ARTeries - Blog of the Chicago Artists' Coalition

September Artist to Watch: Alfredo Garcia

2009-09-02T11:35:00.000-07:00

So, what is your connection with the Chicago Art Community?
At the age of 8, my family relocated to Pilsen from Mexico City, following the trajectory of many families running from an oppressive environment to a place seemingly abundant with opportunities. And it was really through Marwen [marwen.org] that my connection with the Chicago art community started and developed. A member of their outreach staff came to explain their free art program at Saucedo, where I was a sixth grader, and since drawing had been as natural as playing ball, I signed up for painting classes. Later, I became a teaching assistant for a few of their teachers. I'm really proud that I recently had an intern from Marwen at the Arts Club of Chicago, where I work as an exhibitions preparator. The experience of introducing a student to the work that goes on behind the scenes of an art show was rewarding, especially since Sarah was a Marwen student. Also, my job at the Arts Club keeps me engaged in the Chicago arts community in a very unique way. It's a position where I act as the caretaker of art that Chicagoans get to enjoy and engage and it allows me to remain a student of art.

I was in New York for college, and my coming back to Chicago was a move to regain some balance. I was living in the Bronx which is the poorest and saddest looking borough in NY and where there's all sorts of contradictions, like people driving Hummers while living in public housing. My apartment was above Yankee stadium and even there it was really hard to pay rent, so I grew frustrated at not having time for art projects. The intensity of the New York art scene is incomparable and there's so much exciting stuff going on but I couldn't make time for it. My need for a better quality of life finally won out and my loved ones here in Chicago made it very easy to jump back.

How do you feel your art career may have differed without the influence and impact of Marwen?
Some experiences have a way of defining one's path in profound ways and Marwen is doing that for many kids in Chicago in positive ways. Their success underlines the shortcomings of the Public school system. In a few words, I know I wouldn't be here if it hadn't been for warm hearted individuals who took arts education seriously and dedicated a heroic effort to pushing us along.

Your passion for teaching about art and culture has allowed you to have some great experiences. Tell us about your travels to Latin America and the La Capacidad program.
La Capacidad [www.lacapacidad.org] is a collective of artists who give free art workshops during summers in El Salvador. The project evolved among my college peers out of an enthusiasm for learning the history of Latin America and a shared discomfort with simply working in the studio. I jumped into the project in 2006 by traveling to the town of El Polvo, where a home base had been set up to teach drawing classes to kids. It was my first time with the full responsibility to engage a class in an art course. I found that beyond the technical work of drawing and using materials, it was the cultural exchange that was most valuable. And while we as teachers hoped to give something of value through our classes, there was a hand of solidarity that our students were stretching out to us by simply showing up to class.

Although you are an artist, you seem to have dedicated more time towards the activism of art and culture. You stated that painting & drawing take energy, but activism is more rewarding? How so?
I want to believe that my paintings carry a striking energy that moves a viewer. And, while I find myself consistently returning to painting as my main gig, being in the studio can be lonely and unproductive. So I find the need to interact directly with people and dedicate time to organizing projects really necessary and exciting. Among my friends, there's a discernible alarm with our political landscape and news outlets, among many problems. So dedicating time with others to nourish a cause is rewarding in a way that my studio work cannot be. Some of my proud volunteer work is with DemocracyNow [www.democracynow.org], Amy and her team are an invaluable asset to those who are sick of the bullshit.

What projects are you working on now?
Along with some friends, Zoe, Zach and Arielle, I am organizing a show of Art Books that will open in December at Marwen. We are still in the process of distiling the direction of the show, but in general it will be a collection of the best Art Books that we can find being made here in Chicago. If you know of dedicated artists working on an art book idea, please let me know, we are open to cool ideas and can match people up on collaborative books.

- By Pepper Coate

Planning a Winter Vacation in Sunny Florida??

2009-09-02T11:25:00.000-07:00

Central Florida’s Stetson University to open Oscar Bluemner art collection to public

As Chicagoans travel to the “Sunshine State” of Florida this winter they should consider checking out Stetson University’s extensive collection of artwork by American Modernist Oscar Bluemner (1867-1938), which will become widely accessible to the public beginning with the Sept. 11 opening of the exhibition, “Oscar Bluemner: The Making of an American Modernist Painter.”

Stetson’s new Homer and Dolly Hand Art Center is located in Deland, Fla. – just a short drive from Orlando! And, it is free and open to the public.

Often overlooked in his lifetime, Bluemner is now widely acknowledged as a key player in the creation of American Modernism, along with better-known colleagues Georgia O’Keeffe and John Marin. Of special significance to those from the “Windy City,” Bluemner emigrated to Chicago in 1892 and spend almost a decade in the city studying architecture and design. His later work was very influenced by the city of Chicago.

Bluemner’s daughter, Vera Blumner Kouba, bequeathed this historically important collection of more than 1,000 Bluemner paintings, drawings and archival materials to Stetson in 1997.

To learn more about visiting the exhibit, go to http://www.stetson.edu/artsci/art/calendar.php.

Coalition Gallery Opening September 3rd!!

2009-08-27T10:10:00.000-07:00

Chicago Artists' News

2009-08-24T08:24:00.000-07:00

Hello All,
Part of the purpose of this blog is to allow us (the CAC staff) to share with you everything CAC related that's going on. So, I'd like to share what's going on the the Chicago Artists' News. After much thought, I decided that CAN needed a bit of a makeover. Not to worry, the content has not changed, only the look. The September newspaper that lands on your doorstep will have an altered appearance.

I'm very excited about these changes, and I think it only makes CAN a better paper. The fonts have been changed to make it an easier read for the eyes and give it a nice, updated look. I hope that all of our readers enjoy these changes as much as I do, but if anyone has any comments or suggestions, I'm happy to hear them!

- Alyson Koblas
Editor, Chicago Artists' News
editor@caconline.org

We've Been Hacked... Again

2009-08-07T10:24:00.000-07:00

The CAC website has been hacked into again. Please disregard any links posted on our site and know that we have not decided to sell advertising on our site for Viagra or Cialis. It is very frustrating for us to have to solve this continuing problem, as I'm sure it is for those of you who have encountered this when visiting caconline.org.

There is a light at the end of the tunnel! We are already in the process of having a new website developed that should put an end to this problem. It will also take care of the other technical glitches that our current website is experiencing.

We appreciate everyone who contacted us to make us aware of the situation, we hope to get our new site up and running as soon as possible so that these problems are a thing of the past.

Thank you for your patience and continued support!!

-Alyson Koblas
Editor, Chicago Artists' News

!! Art Open Announcement !!

2009-08-07T10:10:00.000-07:00

Dear CAC members,

Recently, there have been difficulties with the database that are affecting the entries for the Chicago Art Open, for which we apologize. We are trying to rectify these issues in as timely a fashion as possible, and hope to have a solution within weeks. The deadline for submissions has been changed due to some exciting news regarding the Art Open.

The Board of Directors met to discuss ways to keep the Chicago Art Open from being lost in the overwhelming number of events happening in October for Chicago Artists Month. After a lengthy discussion of pros and cons, we voted to move the Art Open to spring to give participating artists, and the event itself, a voice of its own.

The new venue, which we think is a far more exciting space than our previous venues, will be announced as soon as the details and dates are firm, so watch your e-mail for exciting developments!

For those of you who are becoming frustrated trying to send your entries, and those of you who might not yet have entered, it will also give you more time, and allow time for the database issues to be worked out on our end. We have set a new deadline of November 1. (If you have already sent in your entry, you are all set, unless you want to exchange the piece you entered
for a newer one before 1 November.)

Warmest regards,
Susan Aurinko, Chair of the Board of Directors

Coalition Gallery Opening

2009-08-07T09:11:00.000-07:00

PLEASE COME OUT AND JOIN US FOR THE OPENING RECEPTION OF THE AUGUST GROUP SHOW AT COALITION GALLERY!!!

The opening is tonight (August 7) from 5-8 and showcases works from our talented co-operative gallery members.

Artists to Watch: Madeleine Bailey

2009-08-03T11:56:00.000-07:00

Artist to Watch: Madeleine Bailey

What is your inspiration and motivation for your On Flying project?

The idea for the flying series came from a series from the Zipper projects, which is a basis for creating a certain choreography. It serves as a platform for an audience participation. For instance, there is a piece where there is a zipper on the left at hand level and a zipper on the right at about foot level. If you are so inclined, you can unzip the zippers and place you hand and foot in the zipper and you will find you are stuck facing the wall. It is really interesting to think of what could come out of an open invitation to play. I like setting up an impossible situation of what could happen. For me, art is not, or should not, be limited to a mere mirroring of the world around us. In that art is about experience, and theory is about understanding, art is about not knowing. In the irrealist short-short fiction story "The Falling Girl," by Dino Buzzati, a young woman accidentally, or intentionally, jumps from a skyscraper and falls. During the duration of this fall of about three pages, she peers into windows of people’s businesses and homes, muses over what she has to look forward to over the span of her fall, and encounters other girls raining down around her, faster than her. There is a resigned hopelessness in her and her fellow fallers’ (un)certain deaths in that the end of the flight is addressed only though omission: the sound of her landing is not heard at all. Both in this story and in my work, an insistence on not wanting to know or to dictate what’s coming next is not flippant but an open embrace of confusion.

How do you hope viewers perceive your work?

I want it to open up ways of looking, of expectation, and of hiding. I'm concerned with the collapsing of different modes of perception, be they metaphoric, social, or perceptual. I'm interested in confronting our desire for meaning through metaphor. Air is morally ambiguous and temperamental. I am partiularly interested in air because it represented, or was represented, by the number two, a symbol for discord and separation, good and evil, harmony and generation. Connecting and disconnecting, air created and embodied paradox. It was a divine generative power, a way of looking on the world as somewhat animate in order to make sense of it. Once one manages to be airborne, one gains a view of the world from a new perspective. But this is not an entirely optimistic one. As soon as the Wright brothers took their first successful flight in 1903, modern warfare gained a whole new dimension of bombing and surveillance. But our obsession with flight predates the Wright brothers, whether mechanical or imaginary, perhaps partly because flight is a metaphor for journey. And the container for this journey is air. .

How do you perceive your work?

In my practice, making art is also about an attempt to make sense out of the puzzle of the world around us. I do not want my work to be didactic or ironic. I want my work to be minimal, paired down, while remaining enigmatic, a balance of abstraction and narrative that leaves multiple openings, an opportunity for a pause, and a feeling of confusion and hope that makes you aware that sometimes there is nothing in-between.

You started as a painter. What made you want to become a hands on installation artist?

That's a hard question. What I think it ultimately is, is that I am a project based artist, not so much media base. I originally came to art after studying brain scans and wanted to do a personal mapping project that was in a language that was predominately 2D with some performance, but working with paint and layer and textures. When I went to grad school, I wanted a change and to start a new period. I struggled for a while to find what it was I wanted to do, so I started doing more installation based work. I became more and more interested in textual based interaction and audience engagement.

Where did you get your undergraduate degree and what did you study?

A combination of degrees in Cognitive science, Literary Art and Visual Arts at Brown University. And then I went immediately into grad school, which I wouldn't necessarily recommend for anyone (laughing).

If you weren't educated in art and didn't peruse art as a career. What else would you want to be?

When I started undergrad, and I kept it up for most of undergrad, I was on a pre-med track and doing Cognitive Science. I was really thinking about going into medicine or research and I think in the process of being in school, I organically started ruling it out, the science was being pushed further and further back. Where the art became more and more prominent. I think I could do a lot of things, but never really thought about it. But I guess there is time, as well.

Trivia Night Postponed...

2009-07-28T13:02:00.000-07:00

Due to the amount of scheduling conflicts and out-of-town artists, we will be postponing the Chief O'Neils Trivia Night. We apologize to all those who planned to attend and will let you all know when it will take place shortly!

--The Intern

This just in....

2009-07-14T10:43:00.001-07:00

Looking for a space to make some art? Preferably an airy space, with natural light, and hardwood floors? Maybe a space with a full kitchen, complete with oven and dishwasher? The Chicago Artists' Coalition has just that. The CAC has recently moved their offices (as I'm sure you all know) to Wicker Park. But what you might not know is that along with the new office, we now have several studio areas in a communal space separated by half walls. And now, if you rent a studio space with the CAC, you can receive free one-year membership to the Coalition! Just scroll down for more information on the specific spaces available.

--The Intern

Did you know....

2009-07-14T10:30:00.000-07:00

...that thanks to the sponsorship of the Italian food company Buitoni, the CAC is now offering free one-year membership to any students who have recently graduated from an art school or art program?!

If you, or someone you know, has graduated in the past 12 months or is graduating in the next 6 months, call us to find out how to apply for your free one-year membership to the Chicago Artists' Coalition. Members receive great benefits such as the opportunity to show in our Coalition Gallery, opportunities to show in alternative spaces with CAC Around Town , to rent our members-only studio spaces in Wicker Park, and discounts at art stores and framing services in Chicago!

Spread the word!

--The Intern

Studio Space Still Available!

2009-06-22T14:39:00.000-07:00

Three posts in 24 hours.... I wasn't lying when I told you I was going to update often!!

So...this just in.... we still have studio space available at our new location in Wicker Park! We're located directly next to the Damen Blue Line stop at 1550 North Damen Ave. It is a communal space with studio areas separated by half walls. Great natural light, air conditioning, and a kitchen with a full-size fridge, microwave, and dishwasher! The spaces available are:

157.5 sq ft - $315 monthly

72 sq ft - $144 monthly

360 sq ft- $720 monthly (this space can be split 3+ ways)

For more details, or if you're interested in renting one of these spaces, e-mail our director at laura@caconline.org.

--The Intern

How to join the COALITION GALLERY!

2009-06-22T14:05:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

I thought I'd post some more information on the Coalition Gallery here, just in case you missed it on our website. Here are some of the basics:

The Coalition Gallery, located at 2010 W. Pierce Unit 101 will feature 24 artists over 12 months. Those accepted into the gallery by an application and jury process will become cooperative members for the full year. Members get several benefits, such as exposure on the Coalition Gallery webpage and the opportunity to curate shows, related programs and opening events. The Coalition Gallery is only open to CAC members. If you're not a member but are interested in becoming one, check out our different memberships here: http://www.caconline.org/register.asp?destination=membership .

The Cooperative Members will compose several committees that organize and maintain the show. If you're interested in applying for the Coalition Gallery for the 09'-10' year, you're in luck- the deadline has been extended until July 10th!!! Email your application to coop@caconline.org as soon as possible! Go here for more details: http://www.caconline.org/default.asp?page=Coalition%20Gallery-App

--The Intern

Art Open Info and More

2009-06-21T15:45:00.000-07:00

Hi all, I'm the new intern at CAC. Now that I've gotten my hands on this blog, make sure to check back often! There's a lot of exciting things happening at CAC. Since I last spoke to Laura in the Spring about working with the coalition, there have been many changes! The staff has moved into their new office and opened a beautiful gallery in Wicker Park, as I'm sure you all have heard. The staff is working their hardest to keep all the members informed and manage both the gallery as well as the upcoming Art Open, even though the CAC website is malfunctioning and their phones don't seem to want to work! Everybody's patience has greatly been appreciated as we work out the kinks.

Speaking of the Art Open...

We had a great meeting Thursday night to rally volunteers and talk about ways we can improve this year's Art Open. The turn-out was far better than we could have hoped for and people came with some great ideas! If you're interested in volunteering, feel free to e-mail or call us. If you'd like to apply to the Art Open, there's still time! You can no longer apply online, due to technical difficulties. Because of this, we have extended the deadline to August 1st. To apply, please send us the following:

An artist statement

An Artists' Curriculum Vitae
1 Self-Addressed Stamped Envelope with postage for $4 dollars (for postcards, optional)
A CD with 3 high resolution images
For members: An Entry Fee for $35.00 for "Emerging" artist (has not shown in a professional gallery, exhibited primarily in restaurants, coffeehouses, art fairs/festivals etc.) or $70 dollars for
"Professional" artist (Must have participated in at least one profession exhibition within the last five years.)
For Non-members, $45.00 (Emerging) or $100.00 (Professional)

Your application can be mailed to our new office at:

Chicago Artists' Coalition
1550 North Damen Avenue, Unit 201
Chicago, IL 60622

If you have any questions or concerns, don't hesitate to call us at (773) 772-2385 or email us about the art open at artopen09@caconline.org.

We hope to hear from you, and don't forget to check back here for more updates!

-Tara Plath

Coalition Gallery

2009-06-18T12:26:00.000-07:00

Our gallery is up and running. Well, almost. Coalition Gallery had its official opening with a show that was an eclectic mix of pieces that represent the broad range of work that our members produce. The opening reception was a huge success and the space was packed for about 3 hours. The show will run through June 27th. Starting in July, the gallery will be run as a cooperative gallery featuring the work of some 24 artists throughout the year. We'll be having monthly openings and are in the process of finding sponsors for our openings so that we can provide fabulous refreshments for all who attend. Anyone who missed the grand opening should definitely attend future ones.

cac in the news...

2009-06-18T12:11:00.000-07:00

For those of you who missed it, CAC's Coalition Gallery was mentioned in Paul Klein's June 5, 2009 Art Letter. It's a small, but nice blurb.

I’m pleased that the Chicago Artists Coalition now has an exhibition space. Long a bastion for all Chicago area artists, it has provided lots of services for artists. This is its first effort at a permanent exhibition space. Located in Wicker Park, this opening exhibit features 30 works with 10 each selected by 3 unnamed, unaffiliated jurors. As expected the show is uneven, which in this case means there are some unexpected surprises.

NEW OFFICE SPACE

2009-06-01T12:35:00.000-07:00

Well, the CAC has officially moved to our new office space in Wicker Park. Our Coalition Gallery is opening this Friday (June 5, 5:30-8pm, Come on out and see the show!). Moving has been an interesting experience. Taking 30 years worth of stuff from a small space to an even smaller space was no easy feat. Then we ran into problems with ComEd, and as a result still don't have electricity. Running an office without phones, internet, fax, computers, or lights is tough. Actually, it's a lot like not being able to run an office at all. But, hey, at least we have time to clean out all the boxes of old files.

If anyone wants to volunteer some time and energy, we'd love all the help we can get!

May Artist to Watch: Chantala Kommanivanh

2009-05-06T13:16:00.000-07:00

You have a very interesting past. Explain how your heritage and memories are portrayed in your paintings.
Each memory comes from my parents telling me stories about how they immigrated to America. I started taking all their stories into a visual aspect, that way I can see a part of myself and know where I come from. I take photographs from old family albums and blend them with the stories about the war and village life and I connect those with the same struggles we are living with in Chicago.

Being born in a Thailand refugee camp during a Civil War and immigrating to the States, why do you choose a visual outlet as oppose to writing or music? Or do you combine different outlets?
I actually use it all. I’m a musician, a rapper. As I am painting I am working on a record so I am constantly writing and it all collaborates.

Do you have any traditional influences?
My brother Von's work, he’s all right. I look at some of his work and it carries over to my stuff. I like a lot of the artists from the ‘80s: Julianne Schnabel, Basquiat, and Andy Warhol. I like a lot of American painters. I guess that’s where it’s at.

When using language and numbers in your paintings what do those usually represent?
I use the number 5 a lot. Growing up in my hood the five meant the five-point star, a gang code. And my parents have five boys so I use that as a reference to loyalty. The numbers 4934 are an address (in Thailand and America), or social security numbers, they all represent a sense of identity.

Do you feel encouraged by your past and heritage or obligated to be a voice for the “struggle of relocation”?
I’m more encouraged. Where I come from, there is nothing really there. If I am here, I have to do something and make something out of it. I can’t waste this opportunity in America, I gotta do my thing.

When did you start painting?
I started painting in 2002 after high school. I got really bored so I went to buy some paint and started painting. My brother and I had this café called Art Gallery Café and we needed to fill the walls with art, so I just picked-up on it being involved with that community. Two of my brothers are artists that have art backgrounds; my friends are all into music, hip-hop and graffiti, so I guess I was raised into it. But my parents don’t really understand what this all is, they told me to be a nurse or doctor.

With two of the strongest art schools in the country located in Chicago, why did you choose the program at Northeastern Illinois?
I can walk there, that’s probably why. And plus, I don’t like schools in the downtown area. They are kind of bourgeois to me. I think art schools are important because you can work in groups within the community and critiques. When in class you can observe and value the work of others and it gives you motivation to keep doing it. When in a studio alone the creative “mode” isn’t really working all the time. But that can be just me, I work better with other people in a studio, there has to be noise. Art schools, in general, when looking at the student’s art a lot of it looks the same. Seems like they are in a factory with students printing and making the same thing.

Do you think going to a school that is not focused primarily on art helped you become more unique?
When I first got to Northeastern, I was not an art student. They offered me an art scholarship, so I changed my major. I was supposed to graduate in art education, but I guess I was just in the right place at the right time.

Don’t you think talent has something to do with it?
Probably, but what is talent? Is it a skill or is it a gift or a form of motivation? Talent to me is non-existent. You either do it or you don’t do it. People may have talent and they expect things to happen because they think it’s a gift. But if you don’t just do it, its not going to happen.

To view more of Chantala's work, visit his website: www.chantalism.com.

Interview by Pepper Coate

April Artist to Watch: Amanda Williams

2009-04-10T09:48:00.000-07:00

What made you want to be an artist?
I have been painting as long as I can remember. I grew up on the South Side and would go to the Art Institute almost every weekend. My mom would drop me off and I'd sit on the floor and sketch and observe all the people. I think it was always an understanding that painting is a part of me and something that I would always do. But, I thought I was going to be an architect, so I spent my educational years studying architecture (Cornell University) and spent summer courses and weekend classes painting.

There is a certain amount of manipulation you have control over in painting, while photography lacks total control. How do you pursue each medium so differently?
I see both of them, as well as architecture, as a sort of narrative. In my mind, photography allows more serendipity with the story, so there is more of the accidental or unexpected that comes in. As the photographer, I have to grab the moment and frame it in a way that other people might understand an experienence. With painting, there is obviously more control, but there is this element of pulling in things that I see every day and that resonate with me. I'm not sure what it means until they find their way into my paintings, then these things become elements of the pieces. These things may not have any relationship in real terms but in the imaginative, narrative that I have, they have a connection.

What are you inviting the viewer to see?
I practiced architecture for six years and thought painting was just going to be a hobby. The moment I made the decision to paint full-time and realized painting was just as important as architecture, there was concern and worry that the audience wouldn’t understand my work. Through architectural training, we work a lot with collage and text that allows us to engage the viewer into the concept. So this became a natural progression to use text and texture to pull people in. If you have an appreciation for art, you understand the color and movement in the painting. If you don’t, then you can start to look at the words or texture or scribbles and lines. There is something there that reminds you of something, or at least appeal to everyone. It's something for me to make sure that people, even at a very basic level, can say, "Oh, I love the yellow one” or “That green is beautiful” or “That reminds me of…”

You have abstract paintings and portrait photographs. How come you are so specific with each? Have you ever thought about combining the two or painting portraiture?
When making the shift from architecture into the art world, there was a need for me to make very clear boundaries between everything. The painting just seemed to not want to have representational qualities and there's a feeling with photography that feels more representational. Now I have a comfort level with each and now I feel like an artist.

How do you know when you are finished with a painting?
My dad always asks me that, and “How do you know what you are painting?” It goes back to the narrative form. In my mind there are stories, so I know when the story is finished. There is just a way that I know. It is about a process and knowing when that process is complete.

We all know what is going on in the economy right now. How do you manage to stay successful, positive and motivated while there are so many who are complaining and using finances as an excuse?
It was a huge sacrifice to leave a day job. There was already this moment of knowing I was giving up things and making sacrifices, but it was really clear that it was something I wanted to do and had the ability to do. There were moments before the economy fell apart, frequent moments of “What have I done? Why did I do this to myself!” So I already experienced that, and no matter how stressed out I am, coming and painting on my canvas is the most liberating feeling I have. And from a logistical standpoint – as artists we are creating culture and we are creating art, so you really drill that in your work.

How is the Bay Area different from the Chicago art community?
San Francisco has this weird algorithm that keeps growing and outposts kind of take over, very organic. Chicago offers all these resources and organizations to allow the artist to become the type of artist they want to be but it seems to be taken for granted. There is this huge variety of people with this huge variety of resources and it is lacking a movement or style. In the Bay Area it is disorganized and they don’t do a very good job of getting the word out, so it sparks this kind of ‘do it yourself.’ People get together and just work, go to the city and say “Can we take that abandoned building and paint it, put art in it? It will be great.” And the city is supportive. Here, you get asked who your alderman is, did you get your permit, and did you sign up? So there is the bureaucracy and process. People are much more timid to come out and you need to like what I am doing. But once people know you are serious, they will slowly come out of their shells and are very generous with their information. In San Francisco the community comes out and has an appreciation and we are in love with the same thing and share it with each other. I am very lucky to have my hands in both areas.

March Artist to Watch: Clifton Henri

2009-03-30T11:03:00.001-07:00

How did you first become interested in photography?
I got started when I was 18 years old. I was the first one of my friends to leave Chicago, and the state, and go to college. The entire summer before I left, I documented everything about my home and friends to take and have with me. I collected all those images and it laid out as a kind of documentary, which led me to keep shooting in a documentary/ storytelling manner. I went to Clark College in Dubuque, Iowa, it's a really small school. I took one class on the basics of learning photography and then ran with it.

Did you go to College knowing you wanted to focus on photography?
I knew I wanted to do something art related, but wasn’t sure what course to follow. Originally, I went the Mass Communications route and focused on the production side of art and photography, which included graphic design type classes.

How do you choose your models and backdrops?
Every image is supposed to tell a story. Whether it deals with politics, family, community or even if it represents me and how I'm feeling, it tells a story. The model, what they wear, the location are all elements of completing the story. The only direction I give is the title, and then the viewer takes it from there and develops their own story. I’m here to direct you to the story I am feeling.

Why is your focus primarily on portraiture?
People are interesting to me and I am fascinated with the stories people tell. I try to visually convey those stories into one or two images so that their stories are heard. If I do take a picture of a landscape there will be something odd about it that will make you think.

What is your process? Do you have a title in mind first and search for the perfect background and model or do you find a model and want to tell their story?
It's all over the place. It just depends on which one comes first. I may see a very interesting or photogenic person, or someone with a lot of character, and want to use them to tell their story. Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night with a catchy title and I'll start to work off of that. It all really depends on the inspiration. Sometimes I'll just take a picture and then come up the title after everything is completed, or pull elements from the actual photograph to come up with my title.

Tell us about your influences with the Harlem Renaissance and the Civil Right Movements.
Gordon Parks was a photographer during the Civil Rights Movement and took a lot of images of the African American community. It was his images and his ability to tell a story that really touched me and defiantly inspired me to build storytelling photography. As far as the Harlem Renaissance goes, there is a gentleman by the name of Van Der Zee who took pictures of prominent African Americans in his community. He had his own style, you always know his photographs. The way he created his own style and the way he was sought after as a photographer at that time touched me. He inspired me to tell a story, an uplifting story of the prominent African American community. Even if it's a controversial story it makes you see it so you can become aware of the situation and take action. Most of my works are hopeful, which is what their work was. Even if I capture tragedy or sorrow, it is still a motivator to inspire future action and show how to be a better person and make a difference.

Explain your technical process with the camera. Have you always favored digital color?
I started out with 35mm camera. When I went to graduate school in Savannah, Georgia (Savannah College of Art and Design), I learned medium format and large format cameras. When learning the medium format I became attracted to the square layout and now that's all I shoot. Even if I shoot with a large frame or 35mm, I still crop to a square format. This helps me focus and adds an element to contribute to my own style. Now I am playing around with digital metallic prints, it helps the colors to really “pop.”

Did you find it easy to jump into the Chicago art community after spending four years in Iowa and four years in Savannah?
It was very tricky. When I came back to Chicago, a friend of mine introduced me to a couple of his artist friends and we all connected, but that didn't really last long because I started working in advertising. My whole scenery changed from artsy decor to corporate advertising. When I came back around to get back into the artsy things I wanted to do, it was tough. I had to think about how to make money and where could I rent a studio. I had to sell a lot to live; this is not a 9 to 5 gig by any stretch. But, now I'm doing pretty well. I have been doing a lot of art festivals and gallery events. I really dove head first into the scene this past year (2008). I'm still learning how to make everything work, but I had a great year. I won the Katrina Hadley Award for best in photography at the 57th street art festival in Hyde Park, the Best in Show award at the Bucktown Art Festival, and the Curators Choice Artist at the Around the Coyote Art Fair.

For more images and information about Clifton and his current project, The Pilot Light Project (a series of images designed to acknowledge those special moments that catapult us towards our dreams) visit his website at www.cliftonhenri.com.

-Pepper Coate

February Artist to Watch: Vanessa Ruiz

2009-02-18T13:31:00.000-08:00

What was it about photography that drew you to it when you were a child?
Well, when I was little I was always interested in film and going to movies. You go through all those emotions in just two hours. Eventually, in High School, I switched to photography, which I feel is very visually related. It has the same effect of a story and the emotional impact.

How do you choose your subject matter?
A lot of it just happens. My work has always been about being drawn to social issues. I did a lot of travel in undergrad through study abroad programs, which took me to many different kinds of places. That's when I started thinking about orphanages. I came across an advertisement for 'Eye to Eye,' a volunteer travel program and I decided I was going to do it. A week later I signed up, bought my ticket and went. A lot of things seem to fall into my lap like that. I also was very lucky to receive a scholarship in undergrad from the 'Clear Cancer Foundation,' and through that I was able to hook up with a family in a Non-Profit from South Africa, where I have now been three times. The program is the Keiskamma Trust, and they have an art branch and they do these huge, huge works of art with embroidery and felt. There's also a health section that deals with AIDS and HIV in South Africa. So, a lot of my subjects come from when I see something that resonates with me and I go for it.

Explain the technical part of your shooting process.
It depends on what I am shooting. When I am traveling, working with social issues abroad – mostly children's issues – I carry my camera. It's a Hassle Glad 501 CM, totally manual, it does not have a battery, no light meter, no film and I just go around and shoot. In the past, I have been working in "hunter mode." I was told by a professor once, "There are hunters and there are farmers." Hunters go out and find things to photograph and farmers create the image. Both can end with the same result, it's just a different process. I have usually been more of a hunter, but the work I have going on now started as a hunting project and has turned into more farming. It's a really new way for me to work. I'm focusing on the queer community. I figured I should do some social issues that I'm involved with in my own community.
Why did you choose the program at the University of Chicago?
I went to the Rhode Island School of Design for undergrad and it was a really great program with a solid technical background. I got a lot of really tough critiques with a lot of conceptual feedback, but because it was such a big school, all the departments were split up. One of the things that drove me to this program at the University of Chicago is that is has a very small art program and it's interdisciplinary, so there are painters, sculpturers, video and performance artists. Everything is all mixed together. The diversity really drew me here because I wanted to get feedback from all types of artists who look at different things and do things differently than photographers. Also, the faculty here is amazing, everyone here is really amazing.

What is the new series of photographs that you are working on?
It's really in process right now and it keeps changing. I have been working with Queer issues and within that giant issue, I keep finding ways to talk about adoption, marriage, and acceptance. I began focusing on hands and realized that hands act as the sexual organ through lesbian women in a different way than heterosexual people. This process then made me think about the conservative, religious environment of the community I'm from that was not very supportive. That got me into all of these religious ideas about growing up Catholic and how that was completely horrible for me. I started thinking about how I grew up with this love for Jesus, and believed all these things, but was also taught that homosexuals would go to hell. That was so at odds for me because I knew my whole life I was a lesbian woman and I didn't choose it. I tried really hard to be straight as far back as I can remember. I don't know how anyone could believe in a God that would just damn me without having a choice. So, as a child of twelve or thirteen, I started to "gay out God." Maybe he was a transsexual, maybe he was a girl born in a male body. It was a concept of understanding my religion and understanding myself. Since then I've done a lot of soul searching. That's how I started my Lesbian Jesus series. I have a model who is Jesus, made all the apostles women, and have started creating images, such as "The Kiss of Judas." I've also started moving this concept into other religions.

-interview by Pepper Coate