Episode 677 – Luis Mendo

Episode 677 – Luis Mendo

From Virtual Memories Show by Gil Roth

May 26, 2026 · 1h 50m

About this episode

Gil Roth interviews artist and writer Luis Mendo about his creative journey and the Mundo Mendo platform.

Virtual Memories Show 677: Luis Mendo “Mundo Mendo is like the world of Mendo. It’s my world, and you need a spaceship to arrive here.” Welcome to Mundo Mendo! I visited artist and writer Luis Mendo in Karuizawa, Japan for a wide-ranging conversation about art, creativity, community and more. We talk about how he left design and embraced drawing and illustration, why he created the Mundo Mendo platform so fans/members can support his art and stories (and get an annual print edition of his work), the limits of money and the joy of making art, and how artists can escape “working for Mr. Zuckerberg” and stop chasing likes on Instagram. We get into how internal change has to be accompanied by an external change, the challenge of not having a client, his critique of AI “art”, and the tension between world of numbers & metrics and the world of serendipity. We also discuss the creative residency he & his wife ran, Almost Perfect , his love of old movies, how the creative life can be a chain of projects, what brought him to Japan and what keeps him there (even if he feels like a foreigner wherever he is), his newsletter that highlights…

People in this episode

Host: Gil Roth

Guest: Luis Mendo

Topics covered

  • art
  • creativity
  • community
  • illustration
  • AI art critique
  • Japan
  • creative residency

Keywords

  • Luis Mendo
  • Mundo Mendo
  • art
  • creativity
  • illustration
  • AI art
  • Japan
  • Almost Perfect

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Mundo Mendo, Instagram, Almost Perfect

Places: Karuizawa, Japan

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