Sunday, July 29, 2012

Max Dehart


Name: Max Dehart
Website: www.maxdehart.com

What do you do?
I am a painter and freelance graphic designer. 


Where can we find your work?
You can find most of my work at:
www.maxdehart.com
www.facebook.com/artfromdehart
Any upcoming shows and other information can be found on either one.


What inspires you to create and how do you keep motivated when things get tough?
Its really hard to say.. I just do what I do and have fun doing it.. best way to get over tough things in my opinion is to stay productive and busy. My outlet of expression is art so the tough times is where I draw my motivation from.


What do you think is more important content/finished product or technique/process?   
Without technique and process, its impersonal. Without content and a finished product, its meaningless. They are a synergy of some sort and need each other to make them equally as important.


Who are some people who influence and/or inspire you?
Family, friends, and people who work hard for what they want.


If you could be any fictional character who would you be?
No idea..


When do you get your best ideas?
Right before I go to sleep.


What materials/tools do you use most to create your work?
Mostly acrylic and spray paint for canvas work, computer for graphic work, and most importantly my brain.


Are you self taught or formally educated? How do you think that has influenced or affected your work?
I took several art classes through school where I learned to use most basic mediums. After that I applied what I knew to teach myself to use other things like spray paint, gold leaf, wood stain, and other stuff.


What would your creative work taste like?
A strong dark IPA beer on a hot summer day.


When you are not creating what do you like to do?
Find something to do with some friends, think, scour the internet for interesting articles to read, and whatever else I feel like doing.


How did you learn to access your creative talents and gain the confidence to put it out there for everyone to experience?
Growing up Ive always had a lot of free time. Naturally, I would just draw random things in my notebook and use whatever I had lying around and make something out of it. I never really expected anything to come from it, I just enjoyed the act of creating and found a way to cure my boredom. Sharing my art with others was an uncomfortable process for me at first, but over time it became less intimidating. Art is subjective and everyone has their own opinion about things.. The key is to just put it out there and share it when you feel the time is right. Appreciate all interpretations of your work and if you have a chance, discuss with people about it. You can always take what you see from it and move on, but sharing it with people helps gain that outside perspective you might not have seen before.


What advice would you give others just beginning their creative adventures?  
Do what you do and make it fun! if your not enjoying yourself then try something new. Experiment, and stay focused on what you want.




Sunday, July 22, 2012

Dream House


Name: Dream House
Website: http://soundcloud.com/dreamhouseplays
                http://dromhus.bandcamp.com/ 

What do you do?
We’re four friends who have been playing separately and together for a long time and recently decided to collaborate as a band. Robert, Molly, Lisa, and Andrew. Hi.

Where can we find your work?
The internet. http://soundcloud.com/dreamhouseplays -  http://dromhus.bandcamp.com/ 
We also play shows here and there in the Bay Area.

What inspires you to create and how do you keep motivated when things get tough?
We are inspired by a lot of different things. Most of our songs are very personal, inspired by intense emotions or experiences. Our songs can be celebrations or lamentations of life and all of its forms. We are also all inspired by each other.

What do you think is more important content/finished product or technique/process? 
Well, our songs are never really completely finished. We haven’t recorded an album yet, so we don’t really have any finished products that we can look at and say: “awesome that’s done, let’s move on.” I think we all try to keep the songs constantly evolving, and we’re always bringing in new instruments or parts. If we get to the point with a song where we feel like we’ve done everything, we usually stop playing it and focus more on newer material. And maybe we’ll come back to it later and play it in a new context.

Who are some people who influence and/or inspire you?
Right now I (Robert) am most inspired by my friends. There’s so much talent in San Jose. It’s enough for me to be constantly inspired and motivated to do more.

I (Molly) think we all feel similarly. Our best work is done in collaboration, and I feel inspired and lucky to know incredibly talented people who I want to work with and who want to work with me.

If you could be any fictional character who would you be?
Myself. (MIND EXPLODE)

When do you get your best ideas?
In the morning with a cup of coffee. Writing songs is something that sort of needs to happen for us. We need it to process things on a certain level that we can’t get at in any other way really. It’s cathartic. That’s why all of our songs are so deeply personal and can sound sort of cryptic. It’s because they are these weird little conversations we’re having with ourselves, these imageries and explanations that are incredibly meaningful in ways that are difficult to explain.

What materials/tools do you use most to create your work?
We have a couple of acoustic guitars, a ukulele, a drum kit, violin, an electric guitar, a harmonium, and some other stuff. We use our phones a lot to record little bits and pieces of a song that we like and know we will forget in a few days. We do that a lot with vocal harmonies. We also have started recording a little bit in my bedroom using Ableton Live.

Are you self taught or formally educated? How do you think that has influenced or affected your work?
Most of us are self-taught. Lisa is formally trained on the violin, and Molly has been formally trained as a singer. Our songwriting process is all about feeling things out and playing by ear. We rarely even talk about what notes we’re playing.

What would your creative work taste like?
Molly brings those little Trader Joe’s cookies to a lot of our rehearsals. So I guess like that. And oatmeal stout.
We also have a favorite band snack that we’ve come to associate with Dream House: pretzels with chocolate chips and M&M’s baked inside. They’re delicious treats made by one of our dear friends. They’re highly addictive.

When you are not creating what do you like to do?
Robert: I have a few different music projects I’m working on. I also love gardening and just hanging out in general.

Molly: I write and do a lot of theatre projects, along with some other music projects. I don’t think that counts as not creating, but it takes up most of my time!

Andrew: I’m studying Counseling Psychology at Santa Clara University, with a particular interest in mindfulness. Science is a creative pursuit too!

How did you learn to access your creative talents and gain the confidence to put it out there for everyone to experience?
We’ve all been performing our art in one way or another for a long time. Dream house actually started as a totally different project. There used to be way more of us (like 8 people I think) but some moved away and now it’s only the four of us. It can somehow still be just as hard to coordinate rehearsals though. We played some shows as that iteration of the band, and got accustomed to performing with like 6 or 7 other people on stage with us, so it was never that intimidating. Also, I think we’re constantly reminded of the fact that a supportive community of friends and other musicians surrounds us, and that makes us even more excited about sharing our work and hearing their work!

What advice would you give others just beginning their creative adventures?
Make it nasty!



Sunday, July 15, 2012

Kori Thompson

Name: Kori Thompson
Website: www.korithompson.net

What do you do?
Paint on things mostly on wood and canvas.

Where can we find your work?
You can find my work at Psycho Donuts and always at Kaleid Gallery, where I am currently in a group show called "Exquisite Corpse" and just wrapped up my solo show there last month. I also have group shows at The Usuals in San Jose on July 27th, The Uptown in Oakland on August 3rd and Modern Eden Gallery in San Francisco on August 11th. For more details and to see more of my work you can check out  www.korithompson.net

What inspires you to create and how do you keep motivated when things get tough?
I try to do something everyday. If I'm not painting, I'm doing some kind of research, sketch, or outline. I'm always thinking about the next thing or project. I feel like I can punch, or work my way out of any situation with my art. Hopefully that work ethic resonates and comes through in my paintings. 

What do you think is more important content/finished product or technique/process?  
I feel they go hand in hand. The process is all mine. It's why I do what I do. I feel like I'm almost addicted to it. The finished product is exactly that, what everyone see. 

Who are some people who influence and/or inspire you?
I'm inspired by my kids Francesca and Logan. My Grandfather, Grandmother, myMom, my Great Grandparents, and my wife Andrea who is always pushing me to get out in the garage and finish painting while she is wrangling the kids up. 
I'm influenced or really enjoy the work of Hunter S. Thompson, Carmine Infantino, Stan Lee, Steve Ditko, Jim and Jimbo Phillips, Akira Kurosawa, George Lucas, Quentin Tarantino, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Vincent vanGogh, Lucian Freud, Erik Larsen and James Robinson.

If you could be any fictional character who would you be?
I love this question! Such a hard decision. I could go with Indiana Jones, Snake Plissken, Green Lantern, Han Solo or Spider-Man. Maybe a mix of them all! Ha! I think I'd lean more towards Spidey because of my love comicbooks and the character.

When do you get your best ideas?
When I least suspect it. So I always sketch or write them down. 

What materials/tools do you use most to create your work?
Ticonderoga #2's, canvas or wood, acrylic paint and brushes. 

Are you self taught or formally educated? How do you think that has influenced or affected your work?
I took some classes from Henry Asencio and Sagi Erez which really helped me out and showed me a lot and set me in the right direction.

What would your creative work taste like?
Sushi washed down with the best beer you've ever had.

When you are not creating what do you like to do?
Spend time with my family, read comicbooks, watch movies and listen to music. Maybe a round of golf if I can fit it in!? 

How did you learn to access your creative talents and gain the confidence to put it out there for everyone to experience?
Always doing something drawing, painting. Staying productive and positive.

What advice would you give others just beginning their creative adventures? 
Don't stop! Don't make excuses that you're too tired or don't have the time. If you want to truly do something, you will no matter what. 


Sunday, July 8, 2012

Deborah Mills Thackrey


Name: Deborah Mills Thackrey
Website: www.dmt-art.com

What do you do?
primarily fine art photography, much of it abstraction

Where can we find your work?
So far this year I've been in the 2012 Statewide Juried Photography Show at the Triton Museum, the Silicon Valley Artists' Collaborative group show at Art Object Gallery, Axis Art Gallery, and in the Center for Photographic Art in Carmel's 2012 Juried show. I am also happy to say I have my first work in a show in NYC at Denise Bibro Fine Arts in the Chelsea district at the end of May. Additional shows will be posted on my website.

What inspires you to create and how do you keep motivated when things get tough?
I tend to document my life with my photography so I never run out of material. I find interesting and beautiful images no matter where I am, even in unexpected places such as an ugly, rusting dumpster or a graffiti-covered wall. My biggest challenge is making time to sit at the computer and work on the massive amount of images I collect. Capturing an image that delights and intrigues me keeps me going.  

What do you think is more important content/finished product or technique/process?
I can't answer this question. I have seen a lot of photography with fantastic technique that I consider content-free. For me I suppose some emotion in the work trumps the number of pixels in the details and the f-stop, but a marriage of the two is heaven.

Who are some people who influence and/or inspire you?
In my past life as a graphic designer and art director at places like Apple, I had the opportunity to work with some fantastic pro photographers, one of the most influential was a former photojournalist Doug Menuez who taught me to look for an honest, real moment of expression rather than attempting to manufacturing one. We did several really great photoshoots of children in the act of discovery and learning that still resonate with me. Other favorites include Cartier-Bresson, Walker Evans, Edward and Brett Weston, Diane Arbus, and Sally Mann. Plus painters such as Klee, Miro, Kandinsky, Klimpt, and Pollack.

If you could be any fictional character who would you be?
Rose, the character played by Kate Winslet in "Titanic." She was based on the fantastic ceramic artist Beatrice Wood, who lived an adventurous, creative life and was friends with artists from Alfred Stieglitz, to Duchamp and Man Ray. She also became a writer as well and lived to 105 with the last 25 years of her life being the most productive.  

When do you get your best ideas?
I get my best images at unexpected times. The closest way I can describe it is that I allow myself to drift and explore. A wrong turn can often lead to the most amazing subjects and moments to shoot. I get a prickly sensation on the back of my neck with I find something magical and the light is just right. If I try too hard or attempt to repeat myself it usually fails. I need to allow my muse to guide me.

What materials/tools do you use most to create your work?
My main camera is a digital Nikon with a high quality zoom lens. I also have little pocket Leica that I can take video with. I occasionally play with a Lomo or Holga and black and white film (their plastic lens and leaky cheap bodies allow for wonderful accidents). I am a pretty good printer and do most of my own printing on an Epson with archival inks.

Are you self-taught or formally educated, how do you think that has influenced or affected your work?
I started doing photography for the yearbook in junior high in order to get my hands on a real camera. In high school journalism class, as the only photographer, I was left to my own devices in the darkroom, so I consider myself mostly self taught. I attended 10 years of college part time in 4 different cities. At one point I was so frustrated by getting a "D" in tennis that I quit working for a degree and decided I would just take classes that interested me like art. I finally dropped out and apprenticed myself to a graphic designer. The affect has been that I don't quite fit into a specific genre and I am not very technically oriented. I am fine with walking my own path.  

What would your creative work taste like?
Recently a really great LA/NY gallery owner who represents lots of big time artists called my work "delicious". I was elated. I guess it might be like a chocolate cake with a layer of beautiful glazed fruit on top.

When you are not creating what do you like to do?
I love movies and and interacting with other artists. I have become an activist for the local arts scene and experimented with opening my own gallery, plus doing some freelance curating inSan Francisco. I am dabbling with a bit of writing as well. I am also addicted to flea markets and collecting. 

 How did you learn to access your creative talents and gain the confidence to put it out there for everyone to experience?
It was a long slow process. I was very shy and insecure. As I have gotten older I decided to stop wasting time and just go for it. I push myself to take risks now and have gained much more confidence, even speaking in public occasionally. I have also dedicated myself to being very prolific, a bit easier as a photographer than a painter.

What advice would you give others just beginning their creative adventures?
Practice, practice, practice; work, work, work. Visit lots of galleries and museums and see the work close up. Get to know other artists and ask questions. Don't be afraid to approach artists you admire and ask them for advice or offer to do some menial work for them. You'd be surprised how many of them could use an apprentice or some free labor.

Don't get lost in the art school mentality, find yourself and listen to your inner voice. Don't waste time thinking about making money from your art. If you are one of the lucky ones, fine but do it because you have to do it. Don't be afraid to fail or waste time and materials, some of the most important things come from mistakes. Being an artist is the only thing I ever wanted to do and I wasted decades listening to those who said it wasn't practical, and being in fear of criticism. Be disciplined and apply yourself even when it gets rough.

There is room for all of us as artists somewhere in the ecology of the Arts. And don't let your ego get the better of you (being either over confident or insecure). It is the art that is important not the artist.
Deborah Mills Thackrey - Photo taken by Tricia Leeper



Sunday, July 1, 2012

Jonathan Demers


Name: Jonathan Demers
Website: See Below
 
What do you do?
Abstract, Fine art, Drawn animation, Photography
 
Where can we find your work?
http://www.facebook.com/jasvgbdfkl
http://jscribbled.deviantart.com/gallery/
http://www.youtube.com/user/jonathandaviddemers
 
What inspires you to create and how do you keep motivated when things get tough?
My Grandfather inspires me as an abstract artist, I’m sort of pushing what he already does. Growing up watching the Simpsons, and then Futurama, and Family Guy and King of the Hill is what inspires me to be a drawn animator.  And Women inspire my fine art, supernaturally!

What do you think is more important content/finished product or technique/process?
Well of course my finished work is important to me, but what is more important to me is the hours I’ve spent practicing. I would rather give up all the work I’ve done and still have the practice hours then keep my work and not have had the practice.

Who are some people who influence and/or inspire you?
Pollock, Al Held, Salvador Dali, Matt Groening, Amanda Mikaelsson just not Warhol!!!
 
If you could be any fictional character who would you be?
Darth Maul

When do you get your best ideas?
They all come differently, and can’t be forced. When I’m doing hard manual labor for little pay!

What materials/tools do you use most to create your work?
Ball point pen, Wacom Cintiq, Oil
 
Are you self taught or formally educated? How do you think that has influenced or affected your work?
Self taught and now educated, I was not as smart as a person until I let myself be a total idiot with myself in isolation in white paper notebooks. Lots of isolation in white paper notebooks.
 
What would your creative work taste like?
Wine
 
When you are not creating what do you like to do?
Go out to bars, down town San Jose. Johnny V’s

How did you learn to access your creative talents and gain the confidence to put it out there for everyone to experience?
Meditation
 
What advice would you give others just beginning their creative adventures?
Buy a canvas, some paint, some brushes and work on one painting for at least six months.