Just got the word that it's out now and can be purchased Here
It looks pretty cool. I think I'm getting comped a couple of copies, so maybe I'll offer up some real thoughts on it when I get them. I can say now though, that having been in print only a few times, it's still strange to me to see my work presented in such a way. It's sort of a thrill, but it's also jarring in a way, like a minor tear in the fabric of reality has transported the inky paper from my drawing table to some other dimension..
On a similar note, I just received a thick envelope in the mail from the guys at La Centrale , full of screenprints of drawings I sent them months and months ago. I nearly forgot about the whole thing. They are pretty modest, in terms of size and production, which I think fits the images very well.
As my work gets out there a bit more, even in modest venues, I'm having to think more and more about what I hope to present to "the world"; I'm forced to regard this giant abstraction that involves unknown peoples' perceptions , my motives, etc., etc.
It's a whole ball of nothing in particular, so I'm just sort of rolling with things, keeping with known quantities, like how I feel about whatever it is I'm doing, the daily practice of trying to plug myself into the drawing table and how it all jibes with the realities of my life as it's lived, rather than getting too hung up on the unknowable aspects of some kind of shadow media world; that dimension where these things I do move along to after they leave my table and my real world.
The two prints, for instance, compared with my stuff in the zine; I'm not sure if people would recognize them as being by the same person- they have very different feels to me - but all I can do is accept them for what they are and move on. It's silly to feel forced to decide upon one single approach if you view art and drawing as primarily being about something simple: it's something you do to help lead a more meaningful life, a lens to interpret the world, or the means toward personal edification. With this in mind, the process itself becomes the end.
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Great looking drawings, the three are consistent with each other, the dripping shapes,similar use of solid darks and abstractions make them clearly by the same hand.
It is fun to see your work in print, although I try to avoid looking to closely at anything I've done in print as I'll always find something I want to change or adjust and it will drive me insane. Once it's in print, it becomes lost to you and is something else that you can't work on anymore.
Becoming a "thing" or creating a persistent series of similar images seems like a bad idea in theory, but I think is essential to being a good artist. At least the artists I enjoy the most are the ones whose vision fit perfectly across the entire span of their career.
I don't know if I see a real benefit beyond career concerns. There are plenty of artists who do have a really singular deal and it's the perfect vehicle for them to explore whatever they want to, then there are the people who basically search for a style and try to trademark it, where it seems like it's more a surface thing. I haven't found that singular deal, and I think searching for style is only going to get in the way of that. I'd rather spend a long time working different things out and never get to that position, cause I think that process is more edifying. You learn more and explore more terrain.
I think people shouldn’t worry about changing style and etc. Actually I think changing direction is less easy and far more dangerous. A creative doesn’t have to be a label. I’d rather be synthetic than even.
I guess I can understand your feeling about having your work printed. I’m sure the screen-prints are all right. May be it would be good for you to go to a screen-print workshop so you could work on the texture under the actual print. There’s often subtle textures under your line works which may be lost during the printing process. It was nice to chat with you yesterday.
Just enjoy it Luke, your work looks great in print.
Yeah, I enjoyed the chat too. I am enjoying it! I'm not trying to sound cynical or unappreciative. I'm psyched that anybody would want to print anything I've done. It just got me thinking about the nature of the artists relationship to media.
Are those screenprints something they are selling or something you are selling or maybe trading?
It's great to see your work getting out there.
I appreciate that Luke and forgive me if my comment seemed at all patronising, just thought it needed to be said.
In my humble opinion, art styles coalesce and mature as personas coalesce and mature. The process resulting in a defined style/personality.
The problem then is that in both life and art it becomes difficult to break out of the structure you've built for yourself.
The artists I enjoy the most these days are those that are able to escape being defined by one style and to be unpredictable, risking unpopularity as they do so.
Good examples being Gary Panter, H.R. Giger now that he's stopped airbrushing and Max Ernst.
Yeah, I think it requires a certain amount of faith that no matter what angle you choose, something very definite about your perspective is going to come through, but I don't know if that rather solipsistic end is the first thing to keep in mind. I think it has to be about the process itself and getting something intangible out of it..
Chad- I'm finishing up a small art zine right now, and I plan on sending out prints along with them.You're on the list.
The process is what I'm getting at, real change is tough.
If you fancy a zine swap when your's is done, please let me know.
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