Maryanna Hoggatt // Animal Battle: Time-Lapse

Eyes & Hands Time Lapse from Maryanna Hoggatt on Vimeo.

Leading up to her May solo show at the gallery, Maryanna produced this time-lapse video showing the creation of one of her biggest works in the show, Eyes + Hands.

Stay tuned for images from opening night!

Pony Club at Stumptown Comics Fest!

We are excited to once again exhibit at this year's ever-growing event, the Stumptown Comics Fest!  At Booth Q5, each of our members will have merchandise, including: art by Amy Kuttab & Erin McCarty; Keith Carter will lots of animal art and a new zine, Jennifer Parks will be repping her series Lone Wolf, Emi Lenox will have her series Emitown, and Maryanna Hoggatt will be selling copies of her series Adult Babysitting in addition to a special presale of prints from her upcoming show, Animal Battle!

PHEW!  As if that wasn't enough, we'll also have lots of prints, comics, and zines from other artists far and wide.  We hope to see you there!

Keith Carter: Past, Present & Future

This month's show is a retrospective from the past, through the present and into the future. It's a collection of sketches, drawings, paintings, failures, false-starts, breakthroughs, breakdowns, experiments and artistic creations. These represent a sample of Keith Carter's art work. Starting with his earliest work to the most recent.  To start you off here are some pictures and at the end of the post is a slide show of artwork close ups.

Keith reflecting

The promo flyer

 The ponyclub mural and Keith painting in the lower right.

 

Lots of people enjoying the art.

We had a good turn out this First Thursday. 

And finaly some close ups from the show.

To see more of Keith's work visit his website at:  www.kcarterart.com

///ARTIST COUPLE INTERVIEW: ACEY & MARCUS///

Introducing Acey Thompson & Marcus Gannuscio!

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How did the two of you meet, and how long have you been together?

AT: Marcus and I met briefly when I was first starting at PNCA and he was just finishing. A year or so later we met again at a birthday thing. Then a few years later we found each other yet again at a Halloween party and really hit it off. My birthday was the following weekend so I invited him to a little shindig I was having. I got really drunk and we ended up making out. We never looked back. Not exactly the most romantic story in the world, but there you have it. We've been together almost four years, engaged for one.

MG: We've been together for four years, and got engaged last year.  We met at PNCA six years ago, and then 4 years ago we crossed paths again at a party, then another party, and the rest just fell into place.  Funny thing is we should have crossed paths sooner since she was from Pasadena and even attended Art Center, which is where I was living and going to school the year after she left.  

What do you admire about your partner's art?

AT: I've always admired Marcus' incredible patience. He will spend a great deal of time on sketches and color studies and getting everything just right before he starts on the final surface.

 Marcus's Work Below

MG: Acey's fearless approach to her work is something I really enjoy watching, and aspire to myself.  She doesn't identify too strongly with any particular style or process, she just makes what she wants to make, and the work always looks fresh.

Acey's Work Below

 

 

What is it like to collaborate with your significant other?

AT: We've never really collaborated, actually. Marcus is very much an oil painter and I'm more drawn to water media (and graphite lately), and the two don't really mix. Plus I like to work smaller and he likes to work real big. We're very supportive of each other's work but we both like to work alone, to have total control over our pieces.

MG:As she says, we've never properly collaborated on a piece of art.  Honest critique, even if it's hard to hear, and motivation are what we try to focus on when we address our work together, but our processes never seem to cross paths.  That said, she has taught me over the years how to work more efficiently with watercolor and gouache, which I use often for studies.

Marcus's Work Below

Acey's Work Below

How does your partner influence the work that you make?

AT: Man, when we first got together I was all about bright, artificial colors. But after spending so much time watching him geek out on earth tone palettes, I've become quite fond of them myself and the colors I use now are much more naturalistic. I've also gotten a lot better about working on a piece for more than one sitting. I tend to come up with an idea and then bang it out all in the same day, but Marcus' approach is much slower and I'm thankful it's rubbed off on me a bit.

Acey's Work Below

MG: Acey has really helped me loosen up, and encouraged me to develop a more fluid process, so I don't strangle my idea before I get to the painting.  I can get really neurotic when I'm first starting in on an idea for a painting.  Leaving more up to chance in the final painting has helped create more vitality in my work.  

Marcus's Work Below

 

If you are experiencing a creative slump, or obstacle of sorts, how does your partner help you cope?

AT: He is always there when I need to talk about a piece I'm struggling with, to hammer out its problems. Or if I'm going through a slump, Marcus is very encouraging but not pushy. He wants me to start working again, but also understands that sometimes when you're in a rut you just need to accept the rut. For me that usually means laying around feeling depressed or frustrated, or venting, or crying into a pillow. He never lets me stay like that for too long, though, often reminding me that there's a big world outside of our home and art, and that we have two dogs that would very much like to explore it. 

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MG: "Just start painting," she'll say.   She knows me well enough to know that I just need someone to tell me to get to work. For me, waiting for inspiration before I start painting doesn't work. The most helpful kind of inspiration for me comes when I'm at work and see myself creating and problem solving.  Also, she is there when I am too close to the painting and need some fresh eyes and an honest opinion.  Not the easiest thing to find in a person, and I'm lucky to be with someone who can be direct with her thoughts.

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Can you describe you individual workspace and how yours either differs or is similar to your partner's?

AT: We live in a small bungalow and we have an extra bedroom that we have set up as a studio space. We're pretty bad about actually working in there, though. I often end up on the couch with a sketchpad, flanked by our two dogs. But pretty much the entire house is one big, messy studio space. 

MG: I usually end up working in the kitchen.  It's the one place in the house where I can step really far back from my paintings to see what's going on.  I wouldn't say I keep a clean work space, but it's organized so I have everything I need around me when I need it.  Perhaps there is a similar method to the madness in her workspace, but I would say neither of us like having an uber-clean work area; seems to lock us up because we don't want to make a whole new mess.  

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What are the benefits and/or disadvantages of working on art from home?

AT: I'm a major homebody. If it weren't for our dogs I don't know that I'd ever go out, haha. But there are a lot of distractions, mainly internet-based distractions like Netflix, Facebook, and the Criterion movie selection on Hulu+. Having a nice, comfy bed so nearby can be a little problematic, too- it's always trying to seduce me into napping with it. 

 

MG: Working from home gives me a lot of time to look at my paintings when I'm not working on them, which helps me get into the painting much quicker since I don't have to reacquaint myself with it every time I want to paint.  That said, it doesn't give much of a break from looking at it either, which doesn't help when I am trying to be more objective about what is working, and what isn't.  I can also just paint for an hour here and there and not have to worry about driving to a studio, I just have to work hard not to get too distracted by television, internet, phone, etc. 

Acey's Portrait of Marcus Below

Marcus's Portrait of Acey Below

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Do you have any advice for other creative couples?

AT: Just be as open-minded and understanding of your partner's process as you can be. It's ok if you don't make as much work as your partner, or if you get into slumps more often. Just don't compare yourselves to each other. 

MG: Be honest with one another.  I don't mean you should feel like you have a license to be a dick, but really try and understand what each of your goals are, and give truthful feedback.  Unless someone just wants a pat on the back, they will always be grateful that you respect them enough to give them your honest opinion whether it's hard to hear or not.  

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Very sweet, thanks guys!

Acey's links: www.aceythompson.net, toothypegs.etsy.com, facebook.com/AceyThompsonArt

Marcus' links: reallygoodpaintings.wordpress.com, facebook.com/reallygoodpaintings

Portrait Show Artists

The Portrait Show came down last week, but I wanted to make sure we kept the list of all the artists involved somewhere on our site, so here's the link to all of their websites. Check it out if you can, Portland is bursting with artistic talent at the moment.

The Portrait show is a large group show where mostly local artists were paired up to draw portraits of each other. Some of the teams were husband and wife, boyfriend and girlfriend, friends, and even complete strangers. Click to see Photos.

Artist Teams:

Tripper Dungan and Ryan Berkley
Eatcho and Ian Anderson
Rebecca Artemisa and Graham Kahler
Jason and Laura Jean Graham
Neil M. Perry and Susannah Kelly
Martin Ontiveros and Jon MacNair
Jennifer Parks and Erin McCarty
Amy Kuttab and Stefan Saito
Alex Chiu and Sloane Leong
Maryanna Hoggatt and Brooke Weeber
Darin Marker and Emily Lynch
Zack Soto and Sam Alden
Jen Tong and Aya Kakeda 
Sashiko Yuen and Emi Lenox
Brett Superstar and Adrienne Vita
Devin Amato and Brittany Maddocks
Jason Jfish Fisher and Keith Carter
Ian Seniff and Johnny Acurso
Sivonna West and Holly Cappello
Amy Ruppel and Peter Nevins
Kinoko and Sera Stanton