Showing posts with label painting. Show all posts
Showing posts with label painting. Show all posts

Friday, May 05, 2017

Amanda Frazier: An Artomatic Interview

by Mike Rhode

A post shared by Amanda (@artbyoldskoolgeek) on
Amanda Frazier will probably be our last Artomatic interview since the  show closes tomorrow. She's a librarian who's lately been painting pieces taken from a single panel of an older comic book.

What type of comic work or cartooning do you do?

I wouldn’t have thought of myself as someone doing comic work until receiving this, but perhaps because I think that has a lot to do with feeling like comic artists are more likely the actual creators of content, whereas I’m sorta more reproducing, sometimes throwing in my own spin and drawing attention to it?


How do you do it? Traditional pen and ink, computer or a combination?

Acrylic on canvas, but I don’t do the Ben-Day dots like Lichtenstein so everything is solid.

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When (within a decade is fine) and where were you born?

I’m going to play coy on the when but the where is Fairfax, VA.

Why are you in Washington now?  What neighborhood or area do you live in?

Not in Washington, though I often wish I was, but I live in Northern Virginia.


What is your training and/or education in cartooning?

None. I’ve been making art of some sort since I could grasp a crayon.  In my 8th grade art class I was making quirky things to entertain my friends, or myself but I could tell that it wasn’t considered “real” or “serious” art so I abandoned it.


Who are your influences?

Obviously pop artists like Lichtenstein and Warhol influence me.  Growing up I was drawn to their bold, flat colors and I enjoyed the attention they brought to everyday things.  For my teen years-early 20’s, I worked in collage and spent hours cutting up old magazines, advertisements, comics, and photographs; delighting in placing them in out of context and sometimes inappropriate situations.  I felt like I was creating art, but also playing.  Eventually I switched over to mainly painting, but never lost my appreciation for comic book artwork.



If you could, what in your career would you do-over or change?

Well, I don’t have a career related to art so perhaps I would go back and tell my teen self not to give up, that there is plenty of room in the art world for the stuff I create.  Maybe find a way to blend my current job (librarian) with something creative.


What work are you best-known for?

I don’t know about “known,” but most pieces are related to pop culture.


What work are you most proud of?

Anything that I can create that also speaks to someone else.


What would you like to do or work on in the future?

I’ve always wanted to incorporate music.  Or a background loop of farting noises.


What do you do when you're in a rut or have writer's block?

Originally I got back into art to distract me from the writer’s block I was suffering from with my creative writing.

What do you think will be the future of your field?

I’m curious to see how the increased use of 3D printing will shape and be shaped by the art world.


What local cons do you attend? The Small Press Expo, Awesome Con, Intervention, or others? Any comments about attending them?

I’ve attended SPX a few times and last year Awesome Con.  They’re fun and most excellent for people watching.


What's your favorite thing about DC?

There is an endless supply of new and exciting things to do or see.

Least favorite?

Traffic.



What monument or museum do you like to take visitors to?

I love the Renwick, Portrait Gallery, and Hirshhorn.

How about a favorite local restaurant?

Not in DC but out in the hinterland I’ve been having a long-term love affair with Kumo Sushi in Herndon.

Do you have a website or blog?

I used to have one, but because I’d go through periods of inactivity, updating it seemed like a chore.  Then I went to Meet the Artist night last weekend and felt neglectful for not having any web presence so I went home and put stuff up on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/artbyoldskoolgeek/
My etsy shop is http://www.etsy.com/shop/oldskoolgeek/

Friday, April 07, 2017

Ralph Baden - An Artomatic Interview

by Mike Rhode

Ralph Baden's work at Artomatic was quite a surprise as it's often NSFW, or families. The centerpiece of his exhibit is a large painting of a man with an erect penis and a caption that wouldn't make it through many Internet filters. We reached out to him to ask our usual questions, some of which are less relevant to a painter than a cartoonist, and he gamely answered them.

What type of comic work or cartooning do you do?

Large scale political satire and comical oil paintings.


How do you do it? Traditional pen and ink, computer or a combination?

Oil painting on canvas.

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When (within a decade is fine) and where were you born?

1960's Maryland.


What neighborhood or area do you live in?

Baltimore.

What is your training and/or education in cartooning?

The Corcoran School of Art


Who are your influences?

I'm doing pretty original stuff. Nobody takes oil painting and makes the most vulgar painting -- except maybe the old Dutch masters -- paintings where people got drunk in the streets -- they were funny.

If you could, what in your career would you do-over or change?

To do it over I'd have to have a career- but I would have gone twice as loud, twice as big and twice as early.


What work are you best-known for?

Nobody knows of me -- I'm amazed you contacted me.


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What work are you most proud of?

 In 2016, being expelled from 2 un-juried shows with 2 completely different bodies of work -- also not being allowed to sell at a farmers market under the freeway by the prison in Baltimore because my work wasn't family friendly... and also not being accepted into The Bromo Seltzer building because my work was considered"too unique".


What would you like to do or work on in the future?

Bigger larger scales. I would like to have a room full of people laughing at my work at The Met or The MOMA


What do you do when you're in a rut or have writer's block?

Stare at a light bulb.


What do you think will be the future of your field?

Trash can, dumpster, landfill.

What monument or museum do like to take visitors to?

The Phillips -- I love to go sit in the Mark Rothko meditation room and wonder why.

How about a favorite local restaurant?

Mangialardo's

Do you have a website or blog?

www.ralphbaden.com

Friday, March 31, 2017

Andrew Williams - An Artomatic Interview

by Mike Rhode

Andrew Williams cartoon-based painting series at Artomatic in Crystal City is the religious-themed The Good News, but he also did a school newspaper comic strip called Mike and Moop. He's agreed to answer our usual questions.

 What type of comic work or cartooning do you do?  

Well I mainly do newspaper style comic strips on paint canvases.

 How do you do it? 

I use a combination of pencil and acrylic paint. I really want to get back into digital artwork, so I just bought an IPad Pro. We'll see how that works out.

When and where were you born? 

I was born on July 16, 1987 in Washington D.C.

Why are you in Washington now? What neighborhood or area do you live in?  

I actually live in Prince Georges County, Maryland now, but most of the time I'm in DC with my artwork, the city brings out my creativity.

 What is your training and/ or education in cartooning? 

Well, I'm a self-taught artist but I have done one year at the Art Institute of Washington for graphic design. As far as cartooning, I read a lot of comics and watch a lot of cartoons.

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Who are your influences?  

Jesus Christ, Aaron McGruder, Hanna-Barbera and Banksy.

If you could, what in your career would you do-over or change? 

I would have copyrighted all of my images and stayed motivated fresh out of high school.

What work are you best-known for? 

I have to say Mike and Moop, only because I've been working on it for over 11 years. Mike and Moop originally appeared in Prince George's County Community College newspaper The Owl. However the Good News seems to be taking the spotlight nowadays.

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What work are you most proud of?  

The Good News, because I really feel like the series is bigger than myself.

What would you like to do or work on in the future? 

As of right now I'm working on combining all of my strips into one book. AND Comics will be an anthology of all the comic strips I'm working on which will consist of Mike and Moop, GOODNEWS and Automatic Water pistols.

Does Good News tell a story?

Good News does tell a story. Unlike Mike and Moop and Automatic Water Pistols the story for GOODNEWS is already written (The Bible). So the purpose for the paintings and comic strip is less dialogue and more visual story telling. The maximum amount of text I want in the GOODNEWS is 10 words. The GOODNEWS ties into Mike and Moop and Automatic Waterpistols, because of the way the characters conduct themselves and the end moral of the stories, even though the characters never come out and say "Hey look, I'm a Christian".

What do you do when you're in a rut or have writer's block? 

I like to watch artist and hip-hop documentaries. I feel like whenever I'm in a rut or have writers block, its best to look at other established artist for motivation. Exit through the Looking Glass has been on replay ever since I've started doing art shows again.

What do you think will be the future of your field? 

Everything seems to be going digital now, so old-school inking and pencil cartooning will either be obsolete or seen as retro treasures. As far as storytelling goes, I'm interested to see what future kids will have to talk about.
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What local Cons do you attend? 

This year is the first year I applied to Awesome Con in Washington DC. I do plan on attending a few throughout the year.

What's your favorite thing about DC?

The People, Art and Chicken Wings with Mambo sauce.

Least favorite? 

Violence.

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What monument or museum do you like to take visitors to? 

MLK memorial.

How about your favorite local  restaurant?

Ben's Chili bowl.

Do you have a website or blog?   

Instagram: @fir3inmybones

http://www.rawartists.org/dr3wwilliams

Friday, April 17, 2015

Make some Splotch Monsters at The Griffin Art Center


Hey all, tomorrow (4/18) I'll be doing a Splotch Monster-making workshop from 3-5pm at The Griffin Art Center​ in downtown, Frederick, MD. It's free and open to the public, and it'll be a pretty laid-back, casual event. I'll also be staying by the gallery a couple extra hours, for anyone who missed the big show, which will be up for one more week, as of tomorrow. Saturday's going to be a beautiful day, and there's lots to see and do in Frederick, in addition to the show. Hope to see folks there!-Steve

Friday, April 27, 2012

Meet a Local Cartoonist: Monica H. or "MonMon"

101_1978 Monica HI met Monica Horn, who draws as Monica H. or "MonMon" at last fall's Intervention con. Here’s her interview:


Mike Rhode: What type of comic work or cartooning do you do?

Monica H: I run a webcomic called Ocean Tides which is on Smackjeeves.com. It is a ghostly romance drama about a girl name Lily who Lily meets a spirit named Alex. She has to help Alex realize what’s happening around him and wonder why he hasn't crossed over yet. I update every Friday unless stated otherwise.

How do you do it? Traditional pen and ink, computer or a combination?
It is a combination of both. Along with my laptop, the materials and programs I use are computer paper, cardstock, Black Faber-Castell ink pens (SX, S, M, B, and F), Prismacolor markers, lightbox, HP scanner, my tablet and Photoshop. I start out sketching a thumbnail based off of the script I wrote for the chapter. Then a larger sketch, I ink using my lightbox. Scan, clean it up and tone in Photoshop.

When (within a decade is fine) and where were you born?

I was born 1986 in Monterey, California.

Why are you in Washington now? What neighborhood or area do you live in?

I moved out here because of my job as a graphic/web designer. I currently reside in Northern Virginia.

What is your training and/or education in cartooning?

I majored in graphic design and minored in illustration. I have been drawing every since I was little, and inspired by many different Artists. I am a graphic/web designer by day and a webcomic artist by night.

Who are your influences?

Walking in the artist alleys at conventions sure does inspire me at times but I have to say many other webcomic artists, Illustrators, my friends, my family and of course my fans of my comic.

If you could, what in your career would you do-over or change?

I wouldn't change anything about my career, though I am always willing to learn new things and learn ways to improve my work.

What work are you best-known for?

I guess my webcomic Ocean Tides, or my watercolor paintings. If you asked me this 5 years ago I would say my fan art for different anime shows, but I felt that I need to improve my own work and find my own style.

What work are you most proud of?

Since I only have one webcomic at the moment and I can say that I am proud of Ocean Tides, my style has changed in the past three years. I can say I am proud of trying to find my own style as well with in those three years.

What would you like to do or work on in the future?

I hope to complete Ocean Tides and start working on a new webcomic that I am currently scripting.

What do you do when you're in a rut or have writer's block?

I sketch or doodle anything, whether it be characters from my webcomic or just characters from a show and book. I just keep at it until something sparks my interest. I also paint -- painting is also a great stress relief.

What do you think will be the future of your field?

I plan on trying to get my work out there for others to enjoy and by the end of day to know that I am placing something out there for others to enjoy, I am happy.

What local cons do you attend? The Small Press Expo, Intervention, or others? Any comments about attending them?

Intervention Con 2011 was my first con that I attended as a artist and I have to say I have had a lot of fun, I learned a lot from the other artists in the artist alley. As for other cons I do go to Otakon as a attendee, I always enjoy going.

What's your favorite thing about DC?

I enjoy the Cherry Blossom Festival and the 4th of July Fireworks

Least favorite?

The traffic, I can live without it. Haha.

What monument or museum do you like to take visitors to?

I enjoy the National Gallery of Art, but I haven't been to any monuments recently.

How about a favorite local restaurant?

I enjoy the Hamburger Hamlet in Crystal City, they make a great rueben sandwich and the sweet potato fires.

Do you have a website or blog?

My blog is http://chibihoshiko.wordpress.com/  and my webcomic for Ocean Tides is http://oceantides.smackjeeves.com/

Tuesday, January 05, 2010

Post's Blake Gopnik on Daumier

I missed this one due to travelling, but I'm catching up. I don't recall this painting, but one of the best exhibits I've ever seen was on Daumier at the Phillips. Daumier's sculptures of the French Assembly, caricatures in bronze, are in the National Gallery of Art, displayed in the sculpture halls.