Issue 19 • September 2019 • Facebook.com/TalkArts
IT’S ALL ABOUT
ARTS
Supporting Local Arts and Culture
Deb Putnam
Deb Putnam - Painting Legacies By Janice Williams
A self-pronounced realist painter and one of South Boston’s renowned plein air painters, Deb Putnam is a passionate artist with deep community connections. I met Putnam while I was involved with the South Boston Arts Association. She is always engaged and willing to assist wherever needed so the community can experience art. Whether painting a mural or organizing events for children such as building and decorating gingerbread houses at the South Boston library at holiday time, Putnam gives everything an art spin with much love and transparency. This story though is about her beautiful art and the legacies she paints for all of us to remember and cherish. According to Putnam, “My choice of subject matter, such as old buildings, antique cars and nightscapes pay homage to a disappearing landscape. With my portraits and old photograph derived works I am hoping to also portray an intimate moment in time. I hope that with these paintings I am able to celebrate these people and these landmarks”. In my paintings it’s important that I celebrate the buildings and It’s All About Arts Magazine September 2019
people I paint. Most of the buildings I choose to paint are old, ornate or quirky and are in danger of disappearing. With people, I’m interested in inviting the viewer to share a private moment we’ve all experienced”. Her medium of choice is oil paint but she experiments with acrylics and liquid charcoal. She commented, “I once explained my intent at a critique as trying to create a mood and was asked if I knew what mood was spelled backwards. Though a stinging remark then I
Deb Putnam Painting Legacies by Janice Williams continued
have accepted that maybe my paintings are a little doomed. A large boat I painted sunk and many of my building subjects have been torn down. Fear not, nothing has happened to my portrait sitters.” A graduate of Mass Art with a BFA, Putnam had the honor of studying under George Nick. She has also taken portrait painting classes at the MFA, Fort Point Studios and most recently the Realist Academy. She does figure drawing with a group at Quincy Art Association. While I think of Putnam’s paintings as very reminiscent of Edward Hopper’s work, she herself is a great fan of Fairfield Porter and David Hockney and recently she has discovered Elaine DeKooning and Lucian Freud! To me Putnam’s paintings tell of a world that I can always identify with. Putnam has sold many paintings, won many awards and recently won first prize at the Quincy Arts Affair at Marina Bay with her “He Greets the Day” painting. Several years ago, she was asked to paint a group of eight car paintings for the Hilton Head Artist League’s Gallery to be shipped and displayed during the Concours d’Elegance in South Carolina. Putnam just retired from being an elementary art teacher (25 years) in South Boston. She says, “Teaching elementary art came about by accident, my son and daughter It’s All About Arts Magazine September 2019
were attending Gate of Heaven School and when the principal learned I had an art degree she said, “you answered our prayers” and offered me the job in lieu of tuition. Lucky for us Putnam is now pursuing painting full time. Other than delightfully catching Putnam on the street with her mobile studio (her French easel) set up, you can see her next exhibit, a collection of figurative work at the Goddard House Gallery, Brookline MA during September 2019. Deb will be part of the 5th Biennial Juried Alumni Exhibition: Nourish, which will be on view in MassArt’s Patricia Doran Graduate Gallery from October 30 November 27, 2019 She will also be teaching an 8-week painting course for seniors at the JP library this fall on how to transform an old black and white photo into a painting. Contact info dputnamart@gmail.com website dputnamart.com Putnam’s Cover Image: Bright Moments @ Massasoit Community College John Licata & John Kafalas: trombones Bob Drinkwater & Bob McCloskey: reeds John Horner: piano Dave Gold: bass Dave Mann:drums
OPEN STUDIOS
by Janice Williams, Editor and Publisher Art Studio 99 has been participating in Roslindale Open Studios (ROS) since its beginning 15 years ago. We look forward to it every year. We say thank you to the amazing people who make it happen. Open studios is a wonderful way to see a community’s creative side. It is the best place to find unique gifts for yourself, your hoem, your office and for others. You also get to talk directly to the person who made the product. Artists spend months preparing and then gather in their own studios, at group spaces and in local businesses to offer a variety of art: paintings, drawings, mixed media, fabric, wood, jewelry, ceramics and more. When you purchase from an artist at a local open studios you are supporting the local economy which is important for the overall economy. Hope to see you at ROS. Here is a list of upcoming Open Studios I recommend. SOUTH END OPEN STUDIOS- September 21 & 22 https://useaboston.com ARTISTS FOR HUMANITY OPEN STUDIO September 25 http://afhboston.org/openstudios.html CAMBRIDGE ARTS OPEN STUDIOS September 28 & 29 https://www.cambridgema.gov/arts/Programs/openstudios JAMAICA PLAIN OPEN STUDIOS September 28 & 29 https://jpopenstudios.com/jamaica-plain-open-studios ROSLINDALE OPEN STUDIOS- October 19 & 20 https://roslindaleopenstudios.org ROXBURY OPEN STUDIOS - November 2 and 3 https://www.roxosc.org THE MOTHER BROOK ARTS AND COMMUNITY CENTER OPEN STUDIOS- December 7 and 8 https://www.motherbrookarts.org It’s All About Arts Magazine September 2019
Visit ART Studio 99 October 19 and 20 IT’S ALL ABOUT ARTS www.itsallaboutarts.com facebook.com/TalkArts Twitter - @itsallaboutarts Instagram #itsallaboutarts ROSLINDALE ARTS ALLIANCE www.roslindalearts.org facebook.com/Roslindale-Arts-Alliance-129685993761701 ART STUDIO 99 www.artstudio99.com facebook.com/Art-Studio-99-145566388819141 Twitter @artstudio99 Instagram - janice_art_studio_99 Published by It’s All About Arts Copyright 2019 - All Rights Reserved Glenn Williams - 617-543-7443 glennsmusic.williams@gmail.com Janice Williams - 617-710-3811 janice@artfulgift.com TO ADVERTISE - REQUEST OUR MEDIA KIT ALL ADVERTISING REVENUE GOES TO THE IT’S ALL ABOUT ARTS YOUTH ART SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM. MORE
Two Artists in one home studio
Saturday October 19 & Sunday October 20 from 11am to 5pm Please stop into Art Studio 99 during Roslindale Open Studios. Bring a used or new children’s book for our “Little Lending Art Library” and get a free gift! Located at 99 Belgrade Avenue, Roslindale, MA 02131 roslindaleopenstudios.org
Janice Williams Mixed Media and More
My pursuit of artful activities has been a life long love of art discoveries. My first love was quilting. I then started working with paper and creating collages and doing decoupage. Today I dabble in all mediums. I love to paint and draw. I love to recycle magazines and create large paintings as well as small collages. I will have large and small paintings as well as decorated bird houses, unique art cards and ornaments for sale. artstudio99.com Winter Tree with Cardinal 36 x 36 Paper and acrylic on canvas
June Alexandra
All Things Floral Wearable Fresh Floral Art
Alexandra’s Floral Events bloomed from years of experience in the floral industry. June Alexandra’s life’s passion is bringing the beauty of flowers to every person. Fresh Floral Jewelry, Floral Tattoos and Floral Hair Wear will be presented at Open Studios. Flowers touch our hearts. June Alexandra’s Floral Art shares the beauty of flowers. alexandrasfloralevents.com
Award-winning folk singer Lisa Bastoni makes a big impact with her latest release, “How We Want to Live” By Mary Ellen Gambon
Relationships always have played a major role in the life and career of singer-songwriter Lisa Bastoni. From the time she was given her first guitar by her grandmother, to the decade she spent away from the music scene to raise a family, the influence of family has made a deep impact on the direction of her career and the depth of her lyrics. Her latest release, “How We Want to Live,” is a powerful reflection of her personal journey. Bastoni’s ability to touch the heart-strings with lush alto vocals and meaningful stories prompted Billboard to write feature an article on her single, “Never Gone to You,” about her absentee father. Bastoni will release her CD at a concert on Saturday, September 14 at Club Passim, 47 Palmer St. in Cambridge, MA from 8 to 11 p.m. Boston-based Americana singer-songwriter Liv Greene will be opening for her. In a phone interview last month, Bastoni, who recently was a winner of the Kerrville New Folk Festival 2019 award, discussed the new CD and the twists and turns that led to this zenith in her career. “I started playing guitar when I was 13 years old,” the Connecticut native who lives in Northampton, MA, said. “My grandmother, a visual artist, who played guitar as a hobby, gave it to me. I learned a few chords and started playing from there. I would sit on my grandparents’ back It’s All About Arts Magazine September 2019
porch, where they would hold singer-songwriter’s circles, and I would wait my turn.” Bastoni grew up listening to her grandmother’s record collection - Emmylou Harris, Joni Mitchell and Joan Baez were favorites - as were the contemporary singer-songwriters she and her grandparents would go see at the local Unitarian church. In addition to her love of music, Bastoni’s other passion is for art. She attended Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, New York, where she majored in art history and minored in studio art and Italian. “Right after college I went out to San Francisco for a very little while,” Bastoni explained. “But my grandfather passed away, so I came home.” In 1999, Bastoni was offered a job at a Newbury Street art gallery and moved to Boston. Then one day, a trip to the Park Street MBTA subway station changed her life. “That’s when I met Tom Bianchi, playing on the subway platform,” she said. “We got to talking for a while, and he convinced me that people can actually make money playing their music.” “Within a year, I quit my job,” Bastoni added. “I started playing the subways, and outside at Harvard Square. So you can pretty much say it’s all Tom Bianchi’s fault. Tom later became the booking director at The Burren in Somerville, catapulting the careers of many rock and folk artists over the past two decades. “Boston’s music scene is such a connected community,” Bastoni said. “I’ve learned so much over the years just by being a fan, sharing shows, and becoming friends with other songwriters. I feel lucky to be a part of it.” Through open mics and gigs with other artists, Bastoni built a solid following in the early 2000s. She made a couple of albums in her living room on a four-track recorder so she would have CDs to distribute at her performances. “I began entering folk music industry shows and contests,” she said, noting that she
Award-winning folk singer Lisa Bastoni makes a big impact with her latest release, “How We Want to Live” By Mary Ellen Gambon continued
books her own shows. “I drove to California and Texas a lot. There was not a lot of money, and a lot of work.” Bastoni then decided to take what became a ten-year hiatus from the music industry to marry and raise her two children. “I decided I wanted to do something different,” Bastoni said. “I got a job in a cubicle.” After she received her master’s in art education, Bastoni taught art in an elementary school for a few years, returning to her second love. But music began calling her again, and Bastoni could not resist the urge to record. “After I put the kids to sleep, I would start playing in the kids’ playroom,” she said. “It was like finding an old friend.” Bastoni titled the CD “The Wishing Hour.” “I thought of it as the hour after the witching hour,” she said with a laugh. “It was the only private time that I had.” The unique history of “The Wishing Hour” is that Bastoni recorded her vocals and guitar tracks at home. She then sent them to other musicians and the producer, who weaved them into the final compilation. “’The Wishing Hour’ opened a lot of doors for me,” Bastoni said. “It debuted as the number-one, most played on WUMB.” “The Wishing Hour,” a richly textured album of personal stories, led to a number of songwriting awards and performance dates. It also gave her more name recognition and the motivation to create her latest project during a critical time in her life. “I feel like my latest collection is very personal,” Bastoni said. “I’ve dealt with divorce, a move, and a lot of change. It’s just this way of working through my life and deciding, How do I want to live?” The new album deals with relationships in an honest, heartfelt way that resonates with the listener. Like confiding with a trusted friend, the song “Never Gone to You,” which exclusively debuted on Billboard, talks about Bastoni’s relationship with her absentee father. It also features vocals from renowned Canadian folk singer Rose Cousins. “The songs deal with all kinds of It’s All About Arts Magazine September 2019
relationships – romantic relationships, family relationships, friendships,” she said. “It’s a different kind of album.” “How We Want to Live” was produced by award-winning producer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Sean Staples. He will be playing the mandolin and the guitar at the show. Delving into these emotions was “a bit scary,” Bastoni admitted. “I was thinking about the music that I most like to hear,” she said. “I like to hear about real things - hard, raw emotions. I love a sad song. “That’s not to say I don’t love to hear joyful music, too,” Bastoni stressed. “It’s both. I’ve had a lot of sadness, and I’ve had a lot of joy, too. The new album is a reflection of all of that.” The show at Club Passim also will feature artwork from her grandparents. “There are some large kinetic sculptures that I would like to bring,” Bastoni said. “Plus I have been working on some paintings of my own, if I can finish them on time. “The challenge for me is that I always have ideas,” she said enthusiastically. “I never feel bored.” For more information about Lisa Bastoni, go to www.lisabastoni.com. Tickets can be purchased at bit.ly/2MMd7Xa.
Mark Person - Around Boston I found my passion as a photographer on Cape Cod Bay in the winter of 2010. With my Blackberry, I snapped a photo while meditating on a glorious sunset over the still water. It was a crisp evening and I felt so blessed to see, to truly see, that kind of beauty. Something “clicked” in me, too. I subtly began to realize the truth about what’s really important in life—something that I’d always known deep inside but had somehow buried. The sense of hope that I thought I’d lost along with everything else slowly began to resurface. With it came a profound sense of peace that a new dawn was about to break. From then on, my soul has been my guide. As a photojournalist, I deeply feel an imperative to extrapolate and capture slices of life through the prism of the heart. I am a vessel, with Spirit and the wisdom of my ancestors moving through me. Beauty and metaphor are everywhere. I am most drawn to “scapes” – land, sea and city – although fashion, celebrity and music fascinate me, as well—anything that is spontaneous and un-staged. My photos have been described as simplistic, pure and emotive of spirit. I feel honored that my work has been compared to Ansel Adams. Whether shooting landscapes, movie dockets, fine art portraits, CD covers or impromptu people images, I am a naturalist. Inspiration finds me in the oddest places: whether lost in the middle of a cotton field near my childhood homes of Georgia and Alabama, or shooting a CD cover in New York City for an up-and-coming world musician.
“South Station, Boston”
“Patriot’s Day”
“Strolling on Commonwealth Ave”
Mark Person in Copley Square Photojournalist for Boston City Paper and The Columbus Times.- artjewels35@yahoo.com - dreamproducer.com It’s All About Arts Magazine September 2019
“Almost Perfect”
Starting Your
Art Business
Suzanne Schultz and Jennifer O’Connell
Over the years, I have heard countless insecurities from artists of all kinds, at all different stages of their success. While some of these are only issues of confidence and can be solved internally, others stem from the sheer enormity of the art business. How can you cut through the noise in a media-saturated world? These three essential skills will help support you in getting started as a professional artist.
1
2
This does a few things for you! One of the most common insecurities I hear from my clients is that they have a hard time saying that they are an artist--feeling like whomever they tell will meet them with an attitude as if to say who do you think you are, calling yourself an artist? But here’s the secret: they’re everywhere! There are over one thousand artists in Boston alone. Registering with your city validates you not only as an artist, but also as a business owner. You deserve those titles! There are also many resources and opportunities available through the city. For example, if you wanted to hold auctions or do construction on large sculptures you will need permits from the city and officially establishing your business first will give you a head start!
When I first started Canvas Fine Arts, I didn’t have a business plan. I felt so empowered when I finally wrote one because it made me realize that I didn’t actually know what I originally wanted. Until I wrote down my mission plan, I was all over the place. When you get yourself organized, your goals will be that much easier to achieve! Most importantly, drafting a business plan will allow you to better take control of your career. If you plan on selling your art, first you need to create a plan to sell it. It doesn’t have to be long or elaborate but it will help you strategize to move you in the direction you want to go. There are many paths for you to take as a professional artist, the business plan will help you map that out. Do you want to go international or stay local? Would you like to be featured in magazines or merchandizing? Take political action? Win awards? Teach? I suggest revisiting and tweaking this plan every six months, this will help to keep you on track. For example, I usually ask clients to split up the year into creative time and marketing time, but some do it by weeks or months. Whatever works for you!
Register your business with your city
3
Goal setting
Once you have your business plan together, it will be beneficial to you to set specific goals to keep you on track through milestones. Once goals are set, create a plan to make them come to fruition. Think of it like a race--you must clear several different hurdles to get to your prize. How can you best prepare yourself to clear each hurdle successfully? This will mean that whatever goals you want to achieve, you will have an approach to achieve those goals. Ask yourself: what would you need to be closer to your individual idea of success? Make more connections in your area? Create and maintain a YouTube presence? Utilize social media more? It’s All About Arts Magazine September 2019
Create a simple business plan
CFA Gallery at SoWa 460 Harrison Avenue Suite 21C Boston, MA02118 suzanne@canvasfinearts.com canvasfinearts.com
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
!It’s All About Arts Magazine
September 2019
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
!It’s All About Arts Magazine
September 2019
! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !
! ! ! ! ! ! HOWIE GREEN: Pop Dreams Awoken by Curt Naihersey
!
It was an impromptu meeting at the Dorchester Pear Square Art Festival in late July. Scads of avant-art, cosmic crafts, wild’n’wacky weavings, all created by ecstatic youthful entrepreneurs. Amidst these vendors sat a very relaxed mature artist, just watching the world go by. Surveying his art pieces made my eyes go “POW” and “WOW”! A pop-art explosion I hadn’t seen in years that made my “hippie” mind feel right at home - it was Sixties deja-vu all over again. Thus was I introduced to the amazing and prolific Howie Green.
!
ACCORDING TO HOWIE: (So you can brag to your friends when they admire my art in your home): I am an award-winning artist, designer and author. I regularly create murals, paintings, product designs, album cover paintings and toys. >> They say if you remember the 1960s, you weren't really there. Well I was there and I remember those days very clearly and I
love revisiting that crazy, anything-goes psychedelic pop art style. Groovy, man! >>
!
Featured in over forty-five solo and group shows, Howie came to international attention with the publication of his book Jazz Fish Zen: Adventures in Mamboland. Some of his career highlights include winning over forty design awards for his work for international clients including Sun Life Financial, Kahunaville, IBM, Hewlett Packard, Coca-Cola, CBS Television, LL Bean, Hasbro Toys, the Boston Red Sox Foundation, and PBS. He created three life-size bovines for the Boston Cow Parade as well as a series of public works for the Mayor's Office of the City of Boston; collectible figures for “Trail of the Painted Ponies”; murals, art, and painted school bus installations for “Mellow Mushroom”; his portrait of rapper Biggie Smalls was used for the cover on the album Unbelievable: A Tribute to Biggie Smalls which featured tracks from Puff Daddy, Lil' Kim, Kayne West and many others; and has adorned over sixty public and private murals.
!
Boston-based since the early 1970s, Howie was raised in East Rochester and Clarence
! !!
________________________________________________________________________________! It’s All About Arts Magazine
September 2019
Center, NY. He has a unique artist's eye for the colorful fun that springs out of our popular culture. Images from comics, celebrities, movies, TV and various other flotsam and jetsam that washes up on the rocky shores of our popular media all make their way into Howie's colorful and fun Pop Art creations. He uses a pop-fauvist color palette and has an eclectic, upbeat, approach to his subject matter. Howie says a lot of people tell him that they love "his colors". Howie comments: "My colors? They don't belong to me. Colors are out there floating around. I just happen to use them all!"
Art show on tour in the early Sixties and just being stunned. And I remember all the controversy it caused" said Howie. "Everyone was talking about it!" Paintings of Dick Tracy and Campbell Soup cans by Andy Warhol and comic book images by Roy Lichtenstein left an indelible mark on Howie. "I love the idea that 'art' could be fun, make me smile and still get such a huge response from people - negative or positive. Andy Warhol became to me what Elvis had been to the generation before me."
!
Howie's childhood dream was to be a cartoonist and he has always been a popculture collector and enthusiast. The turning point in his life was a casual Christmas present he received when he was eleven. Howie remembers, "I got a large pad of multi-colored newsprint paper and some drawing supplies, which was odd because until then I had not shown any great interest in art or any such thing. Something clicked inside me and I started drawing and I've never stopped." Early subject matter like Mickey Mouse and Dick Tracy got great reviews. "I saw what a great reaction I got from my relatives when I drew something they recognized. 'Hey, that's a great drawing of Dick Tracy' and such comments were like music to my ears" Howie said. "I had found my calling and all these years later I'm still painting cartoons!"
!
And the timing was perfect. At that time the art world was being blasted into orbit by a new movement that was celebrating the very subjects Howie was just beginning to draw. "I remember walking into the Albright-Knox gallery in Buffalo, NY when I was an adolescent to see the first big Pop-
!
When Howie entered art school in the midSixties at Rochester Institute of Technology in Rochester, NY, it was an explosive time in popular culture. Howie's classmates and friends included several artists who would later make their marks in the art world including Mike Gilbert, Karin (Harter/Berg) Lewis and noted artist and painter Peter Berg. While attending RIT, Howie gained first-hand exposure to color guru Josef Albers during the summer of 1968 while he was on campus creating the two large lobby murals in the administration tower.
! !!
________________________________________________________________________________! It’s All About Arts Magazine
September 2019
Daily visits with Mr. Albers left a strong impression on Howie, who was touched by Albers' grace and humor. Watching Albers and his assistant paint the murals inspired Howie to pursue mural projects for his entire career. The following year Howie painted his first mural on the new RIT campus in the Student Union building.
!
In addition to Mr. Albers, instructors Bob Conge, Wendell Castle and visiting typographic master Hermann Zaph also made significant contributions to Howie's burgeoning artistic career. In the spring of Howie's senior year at RIT his most important artistic influence came through an introduction from friend and classmate Paul Parkman to color theorist, painter and teacher Fritz Trautman who was recently the subject of a major exhibition at the University of Rochester's Memorial Gallery Museum. Fritz was an iconic figure in the art world from the 1930-1950s. He had done everything the art world had to offer including work with George Eastman and a long association with the industrialist Kate Gleason on various enterprises. One of Ms. Gleason's major undertakings was a real estate development called Concrest in East Rochester, NY. Howie was amazed to find that Fritz had worked with Gleason on Concrest, the house and the entire development that he'd grown up in. "When I met Fritz I knew I was there for a reason. Fate had made our paths cross and I was open to the possibilities." said Howie. "We met in the spring of 1970; he made me rethink everything I had learned about color and form and shape and such. He was old and in bad health but sitting on the floor of his apartment and listening to him talk opened up my mind to a whole new reality that has guided my thinking ever since. Fritz was my Buddha and I was a willing student.�
Over the next few decades while pursuing a career as an illustrator and designer, Howie continued to paint. Even a stint in Hollywood as Art Director at Jamie Masada's World Famous Laugh Factory couldn't deter Howie from pursuing his muse. In the mid 80's he remembers another life-changing incident - "I was on the phone in one of those endless conference calls and and I was doodling while my mind was on a space walk and I looked down on the my pad and I had drawn a fish with a beret playing a saxophone. I thought it was odd, but it made me laugh so I put it up on my wall and kept looking at it for a few days and decided it was worth developing. Shortly after that, out of the clear blue sky, I got a phone call from Peter Max, who I thought was a friend of mine making a crank call," remembers Howie. "Max has always been one of my favorite artists and an obvious influence on me. I discovered his work in the mid-Sixties when he was an illustrator before the pop cosmic phase that made him famous." At the time of Max's phone call Howie was art director of "New Age Journal" and he had done a Max-like illustration for the magazine. Howie recalls "Peter saw my illustration and called me to see if we would like to use him to do
! !!
________________________________________________________________________________! It’s All About Arts Magazine
September 2019
artwork for the magazine. I was thrilled! Not only did he do artwork for "New Age Journal" for me, but I also worked with him for several years on projects for the University of New Hampshire including curating a show of Peter's posters at the University. I'm also proud to say, Peter did his very first sports painting for me for the cover of the Boston Celtics Media Guide."
!
The creation of the Jazz Fish and working with Peter Max began a very fertile period for Howie during which he produced hundreds of paintings centering around the Jazz Fish and Mamboland, the fanciful world he inhabits. The publication of Howie's book JAZZ FISH ZEN (Charles Tuttle Publishing) in 1992, led to a series of solo and group shows filled with Mamboland artwork. In addition, Mamboland and its characters got translated into computer 3-D characters and animated for various promotion purposes including a children's activity CDRom. The Jazz Fish is even licensed as the name of one of the ships in the America's Cup Races, with a 20-foot tall Jazz Fish on the main sail.
!
"Although Howie follows in the tradition of such Pop Art icons as Andy Warhol and Peter Max, he takes a backseat to neither. Howie's eclectic, upbeat approach to his subject matter and unique eye for the colorful fun that springs out of popular culture, has taken him to soaring heights in the contemporary art world." Visit online at www.howiegreen.com
!
Having digested and integrated all this background info made me eager for a visa-vis conversation:
!
It seems once you started you’ve never stopped - the dogged journey of a true
artist. Were you ever deterred from your determined output? Well, when I graduated from art school the only other career option I could see was "Rock Star" or ... yea, that's pretty much it. So not very realistic. So artist was it. Now at the time I had no idea really what that even meant and I had no idea how varied a creative life pursuit could be. I had a degree in Fine Arts but that's pretty useless and I knew I had to make my way in the world. As Barbara Stanwyck once said "I had to kick every door that ever opened for me" and I agree. My only course was full speed ahead. So off I went.
!
As you noted, my career path has zigged and zagged a few times but it always felt natural to me. I have been a painter, muralist, designer, illustrator, writer, producer, etc etc. but all those tasks use the same creative and organizational skill sets. Have I ever been deterred? I have certainly been frustrated by lack of progress or recognition or such, but I never let those moments deter me from my activities. If anything they make me more determined to continue and work harder. I know that a lot of creative people give up and walk away but I'm too stubborn.. or dumb...not sure which. Keep creating, keep promoting and keep doing the best work you can. That's my philosophy. How else do you get better at your job?
!
Have you tried any other stylistic approaches? Was “pop” your only calling? Well Pop Art gets to me at a DNA level. It was the "new" art when I was young and I loved it and still do. I had very traditional foundation training in art school which taught me to see the world and represent it in a realistic style and I do paint that way. So did Mondrian and Kandinsky and
! !!
________________________________________________________________________________! It’s All About Arts Magazine
September 2019
Picasso and so on and on. All my art heroes started out very traditionally and found their own unique vision that we know them for. My "realistic" work is stuff I do mostly for myself. I sketch and doodle all the time. I am a committed plein-air sketch artist and I always have sketchbooks in my pocket to catch any opportunity that I come across. But that stuff is just for me - for fun - and to keep my skills up to par.
!
The Pop Art psychedelic style that I am known for had moved to the cultural background in the early 70s and, other than Warhol and Lichtenstein, most of the rest of the art world had moved on, leaving Pop Art a very specialized style. It had lost its political and cultural bite. However, in the Eighties it came to life again through a new generation of kids like Keith Haring, Kenny Scharf and Basquiat who had their own take on Pop Art and made it all relevant, fun and interesting again. And it's continued on that path.
!
What happened to me is that I was Art Director of the New Age Journal in the late Eighties and doing a lot of the illustrations for the magazine myself. I had done a Peter Max style image of Ron and Nancy Regan looking up into the cosmic skies to illustrate an article about them consulting an astrologer for advice. Peter saw it and called me and offered to do work for us for free because he was coming out a selfimposed retirement of twenty years or so and was looking to get back in the public eye. I worked with him for several years on a bunch of projects and it became very clear that people were still very interested in the whole Pop Art style of art - and looking for more. Being in Peter's studio and seeing all his new work had a big influence on me and I started working in my own Pop Art psychedelic style again
after not having done so for a long time. I had created the Jazz Fish and Mamboland, had a book published, gallery exhibits, etc and suddenly I was getting known as a Pop Artist. So I went with the flow...
!
Do you think the “pop-art” medium was artistically successful, going beyond kitschy? As a genre, does “pop-art” seem retro or dated to you? Do you see new converts coming to the fore? Now that Pop Art is accepted as a solid 20th Century design style, new artists constantly rework the whole thing and interpret it in their vision. Because of so many artists working in the Pop Art genre the work is constantly updated and made relevant for the times. Bansky is a great example of how Pop Art continues to invade the culture and keep people curious. Now that Wahol's work is selling for millions, the rest of the art world finally takes Pop Art seriously so it just continues to fascinate people. The recent retrospective Warhol show at the Whitney Museum in NYC was a mob scene every day for months on end. People love Pop Art!
!
With dozens of clients and commissions keeping you hyper-active, from your blog I see you paint daily. Is your output dedicated and demanding or do you just “go with the flow”? I don't think of my output as demanding anymore that someone would think of their job that way. I create art, its my job and I do it every day. I draw and paint and sketch every day. I always have done that. It's how I process the world and how I keep my skills sharpened. Use it or lose it. Most successful creative people I know do the same thing. Dancers, actors, writers, athletes, musicians... its all the same basic
! !!
________________________________________________________________________________! It’s All About Arts Magazine
September 2019
drill with different outcomes. Practice, practice, practice.
!
Also, your sense of merchandizing is grandly mesmerizing…..no down-sizing for sure. Has this allowed you a comfortable life or do you still struggle? I expect that I will always be working until the end... and then bury me with a sketchbook because I might need it the afterlife. I'm an artist, it's what I do. Financially its been a lot of hills and valleys. The art market crash that followed the Japanese stock market crash in 1990 was bad. Then the 2000-2001 era with the market crash, internet bubble burst and 9/11 attacks was bad. Then the 2008 crash was bad. Yea - ups and downs like everyone else. I keep working and ride out the tough times.
!
Have you had gallery or museum shows? I was almost in a huge traveling Pop Art museum show. I had become friends with Steve Kaufman (Andy Warhol's last assistant and successful painter in his own right) who had been asked to put together a traveling museum show to start off in Asia. Asians are nuts about Pop Art!! He asked me to be in the show and I was working on some pieces when he died and the whole venture evaporated. So close. Galleries are their own weird world. I have been in so many solo and groups shows in galleries and it's hit or miss. I have sold a lot... then sold nothing. Go figure.
Yayoi Kusama is another example of how Pop Art keeps things interesting. I love her and I love her work. I remember there used to be one of her infinity mirror rooms at the Albright Knox Museum in Buffalo when I was in school and I loved it. And here she is fifty years later more famous and successful than ever. She's a very strange lady but adorable and fun. I am looking forward to her show! >> I have met and spend time with many of my art heroes including Andy Warhol, Peter Max, Norman Rockwell, Josef Albers, Milton Glaser, Roy Lichtenstein, Willam Dekooning, Neal Adams, and many more. Very inspiring!!
!
What’s next or is it always now? I'm always working on something or other. I currently working on compiling my Boston urban sketches into a book that I will be publishing soon...maybe next year. Also working on a book of my homages to my favorite artist along with portraits of each artist. Just finished painting a sculpture of Pop Art fish for a public art event to support clean water. Also working on a couple portraits and private commissions. Sketching and promoting daily. Doing some design projects for corporate clients. The usual mix of projects.
!
Are you planning to see the upcoming ICA exhibit about the prominent Japanese “pop” artist, Yayoi Kusama, (who influenced many other artists, including Andy Warhol)? Have you ever met some of your “pop” contemporaries?
! !!
________________________________________________________________________________! It’s All About Arts Magazine
September 2019
Looking Forward to September - Perry Persoff
!
September already…sigh. I guess it’s time to reflect on our summer highlights. Musicwise, for me seeing Australia’s The Waifs last month (or WAiFS from their early days, which probably stands for Western Australian Folk Singers) was a big one. I’ve been curious about them for about fifteen years; they’ve been a band for almost twenty-seven. The Waifs are REALLY BIG in Australia. How big? In Boston, we’d refer to them as “Yuuuuge!” (Yes, with the extra “u’s.”) They play for thousands Down Under. I saw them in the 246-seat Center For The Arts in Natick. The next night they finished off the tour - their first US tour in four years - with two shows at the Iron Horse in Northampton, seating capacity around 230. Lucky us in the US. >> Australia is a place I’ve wanted to visit for years. Last February, a couple of friends of mine went to Australia. Part of their planned trip was to see The Waifs in concert there. This impacted and revived my interest in both Australia and seeing The Waifs live. >> The show? I really enjoyed it, and am looking forward to The Waif’s next stateside junket. Unless of course, I get to visit Australia and see them there. That would be acceptable, too.
!
OK, on to our music scene here in the greater Boston/New England area, it’s…
!
The Local Music Corner
It doesn’t matter how many years passed since my school days, September is a tough pill for me to swallow. The end of summer. The beginning of school. And while I do love Autumn in New England, a part of my brain doesn’t let me forget what season follows Fall. Let us not speak of it by name at this time. Let’s just say I am not
anxious to return the scraper & snow shovel to my car. Does anybody else need an occasion to look forward to September for?
!
Well here’s one for us End-of-SummerChallenged people. September brings the return of WUMB-FM’s Third Thursday at The Burren series. To begin the series’ 4th year, it’s the band Hank Wonder. Named for Williams and Stevie, they sound like neither. The band has a motto which actually describes them very well: “Soulful Americana.” They include Darren Buck on lead vocals, Mike Loria on guitar, and Annie Bartlett on fiddle. The general story I heard is that they formed doing Open Mic’s in the area. The host of an Open Mic competition they won suggested they should learn some original songs. Darren Buck started writing a few that he would bring to the band. Guitarist Mike Loria was really impressed with them, responding to Darren, “Have you been holding out on us?” Now that’s a nice compliment to receive from your bandmate. That’s on Thursday September 19th at The Burren in Davis Square Somerville at 7pm.
! ********************* !
Congratulations to Lisa Bastoni. She is releasing a new album on September 20th called How We Want To Live. Hometown musical hero and multi-instrumentalist Sean Staples produced and plays on it. They’ve got some great people helping out on the album, including Mark Erelli, Rose Cousins, the ladies from Lula Wiles, and Naomi Sommers. And Sean himself is getting ready to make a new album. We’ll keep our eyes and ears open for it...
!
*********************
! !!
________________________________________________________________________________! It’s All About Arts Magazine
September 2019
I hope that as you are reading this, we are having an Indian Summer - a last blast of summer weather (under ninety degrees, please!) before Fall hits. Get out and enjoy the good outdoor/sunscreen weather while it’s still here. Only a few nights ago as I was writing this, I actually wore a T-shirt to bed and got under the covers. My air conditioner looked at me with a disappointed expression. “Oh no,” I thought, “is the (weather) change already upon us?!?” Time to cue Mark Erelli’s song “August”, the kind of song about getting in the last of your favorite summer activities while you can. The kind of song that makes you think Mark was there with you when you had your various experiences, or every time you said to yourself, “I can’t believe I let the summer slip away again.” Funny how good songwriters do that. Over a recording career that has now hit 20 years, Mark has consistently been dynamic with the craft of songwriting.
*********************
!
Just a quick bug in your ear: A few days ago I got a brief look at some of the concerts lined up for Fall at various Boston area venues. We are in for some terrific shows. Oh, why do we need to sleep? Again, something to look forward to as we segue from Summer…
!
Support live & local music, and it supports you. See you at a show soon!
! !
!
!
And he’s still doing it. For example, his embrace of summer from a different view his current perspective as a dad - on his newest song “The Hitter.” You don’t have to be a parent to connect. Although if you are, you may need the box o’ hankies nearby. You don’t have to be a baseball fan to relate. Although if you’ve ever played, the first line will floor you. Then again, isn’t that what good songwriters do? Find this song at www.MarkErelli.com. Pull it out again in the middle of winter.
!
!
In the meantime, congrat’s to Mark on playing Americana Music Fest in Nashville this September. From the Boston music community, congrat’s also to Lula Wiles (who will be at Americana Music Fest), along with former locals like Miss Tess, Ray Bonneville, and Amelia White.
!
! !!
________________________________________________________________________________! It’s All About Arts Magazine
September 2019
Full Tilt Print Studio An Art Exhibit at the BNN Neighborhood Art Gallery September and October 2019 Reception • Thursday, October 3 • 6-7:30pm
Participating Artists • Laurie Alpert • Nancy Beams • Deborah Cornell • Judy Hochberg • Iris Kumar • Alla Lazebnik • Margo Lemieux • Marilyn Mase • Ky Ober • Sloat Shaw • Anda Tanaka • Amy Schupler Veaner
Alla Lazebnik
• Julia • 18 x 12 • Woodblock
MORE • • • • • • • • • fulltiltprintstudio.com facebook.com/events/522383121902566
Boston Neighborhood Network Media 3025 Washington Street, Egleston Square, Boston, MA 02119 617-708-3200 www.bnnmedia.org
MUST SEE ART UP CLOSE
To see the amazing art of Paola Rava visit Masterpiece Framing and Fine Art Gallery Gallery in the Boston Design Center and Liberty Hotel Boston!
See more of Paola Rava Art at Liberty Hotel, Boston with Canvas Fine Arts and Masterpiece Framing and Fine Art Gallery on September 24, 2019 at 6:00pm
Masterpiece Framing and Fine Art Gallery Founded: 2006 - Owner: Keith Whitmore Areas of expertise: Mirrors, Framing, Art, and Photography Showroom 545 features hundreds of Frame Moldings for Custom Art Framing or Custom Mirror Framing. Additionally, we can create custom mirrors in antique, beveled, or flat glass. Location: Boston Design Center More: http://www.masterpieceframing.com It’s All About Arts Magazine September 2019
ARTITUDE now on TV
We are pleased to announce that our art friends Michael Penn (Host) and Rachel Goldberg (Co-Host) will be continuing to offer arts programming via a new BNN TV show. ARTITUDE can be seen every Monday evening from 6-7pm. Art correspondents will be Laura Palmer Edwards and Bob Diesel. Sponsored by Boston Main Streets. Watch on Boston cable at Comcast Channel 9, RCN Channel 15 or Verizon 1961. Also streamed live at http://www.bnnmedia.org Best of Luck to All! Glenn and Janice Williams
Latin Quarter World’s Fair Sunday, September 15th from 12:00-6:00pm Boston’s Latin Quarter, Jamaica Plain, 02130 The 2019 Latin Quarter World’s Fair (LQWF) will be held in the heart of Boston’s Latin Quarter on Sunday, September 15, 2019, and serve as the Latin Quarter’s kick-off to National Latinx Heritage month in Boston. Building off the 20-year history of the JP World’s Fair, the LQWF will be a true community festival celebrating the cultural traditions of the neighborhood. The LQWF is organized by local activists, artists, organizations, youth, residents, and merchants who are committed to creating an event that represents the spirit of past events while ensuring that the planning process is inclusive of the current community’s esteemed input. With a series of public community meetings, planning sessions, and surveys leading up to the event where everyone can play a role in the Latin Quarter World’s Fair will indeed be an event para la comunidad, por la comunidad. Learn more about the event and how you can get involved here: https://ransom-productions.com/lqwf19/ RSVP to the event on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/645176135906729/
“Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time”. Thomas Merton
It’s All About Arts Magazine September 2019
OPEN STUDIOS motherbrookarts.org
Mother Brook Arts and Community Center in Dedham,MA
is proud to announce a “Call to Artists” for our Winter Market/Open Studios event on December 7th & 8th. Artist applications will be taken until October, with early applicants earning a discounted rate once accepted into the event. This year’s event is shaping up to be substantial, with a juried show open to all participating artists ($1000 in prizes!) guest musical performances, new artist demonstrations, food and drinks all weekend. The schedule of events will be finalized this fall, so let us know asap if you’d like to offer a demonstration or performance. We are currently accepting applications for: • Artists • Crafts people • Food vendors/food trucks, for day-of consumption • Food vendors for tabling take-away items or receiving orders (sauces, jams, baked goods) Mother Brook Arts and Community Center is located in Dedham, and hosts a range of classes for all ages and has ample space for rentals. With a sculpture garden and train system to the Mother Brook, a water system that flows from the Charles River, the space is a wonderful community resource for the arts and other community groups. With the 100-year-old building having undergone considerable upgrades, this community center is growing into a neighborhood gem. Come visit us and see how we’re evolving! See our website for more details, and feel free to email us: openstudios@motherbrookarts.org.
It’s All About Arts Magazine September 2019
The Little Lending Art Library at Art Studio 99 in Roslindale Looking for donations of art books (especially for kids), art magazines, poetry, etc. Drop by at 99 Belgrade Ave., Roslindale or email: decoupagejan@gmail.com for pickup.
ROSLINDALE PORCH FEST Saturday September 14, 2019 - 1:30-5:30pm Fun, family friendly event!
Get Involved http://www.roslindalearts.org/porchfest/index.html It’s All About Arts Magazine September 2019
T
ess’s September To-Do List Do Something Artful Today
Boston Parks and Recreation Department’s FREE Summer Fitness Series - Days vary by location through the end of September - Public Parks all over Boston TThe City of Boston’s Parks and Recreation Department’s Summer Fitness Series is bringing you FREE weekly fitness classes in public parks in neighborhoods all over the City. The program goes through September 28th. Visit their website to find fitness classes near you: www.boston.gov/departments/ parks-and-recreation/boston-parks-summer-fitness-series The Boston Arts Festival Saturday, September 7th & Sunday, September 8th from 11:00am-6:00pm Christopher Columbus Waterfront Park, Atlantic Ave, Boston, MA 02110
The Boston Arts Festival is run by the organizers of the Beacon Hill Art Walk and Artists Crossing Gallery, and will launch Boston’s Arts Open Studios season featuring more than 70 juried local visual artists, craftspeople, and local musicians performing on the Waterfront Stage throughout the day. The event brings over 50,000 visitors to Christopher Columbus Waterfront Park, on Boston Harbor, where they can meet the artists and craftspeople who are there to share a wide variety of art and high-end craft work, including painting, photography, ceramics, jewelry and sculpture, and much more. Learn more here: https://thebostonartsfestival.com
Do Something Artful Today
Art in the Garden Fundraiser Sunday, September 8th from 11:00am-2:00pm Endicott House Gardens, 80 Haven St, Dedham, MA 02026
Spend a sophisticated Sunday while relaxing at the Mansion In the gardens of the magnificent MIT Endicott House in Dedham. Tickets include garden tour, box lunch for picnic, multiple artists painting “en plein air”, silent art auction, raffles and live music. All proceeds from this event benefit It’s All About Arts Youth Scholarship Fund. Learn more and get tickets here: http://www.roslindalearts.org/artinthegarden.html It’s All About Arts Magazine September 2019
Tess’s September To-Do List (continued) Turtle Swamp Beer Garden Coming Out Party + Big Window Reveal Saturday, September 14th from 11:30am-12:30pm Roslindale Substation, 4228 Washington St, Roslindale, MA 02131
Do Something Artful Today
RVMS and Turtle Swamp Brewing will host a coming-out party and ribbon-cutting at the Roslindale Substation to recognize the George B. Henderson Foundation as the funders of our brand new big window + select masonry restoration, as well as celebrate obtaining zoning as the first permanent beer garden in the City of Boston. Following the celebration, Turtle Swamp Beer Garden will be hosting live music as part of Roslindale Porch Fest, which kicks off at 1:30pm. RSVP to the event here: https://www.facebook.com/events/472624320225538/ Roslindale Porchfest Saturday, September 14th from 1:30-5:30pm Porches & Businesses all over Roslindale
Do Something Artful Today
There are over 90 performers registered, so get ready for some great local music! Follow Roslindale Porchfest on Facebook for updates and a map of bands coming soon: https://www.facebook.com/roslindaleporchfest/ Learn more about the event here: http://www.roslindalearts.org/porchfest/
Moonlight Yoga on the Greenway Saturday, September 14th from 7:00-8:00pm, registration begins at 6:15pm Dewey Square, Atlantic Ave, Boston, MA 02110
This is the last of these free classes offered by Athleta at the Greenway. Join in this all levels, hour long vinyasa flow under the September Harvest Moon. This is a diverse & inclusive invitation to all yogis - of all cultures, genders, ages, & bodies, to flow together in summer weather surrounded by cityscapes & vibrations of the full moon. Learn more and register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/moonlight-yoga-on-the-greenway-september-2019-tickets-61881725908 Savor the Square Thursday, September 19th from 6:00-9:00pm St. Nectarios Church Hall, 39 Belgrade Ave., Roslindale, MA 02131
This fundraising event by & for Roslindale Village Main Street showcases Roslindale’s amazing restaurants, bringing together new and long-time residents, neighbors, and local businesses for a fun night of local food, drinks, live jazz music featuring local Roslindale resident and drummer, Zeke Martin, and a raffle for wonderful prizes. Restaurants will prepare a signature bite, in exchange for purchased taste tickets. This year, with the support of Bootstrap Compost, RVMS is planning to have much less landfill-doomed waste from Savor the Square. Bootstrap is sponsoring the event by providing their composting services which means food waste & the compostable plate-ware at the event will have designated disposal bins in addition to recycling bins for plastic, glass, and aluminum from drinks purchased at the Hall’s bar. Buy ticket packages online at the link listed by Monday, September 16th at 11:59pm for better ticket rates. Tickets will also be available for purchase at the door at the event. Buy tickets here: https://rvms.yapsody.com/event/index/443826/savor-the-square-2019 View the restaurant line-up and learn more about the event here: https://roslindale.net/annual-programs/savor-the-square/ It’s All About Arts Magazine September 2019
Roslindale Business Group’s Fall Festival Sunday, September 29th from 12:00-3:00pm Birch Street, Roslindale, MA 02131 This fun, annual event brought to you by Roslindale Business Group promotes and celebrates local businesses and community and proceeds support local non-profit organizations. Come celebrate with many of Roslindale’s businesses & community members on Birch Street! RSVP to the event here: http://www.roslindalebusinessgroup.org/
ABOUT
Tess McColgan comes from a big family full of artists and has always enjoyed embracing local talent.She’s lived in many places throughout New England including York, ME and Dover, NH, and moved to Boston at age 14. In 2015 she moved to Roslindale where she found a sense of community that resonated with her. She started as the Program Manager for Roslindale Village Main Street in April 2018 and loves being a part of the volunteer-driven organization that works so hard to support local businesses and to make Roslindale Village a destination where everyone wants to eat, shop, play and collaborate. Tess’s background includes customer service, clinical research, volunteer management & recruitment and Human Resources. In her free time, she doodles and plays with acrylic paints on canvases, writes in her journal, attends yoga classes, and gets out in nature as often as possible. Tess was the co-host for It’s All About Arts TV Show that had its final episode after 22 years in July 2019. Photo: Bruce Spero Photography at brucespero.smugmug.com
Roslindale Village Main Street
www.roslindale.net RVMS was established in 1985 as one of the first urban Main Street Programs in the nation, with the help of then City Councilor Thomas M. Menino and the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Today, Roslindale Village is a thriving commercial hub, with free public wifi in Adams Park, and a fabulous Farmers Market. And, there are now 20 Main Street Districts in the City of Boston. We are proud to have been the first one!
It’s All About Arts Magazine September 2019