Art Space Talk: Remi Thornton

Remi Thornton creates a mysterious atmosphere around the subjects he captures with his camera-- leaving a story that only the viewer can provide. These images are open to interpretation. In my opinion, Remi's work reveals how common objects, scenes, and people can become more than what they appear to be at first glance. They show how light and shadow can be utilized in order to give new meaning to the things we view each day without a second thought.

Brian Sherwin: In 2006 you were involved with an exhibit titled Quiet Chaos- a two-person show with Cathy Bruegger at the Silver Eye Center for Photography. How did that show go for you? Do you have any upcoming exhibits at this time?

Remi Thornton: It was a good experience. I was able to basically curate a show of my own work with another artist that I had never even seen work by. Which seems challenging, but we were able to share photographs in emails and put together a nice show. I couldn’t have asked for a better partner in this respect because we pretty much agreed on everything. I wasn’t able to go hang the show, or attend the opening, so that was an unfortunate disconnect, but the nature of out-of-town exhibitions.

My solo exhibition at Gallery Katz was a breakthrough for me. It was the first time I really put my work out there for people to see...I sold prints and got excellent exposure. I have some work in a group show at the Danforth Museum and will be in an auction at the PRC in Boston next month. I don’t have any planned solo exhibitions right now and would kill for some representation outside of Boston. Know anyone?

BS: You have stated that what you are capturing is not complex and not completely conceptual. You have went on to say that your work is pure, simple, and eerily beautiful. Can you go into further detail about your work and the vision behind it? What are you attempting to accomplish? Have you came close to your goal?

RT: I think I’m just a purist. I want people to know that if they don’t want to read into the photographs on a conceptual level, that they don’t have to. I really like art that is both aesthetic and meaningful but if it’s just one or the other, that’s ok too. It doesn’t have to be both. However, I do like knowing that my work may cause an emotional response or feeling. If the photographs doesn’t seem to carry meaning for the viewer, but are appreciated on an aesthetic level, that’s just as good. The "eerily beautiful" thing really just stems from comments I received after my solo show at Gallery Katz. People said the photographs made them uncomfortable, but at the same time, they really liked looking at them. To me, that’s a bonus response. I enjoy taking late night walks, and capturing that awkward silence of a location is what I’m after.

BS: I've read that you only photograph at night...and that you focus on urban spaces that are bustling with life during the day and are absolutely vacant at night. What are the social implications of this manner of photographic work?

RT: Well, firstly, I do not only photograph at night, that was a slight embellishment. I work with a stock photograph agency (a very recent development), and they will take my "other" work in addition to the night photographs. But, I am really only interested in taking the night photography to the "fine art" level. I feel good about them and like sharing this particular work. The rest of the stuff I take to keep myself busy and to feel less guilty about spending so much money on a camera that isn’t used more often. But, at the end of the day, I’m just not interested in shaping those photographs into a body of work to show.

As for the social implications of shooting in these locations...The first thing that comes to my mind is that I’m usually pretty terrified while taking the pictures. Being mugged, hassled by locals or annoyed by police and security. I find it amazing that these places that are so alive during the day can become such strange or seemingly dangerous places once the sun sets. Now, obviously, I’m also just very paranoid, but nonetheless, that’s what the experience is about for me. And, I think that the uncomfortable nature of my own being while taking the picture comes across in the photographs. At least, I think that is the case with the more successful images.

This might sound stupid (if I’m not already), but one of my gauges when I take a photograph is how nervous I am while at the location. If I’m not, then usually I don’t like the end result. So, the more uncomfortable you find the imagery, just know that I found that spot to be 100 times more freaky. On that note, you should see how many pictures I messed up because I was rushing to leave. Early on, I would take one picture and move on. I’ve learned that after MANY blurry or soft shots, that it’s worth the time to take a few extra shots to be safe. I’m such a nervous dork though and usually don’t practice what I preach leaving me very frustrating after returning from a shoot.

BS: Can you tell our readers about the Runaway Reindeer project? The page containing info about the project received over 15,000 visits during a two week span and was the number one most emailed story on the Boston Globe website.

RT: My friend Hargo (www.not-rocket-science.com ) is a really talented conceptual artist (and also a great photographer). Coincidentally, he also created The Somerville Gates, which was a parody on Christo’s gates in Central Park. That project was written up in the New York Times and I think he was even on CNN or something like that. It was so popular online that it crashed his site (and I think his Internet provider). He has several successful projects under his belt, but the Somerville Gates is his most popular to date. The reindeer site was all his idea, and his hard work. He took care of the conceptual elements (because he also knows that ain’t for me) and asked me to do the photography, and I was more than willing.

Anyway, it’s a modern and somewhat creepy take on a book called The Runaway Bunny by Margaret Wise Brown. Honestly, I never read the book as a child, so I’m not that familiar with it. But it was the foundation of the project’s story, so I’m told by Hargo. From what I’ve learned about it online, it is pretty strange to begin with.

Anyway, we were excited about the success of the site and story and hope to do more this coming winter. Oh, your readers should know that we were removed from the number one top ten emailed stories on the Boston Globe website after about 10 minutes...There was a stomach bug in Tewksberry, MA, that was apparently more interesting than the runaway reindeer site (www.runawayreindeer.net).

BS: The practice of digital manipulation in regards to photography has been increasing in recent years. Photographers are using computers as a tool to alter their works. I've read that you try to stay away from altering your images. Why is that?

RT: Given the nature of the digital photography process, literally speaking, almost everyone manipulates their photographs. Even your point-and-shoot cameras help you manipulate an image There is software in the camera that allows you to add contrast, saturation, and other goodies. For the more advanced, the computer is a powerful tool that has replaced darkrooms altogether. Don’t forget that even with film, going back many years, photographers have manipulated their work in the darkroom. Dodging, burning, enlarging...So, in that sense, I think most photographers finesse their work before going to print, which isn’t much different than before the digital era.

I mention that I don’t alter the images (beyond any necessary adjustments to correct exposure or color) because people always ask me if what they’re seeing is "real" or "fake." I don’t think the process matters one way or the other, but I think it’s important in my work that the viewer knows that what they’re looking at really exists and I did not add or take away from the scene in order to achieve my desired effect.

BS: Do you think that some photographers are relying to much on digital manipulation? Would you say that an unaltered photo can reveal more about the human condition than one that has been digitally manipulated?

RT: Ugh. What a loaded question... I think I’m guilty of relying on digital manipulation in the sense that if I mess up an exposure, I know I will be able to correct it on my computer (to an extent). I imagine that being able to rely on manipulation in that sense applies to many photographers out there. But I think you’re hinting upon a different type of manipulation. And, it is a fine line between digital photography and digital art. I think that if you start changing reality, you cross that line into the realm of digital art. That can be an intentional transition or inadvertent, but there is a distinction.

Listen, I mentioned I’m a purist, so I feel like if I can take a strong photograph, there is no need to go messing with it. If the photograph isn’t working, I’m not talented enough as a digital artist, to make it work conceptually or otherwise. But, if another photographer has something else in mind with their work other than taking a straight photograph, by all means...I think what you’re trying to do is to get me to say that photographers that digitally manipulate their photographs are cool or lame. Well, like with many other mediums, it all depends on the situation and the intentions of the artist, so I won’t say one way or the other. Nice try!

BS: What equipment do you use? Do you have any suggestions for photographers who are just starting out?

RT: I just bought a Canon 5D but was using a 20D for a long time. After printing larger and larger, I finally decided it was time to get a camera that might be better equipped to make

larger prints. I use a totally digital process...I shoot using Camera RAW which is an amazing piece of technology and I recommend any amateur photographer to start using it if they don’t already. Also, know your computer as well as you know your camera. It’s literally a digital darkroom and perhaps the most important part of the process. It’s like framing a piece of artwork...A bad frame can destroy the look of the work. Likewise, bad computer processing can totally ruin a good photograph.

BS: Finally, what are your planning at this time?

RT: While the weather is still nice, it’s the time for me to be shooting. It gets cold out there at night during the Winter and is totally unpleasant to out there. I’m dedicated, but only so dedicated. Dedicated, but not insane.

You can learn more about Remi Thornton and his work by visiting his website: www.remithornton.com. You can view more of my interviews by visiting the following page: www.myartspace.com/interviews

Take care, Stay true,

Brian Sherwin

Art Space Talk: Pedro Matos

Pedro Matos is an emerging artist from Portugal. Pedro started painting at the age of 16. This 18 year old painter displays a lot of raw talent in his work. His paintings, which are influenced by the Old Masters and street art, explore the plight of the downtrodden. These works contain a social message that demand consideration from the viewer. Keep an eye on this artist-- I expect great things from him.

AmmoBoro - Bullets Kill, 80 x 60 cm, mixed media on canvas, 2007

Brian Sherwin: Pedro, you were born in Santarem, Portugal. I've been told by artists from Portugal that it is very hard to find representation there-- it seems that it is hard to find a venue or outlet for contemporary art. Many of these artists strive make their mark internationally due to this. Do you agree with their opinions? Would you say that it is difficult to be a successful artist in Portugal?

Pedro Matos: I would totally agree with them. We don't have all the show openings neither the same amount of galleries as in the US or other European big cities. And the art scene is quite different too. From what I have tasted so far, in my country, your school diploma tends to be much more important than the work you create.

BS: Pedro, I've read that you have been drawing since you were a child and that you started painting two years ago (at age 16). You are currently in high school-- and are, for the most part, self-taught. Where do you plan to study art once you graduate high school? Or do you plan to continue teaching yourself?

PM: Although I believe that I will always be teaching myself for as long as I keep painting, I intend to go to the fine art school (university) in Lisbon, then continuing my studies abroad. I'm researching on London, Barcelona, Italy and maybe American schools too.

Untitled, 120 x 80 cm, mixed media on canvas, 2007

BS: You display a lot of raw talent for your age. Do you come from an artistic family?

PM: Thanks. Not at all, my parents are both science teachers, which keeps the drama even more intense.

BS: Pedro, at age 18 you've already had two solo exhibitions of your art and you have been involved in three groups exhibitions. Due to this you have had national and online press coverage. It seems that you are very ambitious for your age. Care to share some of your goals with our readers?

PM: What really matters to me is the moment I create. Once I have experienced that, I just want to make sure that I don't have to put an end on it. Succeeding in the art business is pretty hard, so I have been struggling a lot to go further and further. I just want to get my work seen, and I also try to make sure I can make a living as a painter.

(Un)noticed among the crowd, 50 x 40 cm, acrylic and oil on canvas, 2007

BS: Pedro, in your art you focus on 'humanity'. You create backgrounds that represent occidental modern society. These backgrounds stem from different elements-- including influences from graffiti, lowbrow art, and pop culture. Can you go into further detail about where you draw inspiration from? Who-- or what-- has influenced you?

PM: Aesthetically I've been mostly inspired by artists such as Caravaggio, Modigliani, Da Vinci, Shawn Barber, Dave Kinsey, Tiffany Bozic, Kat Von D. I've also been influenced by all the graffiti and street art I find out there. I'm still influenced from everything I experience in my day-to-day life. Traveling to a lot of different countries and getting to know a lot of different cultures took a big part on the role too.

BS: Your work often captures a sense of despair... of cultural and ethnic unrest-- tell us what these paintings are about. Do they serve as warning? A form of social message?

PM: As you can see, most of my characters are fading, melting, disappearing. Its not by a coincidence that I bring them into backgrounds that represent our society. I'm not as direct or genius as Banksy, but you can still say there are a lot of social messages in my work.

Chad Muska- private collection

BS: Pedro, one could say that you capture the grit of modern society within your work. With that said, would you say that there is still a ray of hope within the context of your paintings? Do you desire to convey a message that screams, "we can overcome this!"?

PM: You can never repair the damage done in the past. Same goes on where global warming is concerned. But you can always make a change and overcome a lot of problems. (before my characters are completely gone..).

Untitled,70 x 50 cm, Acrylic on canvas, 2007

BS: Pedro, tell us about your artistic process. How do you start a painting? Do you do preliminary studies? Or do you work from your imagination as you paint, so to speak?

PM: It works both ways. I have to do some preliminary studies for my portraits, and human figures. Especially when I change the facial expressions and so on. Everything else is from my imagination as I paint. Some of my works have other paintings in the background that I wasn't happy with. I start drawing my characters on the canvas and then I work from there. I like to paint with some music going on too, and I paint mostly at night.

Untitled, 80 x 30 x 5cm, acrylic on canvas, 2007

BS: Finally, is there anything else you want to say about your art or your goals as an artist?

PM: I want to keep learning and improving my painting skills so I can put all my ideas into action. I would like to approach humanity and the human figure from other perspectives in the future. I have also been painting happy and fulfilled characters that I find in under-privileged places. I represent them fading or disappearing in our modern and pop culture, because I find that same happiness and values disappearing too. I hope I get the opportunity to show my work worldwide, and just keep painting.

You can learn more about Pedro Matos and his art by visiting his myspace profile: www.myspace.com/droneh. You can read my other interviews with emerging and established artists by visiting the following page: www.myartspace.com/interviews

Take care, Stay true,

Brian Sherwin

Art Space Talk: Valerie Hird

I was introduced to the art of Valerie Hird by Laura Pabst of the Nohra Haime Gallery. Valerie is known for creating work that has a unique focus on cultural myths and their interaction with historical memory. Her research lead her to travel the world for eighteen years. She has visited and traveled with semi-nomadic communities in Morocco, Turkey and Central Asia. Through the years she has also tackled the legacy of myth and metaphor within her own society-- the culture America consciously or unconsciously exports to the rest of the world.

Valerie believes that the fictionalization of history provides a rich and evocative tool for societies that rely on oral narrative. That wealth of metaphor, fact and cultural myth was her creative home while abroad for eighteen years. Valerie now focuses on her own oral traditions-- based on radio stations, television news, and other forms of media that bombard us with opinions and information on a daily basis. Valerie finds that these sources utilize a similar strategy compared to the oral histories she embraced while traveling-- they are equally rich as a source for visual imagery.

Gentlemen, When The Bell Rings, Shake Hands and Come Out Fighting by Valerie Hird

Brian Sherwin: Valerie, you studied at Beloit College and the Rhode Island School of Design. Who were your mentors at the time? Also, can you recall any of your early influences?

Valerie Hird: Beloit College was where I learned that my interest in archeology and in anthropology would never become a career. It was clear to me in my first year that visual art was my primary, all-consuming obsession; other disciplines could only influence and inform. I transferred to RISD where the teachings of Dean Richardson and the critiques of Richard Merkin brought me to focus less on technique and more on content. They told me to break my fingers and learn how to see. They exposed me to my early influences; Vulliard and Bonnard, Robert Henri and David Levine. I was also fortunate to work as a conservator for the RISD museum under Diane Johnson and the wonderful curators Christopher Monkhouse and Eleanor Fairweather. Together they opened my world to the rich expanses of visual language in the decorative and design arts. This rich terrain stood in contrast to three colorful years as an apprentice to a Sicilian family of picture framers and commercial restorers (I was working my way through RISD). Between those two worlds, my education beyond rural Vermont ; my original home, was assured.

Lysistrata Revisited by Valerie Hird

BS: Since that time you have held several art-related positions, including: Conservator at the Museum of Rhode Island School of Design, Director of the Passepartout Gallery, Trustee for the Vermont Arts Council, and you have instructed at several educational institutions. How were you able to find balance between these positions and creating personal art? I know from experience that it can be difficult to take on responsibilities while remaining active with your art at the same time.

VH: So many disciplines feed my artist practice. In addition to archeology and anthropology I also love to read and write. At one time I wanted to apprentice to a Romany family to learn flamenco dancing. About the time I start to feel comfortable in my life is about the time I think I’m not doing enough. So ‘balance’ as a lifestyle concept has always made me nervous. I’ve learned to use travel as a means of gaining insights into lives and identities other than my own in order to build a mental warehouse of remembered experience from which to draw imagery. I’ve traveled with Uzbek herdsmen through 1000 year old juniper forests, made a diet of fermented yogurt and grazed sheep on glaciers. I’ve had the privilege of working with archeologists in the Great Western Desert of Egypt. Under the watchful eye of an ancient librarian, I’ve gazed at 12th century Arabic texts in southern Morocco and had the distinct pleasure of swapping stories with a Sufi mystic while hiking in Turkey.

If I spent too much time in the studio I feel trapped. If I’m away too long I begin to feel fractured and irritable. Generally, I find outside jobs to be an impetus toward constructing a productive studio schedule. I try to put in about 30 hours a week during the academic year. My teaching syllabi usually relate to projects confronting me in the studio. So my students are sometimes integrated into my artistic practice. Having said all that, my time can often feel out of my control. My solution is to travel without a cell phone or internet. Away from daily stress I can look at life through another lens and reset my internal clock.

In God(s) We Trust by Valerie Hird

BS: Valerie, you have been represented by Nohra Haime Gallery since the early 90s. Nohra has represented you at several major venues: Art Chicago and Art Miami-- just to name a few. It seems you have built very good rapport with Nohra. What does it take to establish a strong bond between artist and gallery owner... as you have done with Nohra?

VH: It is very important to understand the opportunities a dealer can provide, it is also very important to understand a gallery’s limitations and where you yourself must carve out opportunities. The more clearly those roles can be defined, the easier it will be for artist and dealer to work together cooperatively for mutual benefit. I was aided by having owned and run a gallery before working with Nohra so our relationship has the advantage of my ‘dual perspective’. Nohra is also an unusual gallery owner. Instead of focusing all her energies on sales, her strategies are aimed toward advancing an artist’s career. Having a dealer truly believe in your aesthetic makes those lean financial times spent floundering in obscurity much more bearable.

BS: Valerie, I understand that you have been extending your work on cultural myths and their interaction with historical memory. Much of your inspiration is drawn from years of visiting and traveling with semi-nomadic communities in Morocco, Turkey and Central Asia. Can you go into further detail about how these communities have influenced you and how your art will continue to explore these issues?

VH: My time observing and traveling with semi-nomadic tribes was central to my interest in oral narrative as a tool for recording cultural history. Myth and metaphor are mixed with fact and fiction within their historical memory. A particular location would provoke the memory of a past event -- thus geography became a series of oral/visual narratives that would change depending on the memory and tribe of the orator.

So much of my time is spent collecting stories. Narrative is a constant in my work. I also layer paintings with historical imagery to give context and depth. My 2003 Cycles of Faith, Cycles of Fiction was all about appropriating formats from 12th century Spanish and Persian illuminated texts to form a strata for contemporary cultural events.

But as globalization escalated the stress on tribal lifestyles, it seemed increasingly irrelevant to remain focused solely on the icons of a cultural past. And with the rise of fundamentalist Islam it became increasingly difficult to find people willing to host a white American female with limited language skills. So I altered my imagery to focus on people instead of their landscape. I began researching individuals from both the East and West who have been stressed by recent religious and political turmoil. For the past five years I’ve been absorbed by these manifestations as they play out in daily lives. Insights into other cultures become comprehensible when the stresses involved are filtered through the lens of specific individuals; their lives and their interaction with their communities.

Lest We Forget by Valerie Hird

BS: Valerie, recent news events have provoked a shift in the direction of your art. I’ve read that you are concerned with the legacy of myth and metaphor within the context of your own society, within contemporary Western culture itself. You feel that this is the culture we consciously or unconsciously export to the rest of the world. Can you go into further detail about this... what concerns do you have? I understand that your studies have lead you to focus on war and how war plays a part in these cultural changes...

VH: While researching the rise of American fundamentalism I was struck by the similarities in vocabulary between faiths under siege and their embrace of violence in a just cause. Pope Urban’s peculiar Christian take on the ‘Might Makes Right’ concept by exempting holy warriors from the first commandment continues to be a rallying banner for a number of religious/nationalist conquests. It seems a recurring paradox that men/women are willing to ‘march into hell’ for a ‘just cause’. As Americans we are passionate about ‘justice’, and deeply concerned about morality and ethics, but wildly divergent on what constitutes a ‘righteous cause’. Americans believe in the heroic myth. It is present in every facet of our popular culture.

I have a son who is twenty three. When the present war with Iraq broke out he was the exact age my ex-husband was when he was drafted into the Vietnam War. My son’s perception of war in 2003 was based entirely on the action movies and videos games that we export with such success to Europe and Latin America . I became intrigued with the differences in our perceptions of victory and heroic myth. Thomas Hirschhorn’s exhibition ‘Utopia’ using the camouflage pattern on military fatigues as the ubiquitous world-wide fashion statement testifies to the cultural ambivalence toward violence and the attraction of the commercial heroic myth.

Great Minds at Play by Valerie Hird

BS: Speaking of war... in January 2006, your principal gallery – the Nohra Haime Gallery in Manhattan-- presented an exhibition of your work which juxtaposed some of the historic and contemporary ambiguities surrounding war. Can you tell us more about the work that was included in this exhibit? I understand that it involved aspects of graphic novels and video games...

VH: It did. The 2006 exhibition Myths Now and Then was an examination of the substructure of our culture of violence. Each painting had a strong narrative structure layered with imagery appropriated from medieval paintings of epic or heroic battle scenes. Like the originals, they seduce the viewer with a brilliant pageant of color into an appreciation of the heroic ideal. But in Shake Hands Gentlemen the reference to the relative civility of structured combat seems inappropriate when applied to the contemporary combatants.

Killing Time was based on a conversation I had with a local veteran. Recently returned from combat in Iraq , he saw no irony in playing the Doom and Halo video games as the preferred means of decompressing between duty hours.

My work on paper juxtaposed compositional forms from illuminated medieval texts with contemporary images taken from media coverage of war. In Transition Team, the apostles, the biblical embodiment of the heroic ideal, are replaced by their equivalents from American and British action films; seated in gilded splendor, they are surrounded by sectarian violence.

BS: Valerie, can you discuss you artistic process... how do you start a painting? Also, how did you feel making the jump from traditional works of art to the use of animation? Will you continue to explore animation or perhaps digital art? Film?

VH: Any visual vocabulary I use is dictated by the concept image. Painting has a long track record that is specifically germane when having a visual conversation about historical memory. My process begins with research, empirical to start and then supported by text. The gestation period of any body of work is about 5 - 7 years. My use of animation, as developed by William Kentridge, was a logical extension of my drawing process. Digital animation using a succession of drawn images scanned into a computer, prolongs process and allows me to interrogate every element in the project. I am using animation as part of my Maiden Voyages Project.

Of course, when all is said and done, the artistic process remains a bit of a mystery to me. I try not to analyze it too closely because clarity doesn’t confer success. I wish the experience of painting was cumulative, but even after 30 years of professional practice, good painting demands fresh invention from me every single time. Sigh.

Killing Time by Valerie Hird

BS: Valerie, what projects are you working on at this time? When do you plan to reveal some of your current work? Do you have any upcoming exhibitions planned?

VH: My work will be included in the Bridge Art Fair in London in October. The Nohra Haime Gallery will be showing Hero Worship my new body of paintings and animation in a one person show at Red Dot during Art Basel, Miami in December of this year. The work represents my most recent examination of the manifestations of the heroic myth within our culture. It’s both serious and sardonic.

The Maiden Voyages project mentioned in the last question is the result of correspondence with women from the Middle East and myself. Each month I collected my own and four e-mailed diaries written about a single day, the same day once a month for a year. The goal of the project is to bring a measure of depth to our knowledge of women from the Middle East . American perceptions are largely based on media sound bites articulated within the narrow vocabulary of war. The results of those diaries will be translated into a series of large-scale drawings structured as timelines which can be exhibited traditionally in a gallery setting as well as on-line in animated sequences. I will be going to Amman Jordan to work on the drawings and animation for Maiden Voyages in the spring of next year. I anticipate exhibitions of the project to begin late in 2008. But images from both projects and information on their exhibition will be available on my website starting next month.

BS: Valerie, do you have any advice for artists who are just starting out?

VH: Work as much as you can. Elevate your craft as much as you can. Expand your visual vocabulary as much as possible. Don’t base your research solely on computer generated information. Active engagement with the real world is the best source for concepts and imagery. Having and being able to articulate a great idea, is the best way to get exposure. Competency in business, packing/freighting, computer software and writing wouldn’t hurt either!

BS: Finally, is there anything else you would like to say about your art or the artworld?

VH: I’ve never been able to figure out who exactly constitutes ‘the art world’. You probably have a better handle on it than I. Me, I’ve said enough about myself.

You can learn more about Valerie Hird and her art by visiting her website, www.valeriehird.com, or by visiting the Nohra Haime Gallery (41 East 57th Street.
New York, NY 10022). Also, feel free to read my other interviews by visiting the following page: www.myartspace.com/interviews

Take care, Stay true,

Brian Sherwin

Art Space Talk: Bask

Originally hailing from Czechoslovakia, Ales "Bask" Hostomsky is a street artist who utilizes various mediums to bring forth socially and politically-aware messages. Bask, whose family fled Czechoslovakia as political exiles in 1984, draws from the iconic, subversive imagery of advertising and propaganda. Bask has been noted as being one of the top contemporary post-graffiti writers-- having been categorized with the same cultural importance as D-Face, Buff Monster, Swoon, Faile, Above, Shepard Fairey, and Banksy.

O.D.

Brian Sherwin: Bask, you are originally from Czechoslovakia. Upon moving to the States with your family you observed the similarities between the communistic iconic propaganda from your youth and the consumer advertising you found in America during your teen years. Can you go into further detail about this relation and how it made an impact on your artistic direction?

Bask: When we moved here in 1984, I was only eight years old so I didn't make the connection until I was much older. But coming from a political system which was very specific on how it delivered its messages and propaganda to its people, it wasn't hard to compare that to the way add agencies and corporations target it's consumer audience. Coming to this conclusion I started to play with icons and the power they held over people not to mention myself.

It's a Fine Line Between a Social Drinker and A Drunk

BS: May I ask why you decided to go by the moniker Bask? Your real name is Ales Hostomsky, correct?

Bask: The alias Bask came at the end of a line of tags I was doing in my teens. I wrote Argus, Ayl, among others and eventually I started to put up Bask when I was seventeen. There isn't a deep story behind the name. I think I just liked how the letters came together. Eventually everybody just called me Bask rather then Ales (pronounced Alesh) and I just rolled with it. Strangely enough, I relate to the name Bask more then Ales these days. Does that make me a schizophrenic, hahaha!

BS: Bask, have you observed any other connections between communism and the American lifestyle?

Bask: Not really. It's actually quit opposite in regards to lifestyle. In an American or western lifestyle you have an abundance of everything where as in an communist system there is a shortage. In America, you're encouraged to make more money, get more credit cards and spend it all. Back in my home country, you bought mostly just what you or your family needed, really needed, not like "need" an XBOX or something.

Installation: Killer Bees

BS: Bask, tell us about your influences. Have you been influenced by other artists? Art movements?

Bask: My influences range quite a bit. It's not just art or other artists for that matter. It changes and moves daily. I could get inspired by a song one day and a fight with my girlfriend the next. I never know when or what it will be, I just know it always comes and goes. But if I was to name a few artists I like, it would be Tes One, Barry Mcgee, Phil Frost, Derek Hess, Sarah Gail Hutcherson, The Seventh Letter Crew among countless others.

Harvey's Cafe

BS: Bask, your work is known for having an "anti-iconic" twist. Sometimes your work offers a satirical worldview... other times there is a strong focus on conveying dark emotion. These pieces often reveal a sense of social and industrial decay-- can you go into further detail about the message you are creating with your art and the social implications that you capture?

Bask: Well, to answer that, I'll have to explain my process a little. I create most of my work on found object like panels and boards I salvage from alleys and dumpsters. Things that people find worthless and frankly a burden to deal with. Most of the things I pick up are larger then what a garbage company likes to deal with. I take one of these panel and layer it with pop imagery, child like scribbles or whatever else it calls for depending on the theme of the work. Finally I clear coat and display it in a museum or gallery. This is how the paintings are born. I have a huge respect for this process and try to accentuate the fact that the painting originated from something that was no longer wanted. Top that off with a social issue or emotion I'm trying to convey visually and the rest just happens naturally. I found if I paint on a new canvas with new brushes my work feels empty and soulless. but if it was born out of something I find in an alley then it enters the process with already having a rich history.

Installation for 2007 Bumbershoot, Seattle, WA.

BS: Bask, your work is richly textured-- you utilize a technique of multi-layered applications. Can you go into further detail about your artistic process. How do you start a piece and when do you know that it is done?

Bask: Well I think my last answer covered most of this question. But how do I know when a painting is finished? I'm not really sure, I guess when I stop working on it. I once heard something to the effect of "a painting I'd never finished, just abandoned" I kind of agree with that. I look at some of my older work and every time I see something I could add or take away from it.

BS: The theme of destruction is obvious in your art-- both in how they are created and the message they contain. However, do you leave room for hope? Or do you see the current socio-political climate as one that will only result in peril... doom?

Bask: I'm definitely an optimist. Actually a lot of my work pokes fun at the elements around us, good or bad. Unfortunately, most good art comes from struggle and a sense helplessness-- as if your only voice to be heard is through your art. The current state of affairs lends itself to the arts pretty well.

BS: Bask, your imagery has appeared in countless publications in both advertising and editorial capacities. Do you ever fear that your work will become the very issue that you rally against? Are you concerned that your work may lose meaning due to advertisement? Are you concerned that your work may end up being seen as just another commercial message? Would you embrace that form of irony?

Bask: I do everything in my power to prevent my work to be viewed in that manner. I turn down a lot of work because I choose not to do commercial work unless I get final approval on how my work is used. It's hard sometimes to turn down good paying gigs, but I look at the big picture, and a few bucks can't buy my integrity. But, with that said, in today's art arena, you have to make yourself known so promotion and advertising comes with the turf. The difference is on what you're addressing and as an artist, what you lend your art to advertise. Is it a new pair of kicks for Nike or a series of new paintings you're displaying at your next show.

Kids Bomb the Suburbs Today

Installation detail: Kids Bomb the Suburbs Today

BS: Bask, your art has been shown at the Florida International Museum as well as the Jacksonville Museum of Modern Art-- which also has your work in it’s permanent collection. You have shown in Baltimore, Detroit, Miami and Tampa. Where can our readers view your work at this time? Do you have any upcoming exhibitions?

Bask: At this time my work can be viewed at the Public Trust in Dallas Texas, Vitale Gallery in Saint Petersburg Florida, Foundation One Gallery in Atlanta, CPOP Gallery in Detroit, and other galleries in the near future. For anyone wanting to find out more about my current shows or what I have coming up, go to www.myspace.com/BaskInYourThoughtcrimes.

BS: Finally, is there anything else you would like to say about your art or the art world?

Bask: No, I think I'm good. Thanks for the great questions!

I hope that you have enjoyed my interview with Bask. Feel free to view my other interviews by clicking on the following link: www.myartspace.com/interviews

Take care, Stay true,

Brian Sherwin

Art Space Talk: Ray Cabarga

Ray Cabarga has been surrounded by visual art and music for most of his life. Ray's delight in experimentation is what attracted me to his work, specifically a series of paintings that he calls 'oozings'. This body of work reveals total disregard for traditional methods of painting application. However, they also convey a strong bond with the art theories of Wassily Kandinsky-- which I find appealing. Ray's work reveals the fruit that can be produced from planting unknown seeds-- a field of mystery.

Brian Sherwin: Ray, you were born into a family of visual artist, but chose music. You performed jazz and salsa throughout the bay area for fifteen years before placing total focus on your visual art. That focus has been solid for over ten years now. How has your experience as a musician influenced your visual art?

Ray Cabarga: Greatly, actually. I see music as being directly analogous to visual art and of course all art is a metaphor for life. All the same principles in music apply to visual art, just the specifics are different. The tones are color values, the familiar phrases are figurative representations, the tension created by obscure variations or from the structure of the musical form are the abstractions or impressionistic forms in the painting. They say that playing music develops your brain in a unique way that opens and expands creative thinking and I think writing, arranging, performing and improvising music has all given me a leg up on visual art almost as if I had been practicing it all along. However, the technique is completely unrelated so that was a transition, but technique has always followed concept for me: If I see it clearly in my head, I can paint it.

BS: Ray, how exactly did your family influence you as far as visual art is concerned?

RC: Well, my dad is an accomplished painter and was a commercial artist for 45 years, art directing in New York, then owning an ad agency in San Francisco. My eldest brother is a commercial artist and has had over 25 books published. My youngest brother is a painter and a commercial artist. My sister is a clothing designer and is in some very high end boutiques. And the brother just below me in age plays clarinet with the National Symphony Orchestra in D.C. so its all around me and we have all had a lot of encouragement from both parents to pursue art careers. Oh, I forgot to mention my mother who is a martial arts master, mostly healing arts, and a teacher, though both parents are retired they continue to pursue their art forms.

BS: Where else do you draw inspiration from? Can you discuss your influences outside of music?

RC: The masters of course. Dali, Escher, Kandinsky, Gorky are some of my favorites. all the impressionists and surrealists and many of my contemporaries as well. I spend a lot of time looking at art on websites such as this one and regularly peruse galleries and other art venues. Early childhood memories of visits to the Guggenheim and the Smithsonian-- even the paintings my dad had done and hung in our house back east, to this day, strongly influence me. It's like I can still see those images with a child's mind and feel the awe and wonder that I felt at three.

BS: Ray, you have a unique way of painting... you call these painting 'oozings'. I've read that specific conditions must be met in order for these paintings to be created. It is my understanding that these paintings do not involve any brushwork. Would you say that you control the outcome or do you let nature take it's course, so to speak?

RC: With this particular painting technique, which by the way is only one type of painting I do, I throw away or recycle about 9 out of every ten canvases I attempt so 1 out of ten turn out well. So you might say I let nature take its course but certain very specific conditions affect that and it's become almost a form of alchemy or magic to achieve those perfect conditions. The really good ones are never planned-- planning seems to preclude success and I have to almost step away and detach myself from the work in order for it to do it's thing. It's a discipline in letting go of control of my art which is a very big life lesson for me. To trust the art to paint itself without my constant cajoling and persuading, without my preconceptions of how it should proceed and where it should start and end. It's largely about timing and quantities and being able to put the elements in the environment and then leave it alone for the exact duration and no longer.

BS: Ray, can you go into further detail about the process of creating your 'Oozings'?

RC: Sure I start by mixing ordinary acrylic paints with flow mediums and glazing mediums, acrylic enamels work the best and then I mix colors with glass and porcelain glazes and start applying them to either canvas or gessoed Masonite board. The larger the board the harder it is to make it work. The glazes are basically poured onto the surface and allowed to partially dry for anywhere from 3 minutes to fifteen minutes but this duration is critical. Then I run hot or cold water over it and rinse a lot of it off. Now I start applying the acrylic mixtures and alternate running water over it or drying it with a hairdryer all the while changing the angle so that more or less paint, water and glaze run off. At this point I may add more elements of color but basically after a certain cut-off point I can't add anything else and I leave it to ooze at a certain angle and temperature-- either room temperature or under a heat lamp to slow the oozing and freeze it which is almost impossible to do. After my work is done is when the truly amazing art is created ironically. Kind of like children. You create them and then you just sit back and watch them blow your mind. They show you what you wish you could do. Don't try to control what they do because you'll fail at that endeavor and more importantly you'll deprive yourself of seeing the result of your own evolution. Oozings are exactly like children Brian, all you can do is give them the best you've got and then trust them to do the right thing. And then you accept whatever they turns out to be, because you can't change it. That's what Oozings, and progeny are all about.

BS: So... you are an artist who likes to take chances. Do you think that is something that is missing in a lot of the art that is created today?

RC: Oh yes. Art that doesn't take chances is hardly art at all now is it? What's the point of that. If you want a realistic representation of something, a camera would be my first choice. It is more than taking chances though... it is like creating chances. For everything I can perceive, there's a million things I can imagine. So I would never waste my time on something that's been done, even if it was done by the greatest artist in the universe... the universe... I have my own little universe going here and the only limit I have is how much I can perceive and then from those perceptions, how much I can imagine in my lifetime.

BS: Do you plan to discover other unique ways to build the surface of your work? As an artist, are you concerned with finding new methods and techniques of artistic creation?

RC: Not concerned but definitely open to the possibility. I forgot to mention I discovered Oozings completely by accident. I was trying to do a portrait and it didn't turn out so I tried to wash the board off before it dried. The phone rang and I left the room then forgot about it. When I came back three hours later My first oozing was sitting there and it was the most amazing thing I've ever seen. I tried to recreate the process but I never have exactly done that the best. I know what your next question is going to be, "Can I see the original painting?" and the answer is no-- no one ever can I had to destroy it because it was too amazing for anyone to gaze upon. I'm Kidding!

BS: Ray, what is your studio space like? What are the conditions you need in order to create? Do you follow a steady routine of studio practice?

RC: Nope! No pre-requisite conditions. Usually the art is all created in my head before I start working and I just need enough room to move my elbow and someplace to put it to dry when it is done-- seriously. I'm sure there are ideal conditions for the piece of art I'm working on but I never know what those are so I just do it anywhere.

BS: Ray, do you have any upcoming exhibitions? Also, are you represented by a gallery? If not, are you seeking representation?

RC: Funny you should ask that. Have you ever heard of an artist that spends all his time creating art and doesn't give nearly enough attention to self-promotion? And does a large carnivorous quadruped relieve himself among the natural arboreal growth? I'm currently seeking representation, yes.

BS: What projects are you working on at this time?

RC: A piece commissioned by a client who loves physical representations of old sayings. Its a four foot diameter globe of the earth constructed out of oyster shells. Can you figure out what old adage this represents?

BS: Finally, is there anything else you would like to say about your art or the artworld?

RC: I love art and artists and the artworld. Art is my life so people should buy my art before my death because the price goes up after that!

You can view my other interviews with emerging and established artists by visiting the following link: www.myartspace.com/interviews

Take care, Stay true,

Brian Sherwin

Art Space Talk: Heather Hutchison

Heather Hutchison is a very humble artist considering the fact that she has gained great success in New York City. Her work has been featured in ARTnews, Art in America, and several other publications. By applying tinted beeswax in horizontal bands to Plexiglass panels, Hutchison creates see-through paintings that are subtle, yet contain the powerful essence of nature. These panels are attached to wooden frames that create a form of controlled atmosphere. In my opinion, these works reflect the conflict that results from aspects of the natural world when they are contained-- there is certain tension about this work. In the end-- through the force of light-- nature dominates.

Brian Sherwin: Heather, can you tell us about your youth? When did you decide to pursue art? Can you recall any early experiences or events that directed you on this path? Also, who were your early mentors?

Heather Hutchison: My father was a caricaturist. Early on my parents, my two brothers and I would travel every six months from Arizona to Oregon and back again visiting with his artist friends while he did "the circuit." My parents then decided to settle down, and from ages six through thirteen I lived with my family in a grand old hotel we owned called, "The Copper Queen," in Bisbee, Arizona six miles North of the Mexican border.It was the early 1970's and people were seeking refuge in this small burgeoning artist colony from "yuppies". They were pouring in from places that they felt were already being ruined like Aspen, San Francisco, Marin County, and New York, lots of guys coming out of Viet Nam as well... as a young kid I was aware that it was a a time of massive change.

I feel fortunate for the amount of freedom living in the hotel afforded me, it was in the center of the town, which is built like a European village, nestled a mile high in the mountains-- everything within walking distance. I developed inspiring friendships with many interesting adults, visionaries, writers, artists,and hippies. I would spend time with them in their studios and homes independent of my family. Having been influenced by all of these artist's lifestyles and witnessing their work practices, I began a studio practice before I was ten years old. The hotel and our other properties gave me an enormous amount of space, enabling me to set up a studio.

I was lucky to grow up knowing that I had come from at least four generations of professional artists and to have it reinforced throughout my whole life that being an artist is a valid lifestyle choice. I was so convinced that I didn't see the need for art school. This wasn't because I thought I knew everything-- I still know nothing-- but, because I had learned through experience that being an artist meant having original vision, and at eighteen I couldn't imagine how being confined to an institution with hundreds of other inexperienced youths who were being taught by the same handful of teachers could help that much in attaining originality. If I'd been thinking about a career back then I would have tried to get into Yale.
BS: Heather, you have been reviewed by ARTnews, Art in America, The New York Times, and several other publications. How do you feel when your work is selected for coverage? Do you get excited? Nervous?

HH: I usually feel hopeful that a critic is going to write something that will help me to see my work from a different perspective, that it will teach me something about what I am doing, and then I am often disappointed that it doesn't enlighten me at all. I suppose that is something I could have gotten over by getting crits in art school.

BS: Heather, your Minimalist work often reminds viewers of the natural elements of nature- light, ice, water and earth. Are you influenced by nature?

HH: Yes, to borrow from Pollock, "I am nature" and I am coming back into being more nature as I grow closer to returning to dust. This is the world I, and every other art making, art viewing human exist in... I think it is impossible to escape the influence of nature even if the work isn't recognizably "nature based," it is-- it can't help it. But, yes I do embrace that metaphor. I am working to make it be not such an easy one to come to... sometimes I can't resist.
BS: For those not familiar with your art, what do you strive to convey in your work?

HH: It seems that whenever I consciously "try" to convey anything it is a disaster, self-conscious, and corny...so I avoid doing that. Sometimes people don't notice my paintings at all, sometimes they are extremely moved. I think it all depends on what the viewer brings to the viewing experience, no matter what your looking at.

Heather Hutchison- Black & Light (2007)120 x 240 inches, site specific, fabric & paint

BS: Heather, for over twenty years, you have developed a visual language that utilizes components of painting- light, color and depth. You combine these methods convey a sense of emotion, memory and the passage of time- with a focus on translucent media. Where do you see your work going next? Also, What are you working on at this time?

HH: In July I finally created an installation I have ruminated on for the last 13 years. I had organized an exhibition in Woodstock, New York (I have been curating lately), the curatorial focus being artists in different medium that limit their palette to black and light. When it came to planning the hanging I realized that the show needed something to regulate the light that was coming in to the space... this was a push and an opportunity to realize this long desired installation.

I utilized a large window covering it with layers of different translucent materials... and painting the wall to recede, the end result being a completely flat field of light that was constantly changing with the movement of the daylight, sun going behind clouds, buildings, etc. I collaborated with videographer Dean Janoff and we made a 24hour time-lapsed video condensed into 3 minutes that I am very pleased with. Both the video and the installation are fixed yet constantly changing-- that is something I would like my other pieces to do... the paintings/ sculptures I am making since July have learned from that experience. I am working on having the opportunity to realize more of these window pieces in public spaces-- I can do them most anywhere.
BS: I assume that creating art is a constant form of exploration for you... correct?
HH: Correct.

BS: Heather, Elanor Heartney (ARTnews) stated that your work demonstrates some similarities with the work of Eva Hesse and Christopher Wilmarth in that your manner of Minimalism often enhances the use of metaphor instead of taking away from it. Do you agree with that statement?

HH: Definitely, that was one of the writings that I actually learned something from.

BS: Heather, your work sometimes deals with religious or metaphysical concerns. Would you say that you are a spiritual person? If so, how does that spirituality enter your artistic practice?

HH: You could say that I am spiritual. I don't have a rigid ritualistic practice-- I've tried, but once again I start questioning the conformity. I have always just been looking for answers. My study and experience of religion is usually focused on the the philosophy of the religion. My artistic practice, my studio, and now raising a human being (my son) are what is most sacred to me. It is in the studio and through the meditative practice of making work that I feel I have come closest to any truths.
BS: Heather, can you tell us about your other influences? What artists or art movements have influenced your art?

HH: Another by-product of being self-taught... when I started working with translucency and light in 1988 I wasn't aware of the California Light and Space Movement-- in 1990 a dealer from L.A. turned me on to it.I am inspired by, and feel I am working parallel to, much of that work. Later, after making work that is a direct result of process and application for about ten years I discovered that there was a Process Art movement. It is reassuring to me to have other artists share my obsessions-- I feel less crazy.

The minimalism that was being created at about the time I was born (early sixties) has resonated the longest and most consistently with me. Major influences and inspiration from other artists in chronological order since my early twenties: Album art, Magritte, Hopper, Guy Pene du Bois, Barnett Newman, Agnes Martin, Donald Judd, Joseph Amar, Christopher Wilmarth, Menardo Rosso, Turner, Camille Corot, Corbet, Giovanni Bellini, Giorgio Morandi, Robert Irwin.

BS: Heather, where else do you draw inspiration from?

HH: I believe I am obsessed with particular horizontal divisions of space that for some reason resonate with me, I can also be transfixed by the movement of water and light. Raw materials really turn me on as well.

BS: Tell us about your work space... what is your studio like?

HH: I have two great studios, One in DUMBO Brooklyn that has big windows that look at the city, the Manhattan Bridge, and the River. The other is in Woodstock, NY where we have had a home for 12 years. For the last five years it has been our primary residence, we are in the woods on a private dirt road that no one drives up... we turned a large post and beam pole-barn into studios, my husband paints upstairs and I have the bottom floor. It is only 30 feet from the house.

We have an eight year old son and at this time in my life keeping the balance between the home and the studio feels right to me. I will be working and while something is drying I run in to the house and start some soup.While that is cooking I will go back in to the studio and continue working on a piece. We originally came to the country because I was feeling that our life in New York City was out of balance, with too much emphasis on the self-referential art world and having a "career," not enough awareness about the life we were living.

I am happy to be up here having a family and an extremely high quality lifestyle... in the long run it is important for the work. I have realized that I am in it for the long run and having distance (2 hours) on the artworld allows me to be happy, refreshed, and non-competitive when I am in the heart of it.
BS: What are the conditions you need in order to create? For example, do you work in silence or do you listen to music? Do you work alone or do you prefer company?

HH: I work alone. I can go through a certain amount of the process with someone in the studio or working with me, but the point where the piece is actually coming to it's own has to be done in solitude-- usually with one CD (probably Bob Dylan) playing over and over to the point where I can't really even hear it anymore it just becomes part of me, like my heart beat.

BS: Heather, tell us more about your artistic process. How do you start a piece? When do you know that it is done?

HH: Without a pre-conceived idea of what the work will be I start by deciding the dimensions of the plywood box, and whether or not to build multiple panels. I build my own forms from Birch plywood that I rip into boards on the table-saw. I choose the boards for their grain and warp. Then I mount and route the Plexiglas. After the form is done I start applying color to the inside of the box and the surface of the Plexi. It is in finding the right balance of the inside and surface color that will give me the overall color(s).

Once the color is determined I scrape it back down and begin playing with composition I apply the color to the composition until it is a painting/sculpture, meaning that it can stand on it's own as a painting/sculpture and it transcends looking like a piece of furniture or a light fixture. This can sometimes take months to determine... I let things hang out to see if they pass the test of time. Sometimes things will come back to the studio years later and I will rework them-- they didn't pass. I think everyone does that.BS: Heather, where can our readers view your art in person? Also, are you involved with any upcoming exhibitions?

HH: I am represented in Manhattan by Margaret Thatcher at 511 W. 25th st., she usually has something up in the back-- she will be taking my work to the 07 art fair in London and Pulse in Miami. I'll be having a solo show at the gallery in a year or so, date yet to be determined. We are pretty good about keeping upcoming shows posted on my website www.heatherhutchison.com.

BS: Heather, do you have any advice for artists who are just starting out? Perhaps you have some suggestions for seeking gallery representation or issues that emerging artists should be aware of in the artworld?

HH: I have noticed that success has to do with luck, working as hard as you can, and bugging people until you get what you want. If possible, arrange for, or marry someone with, a sizable trust fund. I am lucky, but not lucky enough to have a trust fund... I have been working for years on being able to bug people-- but I am just too sensitive. I have been training my son since he was born to be lucky by constantly pointing out his good fortune, it is all in your self-perception.

BS: Finally, is there anything else you would like to say about your art or the artworld?

HH: Yes Brian, since you asked, I think it is imperative to the future of contemporary art that the artworld (artmarket) remember that it was started by and would not exist without artists.

You can learn more about Heather Hutchison by visiting her website: www.heatherhutchison.com. You can view my other interviews by clicking on the following link: www.myartspace.com/interviews

Take care, Stay true,

Brian Sherwin

Art Space News: SH Contemporary Art Fair in Shanghai

Nondescript (diptych) Year 2005 - Medium oil on canvas Size 55.1 x 110.2 in. By Qiu Xin

The opening night of the SH Contemporary Art Fair in Shanghai was a great success. Upon entering visitors were greeted by an artist who passed out a snack of rice with a hidden message among the grains-- "Rich Bastards Beware.'' Oddly enough, the 'fair-warning' by artist Rirkrit Tiravanija was warranted! For example, collectors paid as much as 150,000 yuan ($19,885) for the work of emerging artist Qiu Xin.

Collectors and critics know that China is a rising star in the global art market. The Shanghai Fair served as a test of that stability and of the vitality of China within the context of the global art market. On the opening night, leading Chinese artists made the highest sells when compared to artists from other nations. Those who attended agree that China's influence on the art market will not stop anytime soon.

Fair director Lorenzo Rudolph, a former director of Art Basel, and Swiss dealer Pierre Huber, the curator, organized more than 110 galleries from around the world. About a third of the galleries represented at the fair are from China and the rest were foreign galleries that focus on Chinese art. Event organizers made it clear that the fair would represent the best and brightest of artists from China.

An interesting aspect of the fair is the fact that the galleries from China, which represented artists working from within the country, out-sold the Chinese artists represented by foreign galleries. Again, this is a reflection of the art-boom in China. Collectors desire work from Chinese artists who live and work in China. I find it interesting how Chinese artists living outside of China were not as sought after by collectors.

Not everyone was pleased with the fair. Some viewers felt that the majority of the work, though fulfilling the purpose of spot-lighting contemporary Asian artists, catered toward the current trends that Western viewers enjoy-- trends that embrace kitsch mingled with sex. What can I say, sex sales! If the market for contemporary art from China continues to grow-- you had better be buying!

Take care, Stay true,

Brian Sherwin

Art Space Talk: Pat Lipsky

Pat Lipsky has dedicated herself to painting for several decades. Lipsky graduated from Cornell University with a BFA in 1963, following which she attended the graduate program in painting at Hunter College where she studied with the sculptor, Tony Smith.

Lipsky's paintings have been reviewed by David Cohen (The New York Sun), Ken Johnson (The New York Times), Alicia Turner (The Miami Herald), Karen Wilkin (Art in America), Alexi Worth (The New Yorker) -- among others. Her paintings are in twenty-four public collections: The Whitney, The Hirshhorn, The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, and she has had twenty-eight solo exhibits.

Installation, Color Paintings, 2006, Elizabeth Harris

Brian Sherwin: Pat, through the years you have had several solo and group exhibitions -- including group exhibitions -- Whitney Museum of American Art (New York). How do exhibitions make you feel? Do you learn from them -- as in, do you take in all the information you can about your work from onlookers?

Pat Lipsky: Exhibitions make me feel nervous at first, and are also often a goal to work towards (although I work all the time, with or without an upcoming show). I have learned a great deal from my shows. They're one of my best teachers -- seeing the work up, out of the studio, and looking at it with "foreign eyes" is very illuminating. There were some shows early on where I felt (as the woman in Eliot’s "Prufrock") that "that is not what I meant at all. That is not it at all." The viewer is of course important too, but somehow the first thing is my own eye. It’s always fascinating to get another person’s take, especially someone you respect, and it's also interesting and instructive to see which paintings resonate with professional viewers, and critics.
Blue Border, oil on canvas, 70 1/2" x 68 3/4", 2002

BS: You have been reviewed in The New York Times, Art in America, The New York Sun, ARTnews, and several other publications. Thinking back on your early years, did you ever expect your work to gain this much attention?

PL: In all candor, I did. I’m like any artist: I feel there hasn’t been enough. Yes. That’s because I had a strange start in the art world. Almost a year after graduating from Hunter College’s
Master’s program my work was taken on by one of the then-best galleries in New York City, Andre Emmerich. This was perhaps an unrealistic debut and spoiled me for what a life in art might be. I immediately started selling the stained paintings -- two styles: burst and wave -- that I was doing at the time, and there was attention from the press and even a kind of odd bonus, a solo show at the Everson Museum in Syracuse. So I got the idea that this was the way it was going to be. And then, to my surprise, the lean years came. So to answer the question, my work gaining attention and being reviewed was something I expected from my early years -- although not, of course, as a student.

That’s That, oil on canvas, 53 1/4” x 67 1/2”, 2002

BS: Speaking of your early years, can you recall any periods or events of your youth that helped pave the way toward your exploration of art?

PL: Good question. I guess you could start with my mother taking me, when I was seven, to study painting with an elderly man in the neighborhood who had a framing shop. I sat in back, in a little booth, and he taught me how to use oil paint, how to make a tree, and a path, and put clouds in the sky. This appeared magical to me, but I’d already been drawing, and working with crayon and watercolor so it wasn’t so strange to find myself working in oil at that age. Then 17 years later there was Tony Smith, a great teacher whom I had the privilege of studying with in graduate school. He had a real sensitivity to color, and helped me to both refine and re-find color in my painting. And then, too, there was seeing my first Rothko at the Jewish Museum in a show created by a Cornell teacher Alan Solomon. I gasped when I saw that first painting, an orange and yellow. I didn’t know that you could do that in painting, make color so obviously the subject. (Even though Rothko claims in his writing that color is not the subject.)

BS: You studied at Hunter College, The Art Students League, and Cornell University. Who were your mentors during those years? Can you recall any interesting experiences from your apprentice years?

PL: The Jewish Museum show was a big moment. I would add this anecdote about the Art Students League, where I studied during a semester, I took off from Cornell. The teacher was the painter Charles Alston. I was in the class painting from the model; there I was with my canvas and palette starting to work when Alston came up to me and said, "Why are you doing that? Painting from the model?" I was stunned. Wasn’t that what you were supposed to do in a figurative class? He said, "Why don’t you try an abstract painting?" The question frightened me, but I was always one to take a dare. So even though it felt totally alien and I didn’t really know how to do it, that’s when I painted my first abstract canvas.

Alan Solomon at Cornell was also instrumental in that he knew the scene in New York; he served as Director of The Jewish Museum at the same time he taught in Ithaca, and he would tell me every weekend what I should see in New York. I’d ride the Greyhound bus to town and visit the galleries and museums he suggested. As well as the Rothko, I saw the first stained paintings by Louis, Frankenthaler and Noland. The new acrylic paint invented by Lenny Bocour allowed painters to work directly into the canvas, as Pollock had done with enamel, instead of on it. I also remember Jan Mueller and the early Stellas -- as well as Rauschenberg, whose work I detested.

Homage to Bellini, oil on linen, 81 3/4" x 62", 2006

BS: Pat, you have also been an art instructor. You taught at Parsons School of Design, Hunter College, San Francisco Art Institute, and several other schools. During those years how did you find balance between being an instructor and creating your own art? Also, can you describe your instruction philosophy: in your opinion, what is the best way for an art student to learn?

PL: I found it extremely difficult to balance teaching with painting. Very few painters will say this -- it’s the thing you aren’t supposed to say. You should say, "I grew and I changed" or "the students' fresh attitude helped me see my own work in a blah-blah way." I just saw it as a big intrusion, three days a week. I knew every exit sign in the building; this is a hard thing for students to know, but it’s something most painters and sculptors will admit, and a lot of writing teachers too. It’s better, of course, when there is a really interested student.

As for my instruction philosophy, I told the students to look at painting; I took them to see paintings whenever possible. And I told them not to listen to what Harold Bloom calls "the cheerleaders" in the art and art history departments, who were pushing outsider art, feminist art, video art, each for a semester, but to look at the masters who had created the tradition. As Donald Judd once wrote, "When you need a plumbing job done, you call a working plumber." Except in rare instances, it’s more a situation of surviving art school with your enthusiasm and talent intact. I like the Gertrude Stein quote: "Genius is knowing who to be influenced by."

Proust’s Sea, oil on linen, 81 3/4” x 62 3/8", 2006

BS: I see you once gave a lecture at the Pollock-Krasner House. Can you recall what you spoke about? Also, do you plan to give any lectures about art in the near future?

PL: The Pollock-Krasner House -- that was a lot of fun. The topic was "What Tony, Lee and Clem Told Me"; that is, what I’d learned from Tony Smith, Lee Krasner and Clement Greenberg. (I knew the latter best.) I particularly compared Greenberg and Smith; what was so interesting was that they were talking about the same people --Pollock, Barnett Newman, Rothko -- and saying entirely different things, about their approaches and their work. I also talked about Soho in the seventies. (The talk incidentally is collected at The Archives of American Art, http://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/collections_list.cfm/fuseaction/Collections.ViewCollection/CollectionID/6089)

Installation: Red River Valley series, 2004, Elizabeth Harris

BS: Two of your most recent bodies of work -- the Red River Valley series and Color Paintings -- were exhibited in New York in 2004 and 2006, respectively. In the Red River Valley group, you repeated one theme over nine canvases. In this series you subtly changed the colors from one picture to the next. With Color Paintings, you continued your goal of expanding the vocabulary of color in abstraction, with an additional focus on colors that have not been labeled or codified. Can you go into further detail about these paintings? What influenced you to create them?

PL: With the second group, paintings that have many no-name colors, I was looking for hues that don’t yet exist, that don’t immediately have a name when you try to describe them -- like the new words or combinations you sometimes get in poetry. I think many colors have become clichés. I made up my mind to avoid those and move onto more difficult and complex mixtures -- to give the viewers an experience they hadn’t had before. What I had in mind was a kind of abstracted landscape -- creating mysterious and elegant worlds through color. I tried to keep the surface as smooth and the format as unruffled as possible -- to drench the viewer in color.

I didn’t, and don’t, end a picture until it has what I consider a presence, a sense of life that extends beyond the painting. By sense of life I mean that it has an identity, like a place or person. Sometimes this takes a very long time to achieve. Sometimes it doesn’t happen -- and those are the pictures you don’t show.

BS: What about Red River Valley?

PL: Those came out of twelfth-- and thirteenth-- century stained glass windows I ‘d been looking at for several years in France. I came away with the idea that these anonymous stained glass artisans were the true and original fauve artists. I went to many French cathedrals -- Troyes, Laon, St. Chapelle, Chartres-- where the overwhelming sensation I had was simply the richness of red and blue. That, especially, is what I wanted to recreate in these canvases.

I also responded to the faintly homemade feel of early stained glass, and tried to recreate that impression as well. The structure in the pictures is always asymmetrical, with no line hitting at the same place in any of the divisions. In all my painting, I’m interested in what "difference" is and in how differences add up, creating assonance in the minor shifts between hues. As you continue to look at the paintings the differences "come up" and make you aware that what you saw at first is not what the paintings are about.

My reading of Proust and Eliot, my viewing of Bellini and Giorgione and Titian and Ablers and Cornell and Pollock, my listening to Bach and Thelonius Monk, my liking Eric Rohmer and Monty Python might seem totally unrelated, but they teach the same lesson: differences matter. When Monk plays a single note instead of another, a piece is either saved or ruined. When Albers puts a white next to a yellow instead of a blue, the yellow is changed -- and the white is changed too. If Proust chooses to follow one character instead of another, to write 50 pages about a dinner instead of four paragraphs, the reader's experience is alerted in the most intimate and immediate way. We look at works of art as single large units -- but they’re actually composed of hundreds, of thousands of individual and tiny units, each one a decision. It’s those units that I’ve been experimenting with throughout my career.

Installation: Red River Valley series, 2004, Elizabeth Harris

BS: Pat, you have stated the following: "Painting is about seeing. And that’s not easy. To see what you’ve done, to be able to actually see other work takes a lifetime. Seeing changes -- what I thought was very good last year might not look that good to me now. And when I put something away for six months and then take it out I’m a bit nervous at first. Will it hold up? Of course, it’s even worse when it’s your own work, because you are so subjectively wrapped up in it. It’s everyone and everything you know up until that moment." Would you say that you are your own worst critic? Do you think that is a good thing?

PL: Aside from Henry James -- who preferred the Academy to Monet -- I don’t believe there is a "worst critic." I do take my eye seriously, and I also like looking at my paintings with people I’m close to. Sometimes I’m surprised I couldn’t see that something wasn’t working from six months ago. It’s a humbling experience. It can go the other way too -- something I’ve ignored, pushed aside, actually is working. When you are standing next to another person looking together it objectifies the experience of seeing, and that's helpful. (James writes, in one of his stories, "he had a fresh eye, and I was in a good deal of need of any such organ" -- which is why nobody is ever really a worst critic.) As a painter it’s essential to be critical of your work, and to edit heavily. As Matisse said "An artist’s bad paintings are his own worst enemy."

BS: Pat, when I view your paintings I think about Mark Rothko. I must ask, has his work been an influence on your art? If so, have you ever visited the Rothko Chapel? If you have -- how did you feel upon entering? Also, who else has influenced your art?

PL: We’ve been talking today a lot about Rothko. I think his paintings of the fifties are brilliant -- along with Pollock some of the best pictures of the twentieth century. I don’t much like his later work, and although I’ve never been to the Rothko Chapel I’ve studied other pictures from after 1955 – some of the Seagram panels were shown at the National Gallery a few years ago, and there’s the late Rothko room at the Tate Gallery in England. To my eye, Rothko falls off in these paintings, which look almost as if they were done by someone imitating Rothko. I think it’s the turgid colors, the maroon palette, and the general darkening of hues -- none of it seems to suit his sensibility. To my mind these pictures are self-conscious, trying to look important and serious, and for that reason they miss both qualities. (I’ve actually heard that he’d invite people over to look at them and then play Mozart and ask if the paintings came up to that level.)

As for other influences, lately I’ve been influenced by Bellini and Titian, and northern Renaissance painters like Van Eyck and Rogier van der Weyden. When I was a teenager I loved Cezanne and Manet, who I became acquainted with through a set of posters from the Cortauld Gallery that hung in my bedroom. There are many others along the way, Pollock and Newman to name two Americans. And always I’ve admired Matisse, the great colorist.

Poussin Calm, oil on linen, 23 7/8” x 33 1/4”, 2007

BS: In your work you seem focused on the medium itself -- I sense that you are interested in the physicality of paint, how you can push it to make it do what you want. Is this so? Also, can you go into further detail about your painting process? How do you begin a painting?

PL: I do love paint. I love colors in tubes, and pure pigment -- I even love the names of colors. "Terre verte," "burnt sienna," "alizarin crimson." I am interested in surface, how to go about creating one that is rich, beautiful, elegant and smooth. And I’ve thought a lot about the expressive nature of surfaces -- for example in Chardin and Raphael and Soutine, the surface is the style. It’s the most personal thing.

For how I start a painting, I begin sometimes from a work on paper, but more often not. I usually have a pretty good idea of what I’m going to do, and usually that changes as I go along. Some paintings take years to complete. As Robert Frost once said of his poems, I try to "ride on my own melting."

BS: Pat, what are you working on at this time? Also, do you have any upcoming exhibitions?

PL: I’m working on some smaller paintings for the first time in many years, at the same time that I'm continuing the larger scale ones. And I’m recently back from Venice and Rome, so I’m playing with renaissance colors.

BS: As you know, many people have a hard time understanding (and sometimes even accepting) abstract art. In your opinion, why do you think that is? What would you say to someone who does not understand abstract art?

PL: I’d say, "Look again," and then I’d say, "Keep looking." Abstract art isn’t that difficult; it’s only a little tougher to get abstraction than representational painting, because it’s a new language. I think the highest moment we had in painting -- and maybe in any of the arts -- was Abstract Expressionism in the fifties. We were competing internationally for the first time. Seeing this work did involve some struggle on the part of the audience, some necessity to expand, to tolerate that feeling of being uncomfortable. But then we absorbed the style. The minute the deliberately vacuous Pop Art showed up, many of those same people breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Oh thank God. At least I can stop that struggle now. I can relax." Nabokov makes a great point somewhere; he says nothing dates quicker or more irrevocably than the avant-garde. Look at some of the most "modern" exhibits from the Venice Biennale last summer -- staged photographs of women abandoned by lovers, artists throwing licorice on the floor. How does that compare with the experience of taking in a Rothko, a Matisse, or a Pollock? The art that has replaced abstraction is about as visually rewarding as a trip to the super market -- and in lots of cases less so. Think of those great photographs of supermarkets by Gursky.

Portrait, oil on canvas, 24 3/8” x 38 5/8”, 2006

BS: Pat, tell us about your studio? What are the conditions you need to create? Do you work in silence or do you prefer to listen to music? What is it like to be in the studio of Pat Lipsky?

PL: I like silence -- which is very hard, if not impossible, to come by in New York City. I don’t listen to music when I’m working; it throws me off. I have a nice space with five windows and a skylight so the light is good. I know which wall gets the morning light and which the afternoon, and so I move around accordingly. And towards the end of the day, I notice I see better.

Installation: Color Paintings series, 2006, Elizabeth Harris

BS: Do you have any advice or suggestions for painters who are just starting out? Many young artists seem to fall into the trap of waiting to be discovered. As you know, that does not always happen. What is the best way for an emerging artist to put his or her best foot forward?

PL: I don’t know the answer to that question. I remember the late Clement Greenberg saying in lectures he gave in the Northeast, "Come to the center. The great artists of the past had to go to Rome, or Paris, and now it’s New York." On the other hand, there seems to be a way in which the art world climate is mirroring the political climate; both seem played out, full of evasions and numbness. So really I’m at a loss for advice, other than to say, "be true to yourself, trust your instincts." I guess what I’m saying is read Emerson’s "Self Reliance." It’s one of the most American texts, and also one of the best texts to give a young artist.

BS: Finally, is there anything else you would like to say about your art or the art world?

PL: No, I think that about covers it. Thank you.