LISA DENYER

Cube, 2014, Acrylic on found plywood, 28x31cm

 

 

 

What are you working on in your studio right now?

 

At the moment I'm working on a set of small paintings on found plywood. I stopped working on canvas at the beginning of last year after experimentation with found boards and household paints. I have been working this way ever since - the variation in surface textures and the way paint responds to the grain of the board is really satisfying. I've been thinking a lot about microcosm and macrocosm in recent work, particularly imagery relating to gemstones, geodes and cosmology.

 

 

 

Can you describe your working routine?

 

I don't really have a set routine, but I find that I'm most productive in my painting during the evening. During the day I research, saw and prep plywood but I find that I can think most clearly and better focus my energy on actually painting during the evening and night time.

 

 

 

Work space at Federation House 2014

 

 

 

 

Can you describe your studio space and how, if at all, that affects your work?

 

I've just started a six month residency with another artist Holly Rowan Hesson at Federation House in Manchester. It's an impressive early twentieth century building which up until recently functioned as an office block. We are supported in the residency by Castlefield Gallery who have generously provided us with a large space to work in through their New Art Spaces initiative *

 

The aim of the project is to explore ideas around abstraction, materials, found objects, site specific interventions and curation. We are making new work in response to the space and to each other’s practices. Holly works primarily through photography and projection so it's a really interesting process to see how we influence each other.

 

Working at Federation House has definitely made me more experimental in my approach, partly because the idea of conventional paintings doesn't seem quite right in the space, and because there are so many interesting objects and visuals elements to respond to. For example, I've obtained some pallets and boards from the basement of the building which I'm planning to cut up and use to paint on.



 

 

 

 

in progress

 

 

 



Tell me about your process, where things begin, how they evolve etc.

 

Allowing myself time to notice things in my surroundings is important. I'm interested in the idea of entropy and nature reclaiming the man-made, so details such as broken bricks or peeling paint on buildings really appeal to me. I don't make sketches, although I do sometimes take photos. I think that everything I see informs my practice whether I'm consciously aware of it or not. I try not to plan out work too much or have a set idea of what a finished painting is going to look like.

 

I begin the painting process with primed board, usually working with a particular colour combination for quite some time before adding contrasting elements as something to work against. I work with the board horizontal on a table or on the floor, using a series of washes of paint with drying time in between. I like for there to be some evidence of the colours underneath and I use various techniques to reveal the initial layers of paint. 

 

 



Untitled, 2013, Acrylic on plywood, 25x30cm

 

 

 

What are you having the most trouble resolving?

 

I recently had a solo exhibition, and I found it really helpful to see all of the work I've made in the past year or so in one place. The paintings I showed were very much 'finished' pieces, and so moving on from that I'm trying to think more about the experimental process. In the project I'm currently working on, the idea is to really play with the properties of paint and to get back to an almost childlike way of working in terms of intuitive, playful and spontaneous responses to what the paint is doing - it's proving quite a hard mind-set to get into!

 

 

Do you experiment with different materials a lot or do you prefer to work within certain parameters?

 

I do experiment with materials, but when I find a method I like I tend to stick with it for a quite a while. I've recently been experimenting with gloss spray paint which I'm really enjoying. In the past year I've also painted directly onto found building stone. I liked the interesting shapes brought about by weathering and the idea of these objects gradually returning to nature. I chose to emphasize this transition by using techniques I had been developing in my 2D work. 



Installation of Geode exhibition

at South Square Gallery 2014

What does the future hold for this work? 

I've started to think more about doorways, arches, windows, castles and masonry, which initially stemmed from the use of simplified shapes in my paintings. I'd like to explore this some more. I'm often very inspired by organising and curating exhibitions through the work of the participating artists and the conversations that take place. I have a couple of shows coming up and I'm looking forward to seeing how those experiences affect my work.

 

Is there anything else you would like to add?

I'd just like to say thanks very much to you Valerie for featuring my work on Studio Critical. I think it's great that painting is made accessible through online resources such as this one, and through the exciting artist-led activity that's happening at the moment. 

 

Disco, 2014, Acrylic on plywood, 29x31cm

* Castlefield Gallery’s New Art Spaces is an initiative to create dynamic project spaces for artists, artist collectives and artists development agencies. Making use of temporary vacant retail, office and light industrial units, NAS provides opportunities for emerging creatives to incubate their practices, produce work and showcase new art to local communities. Currently Castlefield Gallery runs New Art Spaces in Leigh, Widnes, and city centre Manchester.

STEVE GIBSON

Marlin Spike, 2013, oil on linen, 24 x 18"

 

 

 

What are you working on in your studio right now?

 

I have been working on oil paintings painted on linen. Also some drawings on mylar that could be considered paintings as well. Just about to order some new stretchers to continue the ideas that I have been developing over the past few years.

 

 

 

Can you describe your working routine?

 

My normal schedule is to work at the computer for an hour or so then head to the studio, which is 15 minutes away. I work on painting or drawing for about 4 to 6 hours. I do this for 6 days a week on average. I consider myself one of the most fortunate people around.

 

 

 

 

 

Untitled (Borrego), 2013, gouache and flashe on mylar

 

 

 

Can you describe your studio space and how, if at all, that affects your work?

 

My current studio is relatively new. I recently moved from a larger residence where I had a small (500 sq. ft.) studio space. I had a press for a few years and got back into printmaking but eventually got rid of the press and continued to paint. My new studio is in a warehouse space that serves as a garage for my landlord. He is gone while I am working so no one is around to interrupt my work schedule. It is a loft situation with no natural light. I have T-8 fluorescent lights on my painting wall and they work fine. I bring finished work to my home where I have a large viewing wall with LED spots and live with it for a month or so to decide if it is finished, needs more attention or needs to be scraped down. The studio space is adequate and relatively inexpensive.

 

 

 

 

 



 

 

 

 

 

Tell me about your process, where things begin, how they evolve etc.

 

I work very intuitively. Much of the work comes from dreams, remembrances, casual encounters and mining my history-which is long. I have worked in this personal abstract/figuration mode since grad school in the 70’s. I think of it as a kind of a poetic narrative that leaves more questions than answers as I stumble along my creative path.

 

I would say that drawing is the foundation of my practice. I am pretty straight forward in my approach to my work, just drawing and painting no other technology. I try and use the simplest tools to solve the most complex problems. I use Lucius Hudson in L.A. to make my strainers and stretch the linen over poly so the starting point is perfect. The surface always remains taught which is necessary since I rework the surface so much.  I use charcoal to rough in the paintings content and use outlines in oil paint to set the composition. From this point on any thing can and does happen. Scraping, sanding and over painting are all part of the process to develop the final imagery. Sometimes I will use paint remover to go back to the raw linen.



 

 

 

What are you having the most trouble resolving?

 

Some times solutions to problems I set up for myself come easy but most of the time not. I think this is good for my development. I have destroyed many “finished” pieces and reworked them until I am ultimately satisfied with the result. The one thing I try to avoid is becoming formulaic in my approach to working in the studio.  My career has probably suffered for this but that’s the way it is.

 

 

 

 

Tasmans folly, 2012, oil on linen, 24 x 18"

 

 

 

 

 

Do you experiment with different materials a lot or do you prefer to work within certain parameters?

 

Yes, sometimes. But mostly I just use traditional materials and formats. As a printmaker I would know and use every technique available to develop an image. The one thing I learned from printmaking is that technique could sometimes carry a weak effort or trite content. That is why I went back to straight ahead painting again. Besides, making prints takes a lot of time and time is something that is valuable to me. I felt I had to stand or fall on my own unadulterated skills as an image maker and painter.

 

 

What does the future hold for this work?

 

Who knows? I have had some success recently when the San Diego Museum of Contemporary Art purchased and exhibited some work. The gallery I had here in San Diego moved to L.A. but we have since parted ways. Having said that, I will just continue to work and see what happens. The internet has been a great out reach tool for me so we will see where it goes from here.

 

 

Is there anything else you would like to add?

 

Thank you Valerie for the opportunity to have this forum to connect with the broader world of artists and folks that might be interested in my work. I feel privileged to be a part of Studio Critical and the fine artists you have here.



 

 

 

 

Casino, 2012, oil on linen, 24 x 18"

 

 

 



 



JOE BALLWEG

Sweating & Drooling,

oil on linen, 64 x 48", 2013

 

 

 

What are you working on in your studio right now?

 

Currently, I’m focusing most of my energy on two large paintings.  I haven’t worked this large in a long time and I’m surprised at how comfortable I feel with them.  Like a lot of my work the imagery is loosely symmetrical and the forms have a lightness to their wiggly contours.  I’m interested in some of the new ideas being developed in physics and quantum mechanics, and I think these oscillating lines have come out of that.

 

 

Can you describe your working routine?

I prefer full days in my studio, but that’s not to say I spend the whole day painting.  My mornings often begin with youtube tutorials dealing with physics and how science can explain the world: here

In the afternoon I organize and arrange the studio; maybe draw in my sketchbook.  Actual painting usually happens in the late afternoon and into the evening.  I think it takes time for me to quiet my head enough to focus on the work.  I also like the transition from day to night; what poets call the blue hour.

 

 

 

Can you describe your studio space and how, if at all, that affects your work?

 

I work in a studio that was a knitting factory before I took it over.  I’m very happy with my studio and feel lucky to have it.  Like any studio, my space provides a relative scale that helps determine the size of my paintings.

 

 

 

 

 

Tell me about your process, where things begin, how they evolve etc.

My paintings begin in my sketchbook as small thumbnail drawings.  I make many and select the ones that suggest a new painting.  I then use stencils to enlarge my thumbnails into larger drawings on the paintings.  As I develop the work, the stencil helps me stay in touch with the drawing that generated the impulse to make the painting in the first place.    

 

What are you having the most trouble resolving?

I’ve been feeling a nagging tug to make the imagery in my work a little more figurative and I’m not completely comfortable with that.  On second thought, that might be the newest issue I’m having trouble with, rather than the most difficult.  The most difficult issue right now is figuring out how wiggly the lines should be.

 

 

 

 

 

Do you experiment with different materials a lot or do you prefer to work within certain parameters?

 

Right now I’m ok just using oil paint.  I experiment with the application of the paint (brushes, rags, flicking the paint off the brush) and using different mediums, solvents and linen.  Some of my favourite artists use all kinds of materials, but right now I still really enjoy the physical flatness of my painting surface.

 

 

What does the future hold for this work?

 

One thing I can say about the future for my work is that I hope to finish the paintings I’m working on and make some more after that.  I feel like the work pulls itself along and all I have to do is go along with it.  That’s what I think is happening but it’s not how it always feels.  I often have ideas for future paintings that seem to primarily create suffering and confusion.  That said, I like the ideas and I’m going to continue bringing them to the work.  In the end, the work moves along in a fashion that I can’t predict, and like many artists, I’ve gotten used to that.

 

 

 

Spooky Action II,

oil on linen, 27 x 20", 2013

 



 

 

 



JAI LLEWELLYN

T'Bar, oil & acrylic on canvas, 35x25cm, 2013

 

 

 

What are you working on in your studio right now?

I’m working on a few things. I’m putting together a series of miniatures for a travelling show titled, ‘Wandering Museum’.  I usually work fairly small but these measure just 7x5cm and are the smallest things I have ever worked on. At first it seemed like an impossible task but actually I soon became accustomed to the scale and I am enjoying the challenge. I am also working on a series of small canvases given to me by a friend who is opening a gallery and wanted me to do something for her. I am working on eight, 25x30cm canvases.  They are still in early stages and I am just laying down colours and making marks.

 

 

Can you describe your working routine?

I don’t have a set routine but most days I try to start by 9am. I start by tidying up a bit from the day before, putting some music on, having a cup of coffee and a cigarette. I may do some preparation or something to loosen me up that doesn’t involve being too careful. My hands don’t work very well early on.  I work through until about 3 or 4 and I find that the best things happen in that last couple of hours. If I work much longer than that I start to get sloppy. Sometimes I allow some time at the end of that day to do something adventurous and experimental which usually leaves me keen to get back into the studio the next day.

 

 

 

Monotypes

 

 

 

Can you describe your studio space and how, if at all, that affects your work?


I have two studio spaces, one is in the loft of my house where I do most of my painting and the other is a print workshop which is a shared space I use once or twice a week. Working in my loft is a solitary practice, I have time to reflect to sit and gaze at the work. A quiet space (when the children are not at home) where I can spend time thinking and working in a slow and more considered manner. In opposition to that, when at the print studio there is a social aspect, a buzz about the place. We share ideas and opinions and literally have to make room for each other. Both practices offer a release from the other.

 

 

 

 

Loft Studio

 

Print Workshop

 

 

 

 

 

Tell me about your process, where things begin, how they evolve etc.


I work in both print and paint. Etching is fast, direct and primitive, you often get just one hit at it. Whereas painting is slower, contemplative and allows for mistakes and change.  The two practices often inform each other and recently there has been a more direct relationship between them. A lot of my newer works have begun with a print, usually a monotype of some kind. When I’m printing I lose myself in the process and I can play, particularly with colour, without thinking about a finished image. Working in this way sets some parameters but also enables me to try out, relatively quickly, variations on a theme. I will take the prints back to the studio at home and work on them further with various media but usually with oil.  I may have ten prints of various sizes and different colours which I will work on at the same time.

 

 

What are you having the most trouble resolving?

 

At the moment I am struggling with canvas. I am coming back to it after working for a long time on paper. There is something about the edge that I can’t quite put my finger on. I have cut the canvas off the stretchers for a few pieces after getting frustrated with the edge, this has worked a few times though it wasn’t my initial intention. It is also the flex of the canvas that I often don’t like.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Top: Untitled oil drawing 2, 38x28cm, 2013

Below: Untitled oil drawing 3, 40x30cm, 2013

 

 

 

 

 

Do you experiment with different materials a lot or do you prefer to work within certain parameters?

I do try to experiment as much as possible though I think I am starting to narrow down my use of materials to tried and tested methods and techniques. It is in print where I am still expanding my knowledge and trying out new processes all the time, there is so much to learn and so many possibilities. Saying that, there are some things that never change - I always work on a relatively small and intimate scale and etching is something that I will always do and has its own particular set of rules.

 

 

 

in progress

 

 

 

 

What does the future hold for this work?


I think the relationship between my painting and printing will become ever closer and maybe eventually merge into one.  It is impossible to foresee how this will materialise but this relationship is, for me, the most exciting aspect of my work. 

 

 

Is there anything else you would like to add?


I would like to say how happy I am to be taking part in a group show which has just opened at the Proto Gallery, New York. This is my first exhibition in the U.S and is alongside some wonderful artists. I would also like to thank you, Valerie, for asking me to do this interview. It is always interesting for me to reflect on what I am doing.

 

 

 

 

Frequency, oil on canvas, 37x28cm, 2013