Can we separate the artist from their output? Can we value the genius of an artist’s ouvre if the artist is a jerk? Conversely, if the artist is a genuinely stellar human being but their work is sort of meh, will their art be as memorable and legacy-worthy? I think this question merits real analysis because I think it sheds a lot of light on how art is consumed by the public. It’s always said that people don’t buy art, they’re buying the artist. But why?
Read MoreOne of the challenges I faced while making ceramics over the past several years is how to re-create something as it was the first time. Someone will say— “Oooh, I love that!” and want the same thing. This is where molds and stamps come in handy….
Read MoreWhen I was a kid, I was more than slightly obsessed with little boxes of any sort. Then, I didn’t know for certain why. Perhaps because they held my most important treasures and keepsakes; I stashed….
Read MoreMy oak easel, bought back in the early 90s when I was just starting out as an illustrator, while sturdy, was really only meant for lightweight canvas duty or for smaller boards. So, when I started working on heavier panels, I had a problem with the tray slipping…
Read MoreMaking the award sculptures for ConGlomeration’s Art Show was a fantastic time. Being given carte blanche meant I could just have a blast imagining anything at all…
Read MoreHaving had the span of a 13 year hiatus gave me the critical distance to finally understand this piece which has real importance to me as an artist and is significant to my life as a human.
Read MoreWhile art-making isn’t as high stakes as eating a wild mushroom, sometimes it can feel just as terrifying to “trust the process” when you don’t have a clue where your work is going or how you’ll get it where you want it to be.
Read MoreMentors are super important! If you don’t have one or several, get thee some right away. And if you have the chance to mentor someone else, it could greatly and positively impact their life in ways that can’t be quantified.
Read MoreThe point is, no one knows what their life is going to be like 10, 20, or 30 years from now. But you’ve got to stick around to find out.
Read MoreI meet someone at a gathering and they find out I’m an Artist. Before I can get even one word out about what kind of work I do, they start telling me about a painting— a painting! they saw at some gallery or show or arts collective. But they didn’t buy it and now it haunts them. They don’t know how to track down the artist but they snapped a photo of the artwork. Breathlessly, with hope in their eyes, they ask me…
Read MoreArt collaborations are quite interesting. There’s Warhol & Basquiat, Dali & Buñuel, Björk & Barney, and the list goes on. Artists work together to stretch their abilities and techniques, and to gain important feedback about their work. In a collaborative visual artwork, you’re also “listening” to what the other artist is creating …
Read MoreHoly heckin’ heck. In one month, my life’s been turned upside down. I’ve never been an early morning person, but since we’ve gotten our chickens, getting out of bed at 530 to greet them at rosy-fingered dawn with musical wakey-wakeys and a tray of their favorite things …
Read MoreI’ve done only one graphic novel. It was 104 pages long. In the 2 years (nearly) it took me to complete it, I learned that while I had a great deal of fun (and really became proficient at Photoshop), I wouldn’t (probably?) do another one. At least that’s what I say now. Never say never?
Read MoreThere are TONS of resources out there for self-initiating artists, and there are many venues to advertise and sell work. Here is a list of many of the resources I’ve used over the years— there are many more newer ones out there to discover.
Read MoreIf I wasn’t dozing off, I was taking note of the art in this church. Morning light streamed into the floor-to-ceiling stained glass windows bursting with colored fragments, scattering light everywhere. Can we appreciate the aesthetics even though we no longer engage in the religious culture?
Read MoreLaura Ingalls’ book and series, Little House on the Prairie, about her life as a pioneer, was an incredibly influential bit of literature for me in an important time in my life. Few books had such a lasting effect on me as this one did.
Read MoreWhen I had made a batch of these prototypes, I gave one to Elva, my pottery mentor who gifted me my studio and equipment. Her remarks on seeing the ware were that I was making pottery in the tradition of “face jugs.” What was that?
Read MoreYou know those people who sit in the stands and throw trash onto the field. They’re the ones who are verbally beating up the players, flinging invectives and general negativity. They’ve never been on the field. Never players. And yet they feel competent to criticize or judge something they themselves have never done…
Read MoreI found a great way to stretch canvases starting at the corners! According experts in restoration, it’s an archivally sound method that distributes the canvas’ tension evenly so as to avoid tension cracks in the painting’s corners.
Read MoreWe sometimes hear people referring to their children and family surname as their “legacy” and this is an oft heralded achievement. But when artists use that word, legacy, it’s suspect. Is it because we’re not dead yet? Because we haven’t yet finished the work? Perhaps legacy is…
Read More
