ArtWalk Magazine Issue 02

Fall/Winter 2021 | Online $10

02

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MAGAZINE

MEGAN ELIZABETH READ Megan Elizabeth Read Che Leviathan Dee Dee Alex Garant Joshua Barrigada MJ Lindo-Lawyer Amber Muse Tattoo Anna-Micaiah Fairlight Hubbard Rosso Emerald Crimson Nicole Kutz Matt Valerio Lissa Arditi

Analy Nakat @analypaints

Nathan Cartwright @kingbeeme

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A conversation with Megan and Justin.

"RECONNECTING WITH MYSELF" Megan Elizabeth Read is an American figurative artist living and working in Charlottesville, Virginia. Largely self-taught, she now works almost exclusively in oil with pieces ranging from small still life to large scale paintings mostly focusing on the female form.

She has exhibited internationally in both group and solo shows including the Museum of Modern Art (MEAM) in Barcelona, Spain, the Wausau Museum of Contemporary Art, Salmagundi Club in NYC, and Abend Gallery in Denver. Her work is held in a number of private collections, including the Bennett Collection of Women Realists.

Megan Elizabeth Read

maeread.com | ©artwalkmagazine.com | Page 3

First, I just wanted to say thank you for taking the time to sit down with us and chat about your art.

It's been a while now that I've wanted to talk to you regarding your work and I'm super excited to get the chance to. Would you be able to start by telling us your name, where you are from, and how you would describe yourself as an artist?

My name is Megan Elizabeth Read, though I prefer Mae, and I am from Charlottesville, Virginia, which is also where I am currently living.

I have a bit of difficulty describing myself as an artist because I don't know that I exactly fit any of the obvious categories (hyper-realist, photo-realist, realist, surrealist). I feel like I am a bit between. But I might go with the term contemporary realist because it is rather broad.

It feels like a rather large umbrella.

"Does labeling an artist as simply a "hyper-realist" painter do the artist an injustice? For me, when it's used for describing who an artist is, I feel it really lacks the depth and understanding of what an artist that does this type of work might actually be sharing. I look at it as they are most likely very talented with their craft, but when you simply call them and their art "hyper-realist" it just sounds a matter of fact to me. It doesn't allow the artist to be viewed for more than just a skillset. Of course, these are just words but it's nice to hear from you that you'd rather call yourself a contemporary realist and I think that's a good way to put it.

Thanks for sharing that with us. I'd like to go back if you don't mind and ask what your childhood was like? Were your parents or anyone else in the family artists? Did you find yourself creative at a young age?

I wondered that when I read the question. It reminded me of a podcast I was listening to where an artist friend was asked right off the bat essentially "who are you as an artist" and I texted him after I finished it to say that I was 100% never doing an interview after hearing that! The reality is I have no idea who I am as an artist really, and that's probably why a lot of my work deals with my struggle with identity. Not just as an artist, but in life. I dodged that possible interpretation of the question by going the other route but frankly, I don't feel any more confident with technical descriptions than with more personal ones. It all seems very tricky and amorphous.

And sure!

So my father is a musician and my mother was originally a dancer and moved more into performance art and I would say they were both generally pretty creative types. We moved to central Virginia from the DC area when I was young and ended up on the edge of a dairy farm so there was definitely an element of having to entertain oneself since there wasn't much out there but nature and cows and I imagine that impacted how much time I ended up spending drawing. That said, art generally always came pretty naturally to me and I think it's not unusual to gravitate towards the things you are already good at. And I really can't stand not being good at things!!!

Additionally, for the majority of my childhood, I went to a Waldorf School which, while I certainly think there are pros and cons to that style of education does a wonderful job of integrating art into the curriculum. So I never really had any proper early art training per see but it was just something that was always done.

I later went to tiny art and ecology-focused high school where I tended to propose I complete art projects in lieu of writing papers and my last year taught a drawing class to help complete my credits a year early. Again, not sure that was the best for me long-term, but it certainly gave me more time for this sort of thing... There were no actual classes in drawing or painting (other than my make-shift one) at the school so I suppose the "arts" part of the description was more general (I vaguely remember theater). I mostly remember the ecology side and that you could sort of create your own curriculum. So I graduated not knowing the first thing about algebra but being pretty competent with a pencil!

During the last year(s?) of high school I was bouncing around and not really living anywhere (long story) and an incredibly generous painter who had a studio in the building saw my drawings and offered to teach me to paint.

For free. Just because she was an angel. Perhaps because she thought I was talented or perhaps because she could tell I needed some stability.

Either way, I was incredibly lucky to have that.

It was only for a year or so and we were just doing master copies but it was a whole new world. Unfortunately, I moved out of town, she passed away while I was gone, and by the time I tried to pick it back up 15 or so years later I had forgotten all I had learned and had to start from scratch. But her belief in me still helped and made me feel like it was worth attempting again.

So long story short, throughout my childhood and my teens I was drawing, and then painting, all the time but after that, it basically completely fell by the wayside until far more recently.

Thanks for sharing some of your background with us. I think that support for pushing your creative ambitions from anyone when you are young is so important. Sometimes just the thought of knowing someone else feels you have talent is enough to help you further your exploration in the arts. I’m sorry your friend passed but like you said I think she gave you a great gift in that way.

What you said about our initial question, how the technical terms don’t really apply to you because you're still finding yourself as an artist. I like the self-awareness you have about working on your own identity and finding that process in your work.

Though maybe you feel that’s a struggle sometimes I think at the same time it’s a beautiful and energetic way to keep motivated and continually be learning more about your art, and yourself for that matter.

Regarding the technical terms thing and categorization as an artist: I think it's also partially because of my background. I did spend a lot of time drawing as a child but I didn't go to art school or anything, and, other than that short period when I was about 16 and a couple of quick workshops in the last few years, I have no formal training and had zero exposure to the art world in a way that would make me even consider that sort of categorization.

I have spent almost all my adult life in the tech and design world and only started painting again as a way to sort of "reconnect with myself" and since I had no exposure to the industry and no plans to turn it into a career it's not something I ever thought of until more recently. I still haven't found something I feel fits.

I’ve always felt your work has such a personal feel to it. Can I ask you, when you first sit down to start a new piece do you spend time mapping out in your head a message you want to convey with the finished piece, or do you find yourself exploring situations in your work and letting them come more naturally as you go?

In general, when I'm starting on new pieces I don't approach them as a predetermined narrative or story in that way. While I appreciate that kind of work it's just not how I function. Every once in a while I have a sort of blurry concept of what I might want to convey for more complex work but it's not usually fleshed out. I often just start with an image that's in my head for whatever reason and then create references to complete it.

Every once in a while I'll have taken photos on my travels that I want to build an image around. And sometimes by the time I finish paintings I have some concept of what I wanted to say, though not always. But for my miniature figures, I just take dozens of photos and then see which embody an emotion for me and then use them as references. Those paintings are all just about representing a feeling rather than telling a story. I do have some overarching concepts that apply to different series (my hand paintings, for example, or the ones with the blurry faces) but they are just for me and I don't feel strongly about conveying anything to other people. I like that people interpret everything in their own way and since most of my work is just about processing my own existence I don't feel like I have some important message I'm trying to get across a lot of the time. Perhaps most of the time I just want people to be able to "feel" with me?

"I don't know that I exactly fit any of the obvious categories."

Upon visiting your art in a gallery I can only imagine the questions and different feelings about your work people walk away with. I think that's a beautiful thing. Your work definitely captures emotions and provokes curiosity.

If I can dive into some aspects of your works themselves, I'd love to know what got you started on painting such small pieces. I've seen on your Instagram (@mae.read) where you will post a photo of your art and next to it you have a quarter to show its actual size.

I love these small pieces no less than the large ones but I'm interested to understand why go small and Is it harder to paint small?

Well, the year or two before I was doing all big work (and actually right before I started these I finished a 7' portrait) but I was asked to participate in a 5x5 show early last year. It was my first time painting anything so small and it was just ridiculously fun and I just loved it for a number of reasons. I was so used to struggling for months over a single painting and I cannot convey the satisfaction of being able to complete an entire painting in days vs months. But there is also something just incredibly precious about working so small. They are like windows into tiny little worlds and there is just a really different feeling than if the same work was large. But there is also just the practical aspect. Large work is harder to sell and incredibly expensive and stressful to ship. It turned out that people LOVE these little ones and during a pandemic creating work that would all make it into people's homes just felt really wonderful.

I had a big waitlist going for a while and it started getting hard to manage. I think people really like them because they don't take up much real estate and they aren't an enormous investment like larger work. But I also just think there is something about the scale that resonates. People always refer to them as little gems. I've moved up to 6x6" and I think it's a really nice size. So I'm still doing larger work of course but I'm really enjoying being able to be prolific with the little ones and trying to keep afloat with those along the way. One must obviously pay one's bills of course.

I would say working that size is both easier and harder. It has its advantages and challenges. I feel like modeling form as that size is really fun and it's fabulous to be able to build an entire body while the paint is still wet, but every single edge and detail matters. If the tiniest dab of paint is placed slightly to the left or right the figure isn't just oddlooking but you have likely accidentally cut off one of its fingers or toes. You have to be incredibly careful.

*

How do you approach your reference materials?

Do you work with live models or do you prefer working from a photograph, or?? I’d also love to know where you get your bird images from?

And maybe you can tell us a little about the series you have done with birds and humans together?

I love these pieces so much.

I basically always work from photo references and most of the time I take all the photos myself and create a sort of composite mockup of my painting before beginning. The painting I recently did of a *Cormorant was a commission though and the collector just sent me dozens of photos and I worked from those. I have once or twice used photos in the public domain for creatures as part of a larger composition when absolutely necessary.

In terms of the paintings of figures and birds I think of them, in the same way, I think of the paintings of figures with other creatures. Just another representation of the figure itself. In the same way that my paintings with ghosts are paintings of "multiple selves" so too are the ones with animals. Meant to convey different parts of a personality and meant to talk about relationships to self. I think :)

Super interesting, I see that harmony. You have found a way to incorporate the creatures into the works in these strange and at first, even obstructed angles, yet they just seem to fit so perfectly!

Paintings can really express so many emotions.

When I view your work I see your figures first as being somewhat fragile. The way their bodies are usually shy to the viewer, the way you use blurriness to help portray some of this is very thought-provoking, and at least for myself, that's one of the most important aspects of any painting, one that provokes and hits you at that gut-level. Making me sometimes feel uncomfortable or maybe curious. Technically it's stunning, emotionally it can raise many questions.

I'm wondering about your thought process behind some of the blurred images.

Let me think about that. Honestly, I don't know if I have really ever considered my stuff particularly blurry per se, but there is definitely a soft-focus which is probably for a few different reasons. When I was really young I loved looking at renaissance art which has that really smooth look and in the very beginning, I think I probably aspired to that type of surface quality although I love to see brushwork in other people's paintings (when done well) I have always just not wanted to see it in mine.

Can you tell us about this technique and how it came about?

But as my skills continue to build there is a lot more decision-making that has to happen. When you have developed the tools to move past that as far as something like hyperrealism you have to decide how far to take things. I spent some time over the last few years working on larger hyperrealist pieces for other artists and while it's gratifying to see that you can do it I always find the outcome rather soulless. It's dazzling but doesn't really speak to me. I guess in general I think photography is great for that level of detail but I want my work to feel a bit more like a dream. An alternate universe. And I like to be selective about the focus and having certain areas sharp and the rest softer helps convey what's important.

I'm sure my feelings on this will continue to shift and more style to evolve, but that's where I am right now.

"Soft Focus" is a much better way to put it.

Thanks for sharing your process on why and how you approach this technique. Like you said your style can change but I love this thought process you have right now about finding a different focus for different parts of your painting lending to some areas to be sharper or thus less in focus.

Can you tell us more about how you approach working on a series of paintings? Do you plan ahead before you start and say "I'm gonna do 5 pieces that all fit in this one series" or do you come across your work and realize while painting that the last few pieces represent a point of view and then turn them into a series?

Honestly, I'm not that organized. I don't think about or strategize in that way. Themes just occur over and over again and I paint whatever keeps popping up. I'm sure I should be more strategic about it but I'm not. I work on whatever feels like it conveys what I'm struggling with.

I would say certain series, if we want to call them that, are definitely focused on certain themes, but I also don't spend a ton of time planning in that way. I'm currently looping through a couple of different themes. The ones that I started at the end of last year are these paintings with hands.

They started coming up in other pieces last fall but I've since started focusing on just the gestures or hands vs having them as part of a composition with a face or other elements. But they aren't really about the hands or gestures themselves.

I think they are about the need for intimacy, contact, and vulnerability, and struggling with those things, both within oneself and in relation to others.

This is beautiful. I like that you allow yourself to create the series as they come. The hand gestures pieces are so great, can't wait to see more of them in person. The way you paint skin and those wrinkles in the hands is so good. Do you find technically, working on these being tiring or strenuous? What about the mood you're in, does it affect your technique?

I would say it depends on the day. Almost always it is mentally exhausting simply because of the amount of concentration required, but sometimes it flows perfectly and others it feels like a battle all the way. I'm not sure about whether my mood impacts this. It's a funny business. There are some days that I can get in a good groove more quickly than others though. Often I feel like it's the end of the day before I get my sea legs back and on those days I usually work through the night since I hate to quit when I am finally in a good flow state.

Well, I can't thank you enough for getting into some of these details with us. May I ask you what you are currently working on and do you have any openings planned that our readers might be able to catch you at? Also, where can we find you online?

Of course, my pleasure!

I have some work at the MEAM in Barcelona.

I'm starting on some work for a gallery in Europe and some other shows later this year but am not ready to share details yet. Things are so often in flux! It's been a while since I've had a solo show so I am aiming for a solo in 2022 but that has yet to be solidified.

My work can always be found on my website at maeread.com where you can sign up for my mailing list or just follow me on Instagram at @mae.read. - Megan

Timka Szőke | timkaszoke.com Asmaa Khoury | @asmaa.m.khoury

Austin Howlett | @austin.howlett_art

Ziyi Tan @bellasmetals

Hannah Williams @hanwilliamsart

Matthias Lück lueckart.de

Alex Garant | @alexgarantart

Maria Kleis | @mariakleisart

Monique Paints | moniquevansteen.com

Dallas LeFever @d.lefever_fine_arts

Daniel Hicks | danielhicksart.com

Ryan Ready | @iamryanready

Carlos Suarez @carlos_suarez_photography

Bethany Holmes | @bethanyholmesart

Kuntal Choudhary | @kalaa_sf

Jennifer Krauss | @btr_fly_2020

Alma Greer | @almas_almas_art

A conversation with Che and Justin.

"THE WORLD ON MY PAGE"

"Painting is my emotional outlet. I tend to make more work when my heart is

suffering because there’s more emotion that needs to be expressed. When I’m struggling through a painting, it’s never the painting that I’m struggling with, it’s the emotion behind the painting that I’m battling."

Che Leviathan cheleviathan.com | ©artwalkmagazine.com | Page 16

Che, thanks for taking the time to share about your artist life with us today. Before I get going I have to ask a serious question. If you need to stay up all night to paint are you a tea or coffee girl?

I’m a coffee critter, for sure. I can’t remember the last day I didn’t have a cup of coffee, but just one. If I have more than one, I’m all jittery and my hand isn’t as steady as I like it to be for painting detail. Usually, my all-nighters are fueled by white claw and or tequila. Keeps things lively lol.

I can imagine a steady hand is super important for your work. So stepping back in time a bit, can you tell us a little about your childhood?

I grew up in Atlanta, but I never really vibed with it, so I’ve spent most of my adult life on the west coast. Cali will forever be home. I’ve always painted ever since I was really little. My mom found one of those fisher price easels in a junkyard when I was three, and kept it in the kitchen to keep me busy. I’ve painted nonstop ever since. I was pretty introverted as a kid and just made art all the time. So not much has changed to this day haha.

I remember those fisher price easels, haha I know exactly what you are talking about. Well, good going mom! How was your development and progression in the arts as you grew into your teenage years? Was there a moment that you realized "hey I think I’m pretty good at this art thing and maybe I can do something with my career with it?"

Pretty much my whole life, I’ve always felt that artistic endeavors were where I was at my strongest. As a kid, I struggled with a lot of things in school. But art was where I was the most confident. I focused a lot on it, and would even turn in weird art projects instead of the actual assignments given in school, just to see if I could get away with it, and a lot of times I did.

Eventually, I think that mindset transitioned into a “how do I survive off of this” mindset. It was a gradual process. But as soon as I started having bills to pay, I started seeing it as a career.

Although the struggle was REAL for quite a while.

Did you pursue arts in higher education or was it straight to the studio and learning on your own?

I did both. I attended SCAD, and then later explored some atelier-style classes. I did a lot of independent studies, and I still do. I think it’s a great practice to crank out a master's study now and then, or go sketch at a museum, or research a master’s palette or painting techniques.

I consider myself a forever student. I’m always learning. I do soooooo much learning from mistakes, haha, but hey, I get better every time I pick up brushes. I think it’s probably going to be a lifetime process.

"A forever-student" That's a great way to say it.

I think failing is undervalued. With each failure, we do learn something right? If not how did we know we failed? So I agree that always learning is a forever practice and as an artist, it can only progress our skillset and mindset for that matter.

As an artist, how often do you find yourself in your art workspace? Do you give yourself strict hours or how do you approach your work-life balance?

I am in the studio in one way or another pretty much every day. Now and then I give myself a day off. But even on my days off, I am planning my next painting, or out gathering inspiration, gathering props, things like that. Maybe this isn’t the most healthy thing, but I never feel like I clock out. If I’m not painting, I’m thinking about painting. It’s on my mind pretty much 24/7.

Sometimes I wonder what the heck I would think about all the time if I wasn’t a painter.

I’d probably worry a lot haha. These days especially. I’m pretty glad that painting is constantly consuming my attention. Long story short tho, I grind every day, but it never feels like work.

By the time I’m hitting the canvas with brushes, I’ve usually solidified my composition by about 95%. I will make minor changes when I eyeball it and see where improvements can be made. But for the most part, my sketches and color studies are where I muck around with stuff, move things around, change lighting, play around with color emphasis, etc. I usually have a pretty clear idea of what is going down on the canvas. Every now and then, I’ll take a painting down a wild left turn, if the mood compels me. I never limit myself with self-imposed rules. Like, if I’ve painted a painting and then all of a sudden want to paint over half of it and rework an entire concept or idea halfway through, then I will totally do it.

Does that happen often….

No. It happens from time to time. But yea, for the most part, I like to work all the kinks out of my composition ahead of time with sketches and color studies so I can just enjoy the process of putting paint down on the canvas and focus on the more minuscule decision making, delicate adjustments.

How do you get from ideas to a painting?

Do you ever take notes or make quick sketches for future projects?

I’m always building new paintings in my head and in sketchbooks. I do a lot of photography, digital sketches, and graphite sketches in sketchbooks. I’ve been doing more digital sketching lately. I’m really bad at computers, so it’s been a fun challenge to try to learn more about digital art and bite the technology bullet.

This last year, a lot of my sketches have been digital. I like it a lot more than I thought I would.

It’s way more forgiving than analog media.

There’s no undo button in the real world.

It kinda frees up the mind to take more compositional risks.

Hey, the digital times we're in are good and bad but if you can figure it out to where it helps or benefits you, maybe you can be that much more productive because of it. I think it's great.

When your sketching in a book or in digital, will you start a painting based on your sketches, or when you start painting do you already know where to go and don't need the sketches?

What's that process for you, jumping from the sketches to the physical painting?

That makes me think about a conversation you and I had once, we were talking about how life's challenges can affect our painting schedule and process. With that said, I want to ask, is painting a tedious process that you find a struggle on some days? Or are you aware of how painting in such detail makes you feel physically and emotionally?

Painting is my emotional outlet. I tend to make more work when my heart is suffering because there’s more emotion that needs to be expressed.

When I’m struggling through a painting, it’s never the painting that I’m struggling with, it’s the emotion behind the painting that I’m battling and doing my best to arrive on dry land from. So yea, I would say that emotion is a driving force for my work.

And as far as the emotion that I have towards painting, I would definitely say that it’s an emotion that resembles devotion and affection, the way most people regard a lover. It’s the only constant I have in my life, and it’s always there for me when I need it.

Your work is so detailed, I would have no idea if I had to guess how long a painting may take to complete. There's a piece I was looking at, a horse you did and showed at the LA Art Show over the summer and the detail in the hair and body of the horse is incredible, how long might a painting like this take you to complete? And I know I've seen a handful of your horse pieces can you tell us about the interest with these white horses?

Sometimes a painting takes me two days, sometimes two months. A lot of it has to do with momentum. The equestrian pieces I had in the LA art show both took a week or two each if I recall.

That’s about average for a painting that size for me these days.

The horses were a replacement for human models during quarantine. I had never painted a horse before that, but I realized as I was painting those pieces that I actually really enjoy painting animals other than humans. There will be other animals in my next body of work. It just depends on what I have access to.

Albino animals hold a lot of personal symbolism for me, so the animals I paint tend to be white or albino. I also really enjoy how much color is actually in white.

Oh, that's interesting. I like the idea of being a replacement for humans. While on the topic may I ask how your last year during covid lockdown has been. Did you find yourself painting more or less?

Did you feel it have any effect on your work itself: technically or otherwise?

I painted non-stop through the covid lockdown.

It was a unique opportunity to work with absolutely zero social life distractions. It felt like the world was just put on pause for a year, and I could just paint. I'm not going to lie, I enjoyed it.

Artists are already a little short-staffed on sanity, so it just felt like the world had been put on my page for a bit. Now everyone is a little crazy, not just me. And the time to just paint peacefully without anyone expecting my time for anything else was refreshing. I caught covid about midway through the lockdown and even painted from bed for a while, while I was feeling miserable.

It kept me feeling positive.

Che, thanks so much for taking the time to sit down with us and talk about your work. I'm super excited to see this new series of works. I look forward to watching your career grow even more than it already has and I'm glad we were able to find the time to get your thoughts on your art.

On that note, do you have anything on the calendar as for dates or locations we might be able to find your work at?

I am currently showing with Abend Gallery and Copro Gallery. My work will be on display in the future at these two galleries. I'm hoping to add a gallery or two to that list next year. I'm beginning print production this season, as well.

And if someone reading this interview and wanted to reach out to you to purchase a piece or maybe have a question about your work, what is the best way for them to reach out to you?

You mentioned that animals will be showing up more in your current body of work. Can you share with us any insight on what we might be able to expect in this new series?

My next body of work is going to be figurative, now that I can work with models and travel again. I will be tying in some flora and fauna as well, after kindling a love for it over quarantine.

I would consider a lot of my old work to be bordering on documentarian because the driving force behind it was to capture the true essence of my models. I have departed from that mindset in the last few years. Now, my models serve a different sort of purpose in my paintings. My models are now a vessel for storytelling and creating a visual narrative that represents the inner workings of my conscious and unconscious headspace, lucid dream space, and emotional expression. I had started to dive into this shift away from documentarianism at the beginning of 2020, and then the world locked down and I only had access to animal models. Now that I have access to both, the new work will be a blend of all of that.

All of that will be available on my big cartel, as well as some originals. I'm pretty active on Instagram @che_leviathan and really enjoy interacting with my followers. Anyone interested in purchasing originals, prints, or have any additional questions about my work, I am happy to hear from you. Feel free to email me as well. cheleviathan@gmail.com

Susan Eatmon | @susaneatmon.com

Ian Shearer | ianschearerstudio.com

Whitney Staheli | rwhitney.com

Taeil Kim | @taeilkim_art

Analia Larizzati | @analarizzati Sebastian Magnani sebastianmagnani.com

Aimee Mandala | aimeemandalart.com Nirvani Harriram | nirvanibrown.com

Self-taught, Roxanne Sauriol is a French Canadian freelance artist based in Montreal. Her work focuses on the female subject who is serving as an extension of herself and addresses both personal and existential questions. She photographs and conceptualizes the images that will then be used as a visual reference for her final pieces of work.

Roxanne Sauriol @roxyperoxyde

M. Ricciardi | chaosmosis.net

Karen Harris | karenhphotos.com Tomesha Faxio | meshaphotography.com

Matt Bradley | @mattybradley95

Feng Jiang | jiangfeng-mine.com

A conversation with Dee Dee and Justin.

"WHATS INSPIRING MY WORK" I have basically figured things out as I went along... It is kind of the emotion behind the painting that I’m battling. What I do. It's punk rock. Don't know how to play your instrument? Get together with your friends and figure out how to make some noise together.. My limitations of what I know have always helped me.

Dee Dee

deedeesplayhouse.com | ©artwalkmagazine.com | Page 26

I’d first like to thank you for taking the time to share with us today. To get started is it ok to call you Dee Dee? It is actually a name I have answered to my entire life, so just call me Dee Dee. Dee Dee, looking back a little is it safe to assume you grew up on the east coast? Can you tell us a little about the area you grew up in and maybe a little about how you first noticed you had a talent in the arts?

I wouldn't say I noticed I had a talent in the arts.

I just loved the arts. One of my earliest memories of doing art was drawing my dog on the white wall of our living room in black crayon. It wasn't nearly as appreciated as I thought it would be.

HaHa, that’s a great memory. What was schooling like for you? Did you attend an art school or would you consider yourself self taught?

I wish I could have attended art school. How fantastic would that have been?? I have basically figured things out as I went along... It is kind of

what I do. It's punk rock. Don't know how to play your instrument? Get together with your friends and figure out how to make some noise together..

My limitations of what I know have always helped me.

Do you do anything special or prepare in any way before you work on the street?

I generally listen to Slint in my earbuds when I go out to paste. It’s a band from Kentucky from the ’90s. I leave the apt a lot and I start the album “Spiderland” literally the moment I shut the door… It puts me in the proper mood.

Do you feel like being a street artist helps you communicate with your city?

Absolutely. In ways, people never get to. I get to communicate a story to everyone who passes my art on the street. It's like a song playing on the radio. Not everyone will tune into it, but it is there for the people who do.

In a few rare instances, I have also gotten to communicate with people while I was putting art up in the street. The first was by chance one of my favorite musicians. I was a bit taken aback. It was in Brooklyn around 1 am on Memorial Day weekend. I was covered in glue, he came over and we had a chat.

Do you know Afghan Whigs? It was their singer Greg Dulli. I don’t love Greg. I LOVE Greg. He was walking along with a woman while I was pasting a piece when I saw them crossing the street towards me. I called out, “Hi Mr. Dulli”! Then I just waved. I didn't expect anything other than maybe a wave back. He left the woman on the corner, came walking over to me, and said “Hey! What’s happening?" I nearly lost it. We talked for a bit, while his woman friend was standing on the corner waiting! Then he said goodnight… walked over, draped his arm around her, and off they went. Quite debonair that Mr. Dulli! He was really lovely asking me what I was up to, as I am standing there literally dripping in glue from head to foot!. It was one of my favorite pasting moments.

One other night I asked a homeless man if I could move his box he was using for sleeping so I could paste art on the wall behind it. He loved what I did, and after I sat with him for quite a bit and he told me about a job interview he had the next day. I never saw him again but I think of him every time I pass that spot on East 7th Street. I hope he got the job he was going for. He was a very sweet man.

Was he interested in what you were creating?

He asked what I was doing. Then when I put the piece up he said, “Wow! NOW that wall is so much better! It’s beautiful!” I am never around to see reactions to what I do. This time I was. He was going to sleep under it, so it really meant quite a lot to me that it brightened his night in some way.

I have happened to be walking by pieces as people were photographing them. Some people I recognize from Instagram... But the weirdest was once I was on the boardwalk in Asbury, nowhere near my mural, and I was next to two women who started talking about me. It blew my mind. What are the chances?

When I did my first mural in Asbury the next morning I sat there on a bench across from it and watched people react to it. It is quite rare I get to experience that and it was so interesting.

The very first person who walked by said right in front of me “Holy shit! This was not here last night when we walked by! Dee Dee is in Asbury!”

I’m normally never privy to reactions. Those were the only three times in a decade of doing this.

Would it be ok to ask you to tell us a couple of stories about Bäst and what drew you to his work?

For me, he was the most exciting street artist ever and had a huge influence on me starting to do it myself. I absolutely adored him… I came across him probably in the mid-2000s. Back then it was a golden time for street art. I’d see him, Faile, Swoon all on the streets. Shepard too.

What drew me in? Bäst did for me what most do not. His pieces created a WORLD. Dark… chaotic at times. I’d be mesmerized. Bäst grabs my imagination by the throat and pulls me into a world where I am thinking, “What is going on HERE??”

They were truly the most wonderful surprises to come across for me as I would stroll thru Soho.

Do you think Bäst or other artists for that matter played a part in inspiring your own work?

I was always attracted to collage… Linder was big for me…

Punk flyers from the ’80s were huge. Bäst certainly was an influence for sure. It’s funny, I get tagged as other artists periodically and it’s always collage artists. Yet I look NOTHING like them at all. Some people can’t see differences with collage. It’s odd, Bäst is so different from me, but I loved him so much. Miss Bugs was huge for me too. Miss and I became pen pals a decade ago. She coached me and was a great cheerleader in everything I was doing.

Who’s out doing street art in your area now that is inspiring you?

No one really. I am inspired mostly by cinema and music these days.

Do you find yourself communicating with other street artists a lot or is it uncommon?

Other street artists write to me occasionally but no, not really. I don’t move in the “scene” as it were. The street artists I communicate with are one or two people whom I came up with a decade ago.

Have you seen these new coach advertisements selling the Basquiat series of bags? It’s strange.

I don’t know how I feel about it.

I know what you mean… from a commerce standpoint…

I think a corporation is co-opting what’s “cool” and selling it. At the same time, I don’t fault anyone for buying one. I can’t afford to own a Basquiat, but if I love his art I may be able to afford a bag with his art or a t-shirt. I can live with it every day. So I see it from that perspective. A Haring or Warhol item too. I have a notebook here that has a Klimt on the cover.

Kind of similar. It could be any notebook… but I love Klimt and get to see it every day.

What about your work. Let’s say you when you pass on. Would you want your work to be licensed?

Hmmmmm. Interesting question. What happens to my work when I’m gone isn’t really important to me because I don’t think it’s important to be remembered outside of family and friends. If my family wanted to license it that would be up to them. It wouldn’t be important to me one way or the other. On a long enough timetable, we are all going to be forgotten… We are so lucky to be conscious of this little flash of light that we are here for in time. In 200 years people probably won’t know who Springsteen is or U2 or Radiohead or half the things that fill football stadiums today.

If someone wanted to own a piece like you’d like to own a Basquiat bag. Is there a way for someone to own something with Dee Dee on it now?

I sell silkscreen prints which I paint individually so my hand is in every one, every one being somewhat unique… They aren’t too expensive.

Those can be found on my website. I also do limited edition t-shirts myself generally once a year… and I sell tote bags and beach towels through a place in Asbury Park because I love the beach. And I wanted a beach towel and a tote bag myself!

Where can someone find these in Ansbury?

A store called Asbury Funhouse. They sell tote bags, beach towels, and magnets of mine. I did do a limited shirt as well with a salon where I did several murals inside.

How often will you do a legal wall like that? Do you do commissions often?

That was a fluke… I was contacted through my friend Elle for that one, as she was working on a few murals there as well. The only legal wall I ever did previously was the Asbury boardwalk.

I do commissions from time to time. I don't do many commissions though because I am not really fond of having a boss. I like making what is in my head without any input.

What are your thoughts on the gallery scene these days?

I don’t really go to gallery openings. I like to go later when I can see the art and take it in. I'd rather not be surrounded by a crowd looking for Instagram content and to be seen. The only opening I’ve gone to in the past number of years was one by David Lynch and one by Futura... and that was because I wanted to say hello to them and I just couldn't wait to see the work. David was very sweet. He’s probably the biggest art influence on me by far. It was lovely being able to tell him that.

Did you ask him when he's doing blue velvet 2?

Hahahahaha, how would that story go? If Dean Stockwell could return and sing "Candy Colored Clown" again I would be in in a heartbeat!

As far as the gallery scene, I'm not doing a ton of gallery work right now because I am enjoying concentrating on prints and one-of-a-kind pieces on paper. They are more affordable for everyone who loves what I do.

When your work does show in a gallery, not that there is anything wrong with it, but do you feel it comes across differently than when someone sees it on the streets who stops and enjoys it?

Yes, because on the street you’re not expecting it. It is a surprise waiting around a corner or in a doorway... In galleries, you also have the luxury of taking your time. I’ve done a couple of gold pieces where I use 24k gold leaf. I love the effect. I can’t do that on the street because it is far too costly. The elements would also kill the effect. And of course... time.

You’d get people stealing the entire wall.

Hahaha, I already have people who steal my work from the street. Two people sent me photos of them after they stole them. Bizarre.

Saw one on eBay once. It's crazy…

I don’t like it, it's such a grimey thing to do I feel.

Even if you love the artist.

Yeah. My prints are affordable. You could buy a print. It helps me live and make more art. Also, I put these out there for everyone. I suppose eventually they will disappear from the elements and they are being saved. But the disappearing is part of it. The disintegration is their natural life. I love seeing that. In a way, it is interrupting their natural life.

Reminds me of that scene in Basquiat when he finds those cats stealing a SAMO tag out of an alley.

In the Schnabel film?

Yes, love Julian Schnable and what he did with that movie.

Same. I loved the surreality of it. I also respect anyone who wears pajamas every day like Mr. Schnable.

It seems like Film Directors are big influences on you. Are there any other artists who have influenced you or current artists that you are inspired by?

Film directors are a huge influence on me.

Influence is a different word than inspire.

Other artists have inspired me but my biggest influences are music and film. In film, David Lynch and Stanley Kubrick have been tremendous influences in what I make. In my composition, in my color choices, in the way, I follow my ideas where they take me.

Their films have been invaluable.

New artists, who have inspired me? Julia Soboleva in the UK and Anastasia Danilenko in Russia. Julia creates whole worlds in her work that draw me in like no other. Each piece of hers is like an entire film telling a story all in one frame. Our work is very different but it comes from a very similar place I feel. We have both discussed it a few times and others have noticed it. It is a feeling. She once told me in the hotel that is "art", she and I must have adjacent rooms. I loved that.

Anastasia has an air of mystery in her work I find quite captivating. Features on subjects are missing, distorted, or only insinuated. The way she uses brush strokes in the oil... It is quite beautiful with an air of darkness in it. Those two are quite inspiring.

Dee Dee, I appreciate your time to sit down with us. On a personal note, I know this year has been super busy for you and I just want to say thank you for taking the time to sit down with us and share about your art. Before I let you go can you tell us what you are currently looking forward to with your upcoming work? And or anything new in the art scene, in general, that is currently or coming that you are excited about?

I am currently finishing up a few print editions, some one-of-a-kind pieces on paper, and then I will begin my next wave. I am excited to see where that takes me.

Well again, thanks for being so great to us here at Artwalk Magazine, you've been a big part of our 2nd issue release and I hope to continue to see your work for years to come. And I’ll deff be taking a visit to Asbury to get myself a new beach towel!

Until next time..

Follow Dee Dee's work on Instagram @deedeewashere

Katie Dauser | @katiedauserphotos

Anja Pycior | anjapycior.com

Stephanie Guillen | stephanieguillen.com Keely McTigue | @keelymctigue

River Dioguardi | @riverdioguardi

Jessie Martin | jessiebiancamartin.com

Stephanie Guillen | stephanieguillen.com

Laura Andrés Desclaux | @lauradesclauxartist

Navi Naisang | @navinaisang

Lauren Dana Smith | @laurendanasmithart

Sonja Neumeyer | @sonjaneumeyer.net

Heidi Brueckner | heidibruckner.com

Huchen Courouleau | @huchencourouleau

McKayla Maroney | @mckaylamaroney

A few rapid-fire questions: favorite brand of paint?

Super simple Royal & Langnickel brush from Deserres Art Stores favorite type of brush?

Moderna Mops day or night painting? day, all-day favorite artist?

Francis Bacon favorite painting of your own? U Wish.

ALEX GARANT

alexgarant.com | @alexgarantart

My name is Alex Garant, my preferred medium is oil on canvas and I currently work out of my studio in Toronto, Canada.

Thanks for taking the time to share about your workspace with us Alex.

Can you tell us a little about your first memories of painting in it?

My current studio is located in my house.

When I moved into this home, it was very important for me to allocate a specific space for creation. So I intentionally found a property with an extra bedroom to convert into studio space. It's a pretty small space but I love the convenience of it. I can paint at any time of the day or night without planning to have to get anywhere.

Do you see your space as being organized?

Hahaha, I wish I had everything organized and neatly placed. The space is more organized chaos. I know where everything is, but it doesn’t make pretty “influencerlike” photos. Honestly, I just consider myself lucky & fortunate to have a room dedicated to art. A bit of a creative refuge if you want.

Does music play a part of your studio time?

Weirdly I have a strange relationship with music in the studio, it is almost essential to get in the mood and catch a good creative rhythm, however, immersed in my work, everything becomes white noise.

I believe the reason why is that once I am in the zone, I get so focused I barely hear anything that's going on around me. So I will play some playlists I enjoy, mostly mid-century blues, however, my mind can't actively be listening while engaged in the painting process.

If you had to advise an artist setting up their studio for the first time??

That's a good question, "studio" is such a constrictive word when it comes to creative space. I think any artist just needs to find a comfortable space to ignite their creativity. Could be an extra office space in the house, their garage, the couch in the living room, their backyard, a fancy rented studio. I believe all artists have the fantasy to want a giant, bright, full of windows, luminous space, but really, any place where you can nurture your art should be embraced.

I really like the way you go about your live painting videos for social media.

While live painting, I use a very simple setup, just my phone and a tripod I bought online. I also use a ring light if I work at night.

Thank you so much for taking the time to answer a few questions with us, Alex.

Where can people go to buy your work or follow you online?

Thank you so much for having me!

People can support me by visiting AlexGarant.com/shop, on Social Media at @alexgarantart on Twitter, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram.

Upcoming exhibitions include October, Invisible landscapes, Mortal Machine Gallery, New Orleans and February 2022, Solo Show, Beinart Gallery, Melbourne Australia.

For updates on future exhibits, you can check out alexgarant.com/exhibitions.

Muka

MUKA

artbymuka.com | @artbymuka

Muka

My workspace means the world to me because it’s where I go to dump all of the magic that bounces around in my head as I struggle through the real world. It's crazy to talk about because, in one short year, I’ve gone from no place to paint to where I am now! In early 2020, I started in a little corner of my home and quickly outgrew it so I had to convert the spare bedroom into my new studio. I took my time really making it mine and I was so in love with it until I ran out of room! Sooner than later, I was spilling out into the yard, splattering paint and making pieces I was proud of. Shortly after that, I leased out my first storage unit to store all of my finished pieces but I still needed more space to paint at the scale I wanted to so, after much hunting, another artist (Amrta Art) and I leased out this huge art studio in the arts district and I can finally say I am home! My paints are organized, my supplies are at reach and my pieces have a place to sit and tell me what else they need to be painted on them. I feel free to flow and create whatever comes to mind. If I were to give any artist a piece of advice it would be to invest in their workspace because if it’s chaos, it will only hurt your creative growth. I feel so blessed to be where I am in my career, in a space I love, and in the amazing company to create in what I consider an art sanctuary! - MUKA

r lle ue ruska er M le el H uell co Ni icha ariem M m by cole i n @

BETHANY bethanyholmes.co.uk | @bethanyholmesart

My studio is my calm place. When I’m in my studio I feel I’ve escaped from everyday life – I don’t think about the time or the fact that I’ve got a load of washing to do, or what’s on my huge to-do list. It’s my special place, an escape where I can just experiment and be free. In the depths of winter, I’ll put the fan heater on and work with the stable door shut, occasionally opening the top of the stable door to check all the colours are going in the right direction!

When I shut the door again I’m a million miles from home. I’m in my own world. I’ll put my playlists on, or a podcast, and get completely lost in the paint, textures, and most importantly, colour. At the first warmth of spring, I usually open the top of the door again and let the light flood in. It’s lovely to creep into the studio first thing with a cup of tea and listen to the birdsong that surrounds me.

Then in summer, the whole door is flung open.

The studio is such an inviting place at this time of year. The floor is pale grey concrete and is always nice and cool (although completely covered in paint). When it’s really hot (which is rare over here in the UK!) I open the windows as well and let the breeze in. The evening sun usually comes round and warms the place up by about 6 pm, which I usually think isan acceptable time to have a nice cold white wine, whilst I paint into the evening.

lan Luis Co n.com luiscola M a ri a K le @mar i ia k le s is a rt

Whilst being a calm space is an extremely productive environment. I'm surrounded by commissions & pieces I am experimenting with it for my next series of works. These hang on the wall or are propped up, pieces that I am usually working on lie on the floor alongside my very hairy cockapoo, Lenny. Current larger paper pieces are bulldog clipped together and hooked onto a nail in the wall, and one wall is entirely dedicated to ideas / smaller canvas pieces that might lead to a larger body of work.

My studio is my release. I go in there and it doesn’t matter if I get paint everywhere, or if nothing has an exact home. When you’re in the middle of the painting, using your hands, a squeegee, a cloth, the last thing you want to do is go and put the lid back on the paint and put it back where it came from!

The studio is my creative, messy heaven and I love it.

- BETHANY HOLMES

For those new to your work, who is Rosso?

Rosso (Emerald Crimson …)

I suppose my art is a contemporary realist style that I am pursuing, inspired by classical art and influenced by contemporary themes and motifs. I live and work in London (UK)

Can you describe your studio for us?

It’s a very DIY and not a standard space :) it’s on the ground floor of an old Victorian house, in a quiet residential area of London. Very high roof, totally self-contained, with a door on a massive back garden. It’s filled with old props, tools, panels, and a long chaise and easels etc.

ROSSO EMERALD CRIMSON rossoart.net | @rossoartist

Sounds wonderful. Does your door have windows that face the garden? Yes, it’s a glass door and the main source of light.

It opens to the back garden. In the winter I use 3 more daylight lamps to keep the light uniform.

Any studio routines?

It’s not a routine at all, but now and then I meditate before starting my day. Music is usually making company in the background especially if I’m doing something that I know already. Otherwise I prefer the silence where I can hear my thoughts clearer :) Balancing your work-life schedule?

Nowadays it’s just like any office job / strict weekly schedule (5/7), with the only difference that overtime is not paid …!!

Storage and furniture?

I have two big easels, a large catering trolley that I move around while painting where I keep my paints, brushes, and anything I need at hand; a couple of stools, one for sitting (if I get tired), one for my palette. I also have a morso -machine to create my frames, and a recent addition was a massive DIY worktop table (with removable standing legs). Oh, I forgot to mention a really comfy long chaise that I found on eBay that I use for some poses and often for naps :)

David Pher @david_pher

Any advice for an artist just getting started in their studio setup?

1 big easel of adjustable height; trolley and shelves.

That’s it really :) - Rosso

Marz Pacheco @marz.pacheco

Laura Lippay @rightbrainleftfield

wokestudio Daisy-Anne | @the

ESS NYC | @essnyc

Jaweed Metz | metzgallery.com

Jamie Wang | @jwangatxphoto

Joanna Chrysohoidis | joannachrys.com

BethAnn Lawson bethannlawson.com

Jane Koluga| @jko_art

Chelsea-Paige Summers | chelseapaigesum.com

Jordan Burch

Christina Romeo | cromeola.com

Jason Jenn | @jasonjennartist

Olga Georgitsia| olgageorgitsia.com

Brett Pearson | @picklespiano

Justin Snyder Photo | @justinsnyderphoto

MJ Lindo-Lawyer | mjlindoart.com

Maja Momirov | @mayabadon

Bianca Clark | biancaclarkart.com

Fibs | @fibs_

Lisa Cain | lisacain.org

Deb Almond | candidalmond.com

Hoss Cruz | @the_hossifer

A conversation with Joshua and Justin.

"MULTIPLE HATS" Joshua's work is informed by his life in the Pacific. Mashing themes from anime and island culture during a chaotic time of geopolitical turmoil, nuclear annihilation and unprecentednted climate catastropy...

All illuminated under the pink and orange glow of our tropical sky.

Mr. Barrigada looks to examine the possibilities of 100 year old art movements at the turn of the 20th century aginst the modern island experience. Constrasting those figurative, illustrative movements from the likes of Klimt, Gauguin, Toulouse-Lautrec, Jacoulet against his years of cartooning, comics obsession and award winning tee shirt design. He looks to find a cosy home nesteled somehwere in the low brow, new contemporary, street art and pop surrealist movements of the last 2 decades.

Joshua Barrigada joshuabarrigada.com | ©artwalkmagazine.com | Page 44

Joshua, thanks for taking the time to talk to us today. I know we are across the ocean from one another and figuring out how to make this interview work hasn't been super easy so I'm happy to finally sit down and chat with you about your work, POW WOW, and the island.

Favorite drink of choice if you relaxing in your art space thinking about what you are gonna start painting next?

Light beer! Maybe Asahi is up there. During the pandemic, my roommate works for the distributor for Heineken too. We had a little kegger that lasted a month or so, so shout out to Heineken too, he converted me.

Something about doing late-night painting with a few beers is really special to me, everyone is asleep, I can just relax and think and be slow and no one in the world can bother me at that moment. True peace. Idk about you, but beer in the evening wakes me up.

Oh man, who can go wrong with Asahi? I have a favorite Phu spot in the Lower East Side, NY called "Am Choi" that turned me on to Tiger beer. Now it's one of my favorites. Ok, so what's on the record player while drinking that beer?

I got some hours-long playlists I create for painting and mural sessions. Heavy on that rotation is Unknown mortal orchestra, the sadder Gorillas songs, and Tame Impala.

When I need to be without the distraction of words I put on classic jazz pianist, Oscar Peterson. That one from my mom, makes me feel classy dinner party vibes. If I could recommend his take on Take the Train.

Wow, I dig this mix. Jazz is always a nice go-to, especially some of those longer tracks with no vocals that really let you get into a painting and dive in a little deeper instead of the song changing up so quickly. Philip Glass is always a nice pianist I tend to toss on. Also, love the way you say "sadder" Gorillaz songs. So true!

So a nice light beer and some darker Gorillaz on the radio, we gotta know where this studio is now.

Can you tell us where your studio is located and even what country it's in?

Oh nice, I'll check out that Phillip Glass. And yeah Damon Albarn is just like the kinks in the way that he can write very somber introspective music and then turn around and pump out ready pop hits.

The studio is at our house here in the village of Chalan Pago on the small island of Guam, USA, In the middle of the fuckin' ocean. We're about 13degrees from the equator, so yes it gets super hot over here. I'll either be painting outside on a small scaffolding table and easel I always have set up, or in the summer rainy season months, I go inside to our converted garage/studio space. So I'm nestled in here with unfinished paintings, art supplies, my girlfriend's projects, and all the roommate's surfboards. It's in the far corner of the house, so I can make a little noise while the roommates sleep. The dogs come often to try and bother me. I think about every painting I've had for the last 5 years has a decent amount of dog hair embedded in every piece. Maybe when the aliens find it centuries from now they'll think a border collie painted my shit.

Forget the aliens, the humans already have technology that is starting to look through layers of paint in some of the old classics and finding lots of old paintings painted over. Now we have to watch what we put down on those first layers of a canvas cause one day they might be examined.

I’d love to get into some of your street art or mural work for a bit if that’s ok, can you tell us the name you use for your art.

My art name I use for everything is Joshua Barrigada. It's not my real name, but Barrigada is the village I am from. In Guam that means a lot, what village you grew up in, the shared experiences of that Ville. I want to be like Leonardo. See because Da Vinci is not his surname, but instead, he is representing his birthplace with that name. Not a bad idea.

Ok, Josh Barrigada it is. I can dig that for sure.

I wonder, does carrying a name like that, one of your village, put a lot of responsibility on your shoulders? Or do you maybe even find yourself putting extra pressure on yourself as a representative of your village?

Oh not at all, I think for Guam we’re always happy that people are gonna rep the island or rep their village. I’m happy to be a part of that. If anything I should probably throw down a few freebie murals at our local park/ community center.

So how did you find yourself as an artist? Did you grow up as an artist in your village or was it something you found later on in life?

My mother was an artist, she would always do still life, she had a frantic 70s sketchy style that I would copy. She’s also an excellent photographer, and musician. So just doing art and playing music and just doodling around was normal for me, I thought all families drew together. So ever since early childhood making cartoons and taking on my mom's outlook of someone who is always learning. I didn’t know how much I was being nurtured in the arts but looking back on it, it’s why I was able to be ok without much formal training or college. Like getting portfolio reviews from her artist friends or going to shows on Guam.

"I thought all families drew together"

Your families quote is just a great line and general thought. Your childhood sounds amazing, surrounded by so much nurturing talent I can see why your work is so well known, and yet you're humble about it. Probably stems from your mother I'm sure. Especially the oh-so fantastic outlook on life as an artist or just life in general “to always be learning," I wish more people would adopt this philosophy and see how much further they can grow, but instead I see so many people either content with where they are at or even think that they’ve mastered their creative output.

The life of an artist is so much more rewarding when we can have a sense of self-deprivation and humility in our work and let critique and new ideas flow in.

Then in my adult life just doing the same shit, learning from friends and the internet. Trying to do a free .99 arts education. While managing a pop-up gallery here which we later would connect with our POW! WOW! Family, I learned painting techniques from the artist in the show.

They were teaching their curator how to paint and helped me develop outside my early career of mostly digital illustration. I consider myself so lucky, the odds of me getting to where I am we’re so impossible. Even connecting with Pow Wow and other big artists, just a series of random chances. The pow wow gig taught me murals, I really had the best free college.

Curating these local's shows and the mural festivals gives so much to me. I always suggest to other artists, if you have the chance to curate a show, or do artist support for others. It can teach you so much. It shows you how to know your home, know your scene, and understand art through the approach and work of others.

I saw an interview, it was from composer, musician, producer, songwriter ... etc Jon Brion.

He talked in this interview about how the happiest people he knows are people who wear multiple hats. Really love that thought that changing your roles from the star; to collaborator, to support role, to team player.

I do really believe in that. It’s a very fulfilling way to be creative.

I love the Pow Wow projects and living here in Long Beach, CA I'm always reminded of Pow Wow everywhere I drive seeing murals done for the project.

You speak of linking up with Pow Wow, for those that don’t know what Pow Wow is maybe you can give us a quick breakdown on it and then how you found yourself involved.

So for Pow Wow, we honestly got lucky to fall in with them. We have been doing art shows on Guam for over 5 years and we did big shows and built a scene on Guam. We also started to do a few mural productions. Pow wow is a global network of mural festivals all centering on the main show in Hawaii.

So honestly we had been watching them for some time and emulating aspects of their events here at home. So when the opportunity arose to work with them in developing a Pow! Wow! Guam festival we jumped at it.

I have had a similar experience to a lot of our local artists that we have in those events and when you can bring in world-class artists to a small place like Guam. Man, it’s earthshattering.

I can't agree more, being an artist and getting to see people admire your art is great, but getting to support other artists and help give them maybe just a moment of having their work promoted and seeing the love and appreciation most artists give you for it, it's a great feeling and makes you want to help more artists as much as possible.

So I know we didn't get to link up this time around, but I wanted to ask how your latest vacation went, can you tell us a little about why you came out to the states this summer (21') and how your trip turned out?

So people in Guam, usually travel to Tokyo, Seoul, or Manila, those destinations are 3 hours away from Guam. Tokyo is my and my lady's favorite, probably been there about 10 - 11 times at this point, once or twice a year. So with the pandemic, and lockdown being so harsh in Asia our only option to get out of Guam is the US. There was a small Thinkspace group show I got into, "Happy Place" from a contest they had to keep everybody moving and having fun during the worst of the pandemic. I missed my 2 previous group shows I got in with them, and we just decided it was a perfect excuse to see Thinkspace, to see LA, I had never been to California so it was such a treat. We basically saw as many art galleries and chilled with as many artists as humanly possible. Got to run into some artist homies like Baghead and Brian Butler who happen to be in town. Also some stateside Guam friends, rad locals like Ballonski and Allison Bamcat. Super happy our small group show coincided with Evoca1's solo show.

We had hosted him years back for our first Pow! Wow! Guam Festival. We even got to check out another friend of Guam in your guy's city, with Tristan Eaton's 20 Year retrospective at LBCMA. The last bit is we drove up to our dear friends from Pow! Wow! San Jose who also run Empire Seven Studios (E7S) - Carlos and Jen. The only thing in the states to compare to the beauty of Guam was driving up that Pacific Coast Highway on the 1 - up through Big Sur on that cliff line. God damn that place is pretty.

They showed us around their area, we saw some bay area family and enjoyed that beautiful cold air, did I mention Guam is hot? Every day?

All year long? hahah.

What you get from that coming from this small island life, really makes you appreciate what you have. The temp of our water, the greens of the topical islands - the states were great, I had a blast, but it only made me love home more.

I'm more committed to developing our small but robust arts community here, I think at this point I would never really want to leave Guam. Maybe just travel to Cali a little more often, cuz that art scene was such a mecha, meka? mecca?

Appreciate your time again, to sit down and take the time to share a little about your background and your trip and Guam! Makes me really want to visit now! Haha. That being said we’re gonna be following your work closely this year and next time around we’re really gonna have to delve down into more of your art style itself! So keep up the good work and we’ll deff be checking in with you again soon.

Joshua can be reached via Instagram or his website

@joshuabarrigada | joshuabarrigada.com

model: Vickie Ji

Erika Lamothe erikalamothart.com

model: Ron Williams

Nikola Krbanyevitch nikoartfactory.com

Katelyn Bridges | @katys.pics

Christopher Perez @brevityphotog

Lindsey Culver | @lindsey_culver

Leah Oates | leahoates.com

Dom Czepiga @domczepiga

Alixandra Gallegos @portaleydesigns

Nina S. Hodjat | @notsabrinathewitch

Aljoscha Farassat aljoschafarassat.com

Dick Folse | @myimperialviolet

A conversation with Amber and Justin.

"WHERE CREATIVITY REALLY THRIVES" "I knew then that this was an extremely difficult art form that would challenge me forever. There was something so sacred and ceremonial about this unique craft. My mind was set and never swayed."

Amber Muse

instagram.com/ambrmuse | @artwalkmagazine.com | Page 52

Hi neighbor, to help our readers get to know you a little, can we get started by getting to find out who Amber is.

I go by Amber Muse. I chose the name Muse because of the definition which states, something that inspires. To inspire and remain inspired is a big part of what I want to do in life in all aspects.

I work from a private studio in Long Beach California and I’ve been tattooing for about 4 years now. I’m from Lakewood/Long Beach area, so pretty much an LB native and I absolutely love it here.

Love the meaning behind the name. Can you tell us your first experience or memories with art or working with something creative?

I remember always being good at art naturally.

When we would do drawings in grade school I didn’t realize my work was anything special but all the kids would comment on it and ask me to draw their stuff for them. Lol. It became my thing. I would draw portraits a lot at an early age as well. At about 9-10 I was really into portrait work and drawing realism which is kind of interesting for a small kid. I guess it all spiraled from there.

Outside of drawing portriats while growing up did you explore painting or other mediums at all?

What was it that lead you in the direction of tattooing as your chosen medium?

I loved anything creative. I simply loved the idea of making something out of nothing. What led me to tattooing was seeing it on TV when I was in highschool and I realized that was a career that would give me freedom. I wanted to draw different things everyday, to hear people’s stories, and to be able to look and dress (express) however I wanted. I also felt so drawn to the difficulty of the medium of ink on skin with a machine or tool. I knew then that this was an extremely difficult art form that would challenge me forever. "There was something so sacred and ceremonial about this unique craft. My mind was set and never swayed."

Finding the craft of tattooing to be sacred and ceremonial, do you think this had an influence on artwork you are currently known for, i.e. the geometric linework and dotwork? Did you get started pursuing this style right from the beginning or did it take you a while to find yourself in the medium?

Absolutely! I once thought I was going to be a black and gray realism artist and quickly changed my mind once I began tattooing. I slowly found myself getting drawn to the floral and geometric work that I have been known for.

To me it felt like more organic material to put on your body and that just seemed timeless and natural. Then in the past year or so I’ve been diving deeper into blackwork and ornamental.

There’s so much symbolism and dedication in these styles, so much boldness. It’s now my current favorite and I’m continuing to practice it and study it. Hoping to make my tattooing even more aligned with the ceremonial intention.

What really makes a lot of sense to me in the way you describe it, is that it’s timeless. Being an artist I have always struggled with getting tattoos myself, I know myself as an artist that I’m always continuing to get better and my style does change over time and what I am doing now I may look back on in just a years time and feel it’s horrible compared to where I have progressed to. I’ve always been afraid that I would feel that about my tattoos I wanted at the time and how I would look at it down the line. With that said, I think it’s great you let yourself continue to learn and grow as an artist diving into and dedicating yourself to new types of styles. I'm very interested in how you actually tackle the everyday job of tattooing.

For example, in the back of your head you know you're learning and progressing and changing slightly as you grow. Do you find yourself altering pieces and find elements of different styles in a single piece? Or are you able to compartmentalize that your style is changing and not let it affect the present moment and the current work? How do you approach this?

You really hit the nail on the head. Ugggg. It’s so daunting to do permanent work and know that you’re always getting better. My mentor told me, the first tattoo you do will always be the worst.

Hinting at the fact that each one is better than the last, and well, that’s kinda bitter sweet with body art. Lol. But I remind myself that with each piece, I’m doing the best I can at that moment.

And that, this client chose me and trusted me with the body of work I’ve presented at this point in my artistic development. Also, as artists change and grow, some people may prefer your old work to your new, so as long as they’re happy that’s all that matters.

As far as my current shift, I’m still taking on pieces that more align with my floral and geo style I’ve developed over the past few years but I’m prioritizing the newer styles. It kind of works out perfect, giving me time to ease into and study the world of blackwork and ornamental.

Of course I think this balance will lean heavier on the latter side in the future but I also hope to find new ways of combining them. I don’t think I’ll ever fully stop doing floral or geo. I’m sure you relate to this too, but having variety is fun as an artist.

Where you are currently working and what do you like or not like about your current location?

I so agree and think your outlook on this very healthy. Can I ask you to share with us a little about your research and how you go about practicing your new ideas? Do you have a black book and just start drawing away and practicing new things, or will you start to test new ideas on yourself? haha. Whats the Amber Muse way of experimenting?

Great question. “Studying” can be many different things these days. Sometimes it’s me scrolling through instagram finding artists doing the styles I’m wanting to expand in and just studying their work and videos. This kind of observing not only helps me learn design techniques but also gives me floods of inspiration that pour into my brain and I know they’ll come out when the time is right.

I’ve also been getting more books on cultural tattoo styles and symbolism. Then It’s really about getting to the iPad and creating a piece and doing this enough times that I’ll be able to share these designs and someone will want them.

It’s helpful to practice new techniques on a friend or frequent client because there may be some learning curves, but as for new designs it’s really about creating something I love and putting it out there for the right person to find!

photo by Liz Erban

I’m currently working out of my own private studio and I love it! Moving into this from a shop setting was a much better fit for me and my clientele.

Most of my clients are female and the extra privacy is comforting for them. On top of that it creates a more peaceful and quiet environment for me to focus on the art and have deep conversation with my client, which usually is the case. I’ve created it to be a calming, comforting and welcoming environment where they can feel safe.

How did this last year with covid workout for you being a tattoo artist did you find clients canceling their appointments and less people coming in or did you not see much of a change being that you have your own studio at home?

Last year was rough. Being able to work and then not and back and forth. I was taking the time to really rest up and give my creativity a bit of a break. It seems like people used that time to think about what they wanted to get done and this year is booming and now I’m overwhelmed with the amount of inquires lol. So I suppose it all worked out in the end.

We talked a bit about you always trying to educate yourself and learn more about your craft.

Can you tell us a little about how you find the time to do your sketches and read and continue to progress with your style? How do you tackle that work/life balance? lol. Uhhhhhh, Im still figuring this one out . Work life balance is constantly shifting, it’s like standing on a rolling log. Some moments you’re perfectly balanced and then you have to readjust. Like most entrepreneurs and/or creatives I feel like I’m always working. My mind is always thinking about my art, my business, how I can improve. It’s really almost impossible to turn off but ultimately I’m grateful that my mind gets to be occupied by these topics. As I’ve been taking on bigger pieces lately I’m learning how physically taxing they are and how much longer the design process is, so currently readjusting lol.

I try to not work more than 4 days a week because I spend one day a week taking classes , currently voice lessons and astrology, and then I need one day to fully shut off and another to get my personal life duties done like laundry…. Lol. Im attempting to fit in one day of taking on one or two reiki clients a week, but that’s still a work in progress.

I have a pretty strict daily routine of working out, meditating, and now yoga before I go into work.

This helps me focus and have energy for the day.

I try to read and study on my off days but I have too many interests so my list of things is often unrealistic. Im learning to allow myself to just exist, that’s where the creativity really thrives.

So you see, it’s quite chaotic and there should really be more days in a week lol.

Amber, thanks so much for sharing your art with us and the way you continue to progress as an artist and in life. It's been inspiring to watch you grow in talent and in your style. I can't wait to get work done from you myself! Hope the waiting list isn't too long! haha!

If someone wanted to reach out to you what’s the best way someone can reach and make an appointment or get on a wait list? And where can they follow you online?

I post all my work on my Instagram, @ambrmuse.

My email is also up there and that’s the best way for clients to reach out to inquire. My books are currently full for the year but I will open them in a few months to begin scheduling 2022.

Photo by Jose Cervantes | @josecervantes_

Jo Beer | @jobeerart

Ksenya Istomina | @ksenya_istomina

Sherry Kerlin | sherrykerlinfineart.com

Shelby Cook | shelbykcook.com

Linda Reymore | lindareymore.artcall.org

István Dukai | istvandukai.com

A conversation with Fairlight and Justin.

"THE ONE CONSTANT IN MY LIFE" "All the experimentation and hours put into craft help to build a toolkit we can pull from when imagining what we will do next. It’s very important to stay receptive to what is available when things aren’t going exactly as planned.

There is always magic and beauty to be found."

Anna-Micaiah Fairlight Hubbard instagram.com/fairlight | ©artwalkmagazine.com | Page 60

This sounds amazing! What a different way to be raised than most of us in America. So being in the modeling industry and given your background you have with nature, I can see some of this in your imagery you create? Can you tell us how you got started in your photography career?

I have always loved to create and when I was young I learned to make all my clothing. As I got older I wanted to be a fashion designer. While living in the models apartment I would work on designs and then take photos of my model roommates in the clothing. I would do all the hair and makeup and create ideas I had in my mind.

Can you tell us your name and where you are from?

I was born off-grid in the mountains of Ky. My mom thought for sure I was going to be a boy and had the name Micaiah in mind. When I arrived as a girl she adapted the name with my great grandmother’s name Annabelle to be Anna-Micaiah and then chose Fairlight after she had read the book, Christie, during the pregnancy. I have always gone by my middle name Fairlight, or Fair for short.

Sometimes so much can be found In the history of one's name. Fairlight is a beautiful name and Micaiah I think would have been just as fun. :) So you were born off-grid, were you also raised in the same mountains, and or when were you then brought into the city?

Thank you. I have often wished she would have used Micaiah as my everyday name.

Yes, I was raised in my early childhood in the mountains off-grid. We cooked with a wood stove, used an outhouse, no electricity, grew our food, and made everything ourselves. It was a simple life, very rewarding and often I miss it.

We moved to Nashville when I was 9 for my Mother’s career in music and left that lifestyle.

My Father has continued to live there and so I spent half the time with him this way as I grew up. When I was 19 I left the modeling industry and moved back there for 18 months to reset.

It was nice to return to that way of life for a bit.

Agents liked the photos I did and often wanted to see them in the portfolios of the girls I shot.

This led to them asking me to photograph other models. Before I knew it I was very busy. It just sort of organically happened.

I am positive that my experience in front of the camera and watching and learning from everyone on set informed my abilities and inspired me to create. That led to a career in the early 2000s traveling the globe and shooting and scouting models 20 days out of the month for 12 solid years. This led to me eventually working more from my chosen city of Nashville with music artists and began doing video as well.

Being in front of the camera as well as a fashion designer obviously had a lot to do with your creativity in some of the work I’m currently seeing. It seems very fashion inspired but I’d also say an abstract style of art to it. Without even getting into camera technique and skills how do you find yourself coming up with your ideas for a shoot?

I think my work turned more artful as I started working with musicians and letting music inspire the ideas. I have always had an active imagination and that is definitely a contributing factor but as I would listen to music I would see visuals and that would often be wildly inspiring.

I also find that working on the fly with unexpected items would often lend itself to fanciful ideas. Letting people become artful visions. A cinematic sort of Inspiration, as if the person might have walked out of another world or time or a story.

Setting up a photo shoot with props and models and lighting all working together to give that feel and imagination you have in your head can be tricky though right?

I think what many aspiring photographers might run into is they set up a scene, they take the photos it's just not coming out in the colors or the mood that they had envisioned. So there is something to be said about your talent and skill level that you can set a scene and then shoot it as you see it in your head. So what is the link here that many artists have trouble with? Is it the lighting, your camera, imagination?

I think we have all bridged that at some point in time as an artist. Not getting what we see in our imagination is part of what makes us explore and learn and improve. For me, I think the way I have naturally overcome this is by letting the knowledge base that I have from experience inform what is possible. All the experimentation and hours put into craft help to build a toolkit we can pull from when imagining what we will do next. I also think it’s very important to stay receptive to what is available when things aren’t going exactly as planned. There is always magic and beauty to be found.

Sometimes letting go of the initial idea leads to organic creation that would have been missed with planning. In my opinion best shoots offer a little of both, a co-creation with what we know we can execute and what is available to us that we didn’t foresee at the moment.

Ya great way to look at it. Being receptive to change and what’s available is a great tip. Where do you find yourself currently in your career and what do you find yourself exploring these days with your experimentation?

After 25 years of shooting I definitely am more interested in the art of it. I feel in some ways I am back to experimenting and evolving. Light experimentation is more at the forefront. I also find myself doing quite a bit of nostalgic photography. Modern ideas but with old inspirations. Mixing these elements with post production that is fantasy based is really fun. Aside from photography I enjoy creating art in other mediums to stay inspired as well. Pottery, illustration, jewelry.. These are fun ways to play.

Sounds like you are having fun, I think that’s got to be a good place to be.

Before I let you go, have to get a few gear questions in. What’s kind of camera are you shooting with?

And any favorite lenses?

I shoot with Canon. Currently, I use the 5D Mark IV. When Canon came out with the first digital camera the canon d60 I got it and started to transition more work into digital. Hard to believe I started my career solely with film. I still love shooting film and have a huge collection of vintage cameras I often use for creative alternates in shoots.

My first camera was a Pentax k1000 and it’s still a gem. I also love the Mamiya 645 system and I often use Polaroid backs for tests.

I have a lot of lenses because it truly depends on what I am shooting which lens will be perfect. If I had to travel with just one it would either by the ef 1.2 50mm fixed or the Canon EF 70200mm f/2.8 L IS USM Lens. I can use either to achieve very dreamy results but also clean captures as well.

Canon 5d Mark IV. A great piece of equipment for sure. If I was a young photographer starting to explore fine art photography what would you recommend for me to start in the way of lighting and backdrops and gear?

I would suggest a digital camera and a fixed lens. It doesn’t have to be fancy but it needs to have a manual function. Having a reflector and diffuser will also help. I would suggest starting with natural light and shooting in all sorts of lighting situations. Shoot in the daytime, in the high sun, the shade, in the dark, etc… then review the photos in-depth to analyze the results. This will help to build a good foundation of light perception. Next, I suggest moving to use tungsten or led light that is steady lighting.

Understanding how what you see is what you get and how to balance or use temperatures creatively. Last I would move to flash units.

White Lightening has some great starter kits that are affordable and still produce professional results. Having a seedless backdrop and stands at this point would be very ideal to create a studio environment even at home. This is also the perfect time to explore in or on-camera flash functions.

Thanks so much for the advice on gear. This has been such an informative interview and I can't wait to dive into your work even more now that I've learned about your background. What are you currently working on do you have any upcoming projects or shows or anything that we can look out for?

Currently, I am working with several music artists and capturing artful film for their music releases. I will be posting photos and content of these as they release. I am also finishing up improvements on a new 2000 sf. Studio and Event space with a courtyard that will open this fall to the public. We will host art events, pop-up markets, and curated dinner experiences as well as make them available to the public for creative endeavors and events.

The Building is called MAISON JAMES in Nashville Tn. Thank so much for taking the time to sit down and share with us today. For someone that wants to reach out to you about your work or wants to follow you online where are the best places to find you?

Anna-Micaiah Fairlight Hubbard Thank you for including me! It’s been a pleasure to be a part of what you have created. You can find me @fairlight on Instagram and the event space @historicmaisonjames. I always welcome conversation so please fee free to reach out!

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A conversation with Nicole and Justin.

"LETTING GO OF PRECONCEIVED NOTIONS" Nicole Kutz is an artist and curator currently based in Nashville, TN. She received her MFA in 2017 from the Savannah College of Art and Design with a concentration in painting. Her paintings meditates on life’s transience by using handmade pigments and dyes to create ethereal abstract worlds. She frequently draws inspiration from Wabi-sabi, as well as the Japanese artforms of shibori and kintsugi, and ultimately finds beauty in the work's imperfections. She has worked as the Chief Curator for a fine art streaming company, Curatorial Assistant for a renowned Art Advisor and Director for a fine art gallery in Los Angeles.

Nicole Kutz

nicolekutz.com | ©artwalkmagazine.com | Page 66

My name is Nicole Kutz and I am a painter and curator now based in Nashville, TN. I moved to Nashville about a month ago from Los Angeles.

The change allowed my partner and me to have more space - including an extra room that I am using as a studio for now.

This month has definitely been living up to its stigma of being "in like a lion". Our weather has varied dramatically over the past couple of weeks including a few tornado scares! Although it differs drastically from the sunny California days that I've grown used to, I am loving the Tennessee landscape in general. My work derives a lot of inspiration from my environment, and my surrounding trees, creeks, and mountains are in line with what I was already creating. I find tranquility and gratitude in this amongst all the changes I have experienced over the past year.

Wow, big move. LA to Nashville. Well, there are some things that I’d love to hear more about with that and with LA and this last year but if you don’t mind can you first tell me a little about where you grew up and what it was like? Do you remember what first drew you to art and picking up a paintbrush for the first time?

Yes! Definitely a big move and while navigating that move during a pandemic was difficult, settling into Nashville has been relatively simple.

I grew up outside of Atlanta, GA and while I have a deep love for parts of the south, I always felt out of place there. As a child, I was wildly creative and would spend most days making up plays or imaginary worlds with my friends. I was also very shy and would draw throughout most of elementary school (I even got in trouble for doodling too much!).

I found that drawing helped me retain information and it wasn't long before I started taking art lessons outside of school. I started with drawing, but picked up a paintbrush when I was 11 years old. I remember the moment so vividly - it was an adult acrylic class and although I struggled with the medium, I was immediately hooked. Through art, I found my voice and my introverted self could hide behind my paintings.

Finding yourself in your creative expression is always a great feeling. Realizing that for the rest of your life you always have this new passion to go to when times are tuff is an enjoyable moment no doubt.

That being said, finding that it’s not always easy to navigate that voice within your work turns into a whole new challenge. How have you seen your voice grow or change over time as you learned to paint and grow as an artist? And maybe you can tell us how it’s developed into the work you currently are creating today?

My artistic voice definitely had its biggest change while I was in grad school. Throughout high school and undergrad, I primarily painted figurative work that merged realistic with abstract elements. Once I entered grad school, I was encouraged to move away from that style and I found myself attempting to unlearn the classical training that was ingrained in me.

The process wasn't easy, but once I stopped trying to control the materials, I began to create more authentic marks and work that captured my larger idea more effortlessly. This has become core to my process today, as I allow the idea to dictate my materials and let the process of using those speak more to the final product than my own contrived methods. I simply let go and see what happens.

This currently applies to my indigo works on paper, natural pigment series, and my red trees on paper.

I paint very intuitively and follow what comes out of my subconscious. I'll sometimes reference photographs to ground me, but the majority of my work in the last five years has come from responding to the present moment of the pigment touching the surface.

“Once you stopped trying to control the materials you began to create more authentic marks.”

I think what you are saying here, please tell me if I’m wrong but what you learned was that if you stopped trying to have a finished piece in mind when you sat down to paint and instead just learned to enjoy the process of painting itself, you were able to find yourself that much more.

I think that's a very important learning curve that a lot of young artists find hard to grasp but I feel it is important.

Essentially yes! I initially learned how to draw by focusing on replicating my subject as precisely as possible. I was controlled with my materials and would always start with a clear idea of what I wanted the piece to be. When that deviated (which it always did), I was very hard on myself and felt like a failure. In grad school, it was pointed out that this process felt less authentic and the pieces felt forced or contrived since the materials did not speak to my overarching idea. More forced. I spent a year investigating ways of more "passively" making art and letting go of my preconceived notions of what the piece should be. This allowed me to trust the process and ultimately create more meaningful work for my overall practice.

Expanding on the process of painting a bit, what is a day in your studio like. How do you prep your space? Music, food? Silence? Do you set all your paints up or just wing it?

We recently moved to East Nashville and I am enchanted daily by our new surroundings and all of the trees in our area. My studio day structure has shifted now that I have my space in my home. At the moment, I'm still trying to figure out how to set things up and move things around daily as I work within the mess (I find myself more often than not working from the floor).

The room does have amazing light and a view of our backyard, which allows me to spy on our Golden Retriever puppy while he is running amok.

I'm almost always listening to something and drinking tea. Right now, I have been bingeing "The Great Women Artists" podcast, an audiobook version of "The Hidden Life of Trees" and Say Anything's 2004 record "...Is A Real Boy". I typically break up my studio sessions into a block of time in the morning and a block of time in the afternoon. I run almost every day and use that as an outlet whenever I'm stuck, as it helps me find the solution or will inspire something entirely new.

This is great, thank you for giving us a little insight into your workspace. I also really love that you worked to get to where you can find yourself creating more meaningful work for yourself.

I think that is great advice for many artists. We have the rest of our lives to always be working toward that goal of truly creating art that speaks to who we are. A lifelong task that is worth always striving for I’d say.

Thanks! It isn’t easy and sometimes I question that process when times feel challenging or my artmaking isn’t flowing, but I agree that it is one of the most rewarding pursuits.

Both positions gave me insight into curating within a gallery space, versus curating for a private or corporate collection.

More recently, I am interested in the concepts of the artist as a curator. In December, I cocurated a group show with the talented Vita Eruhimovitz at Wönzimer Gallery in DTLA. The show consisted of seven artists (including ourselves) who addressed society’s relationship with the natural world. Like most events in 2020, “Sense of Place” was impacted by the pandemic, but despite the setbacks, delays, and lockdowns, we managed to have a physical opening and are looking to present other iterations in the future.

So along with your own artwork, I know you also enjoy being a curator, can you tell me how you first found yourself in this field of curating other artists?

Curation more or less found me. I always had an interest in gathering artists together and it has been a lifelong dream to have my own gallery space. I started off interning at galleries in Santa Monica and Atlanta during undergrad, but it wasn’t until I started grad school that I really picked up an interest in curating shows.

I also had a natural knack for connecting with other creatives and understanding how their process informs each other.

In 2015, I was approached by the founder of Loupe, an online art streaming platform, to be a featured artist for its launch. I was so inspired by the initial idea that I helped design the initial pitch deck, attended brainstorming sessions, and shared the opportunity with most of my artist friends. Shortly after, the platform was looking for a new Chief Curator to expand the artist roster and better the experience and they asked me to join the team. From 2016 – 2020, I brought hundreds of artists to the streaming experience and hand-selected the work that would go into each channel.

Digital curation, however, is a very different experience than curating shows physically, but it did give me a taste for the field and I wanted to expand this skillset. While living in Los Angeles, I worked as the gallery manager for Kopeikin Gallery and as the curatorial assistant for art advisor Victoria Burns.

Your background at these different galleries is great. I love some of those galleries you have mentioned. What an honor to get to work handson with some of the venues and the artists. I'd love to delve into some of how you approached the show being impacted with covid but maybe before we jump into that can you expand your thoughts on the "Artist as curator" concept?

Although I identify first as an artist, I have always been drawn to curating and bringing artists together. In grad school, I poured over Hans Ulrich Obrist's writings and specifically looked at how artist-curated exhibitions destabilize curatorial traditions. We can trace the concept back to Gustave Courbet creating his pop-up gallery after his work was rejected from the Salon. Although not celebrated by the public, his “The Pavilion of Realism” would go on to be celebrated by artists for centuries and his departure shifted the art world forever.

In some ways, I feel that artists are inherently curators. The exhibition space acts more like a medium or canvas to explore relating shapes, ideas, materials, etc.

I draw inspiration from artist-run spaces and fairs like Tiger Strikes Asteroid, Spring/Break, and especially the late Noah Davis’ The Underground Museum. Part of what makes The Underground Museum so groundbreaking is the fact that it is sensitive to its surroundings and truly feels like an artist’s space that celebrates everyone. The work exhibited here is worldclass and feels perfectly in tune with its surroundings – despite it being so different from a standard white cube gallery.

There is something innately powerful in looking at the world through the eyes of an artist and I think when artists take on the curator role, they bring this sensitivity to the exhibition space. For me, I find curating similar to how I approach painting – very intuitively and based on feeling.

If there is a topic I’m interested in artistically, I also am looking at other artists’ work who are inspired by the same things. The dialogue between artists is so important in understanding deeper relationships in the work and I love

when a show unfolds nuanced meanings when you bring other artists based on the artist lens.

The show I co-curated with Vita Eruhimovitz at Wönzimer had a similar process. We knew the themes in our work, artists we liked or admired and it naturally fell into place because all the work was inspiring the other.

I love this approach to curating shows and I can't agree more, an artist-curated show lends itself to so much more creative opportunities. Not that museum and gallery curators who are not artists don't do the same, but I guess maybe with an artist curating a show you can take more risks and push the boundaries more than your average gallery curator might have the freedom to.

I think it just offers a different lens for viewing the work and therefore feels more "radical".

Getting that consistently through a show, that feeling that the artists relate to one another but also allowing the viewer to feel like they can immerse themselves into each artist on their own is a skill to be learned and perfected. When you are curating and finding that balance from one artist's work to the next, what are some of the features you look for in the artists? Is it a similar style work in itself? The message behind an artist's works? Or the background of the artists themselves maybe? I'm intrigued to know what attributes in an artist or their work help you tie in that dialogue from one artist to the next?

It ultimately starts with the show's overarching message, which often evolves as I am looking at the work. If it is a group show, I look deeply at the elements in the artist's statement or practice, along with stylistic similarities or compliments, to weave each work together.

When looking at a singular artist's work I look at the nuances in each piece that create a sense of flow while viewing the work or convey a hidden narrative.

That makes a lot of sense. Hearing that the artist statement is something that really impacts your curation, is there something that you can recommend for emerging artists to consider when writing their artist's statement that might help them get into similar shows that you have curated?

I think the most impactful artist statements are concise and clearly link how the artists' materials or process support their overarching idea.

I honestly feel that my artist statement is always in need of more editing, tweaks, and improvements. It is so important to read, re-read and share your statement with other people to get a true perspective on if your message is coming through with your words. I also find it valuable to have people with no artistic background offer insight to your statement, as they can more easily point out gaps in your logic or keep you away from getting too "artspeaky".

You have such a good perspective on things that I know a lot of artists will appreciate hearing.

Before I let you go, can you give us a quick rundown of your current and upcoming artworks?

Thanks, Justin! I appreciated your questions and taking this time to share my process and insights with you.

I'm currently working on a series of green forest paintings using flash paint on black paper, which are inspired by the lush green that surrounds me in my new space in Tennessee. I am also starting another natural pigment piece, but this time incorporating more color and crystal powders such as clear quartz and red opal...we'll see where it goes :)

That’s the great insight I’m sure many of us can use.

Let me ask you this. If an artist, let’s call him Adam, has a pretty solid artist statement that he has been using. But Adam is an artist that goes through a new You can follow my work's progress on my series of works over a year span or so and his website: www.nicolekutz.com or on IG @nkutz follow-up series may be drastically different in context and style. So in this case would you recommend he create a new artist statement for each time he does a new series? Or should he just create a slightly more all-encompassing version that can be used for multiple events?

I think it depends on the artist. For my own work, I have different statements for each series, but they're all relatively rooted in similar themes and motifs. In this circumstance, I think having a statement in his bio about what his work primarily encompasses would be more valuable than him sticking to a single artist statement for all.

Seamus Smith seamussmithart.com

Victoria Smits | victorialsmits.com

Blaire Trenaman blairetrenamanceramics.com

Jessen Murillo | @Protean1919

Seohyung Lee | kayseohyunglee.com

A conversation with Matt and Justin.

"THE BRAIN BEHIND BACKGROUND NOISE" A self-made man of many hats: beatmaker, remixer, DJ, compilation curator and video artist; one-third of Restiform Bodies, one-half of Bat Rays.

We sit down with Matt and dive into his Background Noise project.

Matt Valerio

bomarrblog.com | ©artwalkmagazine.com | Page 74

Can you start by telling us your name and any other names you might go by? Where you are from and what it was like growing up there?

My name is Matt Valerio. Over the years, people have also referred to me as Bomarr (and sometimes Matt Bomarr). Long story, but it's the "stage name" I've used over the years for my musical projects. Whether it's solo work, or with my old band Restiform Bodies.

I grew up in an extremely small town in New Hampshire called South Sutton. In retrospect, it was a great place to grow up, but I am glad I left and explored to see what else is out there.

It wasn't easy to find like-minded people living there. When we all found each other, we jumped ship and made our way to the Bay Area to do music and art together.

I honestly have tons of random little projects that I'm always doing. They're often very silly. Lighthearted things, a creative outlet, but I like turning my stupid ideas into tangible things.

There's the Background Noise project, which you know about. I've just always been curious as to what gets visual artist's creative juices flowing sonically, and I've found that giving them yet another outlet (a playlist/mixtape) to express themselves has been something a lot of artists have been very willing to participate in.

I can deff understand the need to get away from a small town, I did something similar myself and moved to a more cultured area as soon as I was able to. Did a lot for inspiration in all my creative ambitions that's for sure.

So I'm excited to hear about one of the current projects you have going on, I'm also interested to know what led to where you are now. If I was to give you a timeline and you needed to add 2-3 points of interest on it from the time you moved to the Bay Area until now what would some significant life moments be?

2001-2008 recording music and touring as part of the Anticon Records roster.

Met my future wife, Moved to NYC, made friends with lots of street artists, saw and photographed lots of art, and went to lots of shows.

Got married, became a dad, moved back to California, this time Southern California.

I run a few different niche Instagram accounts.

One of the more popular ones focuses on Art Openings in LA, and it's brilliantly titled @artopenings.la . There's my @businesspuns account, which focuses on punny business names throughout the world. I have my @fivedollarportraits account, which is just a place to document my shitty drawings I do for people for $5.

I've made a handful of anti-Trump and/or political stickers over the past few years, and some "Puns Not Guns" pins.

I made a little coffee table book last year called "Bully" that featured Trump's actual insults toward people, written in my young daughter's handwriting, and accompanied by b&w photos of each person. Did only a small run, but donated all profits to an anti-bullying organization.

In addition to all that, I still occasionally work on music and do art (video art/ collage/ painting/ drawing), when I feel inspired. I'm just too self-conscious these days to ever really get any of it out there or finish any of it. Hoping to change that though.

I can see how art and music has kind of intertwined back and forth over the years for you.

For those that have not heard of "Background Noise," maybe you can expand on it a bit and tell us when and how it all came about, and where the project is currently?

The Background Noise project started after I got immersed in following the NYC street art scene from 2010 to 2014. I had met a lot of talented artists through going to art shows and interacting with them after photographing their work and posting it on social media. I've spent most of my life working in or around music, I've been a recording artist, a touring musician, film scorer, DJ, radio DJ, worked at record stores, record labels, digital and physical music distributors. I've always had to have something going on in my life that is rooted in music.

I'm that guy who used to make custom mixtapes/mix CDs for my friends in middle school and high school, and I always appreciated the art of a good collection of songs. I've also been very in tune with the types of things I put on to listen to when I'm doing certain things.

After following a lot of these artists for a bit, I started to get curious about the type of music that THEY would put on to get inspired. I just had a feeling that since visual art and music have gone hand in hand for ages, that asking artists "What do you listen to in the studio?" would give them yet another way to express themselves.

I reached out to a few of the artists I knew to see if they'd be willing to put together a playlist that would show people what gets their creative juices flowing. Almost everyone I asked jumped at the chance. It ended up snowballing from there.

Once I could get a few reputable names on board, it helped me get some even bigger ones.

I had a little over 80 artists involved over the few years I did it, and then after becoming a dad in 2014 and then relocating across the country back to California, life got busy for a bit and I decided to just put it on the back burner for a bit. Cut to 5 years later, in the beginning, months of a global pandemic... I found myself needing some sort of distraction from the existential dread and crippling anxiety/depression I was having. On a whim one night, I just started emailing some artists whose work I'd been admiring recently and just seeing how many people would be interested. I figured it would also be a way to get a little extra correspondence with people, for my mental health and also for theirs. Everything had just come to a halt, so I knew people were holed up in their homes/studios either creating a massive amount of art or trying to figure out how to get motivated to create art, and catching them during this downtime could be a great outlet. I ended up getting Cleon Peterson on board and decided to just relaunch the whole series with his interview and playlist and just hit the ground running from there.

I'm now at a little over 100 volumes in the series, and still have a decent-sized queue of artists to post, as well as a fairly long wish list, so I hope I'll still be doing it for a bit. My cadence of putting them on my site has slowed down a bit (I used to post one every Monday), but I'm still making it a point to get a new one out every few weeks.

Thanks for the breakdown on your musical background that puts into place how this project came so naturally for you. It’s such a unique idea but one that is so simple at heart. As long as someone just put the idea into action and that seems like what you did! Congrats on reaching the century mark on episodes as well. That’s no small feat. I remember just off-hand looking through some of the artists you teamed up with for this project and found myself just super interested in what they were listening to. Can you tell us a few favorite episodes and what you enjoy about them?

Yeah, I felt like a bit of a failure when I went on hiatus with it at 84 episodes. I was so close to 100, which was a nice number to me, but I'm glad I've now passed that important milestone.

As far as some favorite episodes...that's such a tough question. So many of these artists have fantastic taste in music, which makes me happy.

There are a couple that comes to mind right off the bat... Dee Dee and Andrew Schoultz. Those two seem to be most in line with playlists that I would put it together myself. Dee Dee's is filled with some goth/new wave/indie classics (Gary Numan, Peter Murphy, Sonic Youth, Brian Eno), and Andrew's has the collision of hip hop and post-rock that I love (Slick Rick, KRS One, Eric B and Rakim, Slint, Tortoise, and again... the almighty gap-bridger, Brian Eno).

To be honest though, and I hope this isn't a cop-out, I love them all because they present what I asked for...the music that inspires each artist. It's just an interesting peek into what stimulates some of these artists' creative brains.

No way, not a cop-out. It's a tuff question. It's like asking an artist what their favorite painting is. I'm sure many artists have love affairs with different works of their own for many different reasons, choosing one would be hard.

To better help explain what the format is for background noise for those that are trying to paint a picture in their head can you layout the structure of each episode? Is it a blog interview, a podcast? a youtube channel?

Background Noise is essentially a written blog interview series accompanied by a playlist. Back when I initially started this in 2013, I was putting each “mixtape” up in an Apple Podcast feed. This is when podcasts were still (fairly) new-ish and I was seeing other people put mixes up in podcast feeds. Since then, Apple and other platforms have cracked down (understandably so) on copyrighted material now that the podcast medium has become a bit of a lucrative business for some folks. I ended up having my Apple Podcast feed deactivated by Apple and getting banned by Squarespace for violating their terms, all because their warning/notification emails were going to an email account I wasn’t checking. Major bummer.

These days, I’ve been going through the old volumes and re-building the mixtapes as Spotify playlists, and embedding them in the blog posts.

This seems to be the easiest way around those copyright issues, however, sometimes artists pick obscure songs that are not on Spotify. In that case, I’ll link out to the song(s) on YouTube, if possible.

To answer your question though… the structure of each is I start the blog post with a blurb about the artist and their work, and if possible, what draws me to it. From there, I often include a gallery of my favorite pieces of theirs, followed by a few music-related questions (I ask each artist the same series of questions… What was your first concert? First album you bought? etc). Then I end the post with an embed of the playlist the artist put together.

I’m still trying to figure out a one-sentence way to describe this project though. If you have any ideas, please send them my way.

Where can people find archived episodes of background noise and what your current plans as far as expanding on it in the future?

Well, one thing that is a bummer is that a lot of the mixes that were up in Apple podcasts are now gone for good so I've been rebuilding the back catalog on Spotify.

I'm in the process of cleaning up a lot of the old blog posts that were damaged formatting-wise during a transfer from Squarespace to WordPress but people can always find the entire archive at bomarrblog.com/backgroundnoise.

As far as plans to expand in the future… I'm always looking for suggestions on getting more exposure for this because I feel like fans of each artist would find these interviews fascinating.

If I can find a larger website to cross-promote these interviews on that would be amazing. If not, it will just live on the Internet forever as a snapshot of a fun little project.

I have such a long list of people I would like to participate in this that I have no idea if or when I will ever stop, although I just don't have the time or energy to put up a new interview every week like I used to. I just post them when I can.

Matt, I appreciate your time to share with us a little taste of this project. Before I let you go though I need to ask you a little about your music. I know you’ve done some beats that I’ve heard as well as some hip-hop correct? Give us the scoop on your music and what it was like touring.

Yeah, I've been a musician most of my life.

Most notably, I spent a good chunk of my 20s affiliated with the Anticon label/collective.

It was an experimental hip hop/ electronic/ what-have-you label that embraced the "band" I was part of, called Restiform Bodies. We came from the woods of New Hampshire and were made to feel right at home in Oakland, CA. They put out our records, and put us on tour, and got our music out there to folks. We played shows with everyone from Animal Collective to Arcade Fire.

Without a doubt, the best and most adventurous years of my life.

You'll have to hear for yourself and decide whether or not it's hip hop. We listened to a lot of hip hop, don't get me wrong, but we also listened to just as much Depeche Mode, Gary Numan, Joy Division, and Crass.

You can sample some Restiform Bodies music on Spotify, or download a free remix album featuring remixes of our music by TOBACCO, Genghis Tron, Alias, Odd Nosdam, and others on Bandcamp.

Also, I have a lot of my solo work up on my Bandcamp page (including a brand new 3 song ep I just released), as well as some of it on Spotify and all other streaming platforms.

You sure have your foot in a lot of different doors, I dig it. And I dig the music for sure! I can't wait to look at what you are working on in say 5 years from now! Maybe if it's ok with you we can check back and see what's going on a little down the line. For now, I can't thank you enough for sharing the background of "Background Noise" and your music as well.

It's been super fun getting a little peek inside your busy life.

Thanks again for taking the time to sit down with Artwalk Magazine.

Carmen Bliss Lilly | @blissful_bandito

Vinay Hira | vinayhira.com

Aaron Krone kroneaaron.wixsite.com/aaronkrone

Cari Marvelli | @carimarvelli

Molly Johnson | @molly.kat.art

Liza Macawili | @sketchyoldbroad

Lee Miller leemillerart.com

Sandrine Segula odetoyourbodyproject.com

Borbala Eszteri | @borbalaes

Shawn Charles | @sccaptures.com Silvia Felizia silviafelizia.com

Morgan Dwyer | @dwyer_morgan

Sarah Ahearn sarahkahearn.com

Rayden Lawrence | @rayden_lawrence

Fran McNamara | @franmcnamara

Alari Ayer | alariayer.illustration

Lisa Merida lisameridapaytes.com

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Ziba Safavian | @zibasafavian

A conversation with Lissa and Artwalk Magazine.

"A JOURNEY OF DISCOVERY" "I mostly try to understand and refine my works and my self-expression in them. I focus on getting myself out of my comfort zone and doing things for the first time, developing my art, and seeing where it takes me."

Lissa Arditi lissaarditi.com | ©artwalkmagazine.com | Page 82

Can you tell us your name, where you are from, and what kind of artist would you consider yourself?

Lissa Arditi, Lives and works in Tel Aviv Israel.

I consider myself an evolving artist.

Evolving artist. hmm... That's a beautiful way to describe yourself. No matter what stage anyone is at in their art career if they aren't always evolving then where has the passion gone right?

Can you share with us a little about your childhood and what it was like growing up in Isreal?

I grew up in a small town in southern Israel, full of sun, sea, and freedom. My childhood was amazing in that respect. The only downside is that there is no artistic way to develop it. From a young age, I was quite exceptional because the institutions I studied at did not suit me. I am the daughter of two engineers and rightly so I was expected to continue my regular studies and go on to a degree, but instead, I neglected my studies and you could find me painting things for my enjoyment. Today I am happy about it, but it was not easy to grow up in.

Whether it be by family or society or something else, I think the artists' story is in many ways is a very familiar story. Although each is unique in its own right of course.

So please forgive my ignorance but I am unfamiliar with Israel and the current art scene or how the arts are treated in schools and communities. Can you expand for me on what you said about "the downside is that there is no artistic way to develop it" does this observation have more to do with the country as a whole or is it individualized and maybe from your families thoughts on what you should do with your career?

Okay, this problem is not at all for Israel, but specifically for the city, I grew up in and my individual story with the family. In the center of the country, like Tel Aviv, the art scene is more developed and has a large place as part of the culture in various and interesting forms.

So as soon as I finished my military service (in Israel after school entering the military service for 2-3 years) I moved to Tel Aviv to draw culture and develop my art.

Ok, interesting. So if I ran into you at that point in your life, arriving in Tel Aviv, how would you remember things being? Did you right away know you wanted to continue your art career or did it take some time to evolve before you really pushed yourself to become an artist again?

I have always created art and will always continue to create. When I arrived in Tel Aviv I was given the opportunity to show my art and get exposure. When I got here I started participating in exhibitions and even got a chance to do a solo exhibition. Tel Aviv is full of art of all kinds. You can soak up art and culture walking the streets here they are full of graffiti and diverse artistic statements.

Who are some of your favorite artists at the moment doing good work in Israel?

Zadok Ben David, Aviv Grinberg, Oren fisher, Pilpeled.

I'm glad you found yourself in such a great spot.

After moving to Tel Aviv, and picking back up with your arts, did you find yourself experimenting with different artistic mediums?

I am on a journey of discovery, and I am very much enjoying it. As I discovered painting, over time I found that I am drawn to other things related to creation. The thing I love most to do is create, and I have dreams in all sorts of areas.

Some people will see it as "dispersing" but I see it as part of my journey in the world. I am drawn to fashion, sculpture, painting and always try to challenge myself and touch on areas I have not touched and discover myself in them.

And where do you find yourself currently on this journey? Can you share with us what you are currently working on?

I mostly try to understand and refine my works and my self-expression in them. I focus on getting myself out of my comfort zone and doing things for the first time, developing my art, and seeing where it takes me. I recently finished a large project I was working on for several months that was beyond painting, it is called "Now" 200 * 200 cm and is made of acrylic on wood, plants, and lighting. It deals with time and contains within it sunsets and sunrises, the infinity and elements of life and love while focusing on the present. It is displayed in a boutique hotel in the city of Eilat Israel. In addition, I am working on a new solo exhibition.

Also in the way of art openings, what would be your recommendations for someone visiting Tel Aviv to make sure they get a chance to see?

Any favorite galleries or museums?

The Tel Aviv Museum is a must-see destination for anyone interested in art, in addition, there are guided tours of art in the city that include visits to artists' studios. I Recommend getting to Florentine and Jaffa are authorities in amazing street art.

Lissa, I appreciate your time answering some of my questions, it's been nice to get to know you more and learn a bit about Israel at the same time. If someone wants to see more of your art or follow you online what is the best way to connect with you?

I try to update and make it available on Instagram (@lissaarditi) and of course on my website at www.lissaarditi.com - Lissa

Wow, can’t wait to see the new piece. Congrats on the new solo show as well? Can you tell us a little about it or is it still too far out to give any details?

I'm still too far away to give details, but I can tell I work very hard to express myself and it is made up of strong emotions I went through from my personal experiences that I think a lot of people can find a connection to, or I hope so.

Sounds like you are putting a lot into the show.

I hope it opens very well for you and we'll make sure to keep an eye out for photos from the opening.

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I’m Juli Elin. I got my BFA in sculpture from the University of Florida in 2009, and developed most of my art practice after that through experimentation and being a human wandering around the planet. I’ve been raising my son in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains in California for the last 9 years. Snowbroth is my worldview, my constant project. It strengthens my connection to the world. I hoard sentimental materials and transform them into unrecognizeable new objects. By morphing the things in my environment, it reorganizes into a place I actually want to live.

Juli Elin snow-broth.com

Vira Yakymchuk

@virayakymchuk

RFX1

RFX1 | @rfx.one

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