By Julian Lucas

Dan Monick lives and works in Los Angeles. He is a photographer and owns and operates Cash Machine Press. After time spent playing in bands, shooting photos for Minneapolis bands like Atmosphere and Dillinger Four brought photography back to the forefront. I met Dan w while back at a book fair. We actually talked for a good hour. We spoke about Cash Machine Press, Sexy Times, and publishing in general. What I can say about Dan’s work is it’s raw, moving, and emotive. I was able to catch up with Dan during the weird times we are all being faced with and ask a series of questions.

Tell us a little bit about yourself and how long have you been photographing?

Born and raised in Minneapolis. Spent some time on the east coast, west coast, back to the midwest and now LA. Started taking photo classes in like 91 and have messed with cameras since then with long detours into rock and roll. Started shooting consistently in 97. Being in a band, I knew people in bands, and they knew I had a camera so I became the guy who shot all the bands. That kinda got the ball rolling.
Your client list is extensive can you tell our readers who was the most down to earth person you have photographed and why?

I mean I've taken a lot of pictures of all my friends so a lot of them are down to earth but do you mean a "celebrity"? Kendrick Lamar, JAMESDAVIS, Amy Pohler , Donald Glover, David Thewlis. Why? All were super mellow. Kendrick was for Good Kid so it was before he massively exploded but he had been more or less picked by Snoop and Dre as the future of West Coast Hip Hop and was well on his way. That being said, he was super easy going and very open while at the same time being around him you knew he was on a different level. Like he just existed on a different plane. JAMESDAVIS are a group made up of three siblings from Inglewood and are some of the truest artists I've ever met. Super hardworking and super straight forward. Very cool. Amy Pohler came to my little studio in Atwater and was unbelievably nice and generous, same with Donald Glover (except it was my house) and David Thewlis was my first meet up with the person then just started talking to the point you forget you're taking photos.

“No Winchells or Yum Yum. No Dunkin either. USA is kind of a chain but still feels very independent so I included them”.

What are your current projects?

Well last night I thought I had finished shooting every donut shop in the San Fernando Valley. Technically there were still 2 left but because of construction in their parking lots I have to wait to shoot them. But i felt like okay, I at least pulled up to them, I'm gonna call it done and then sneak those two in later. Then on my cross checking I discovered 3 I didn't know about so....... but as it stands I got 108 of them. No Winchells or Yum Yum. No Dunkin either. USA is kind of a chain but still feels very independent so I included them.

I am wrapping up a book of my usual style of work. City snaps. I had almost finished it before the pandemic and now it feels like my last document (besides the donuts) before the pandemic, so I figured I'd release it. Paper mills are jacked now though so I might have to wait until October to get the cover paper.

Besides that just figuring out how to publish folks with Cash Machine

Can you explain Cash Machine Press?
History wise it started out as a show. We did a newsstand in my studio with people making one of a kind items or a newsstand variety. It was pretty dope. One person made a magazine out of wax, another made one out of marble, fake visine bottles, a giant spilled 5 hour energy drink made out of resin. We kept that up for a while then did other shows while I did a zine press. I decided Cash Machine was a better name for the press than the one I was using, so we called the space and my press Cash Machine and then I reclaimed my studio and kept doing the press.

Basically I just work with people I like. Super small runs, mostly newsprint publications and art books in a pulp novel format. We did a piece that is weird photos of trash made to look like Super Saver coupons, a DVD. I like the work to be presented in kind of a character form. A character that would hang out at a news stand. Normal books are done way better by other people. I'm good at doing something real small run and kind of off.

What are your most favorable zine and book you have put out under Cash Machine Press?

That is like asking someone "So which kid is your favorite"

LOL! Like most of artists you have multiple platforms working simultaneously what do you like most about what you are accomplishing?

That I dipped into commercial work just enough to now figure how to do pretty much exactly what I want and still squeak by......

I appreciate that you’re involved in social justice and change, what do you find important about the movement for change? What projects that you have worked on that reflect social justice?

For starters, I'm a white man. In America. And one (of many) issues I see is that white people need to accept the fact that if you are white, especially a white man, you are somewhere on the scale of 1-10, let's say 1 being the worst case flat out racist (or transphobic, or homophobic, or mysoginist) to 10 being benefitting from a white supemecist patriarchal system. Being 10 on the scale is unavoidable. So even if you feel you are not racist, you have benefitted from racism. Lets face it, I can do all the social justice work in the world, but when I am by myself, and I walk into that store or park or get pulled over, I am having a different experience than every other person in this country. It's all learned behavior. I can't be scared or ashamed to take responsibility for my part in it. We were taught this. Don't deny it. Acknowledge it. Recognize it, and learn new behavior. I try to be quiet, listen, educate myself and take action to correct it.

Also growing up in the midwest in the 80's I was involved in punk and goth and a bunch of other stuff. Had a toe in indie hip hop in the 90's, indie rock scene etc etc. But the fiercest, most punk, independent, powerful figures I ever met were the Black drag queens that did the show after dinner at the place I cooked at in Provincetown in the early 90's. They would arrive near the end of my shift and I would sit out back and smoke with them as they got ready for their show. Their vibe, energy and unreal dedication to who they were in the face of what this country is built upon was something I'll never forget. I learned more from their presence than I did in those midwestern schools I can tell you that. To me, they are truly America. And I want to honor that. Not to mention they were fierce fighters, absolutely hilarious and beautiful.

I don't have any projects personally that speak directly to social justice as I feel my POV is not super vital at the moment in terms of art. My support is, my perspective is not. That being said I try to focus on elevating and platforming work made by people who are not readily handed platforms. Mine isn't a huge platform, but I try to make it an honest one.