Galleries@Moore Interview

Hi Friends!  If you haven't already had enough of me and my ramblings, Moore College just put an interview we did a little while back.  I think they asked some really good questions -- I had a lot of fun answering, especially remembering the 'weirdest thing that ever happened to me in a gallery'.  And its a series so its fun to compare different artists' answers - enjoy.  

Happy Holidays!

Happy Holidays Everyone!  I leave you with these three handmade holiday cards from Calder, Avery and Guston to friends and family.  (They were in a great show I saw a few years ago at the Smithsonian.)  I am off to eat, drink and be merry.

A semester gone...

As an art teacher of eight children's classes per week (without an art ed degree mind you) I made a sort of private vow to myself that students would come away with a better understanding of the art world and really, in general, the world at large.  Meaning, even though its really fun and easy to make marshmallow snowmen (see below) the large majority of classes need to focus on the seriousness and real importance of art and artists.

On that note we have made Lascaux cave paintings, Greek red figure vases, papier mache sarcophagi, Inuit owls, Chinese ink landscapes, Yoruba beadworks, Mexican tin tiles, Goldsworthy leaf collages, Charley Harper illustrations, Van Gogh night paintings, and Calder circuses, among other things.  I'm not sure that even 50% of what I have attempted to express to them has been understood in words.  But I am very proud of the respect they give their art through their best efforts every class, captured non verbally in the work below:

   

And so even though I know there will be days where the energy just flows right out of the room and all we can muster are edible snowmen, I know the large majority of days we will learn a lot from each other about this crazy business of art making and after a long holiday break, I will be happy to be back.

A Case for Loving the Inanimate

       

   

                     

    

 

Recently I've been asking myself if it is wrong to love my things.  It all started when I was telling Alex how I admire his mom's ability to let go of things so easily if they break or are lost or left somewhere.  We decided his family almost has this philosophy that it is wrong to love objects.  And then I read this article in which a painter I admire, Kathryn Lynch, talks about how moving is cathartic and makes you a ruthless editor of your things.

But then I walked around looking at the things that I love and decided; no I can defend myself and my love of the inanimate.  First of all, I am a still life painter and have a natural affinity for objects.  And the reason why is because they have always held meaning.  And then I realized something even better -- the reason I am interested in painting my things, or certain things and not other things is because they embody something, whether it be a quirkiness in shape or color or a personal sentiment.  So above is some of the evidence I collected walking around with my camera:

1. Bright yellow (the perfect chartreuse-y yellow) antique thrifted plates I found with my mom.

2. A beautiful little painting given to me by a good friend in my MFA program, Eric Huckabee

3. My odd collection of dishes each given by a different friend, all mismatched perfectly.

4. My great aunt and uncle's old kitchen clock from a farm in Watts county, PA.

5. A vintage recipe from Italy, in Italian, from my aunt Bonnie and my magnetic egg timer. 

6. Artwork from a favorite six year old student and my Barkley Hendricks magnets from PAFA.

7. My antique mushroom prints found on Ebay and sent from Scandinavia, and Nugget's favorite elephant

8. My student print, radio from defunct family store Levinthal's, & cactus from Courtney's wedding shower

9 &10. My Kirsten Fisher sculpture, a good friend from grad school -- fits just perfectly in the windowsill cutout

And so yes, these are just things and everyone's things are from somewhere, but they hold and ignite thoughts in me, just through looking...and that's plenty of reason to justify being kept around in my book.

PTP Installation Shots

Painting the Periphery is up at Millersville and looks great! (if I do say so myself)  Thanks to all the artists involved and wonderful faculty at Millersville for their help.  It will be open until February 13th, closing reception that day at noon.

Edit: Artists included in the show are:  Evan Fugazzi, Lauren Garvey, Lauren Gidwitz, J. Gordon, Kira Grennan, Mia Herring, Zachary Martin, Sarah Jackson Moore, Derrick Quevedo and myself.

Charley Harper

I delight in the work of Charley Harper.  Beautiful compositions and color.  They are illustrations that seem so carefully observed from life first and then so utterly changed by his lense on the world.

Painting The Periphery Take 2

Yay!  The show I curated is making its second and possibly last stop at Millersville University.  Opens December 13th.

Derrick on Two Coats

Untitled, 2012, Watercolor and Gouache, 5 x 7

An artist whose work I admire (and a friend from grad school), Derrick Quevedo, has a great interview up on Two Coats of Paint.  The interview (with Joe Bun Keo) talks about things I often think about.  How color can imply a sensation that is understood but non-verbal, how forms take shape through color, and how it is most important to paint intimate paintings than heroic masterpieces.

Nightcrawler, 2012, watercolor and gouache on paper, 8.5" x 12

Here is Derrick's response to why he works on a small scale, and where the title of the interview, Houseparty, comes from:

You know whether you'd rather be at a nightclub or a house party. House parties are more about intimacy; a room to dance closely, a room to talk closely, a room to have sex, and you're with all your favorite people. I'm very much a "house party" painter--I prefer intimate or private relationships.

And his paintings are just that -- intimate and beautiful.  The color relationships and his ability to work freely in a quest to create just the right paintings are things I have always learned from. I actually hesitated to disclose that he is a friend because I know I would admire his work regardless of that, as I did the first day I saw his work pinned outside his 8th floor studio door.  

James O'Shea

James O'Shea, Evening Mail, 24 x 24, 2008

I love this work of James O'Shea.  He is clearly very serious in his pursuit of color and composition (essentially the pursuit of a successful painting) but the work has a definite sense of humor or joy for the world that strikes me.  They seem to be friends with so many of my favorite artists: Elisabeth Cummings, Diebenkorn, Amy Sillman, Kimura and yet they are their own breed.  Just beautiful to look at on this dreary Philadelphia morning.

James O'Shea, Giants, 24 x 24, 2008

Olivier Rouault

 I am so happy to have recently come across the paintings of Olivier Rouault.  Of course I am partial to the still life and figure work, but all of his work makes a bold statement through the most essential means, regardless of subject.  The color and gesture are so pleasing to me.  I can look at these works for a long time.

Night Garden Skirt @ Anthropologie

Here is a link to the skirt I designed for Anthropologie.  Yay!  I'm not sure why it says 'a student' because I haven't been for nearly two years but oh well.  Now if only I could afford these shoes to recreate the models look...

The Owl and Raven

I'm teaching a unit on Inuit art to my elementary students where I work part time.  I came across this video and think its just perfect.  I get the feeling from comments that it is an old production but it feels very timeless to me, as is the story of the Owl and Raven, probably hundreds if not thousands of years old.

New Work

Grey and Light, 2012

I have made a bunch of new work and finally got around to photographing some of it to share.  Above is one piece but check in on my website by the end of the weekend and I'll have a few more posted as well.  Happy Friday!

Bridget Moore

Bridget Moore Woman Putting on a Black Stocking

A beautiful night painting that seems appropriate on this night -- daylight savings -- when the sun has set before 5pm and warm lights and warm clothes should be put on in abundance.

Anthropologie Skirt Design

I was given a really awesome opportunity to design a skirt for Anthropologie.  Due to its partnership with PAFA, there was a competition to design a skirt that would be for sale in stores.  Truly shockingly, my design was one of those chosen.  Below are pictures I took of my original piece.

They asked for a brief statement of inspiration and then whisked it off to I don't know where, (I like to picture a beautiful Santa meets whimsical garden factory workshop) be made last spring. 

Below is that statement:

My design was inspired by my routine dog walks by a community garden in my neighborhood.  Right at the point where day and night meet, it seems everything in there glows more brilliantly -- like the flowers are frantically sending the last bits of their beauty into the night before settling into the darkness.

Then finally after what felt like years of waiting (but was actually very quick considering they sent the design to be mass produced with each skirt handpainted) the final skirt was debuted:

Me and my good friend Jen at the PAFA event

These pictures are from a PAFA event on October 25th featuring the skirts which will officially be on sale in stores November 1st!  I was extra excited to see that the title Night Garden and my name are on the hang tag!