McKenzie Ditter - Artist Interview

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Category: Interviews

Published on Monday, 21 September 2009 09:08

Written by Tom Brown

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The following interview with local artist McKenzie Ditter was conducted via email in September 2009. She's an illustrator with an interesting energy. I like anyone who creates characters, so of course I am particularly entertained by this exchange. AND I can learn from her line work and coloring and so can you. If you have time, take a look at her blog for even more characters.

I've had to re-size her images to fit them into this blog. I hope the quality of her lines is not lost by this process, but that is always a risk when taking a drawing that lives on paper and transferring it to the internet.

The artist is pictured on the right with some sort of chicken on her head.

MCKENZIE: Any need for another interview? My name is McKenzie. Take a look at my drawings at http://mckenzieelizabeth.blogspot.com

TOM: My, my, my! you are full of the creative juices.

MCKENZIE: Thank you :)

TOM: Well, I guess that concludes this interview. Haha. Just kidding. Please describe your art work lately. Also please tell me a little bit about what you think might motivate your creativity.

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Rebecca Waring - Artist Interview

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Category: Interviews

Published on Wednesday, 02 September 2009 13:17

Written by Tom Brown

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This particular interview with local artist Rebecca Waring was conducted via email in late August 2009. I was horrible in this one because I just couldn’t get my brain working, but Rebecca made up for that.

Hopefully we did not include too many external links, but that’s how internet discussions go these days. People bring outside links into the conversation / discussion. (The artist is pictured at right.)

REBECCA: I would be happy to be interviewed if you are still looking for willing subjects. I'm a local Baltimore artist who shows work around the city and in Maryland and DC areas. You can see my work at: www.rebecca-waring.com

TOM: I will be finishing up one interview this evening, but I am happy to start a new interview with you. I checked out your site briefly. I like how you are working with not only paintings and drawings, but batik as well. With previous interviews, I usually ask the artist to tell me about one of their pieces to get the ball rolling. OR we could just about start anywhere.

REBECCA: Cool. I can do whatever you prefer. If it makes it easier I'm happy to start by telling you about one piece.

TOM: I am having a terrible time picking! Of the works on your website, which one is your current favorite?

REBECCA: I think the one on the home page titled Remember would provide interesting talking points and does represent the kind of art I'm most drawn to.

How should we start? Do you want me to just tell you about the painting and how I came to paint it?

TOM: Please tell me about the painting and how you came to paint it.

REBECCA: I work part-time as a software developer for a company in Arlington Virginia - mostly from home but I go in for meetings. I was driving home across Key Bridge one day and I saw this sign on a house up on the hillside in Georgetown. It said "Remember". I couldn't tell what I was supposed to remember. The jet trails made me think of 9/11, or perhaps it had something to do with the Catholic Church since the spires of Georgetown University were adjacent? The scene so struck me, that I came back the next day with a camera and took a picture. I painted this picture which ended up winning first prize for painting in a juried show at Glenview Mansion in Rockville. This type of symbolism is what draws me to painting. I want to paint these types of archetypal symbols that resonate at a deep level and make people think. I'm not really interested in interpreting symbols for the viewer, but rather letting them have their own experience of them.

A footnote to this - I drove the same route sometime after completing the painting and the sign was bigger and said 'Remember the Valdez'. It was hanging right over the Key Bridge Exxon [gas station]. It had been sort of bunched up the first time I saw it and only the word 'Remember' was visible. I liked it much better when I had to interpret the meaning myself, which is how I want the viewer to experience the painting.

TOM: First let me say that I like the painting. Looks like it has a lot of detail and I wish I could zoom in and take a closer look. I enjoy looking at photographs and paintings of cityscapes and skylines, but I can't remember too many other paintings where a modern city is the subject matter. I am trying to get my brain working this morning to ask you a question or two.

How about a question on details and process? While you were painting this, what thoughts were going through your head in regards to details? I can see all of these structural elements to the buildings and I wonder, "How does one manage all of that?" I imagine you sketched it out first?

REBECCA: The small details actually felt pretty easy to capture. The perspective was a bit tricky because the houses sloped down to the left and away from the viewer. I did do a rough sketch but most of the process was painting. I don't normally do architectural subjects so this was a real challenge. My thought process was pretty subjective and intuitive. With each building I kept looking at the style and wondering when it was built, who lived there, etc. That one Bauhaus building really stood out and at the time I wondered if the person next door with the 'Remember' banner was really telling us to remember the Bauhaus movement and never forget how dreadful it was!

I normally have more figures in the painting and a narrative story. This one is a good example:

Grenada, 1965, oil on canvas, 30" x 40"

It is part of the current series I'm working on that is based on an old box of slides from the 1960's that my grandparents took while sailing in the Caribbean.

TOM: The style you have achieved in Remember reminds me so much of a book I had when I was growing up. I wish I could remember it. It was a book full of paintings that documented the changing of an imaginary city over the years. I was amazed that people could create such images with paint.

Also, your piece Remember reminds me of a style of photography that is new to me. Using some technique called tilt-shift, the photographer takes a picture of a real life sized city and makes it look like a scale model town. Here is an example of such photography from Kevin B. Moore's , Flicker set.

Not to be too fixated on random details, but in Grenada, 1965, the shadows on the back of the figure to the left and the piles of bananas caught my eyes the most. That's great that you are incorporating images from your parent's travels into your latest series. Life is so full of experiences.

Well what next? What do you think about life in general?

REBECCA: Wow - those photos of Baltimore are incredible! I have a friend who bought a bunch of photos off eBay of old Baltimore in the 1960's - Fells Point, the harbor, etc. I was thinking that might be the inspiration for my next series. I love the juxtaposition of the brewery with the boarded up row houses. It says so much about our city.

Speaking of which - I am completely besotted with Baltimore, which is a source of great amusement to my pals who grew up here and seem rather cynical about the city. I moved here three years ago from Rockville, sold a bigger house there and moved to a smaller house here in the Tuxedo Park area, so I could go down to part-time work and have more time for art. I just think this place rocks. Can't quite explain it. The people, the architecture, the feeling of history, that indefinable charm. My forebears are all from here but I didn't grow up here because my Dad's job took us to Delaware. Even if I win that Mega Millions tonight, I'd still stay right here. I feel like I'm already in my own funky version of paradise.

And the art scene here is really great too. Much more accessible than the DC area. I study at a fabulous place - ever heard of the Schuler School of Fine Arts? Their approach is totally Old Masters and those ancient techniques really work. I've seen my skill level increase dramatically from studying there. Even if you are more drawn to abstract or modern art, I think that classical education will still give you the best foundation. So you can probably tell from all this that I find life in general is a joy-ride. Not without its bumps, but I'm grateful for all of it. Art really brought me to that state of mind.

TOM: I was happy when I found that Kevin B. Moore’s profile on Flickr. His photos seem to really capture something about Baltimore (and surrounding areas). Baltimore photos from the 1960's? That's a catch. Recently I found a website with photos from old Baltimore (taken by Robert Pence). If you check it out, scroll down about halfway down for the pics I am talking about. It is fun to see what's changed and what's stayed the same 30 years later.

It is interesting to read how much you connect with Baltimore. I've lived here my whole life and I can't say I am charmed by it, but I do have my life here and can't imagine living anywhere else. I have wished to live in New York City from time to time, but that's not happening any time soon. For now, I will stay here and do what I can to make it a better city.

I've never heard of Schuler School of Fine Arts, but what do I know? I only really got into the Arts back in 2004 or so, but I've always had the interest. I saw that you did a few still-life paintings and they are impressive to me. Tomatoes and Cruet for example.

I can't imagine being able to paint like that. When I do paint, it is more experimental paint-pushery. Ha!

REBECCA: Pence's [1979] stuff is good but that other guy [Kevin B. Moore, aka “crabsandbeer”] was amazing. I do paint still life quite a bit, but it's basically for the practice. The Schuler School advocates painting still life on a regular basis as a learning tool - sort of like playing scales for a musician. So I crank one out every couple of weeks. And it seems to be working - I can see improvement. Why don't you think about studying at the school? Believe me, you don't have to be experienced. I wish I had some early work to show you - I was terrible! They have an evening school on Tuesday and Wednesday nights that starts in October. You can sign up for the whole year - Oct through April - or the drop-in rate is $40. They do portraits on Wednesday, but Tuesdays is still life, drawing, etc.

TOM: I will think about it, but I don’t know if that’s for me. Well, it looks like we’ve come to a good stopping point. Let us conclude this interview here and get back to our busy lives. Thank you for sharing.

Katia Baskina - Artist Interview

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Category: Interviews

Published on Friday, 28 August 2009 08:05

Written by Tom Brown

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The following interview with artist Katia Baskina was conducted via email in August 2009.

KATIA: Hi, I'm a local Baltimore Artist and I would love to be interviewed for your blog. You can view my work at www.wix.com/FlipAndFly/Katia If you're interested let me know where and when you want to do it.

TOM: I took a look at your website. I like your style. How would you describe your style?

KATIA: Hm, I guess Modern Impressionism. My main influences are Gustav Klimt, Van Gogh and Matisse. I've also been doing a lot of pinup stuff like the self-portrait painting.

TOM: Would you like to pick one of your works and maybe discuss that with me? Let me know what you feel like for this interview.

KATIA: Hm, well I would rather focus on a body of works than one, but I guess if I had to choose a specific one, I would choose either my new one that I just did and would have to send you a pic of or the one on my website called "Dreaming".

TOM: I took a look at your new work called "Dreaming" on your website. That's the one with the nude female and the bar stool? I guess there are two ways to look at it. Is she laying on the floor and her legs tangled up in the bar stool? or is she floating in mid air with a bar stool at her feet? It does set up a certain type of dream like place. How do you think this work fits in with the rest of your body of work?

KATIA: She's laying down with her feet up. I guess it’s the best representation of that period of art that I was doing. I was working on painting nudes from life and developing my figure painting skills, but at the same time I wanted to create a fantasy like feel to all of them, make them Surreal in a way. Most of my nudes, especially the latest ones are all like that. I paint the body realistically, and than paint a scenery around them that is based on whatever mood I'm in at the moment and whatever comes to mind. When I was painting "Dreaming", I was thinking of a recurring dream I have of me swimming under water and seeing wondrous things, so that's what I painted and that's why it's called dreaming.

TOM: I see. I see. I like your dream of finding wondrous things under the water. Would you just clarify what kind of paints you are working with? I could not tell exactly from the website or maybe I did not look in the right places.

Also, your work shows realistic human figures existing in these emotional environments, sometimes dreamy as in the painting "Dreaming", but sometimes emotionally charged or vibrant. So with that in mind, does your art make any statements about the human form or human beings in general? What do you think about people in general?

KATIA: The medium is Acrylic on Canvas.

As far as how I see people, hm that's a good question. My overall idea of humanity is not very pleasant. Most people go through life worrying about themselves and screwing everybody over and everything up in the process. However I try and see the beauty in everything and everyone, even if I have to create it and imagine it. I guess that reflects in my artwork, I paint from real people, but give them a personality and a surrounding [that comes from] out of my mind, not really knowing who they really are.

I guess I try and make them beautiful and wondrous even though they might not be in real life. I know I can't change people and the world, but I can make it more beautiful and inspire people to do great and beautiful things, and to see beauty in this life, through my creativity and my good deeds. One can't ever give up on what they believe in, no matter how that might contradict reality, and everything people say around you. We are the masters of our own failure and success; we can do anything as long as we believe in it and put our mind to it.

TOM: That's a positive message. I guess it's a matter of perception interacting with reality. Sometimes our perceptions can be off, but other times our perceptions can be right on target. Tell me a little bit about your background before we wrap this up.

KATIA: I'm originally from Russia, have also lived in South Africa. Been in the states for about 12 years, graduated from MICA and am currently working as a Special Education Art Teacher and am a freelance artist and am starting my own business making hand-painted household and fashion accessories out of recycled and vintage materials. I'm also going to be having a show at the Ottobar in October or November [2009].

TOM: Thank you for sharing.

Micah Cash - Artist Interview

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Category: Interviews

Published on Friday, 28 August 2009 08:03

Written by Tom Brown

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The following interview with local artist Micah Cash took place in August 2009 via email. It's a good one. I have been putting out calls to interview local artists and Micah was one of the artists to respond. I checked out his website and found his paintings thoughtful and inviting.

TOM: I like your work.

MICAH: Thanks, man. I enjoyed your interview with Dan [Stuelpnagel]. I appreciate you getting back to me.

TOM: We can do the interview by email. How should we start it up?

MICAH: Email works. Feel free to start it up anyway you like. This sounds fun. If you'd prefer we could meet in person as well, grab a beer or something; and you're always welcome to drop by my studio.

TOM: I vote for email. Sure, a beer some time sounds fun. So you have a studio? That's a good place to start. Whatta you think about your studio lately?

MICAH: That it's too small. I work out of a home studio, which is nice for many reasons. However, I'm currently beginning a group of large paintings, many in the neighborhood of 5 - 6 feet. Since I prefer to work on many pieces at once, I routinely have space issues. It only gets worse when the paintings grow in size. It isn't uncommon to see paintings drying in my dining room and hallway.

TOM: I took a closer look at your website. I see that you work with oil paints and other materials such as beeswax. Interesting "environments" you are creating there in your paintings. Some of your work takes a look at people. Here's one for example:

The painting has a spiritual feel to it and I don't mean religious, but the guy seems to be floating maybe like a ghost. Let me ask you: this was painted about 4 years ago. How do you feel about your older works in relation to the newer ones?

Oh and aren't there things called drying racks for paintings where you can stack multiple paintings on the shelves, kind of like a skyscraper for paintings. Ever thought about one of those? Heh heh. I can relate to space issues. I am in an apartment myself and space is precious.

MICAH: That's a great thought about the drying rack. I prefer to allow my paintings to dry standing up due to the process of drips and glazes, but even some sort horizontal rack with individual slots might be an avenue to explore.

My choices of materials are always very specific; usually chosen for their metaphorical and physical properties in relation to the emotive elements I want to convey. In the case of beeswax, I was looking for a material that added both visual and physical depth. The smell and texture of beeswax maintains its organic qualities on the surface, and it worked well with content I was exploring in those drawings. I'm able to push and pull the wax and work the image on the paper in a loose, painterly manner. In conjunction, the inherent translucency of the wax was integral to creating the ephemeral quality I sought for those "environments."

The ephemeral and as you put it, ghostly, element is something I'm drawn to. Almost all of the work I make exist in the purgatorial realm of memory. Whether its a landscape, figure, or nebulous cloud of color. I believe that people and experiences shape us, and the memories of these things are always in the back of our minds. So in the case of the figure in *Zemedelec*, your comment of the spiritual ghostliness isn't far off. He's a remembrance of an ancestor or someone who forged a path that you (or I) am a product of. And his presence is a reminder of whether or not you're living up to his example.

But to answer your question, I'm quite fond of the older paintings as they are directly responsible for my current series. The idea of internal vs. external experience is something that my work directly speaks about, and the older paintings were meant to be an experience. Compare that to the current series, which are strictly about internal experience and you begin to see the connections. As with all work, there are plenty of things I would do different now, but as a body of work I'm quite proud of those paintings. They were a necessary step to where I am today and where I want to go in the future.

TOM: Well, Mr. Cash, that answers all of my previous questions. Now another question: What do you think about the Internet?

MICAH: It's a fascinating thing. I'm amazed at how simple of an idea it is, yet how profoundly it has changed the way we live. As a society we've been quick to take it for granted. It has become such a multifaceted tool of daily life: communication, news, content sharing, productivity, and financial record keeping, to name a few. All of which were completed differently a little more than a decade ago. It's a great thing that has leveled the playing field to individual people. It's impressive.

However, in response to that, the internet not only allows people immense freedom and control, but it also forces them to accept responsibility for what they read, write, and do. So, while it allows people, like myself, to showcase my work and manage a fantasy baseball team, it also allows hate groups a platform for communication and organization. Even after all the things we now utilize that are internet-based, there is potential for so much more.

TOM: Micah, you've given me plenty to work with here, but maybe one or two more questions before we wrap things up because readers have a short attention span on the internet. You have a website, so your art is definitely on the internet. How do you see:

a.) art changing the internet

b.) the internet changing art

Thanks. No pressure!

MICAH: This is an interesting question, and difficult to answer. Is the internet changing art? Absolutely. But how? As an artist, the internet has made my life easier. Showcasing my work on a website, thus allowing anyone around the world to see it is a huge plus. But has it changed the nature of the art? That, I'm not so sure of. I view the internet and the digitization of our lives as another tool for artists to utilize. Just as photography, slide projection, sound, plastics, and other media have entered the artistic vocabulary over recent history, so too has digitization and the internet. Its not better than more traditional media, just a more recent addition.

But as far as art changing the internet, I think that's much less likely. Art has and always will be about experience; both the artist's experience and the experience of the viewer. You can't put that on the internet, but what you can do is use the medium for it communicative and informative possibilities. If an artist can make more people familiar with his or her work, then hopefully more people will seek it out in person in order to have the experience the artist intends.

I'm glad that you like the work, and I appreciate you having this exchange of ideas.

TOM: Fantastic! Thank you for sharing. For anyone interested in seeing more of Micah's work, check out his website: www.micahcash.com