Sunday, January 29, 2012

Jen Norton

Name: Jen Norton
Website: http://www.jennortonartstudio.com

What do you do?
I paint. My subject matter is the everyday moments that reflect our commonality. These days, I feature food, family recipes and food-related occasions in order to explore food as a means of fostering communication and to honor family traditions.

Where can we find your work?
a.
Start with my website: http://www.jennortonartstudio.com
b.
I also have an Etsy store, which you can also get to thru the shopping tab on my site:http://www.etsy.com/shop/JenNortonArtStudio?ref=si_shop
c.
FB fan page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Jen-Norton-Art-Studio/43248608987
d. twitter account: @nortonstudio
e.
If you want to see my work life, it’s best to check the “show schedule” tab on my site. I hang work in local venues and do outdoor fairs and I post it all there. Right now I have work in Sherman Cellars tasting room in downtown San Jose, Wisteria Antiques & Gardens in Soquel and at the Presentation Retreat Center gift shop in the mountains above Los Gatos. I’m not in a permanent gallery right now...still looking for the “perfect marriage” on that one!

What inspires you to create and how do you keep motivated when things get tough?
The joy of painting and putting all my thoughts down in tangible form is the beginning of the inspiration. Over time, the message behind what I paint has gotten more focused and personal, so I am now more open to various form factors and design options beyond painting. The possibilities of that add a whole new dimension of creativity. When things get tough creatively, I remind myself (perfectionist that I am) that I do not have to have all the answers up front to start...I only need to start. I switched from watercolor to acrylic years ago just because of this reason. I needed to know I could change my mind mid-stream. I will also go back through journals and sketchbooks to regain my focus. Usually whatever I put down there meant something to me at one time, and I may find meaning again when I’m unfocused.

What do you think is more important content/finished product or technique/process?
The most important thing to remember is that all art, including visual, is a form of communication. Therefore, your message, the content, is top priority. What are you all about? What do you need to say to the world? Your technique should fit the message, not the other way around. For example, the guys who draw “Life is Good” use very simple line and show simple, everyday imagery. Their simple message and simple technique match. You simply get it right away. I paint food, which could be a simple subject. But I want to show deeper meanings behind what we put on our plates and who we share it with. I love to make large, delicious, complex paintings of this simple subject so the viewer will look at it and say, “Wow...I never knew swiss chard was so beautiful!” I want to elevate something you may take for granted to eye-stopping Fine Art (with a capital “F”).

Who are some people who influence and/or inspire you?
Gosh, where do I start...way to many to name. I love the post-impressionist painters because I think that’s where things started to get interesting. Cezanne, Van Gogh, Mary Cassatt for their use of color and texture to depict the everyday, ordinary; Milton avery for his use of simple shape (I wish I could be that simple), American illustrators like Gary Kelley or the Balbusso twins because their work is simply beautiful, writers Barbara Kingsolver and Laura Esquivel because I can feel their stories, singer/songwriter Amy Grant for expressing connection and common emotion so eloquently,Ketra Oberlander and Dorothy Varacel for leading inspiring lives after tragedy struck, my daughter Emma for being more amazingly awesome than I ever was at her age. Pour me a glass of wine, and I’ll come up with more!

If you could be any fictional character who would you be?
Hmmm. Off the top of my head, the time-traveling heroine Claire from Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander series because she’s like a medical McGiver who was drawn through time to find what clearly is the most awesome manly man who ever lived. :-) Although she’s had to survive some experiences I’d rather leave out of my life, given the choice.

When do you get your best ideas?
Waking up in the morning, while driving, falling asleep at night. The trick is to remember them long enough to write them down. I wish I could clear my mind enough during a normal day to get the same level of inspiration, but life is just too darn busy. Maybe when I retire...

What materials/tools do you use most to create your work?
Acrylic paint on canvas or paper, lots of texture-creating stuff like tissue paper, bubble wrap, rollers, old credit cards (they’re my #1 tool, and new ones come to me in the mail for free all the time!)

Are you self taught or formally educated? How do you think that has influenced or affected your work?
I have a Fine Art degree from Santa Clara University, but honestly, my life since has really been what’s crafted my work. I was just too young and socially immature to take real advantage of what was offered to me in college at that age.

If your creative work was edible what would it taste like?
The most fabulous chocolate brownies ever...and you could enjoy the whole pan and not get sick or fat.

When you are not creating what do you like to do?
Read, take my dog to the dog park, travel (when we can afford it), eat whatever fabulous cuisine my husband cooks up with a glass of wine.

How did you learn to access your creative talents and gain the confidence to put it out there for everyone to experience?
I was painfully, debilitatingly shy as a kid. My poor mother...they told her I was “retarded”, whatever that means. Thankfully, she didn’t believe it. I loved to sit and draw all day (safe form of expressions), so I was always encouraged to do it. I really don’t know how to NOT think like an artist. I spent the bulk of my earlier career as a graphic designer, which meant I had to learn to defend my work to clients who were paying lots of money. That experience really taught me a lot about having solid thinking behind your work and helped me develop a tough skin.

What advice would you give others just beginning their creative adventures?
First of all, create, create, create. Even if you have another job, don’t let laziness or fear keep you from making art because it’s the only way to break through your own ego-driven desires and get to the heart of what you’re meant to do. Art is not a get-rich-quick endeavor. You have to be called to it. As you create, in the back of your mind always be thinking, “why am I drawn to do this?” “what am I meant to express?”. We are content providers, and the world never has enough good content. Take that job seriously.



Sunday, January 22, 2012

Tim van den Berg / Session Kat Photography

Name: Tim van den Berg / Session Kat Photography
Website:
www.sessionkat.com, http://www.facebook.com/SessionKatPhotography

What do you do?
I am a semi-professional photographer, concentrating in humanity and juxtapostioning
human-situations, youth sports, and natural subjects.

Where can we find your work?
Various coffee shops, nightclubs, and my website: www.sessionkat.com

What inspires you to create and how do you keep motivated when things get tough?
My creativity energy is typically spontaneous. With camera nearby, moments can be captured. I always look with the eye of a camera and many times log ideas and locales for a return visit. When I struggle for inspiration, I have learned to relax and not worry over output. There is always potential to create. Patience and foresight may be the only vehicle sometimes. When the time is right, it will be apparent to capture and complete.

What do you think is more important content/finished product or technique/process?
Content is 90%. Technique chiefly important, but it is the subject that speaks. Technical proficiency is judged. A human expression, and cloud’s pattern is viewed.

Who are some people who influence and/or inspire you?
Edward Hopper. Jim Brandenburg. Clark Little.

If you could be any fictional character who would you be?
A time-traveler.

When do you get your best ideas?
When I see them.

What materials/tools do you use most to create your work?
Nikon 18-200mm lens. Aperture v3 software.

Are you self taught or formally educated? How do you think that has influenced or affected your work?
I’ve taught myself fundamental rules of photography. Trial and error my forte’, which I find forces me to work harder at capturing an effective subject and content. Composition driving the finished product. Know enough to know what to do, and what to not do.

What would your creative work taste like?
The buffet at Fresh Choice.

When you are not creating what do you like to do?
Play with my kids, volunteer at schools, and express sarcasm towards pop culture and contemporary news media.

How did you learn to access your creative talents and gain the confidence to put it out there for everyone to experience?
I’m still learning. Accessing my talents is up to me. It is a choice. It is work. Sometimes easy and impulsive, other times a drudgery. My Facebook fans have built my confidence tremendously as I’m now inspiring people from around the world, between ages of 10 – 100.

What advice would you give others just beginning their creative adventures?
Just do it, and do it some more. Study art from the past. Never throw ANY works away. Give your art to others. Believe in yourself. Love your mistakes.



Safe and Sound

Sunday, January 15, 2012

Lacey Bryant

Name: Lacey Bryant
Website: www.laceybryant.com

What do you do?
I'm mainly an oil painter. I've experimented in a variety of media such as polymer clay sculpture, knitting, installation, watercolors, block printing, chalk on sidewalks, etc. I always come back to oils, though!

Where can we find your work?
I show at a few galleries on a regular basis. I'm a part of group shows at Cactus Gallery in L.A., Studio Gallery and Modern Eden Gallery in SF, Tasty Gallery in Seattle, Psycho Donuts in Campbell as well as a few shows at other venues here and there. I also have an ongoing display at KALEID Gallery in Downtown San Jose, where I also keep my studio. I will be having a solo show at Modern Eden Gallery opening on January 21st in 2012 as well. I also try to put pictures online from time to time, my website has links to the places I post as well as information about current shows.

What inspires you to create and how do you keep motivated when things get
tough?

I'm inspired by a lot of things. Often something I read will bring pictures to my mind, other times just watching or talking to people or going for a hike in the woods will inspire me. I develop a lot of my ideas in my sketchbook, when I don't know what to do I will just start with a face and the rest will usually come from there. My work is mostly about giving form to intangible things like emotions so I often think about how I might give form to a particular thought or feeling that I'm interested in when I'm doing other tasks. My mind is constantly wandering. I love to look at art books, seeing work that really amazes me makes me itch to try to make something of my own. I don't feel so much like I need to be motivated most of the time, the desire to paint is sort of a compulsion for me. I couldn't stop even if I wanted to. If I'm feeling a bit blocked, sometimes I will play with a different medium for a bit. When I'm feeling stressed or tired I try to keep in touch with the excitement I feel for all of the fun things I get to do!

What do you think is more important content/finished product or technique/process?
I don't think I can separate the two, they are equally important in my eyes. I think you have to love every moment of the process in order for that love to come out in the finished product. There has the be a willingness to do what it takes to make the best picture you can make even if it takes lots of time and patience. Technique is important as it is the tool that you use to convey the meaning of your work. On the other hand, what is form without substance? The content of the work is the ultimate point, isn't it!

Who are some people who influence and/or inspire you?
There are so many! I love the work of Henri Magritte, Jenny Saville, Henri Matisse, Dorthea Tanning, Alice Neel, Gustav Klimpt, Egon Schiele, Zak Smith, Henrich Klay, Henri Toulouse-Lautrec, Henry Darger, Arther Rackham, Jim Henson, Kurt Vonnegut, Vladamir Nabokov, Niel Gaiman, Shel Silverstein, I could go on. I subscribe to Hi-Fructose Magazine, so it seems like every time it comes in the mail I have several new favorite artists of the moment, too. I love Victorian death photography, children's picture books, science fiction books & b-movies and the passionate artists that show at the gallery where I work.

If you could be any fictional character who would you be?
Perhaps Door from Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere or Alice in Wonderland.

When do you get your best ideas?
I think about things I want to paint while I'm stuck in traffic or working at other jobs or while I'm laying in bed trying to sleep, so pretty much all of the time. A lot of my ideas occur while I'm messing about in my sketchbook.

What materials/tools do you use most to create your work?
I use oil paints on my handmade cradled panels a lot. I also love painting on found wood, especially cabinet doors and cigar boxes. I like flat brushes and a glass palette. When I work with clay, I'm especially fond of Puppen Fimo polymer clay. I also like to build installations with cardboard and found objects. I love to play with different mediums so I've got a pretty eclectic collection of art supplies!

Are you self taught or formally educated? How do you think that has influenced or affected your work?
I have an Associates Degree in Fine Art with an emphasis on painting but I didn't get really serious about making art until a year or two after I'd graduated. I think it took a little life experience for me to develop my voice through my art. I spent a long time developing techniques and learning about color and such before I really figured out what I wanted to say with my art. Much of my learning has always been on my own, if I'm
interested in something I read about it and experiment.

What would your creative work taste like?
Bittersweet chocolate or beets. Sometimes tart cherries. (But it would smell like fall leaves burning.)

When you are not creating what do you like to do?
I like hiking, gardening, baking, reading, watching old movies, playing video games, spending time with my friends and family and snuggling with my black cat Hecubus.

How did you learn to access your creative talents and gain the confidence to put it out there for everyone to experience?
My mother was great about giving us access to all kinds of art supplies when I was a kid (not to mention some things which I saw as art supplies that maybe weren't). I loved to decorate our house for Halloween and volunteer to paint sets for the children's theatres I was involved with. My little brother, Jeff was my partner in crime, always egging me on. His delight in my silly creations made it so much fun to try and come up with things to
entertain him. I was very shy about showing my work publicly at first until my friend Lara Sophia and I started showing together and even making art together. We were able to give each other the moral support that it took for us to start putting our work out there. The work we're each making now is very different from each others, but it has all been built upon those early experiences and I don't think our work would have developed quite the same without that collaboration.

What advice would you give others just beginning their creative adventures?

You have to be willing to work very hard to accomplish things you never thought possible! Make a lot of work and make it good work, don't slack off (and you know when you're slacking). Be willing to experiment, you never know when you might find your new favorite medium. Come out of your cave once in awhile and talk to other artists. Your community is one of your greatest assets-it is a source of inspiration and encouragement. Set goals for yourself and stick to them. It really helps to have a project. Don't quit! If you're serious about making art, then stick with it past the ugly duckling phase and give yourself a chance to grow. Don't compare yourself to other artists and think that you will never measure up. You are the only you there is, find your own voice and don't try to fit in or be anyone else.



Night Taste By Lacey Bryant

Sunday, January 1, 2012

Frances Marin

Name: Frances Marin
Website: www.francesmarin.com

What do you do?
I mostly paint and draw, but also sew and print.

Where can we find your work?
You can see my art on my website www.francesmarin.com. I show at libraries, bars, galleries, shops, wherever. I’ll have work in an upcoming group show at Empire Seven Studios (http://empiresevenstudios.blogspot.com/). The opening reception will be Friday, January 13, 2012 at 7pm. Also, I’m in a group show at On the Corner on January 27th.

I recently did an illustration for a magazine called Made in San Jose
http://www.madeinsanjose.com/ and I designed a t-shirt
http://www.kfjc.org/fundraiser/store/girlieshirt_2006.html some years back for the best college radio station, KFJC. It’s available still. I think?! I also just finished a zine with my boyfriend called Ladies and Gentleman Quarterly. You can buy it at The Arsenal for $2. We are hoping to make another issue around February or March of this year. I want to do a silkscreened cover and sew the pages together this time.

What inspires you to create and how do you keep motivated when things get tough?
Both manmade and natural things inspire me: stacks of records and books, animals and their symbolism, buildings, plants, patterns, structures, history. I like aged colors and using scraps of wood to paint on. I am a very nostalgic person and I think that shows in my work with the colors being diffused and unsaturated, like a faded photograph.

It feels easy to stay motivated in my small and crowded studio. There’s so much to look at and think about.

What do you think is more important content/finished product or technique/process?
I love the feeling of being done with a painting, but the process is when I’m zoning out, doing a lot of thinking and figuring out. I love that part.

Who are some people who influence and/or inspire you?
Tania Aebi. I read her book when I was 15. She dropped out of high school like me, but unlike me, sailed a boat by herself around the world with her cat. I hope to get a boat and learn to sail someday.

I love artwork that is loose, carefree or kind of slanted like the illustrations of Miroslav Sasek or drawings of Mingering Mike and Ben Shahn. These artists put a lot of feeling into their work and it shows. A lot of the art I like looks effortless or like it was really fun to make, like Karin Mamma Andersson, Peter Doig or Egon Schiele. I also like art that tells a story like the work of Pieter Bruegel, Raymond Pettibon, or Los Carpinteros.

I also have incredible friends with incredible talent and they’re pretty influential.

If you could be any fictional character who would you be?
Brian Sweeney "Fitzcarraldo" Fitzgerald. I admire his determination. Plus, I can relate to his questionable decision-making. He’s the main character, played by Klaus Kinski, in the Werner Herzog movie.

When do you get your best ideas?
When I’m left alone. Also, on road trips.

What materials/tools do you use most to create your work?
Ink, paint, watercolor, gouache, acrylic, oil, paper, thread, wood. Lately, it’s mostly scraps of redwood or pine and acrylic paint.

Are you self taught or formally educated? How do you think that has influenced or affected your work?
Educated. I have degrees in art and library science. Words and images are fascinating to me, so it was perfect for me to study those two things. My education was kind of spotty, I dropped out in my freshman year of high school and was on and off again for years with college, mostly because I was more into music. It’s funny, the reason why I went back to school for art was because I was sick of my job at a record store and when I started looking for other work, I didn’t want any of the jobs I saw…so, school it was!

Art school was confusing for me. Sometimes it makes you think too much because you start to contextualize everything. I’m now about 5 years away from it and it feels good. Don’t get me wrong, I learned a lot about sculpture, photography, printmaking, drawing and painting, it’s just that it’s more pure when you aren’t getting graded for it. Still, it was good because it made my work more dimensional and layered.

What would your creative work taste like?
Kale, bread and butter, rice and beans, persimmons and coffee.

When you are not creating what do you like to do?
Read, listen to records, camp, walk, bike, and take photos. I love coffee. I love drinking it alone or with people close to me.

How did you learn to access your creative talents and gain the confidence to put it out there for everyone to experience?
I was really creative when I was young and never outgrew it. When I could I would fake being sick to stay home from school to draw in bed all day. I would draw anything and everything:Garfield, horses, fashion, lizards, cars. I also made my own books, embroidered, crocheted, knitted.

When I was in college early on, I had a professor, Erin Goodwin-Guerrero, tell me I should pursue painting. That definitely got me going. I’ve done shows since I was in school, but am working a lot harder at it in the last year.

What advice would you give others just beginning their creative adventures?
Learn about everything you can, not just about “art”. Be disciplined and selfish with your time. Stop making excuses. NO ONE WANTS TO HEAR IT! Don’t be too attached to the work you make. I recently gave away a ton of old paintings and canvases for friends to paint over. That felt great. I know they’ll improve whatever I had on there.

Portrait by Bryan Lopez