Writing His Future

"Not to sound pretentious," says Doffing, unrolling a hot-pink, digital-lettered, unmounted canvas that Vulcan painted in the '80s, "but I think this will be hanging in a museum in my lifetime."

Vulcan isn't sure what kind of offers will come next, though he feels he could probably gain sustained financial success — maybe even move into his own place — if he could negotiate a major gallery show in Los Angeles. People like Keats and the Luggage Store's Smith say this goal is within reach, perhaps after a few more local shows.

For now, he's just trying to come to grips with the past few months as he begins to plan the near future. "I'd like to be able to create work, however that happens. If it's museums, it's museums; if it's a gallery, it's a gallery," Vulcan says. "I'm not sure where I'm going with this or what's going to happen or how it's going to happen. I'm thinking it's not going to be something I'm expecting. Because I didn't expect any of this."