Jeremy Lipking
THe
YouNG AND THE TaTENTED By Nancy Gillesfie
'lt lf any artists struggle for years l\ / I before achieving recogniIYItio" in midlifelor euen later. And many artists, whose life stories are featured in the pages of
art history books, are recognized posthumously. Then there are those for whom innate talent is rewarded early. Jeremy Lipking is one of the latter. Just27 years old, Lipking already has won several major awards and his career is spiraling upward at an amazing speed. Asked if he is ready for fame and fortune, the man of few words merely shrugs. He's sure to take whatever life dishes out in stride. The Southern California native, who was born in West lns Angeles and raised in Ventura, might well have had a leg up from day one. "I was exposed to art early on," he says. 'lfhen I was growing up, my dad was an illustrator who did children's books, along with advertising and design." When it became apparent that the son had inherited the father's talent,
encouragement was readily forth-
coming. Even though, as a boy, Lipking spent endless hours draw-
ing and painting, by the time he was in his early teens his focus had turned to music, specifically to the guitar. "I enjoyed all kinds of music
52 Arl of the West March /Apn12003
Red Scarf,
oil,24" by
18"
"Cad red just works a lot better when you d.on't haue to mix white with it. When I fainted this iorI uanted the skin tones to feel both light in aalue awl rich in color, Instead of using more white and mixing the skin tones lighter, I painted the surrounding shafes darker, Valua, like color and. edges, look the way they do because ofthe aalue next to it."
trait of my beautiful wife, Danielle,
and played with a variety of bands: rock, reggae, even punk," he says. "Although I took some art classes in school, it simply wasn't a big interest at that time." Toward the end of his high school years, Lipkin became interested in science. "I considered science a possible direction, and I took some classes at a community college," he says. 'Then my son was born a couple of months after [my] graduation. I moved to Mammoth Iakes for ayear and didn't give much thought to further education." For awhile, Lipkins "did almost anything to make a living, including some freelance commercial art work for a couple of years," he says. "I worked at a hardware store, too and managed to get in some painting, but it was a pretty
,,{.
,,c::i
*#t'
Fur Coat, oil, 12"
J,.g'
.
,rdi'
by 9"
"I liked the simple shaqes and the cool the shapes is not as impofiant."
light in this picture. Most of the actual painting happens at the
edges where the sha|es meet.
March/April
2003
tut
Wtat goes att ;i;::,.
of the
\\-esi
.:;
a tentative existence.
I
considered
doing art full-time but I didn't think could pull it off."
I
Like so many aspiring artists, Lipking knew he wanted to be a painter but there was no one defining moment that set him on the path to a career as a fine artist. 'When I moved from Mammoth lakes back to Southern Califomia, I stayed with my parents and decided to go back to school," he says. "Since my dad had recommended the California Art Institute, I enrolled there." He got more than an art education, however, when he met Danielle, a fellow student whom he later married.
After some 18 months, Lipking found himself in the dual role of student and teacher. "Some of the fac-
ulty quit, so a few of the more advanced sfudents stepped in," he says, adding that he continued to
teach until just 18 months ago.
Nymphe-Du Bocage,
oil,30"
"Despite the class load, I not only managed to paint, I started doing portrait commissions." A job in a coffee shop provided the impetus Lipking needed to focus solely on his art and to paint fulltime. "I couldn't see myself working in a coffee shop forever, so I kept practicing my art and studying draw-
ing," he says. "I finally arrived at
a
place where I felt I was good enough
to put myself out there." Thafs rather an understatement
considering that
in
Sierra Waterfall, oil, 30"
by
20"
"I originally wanted to inclwde more rock on the sides
of the waterfall, bwt the only s|lt to set u! an easel was at the base directly in front ofthe water, tlo close to inclwde anything else. I decided this composition hadbetter abstract qualities than my original id,ea."
2001 Lipking
walked away from the California Art Club's Annual Gold Medal Juried
Exhibition with two prestigious
awards: a Gold Medal (the equiva-
lent of Best of Show) and
the Museum Director's Award. He followed that coup at the California Art Club's exhibition in June 2002 with a Museum Purchase Award. And two months ago a gallery in New York
by 40''
"One ofthe challenges in this painting was to keep the strong, contrasting aertical shapes ofthe Asfen trex from ouerpowering the subtle horizontal patterns in the grass. By differentiating objects with color change rather than talue, you get the afpearance of lost and found edges without sofiening any edges."
54
Art of the West March/April
2003
March/April
2003
Art of the West
featured 25 of Lipking's paintings, his first major show. In fact, many of
those paintings already had been
in which accuracy is very difficult," he says.
Lipking, who prefers to work in
hours in his studio almost every day, creating a bevy of paintings, 80 per-
oils, approaches a painting with very little drawing. "My preliminary work is simple," he says. "I use a brush to create a few simple lines, divide the
cent of which are figurative-both nude and clothed-and mastering the human anatomy. "It s a subject
Once they're blocked in, I start painting, workingfrom the head and
pre-sold two months earlier.
Lipking, now spends 10
to
11
space and block out
the
shapes.
bringing each shape to a complete finish before moving to the next shape." Ifs a winning approach and a track record anyone would envy. This young, deflnitely up-and-coming artist already claims representation in four galleries: one in New York, two in California, and another in Arizona.
The other 20 percent of Lipking's work consists of landscapes, usually plein air paintings, many of which are done at what he describes as "a
small, old family cabin between
Mammoth and the Sierras. I go up for a month in the summer, then take shorter trips during other seasons. I do a lot of small studies, both figurative and landscape, and in winter I work on snow scenes. Whether at home or the cabin, I use live mod-
els for my figurative work. Danielle often serves as a model-and takes care of the business end for me." Lipking's landscapes are often less than16" by 20" while his figure paintings range up to 50" by 30". Iipking also conducts a few workshops each year, either at his cabin or in Southern California. Iast year
Morning Light, oil,20" by 30" "The combi.nation of cool and uarm light competing with one anotherunade this Painting
56
Art of the West March /Apnl2003
dfficult but uorth the effort."
Danielle, charcoal, 20'by
It
'Another picture of my fauorite model. Thi.s hat was founil at a flea market and creates a nice strong, simple sha|e against the white background. By cinnbcting the dark ualues ofthe hat with the dark on the collar, I created one big shafie out oftwo. Less is always bener. Atthough this is teihnically a d,rawing, I think about it the same way I would if I were using !ai.nt. Shapes, ualues, edgesthe only dffirence is in the artPlication."
he taught a figure painting
class sponsored by the Fechin Institute at the Donner Ranch north of Taos. With so much time spent painting, and occasionally teaching, one wonders if Lipking finds any time to relax
and have some fun. Asked about it,
he laughingly replies, "Once
in
awhile. Music still excites me, and I periodically get together with one or
two other musicians. In the winter I like to snowboard, and in warm weather I enjoy rock climbing."
year. As for his immediate and long-
camaraderie of other artists, visits muse-
paintings." f@
Lipking also enjoys the
range future, Lipking simply says,
"My main goal is to finish
good
ums and attends exhibitions. In 2001, he was made a signature mem-
ber of the California Art Club and participates in the half dozen or so shows the group sponsors each
Nancy Gillespie is a writer li,uing in Taos, New Mexico.
March/April
2003
Art of the
West
57