Born in 1989 in the state of Washington, USA, Alec DeMarco grew up in a small hunting and fishing village where it rains all year round. DeMarco passed the time by consuming everything he could read or watch. In his late teens, he went through a difficult period during which his best friend committed suicide, and he suffered a heart attack and came close to death. These near-death experiences helped fuel his desire to find a genuine way to express himself—and art presented itself as the ideal solution. He explored various forms of artistic expression, ranging from folk art to graffiti adorning train cars in the factories and refineries of his village, to medieval book illustrations. He quickly grew tired of various mediums for which an answer or guide already existed. « Art is the only thing that holds my attention. »

In 2012, after enrolling in the Fine Arts program in Southern California, he left everything behind to enlist in a formal apprenticeship under a renowned Japanese tattoo master, a transformative experience that allows her to discover brush calligraphy.

DeMarco defines his creative approach as « a constant battle between my conscious brain trying to define things and my subconscious fighting to stay abstract. »

Suffering from aphantasia, a neurological condition that deprives him of any ability to mentally visualize anything, it is therefore «literally impossible for him to imagine what a painting will look like before making it,» which is probably the reason for his rapid and intuitive execution process.

Originally, there is always a sketch of the work, the result of a blend of ideas inspired by music, films, those around him, events from his past, etc. Then he lets himself be guided unconsciously. « When I truly paint, I enter a bubble and my mind and body go numb, my hand and arm moving as if they have a mind of their own. »After a certain time, he becomes aware of the work he has just accomplished, and decides to erase certain parts... and develop others.« I let everything flow, I turn the music up full blast, and I let my mind be as free as a leaf on a stream just going with the flow, [...] and, before I even realize it, the painting is finished. »