesses, seeing his work printed on trash cans, pillowcases, hatchback cars, handbags, backpacks, and even teacups. But none of it was in vain. In the end, his work found its audience, earning recognition from fellow artists who were fascinated by his unique style.
His client list is stacked with industry heavyweights – Diddy, Kanye West, Pharrell Williams, Diplo, Tool, Dua Lipa, and even Taylor Swift. But surprisingly, it wasn’t these A-listers who shifted the course of his career. The real game-changer? Canadian music producer and DJ deadmau5, whom Joshua credits as a “true catalyst” in his creative journey. It was through his early work with deadmau5 that helped him believe more in his art – what was once a collaboration turned into a lifelong partnership which now boasts 12 years.
Reinvention fuels evolution
Joshua was candid the entire time — he even admitted to freaking out while trying to reinvent his style, a struggle many creatives know too well. But instead of staying stuck, he dove deeper into geometric forms, embraced programming, and harnessed evolving technology to push his work into something bigger and greater. His success skyrocketed, yet he found himself trapped in repetition, with clients expecting the same thing time and again.
“Never let success get in the way of your creativity. Be a master of nothing,” he said, embracing his identity as a Jack of all trades. With an insatiable drive to evolve, he confessed, “I always want to be the student.”
For Joshua, unused work wasn’t a loss — it was a hidden treasure. Some of his designs for Nine Inch Nails found new life when he collaborated with Phantogram. What started as a static album cover photoshoot soon revealed greater potential. Inspired, he brought the visuals to life through animation, opening the door to projection mapping and larger-than-life environmental installations.
AI and the future
As a renowned technologist, Joshua’s relationship with generative tools and AI was anything but straightforward. When AI rise in the past years, he wrestled with a tough question — was this something that he would embrace or reject? He was “conflicted,” asking himself, “How can I make it my own?”
“I think everybody’s angry because it’s stealing other people’s work. What if I asked AI to steal my work?”
With the genius he is, Joshua cracked the code. He found a way to train AI on his own creations, shaping its results that would generate work that still mirrors his style. The experimentation phase was crucial — it solidified his stance on the divisive topic.
“As it gets better, there will be a way to inject your own personality into these pieces.” In fact, he sees AI as a potential cure for creative block.
The idea of making “AI work for the artist” proved true in Joshua’s experience. He even fused his latest work with pieces from 30 years ago, bridging his past and future through technology.
To him, the fear of AI is misplaced as they are “missing the big picture.”
“I hate to say it, but you can’t put the genie back inside the bottle. That fear is people’s fear of not learning new tools,” he told adobo Magazine exclusively.
Adobo Magazine is the official media partner of Graphika Manila 2025.
