Ms. Morrison is a cherished friend/robot/shemale impersonator of mine, but that isn't the only reason I chose her for my first (hopefully, of many to come) Monday artist interview.
JP's work is a true reflection of herself - flamboyant, perhaps a little bit egotistical, mind-numbingly detail oriented, weird, and smelling of cats.
So with no further ado...
ONE: What do you do when you're experiencing a creative drought?
I make really sh*tty uncreative art. I cannot lie about there being a bit of gloating that goes on inside my head when I say this... which I'm ashamed of, but, I definitely don't quit making art. I have in the past, but it's been a good six years since I went through a stretch of several months without making something. Now, to really answer the question: I have learned that the only way to get through a block is to pretend it isn't happening and accept that during that time you will make art that will fail. This failure will go on for awhile, but often there is at the very least something to be learned from it. I learned a lot about how to think about this from the book Letters to a Young Artist by J. Cameron. Great book, it can get a bit spiritual from time to time... but with some really helpful stuff in there for how to stay motivated as a Creative.
I make really sh*tty uncreative art. I cannot lie about there being a bit of gloating that goes on inside my head when I say this... which I'm ashamed of, but, I definitely don't quit making art. I have in the past, but it's been a good six years since I went through a stretch of several months without making something. Now, to really answer the question: I have learned that the only way to get through a block is to pretend it isn't happening and accept that during that time you will make art that will fail. This failure will go on for awhile, but often there is at the very least something to be learned from it. I learned a lot about how to think about this from the book Letters to a Young Artist by J. Cameron. Great book, it can get a bit spiritual from time to time... but with some really helpful stuff in there for how to stay motivated as a Creative.
TWO: What would you say to someone who criticized your "photorealistic" style?
I usually don't say much, it's often not worth the energy. People are entitled to like and dislike whatever they choose. I find that if that person is an artist, I usually don't like what they do much either. However, there is a great sort of automatic safety net if you are a photorealist. No matter if people dislike the style or the subject matter, there is often an undeniable "wow" factor embedded in the technique. If a person isn't even impressed with the training involved then often they are working some intellectual angle, and they will find issue in the straightforwardness of my work. I usually just find that tiresome and likewise don't say much.
THREE: What mediums/techniques would you like to use in the future?
I'm really happy with my mediums at present and have no plans to significantly alter or abandon them. I am most happy when I am drawing, and I often use so many other mediums that I stay entertained. Some techniques...I would like to be using more dramatic lighting, I have started this and am happily struggling along with it. The trouble is that my lighting is directly linked to my source image, so... I have to get better at the lighting I use with my models and using my camera. It sort of leaves me speechless. I'm not sure where to start... but I will get there.
FOUR: What's the harshest critique you've ever received? How did you deal with it?
I'm pretty sure I've blocked that out. I couldn't even begin to quote anything to you. I can tell you that I have escaped to my car on a few occasions during lunch or smoke breaks to bawl. I built a wall and a door in my studio space during junior year of college to deal with it, which wasn't really dealing with it at all. I take technical critiques pretty seriously and to heart, but more often than not critiques are of a personal and subjective nature, and those I don't have much use for, I make my art to fit into my reality, not a critic's. I make art that satisfies my creative needs and desires, that because it first evokes something within me will hopefully evoke something similar in my audience, and I make work to sell. Critiques sometimes miss a lot of those points and become strictly subversive. I'm thinking exclusively of art school critiques here, outside of school that kind of discussion about my work is pretty nonexistent, which I suppose is what makes going through all that worthwhile. It doesn't happen much afterwards, at least not until you start getting write-ups in the New York Times and stuff... I'll let you know about that in our next interview.
FIVE: What advice would you give to someone trying to start a gallery?
Try it on at first and then do it right. Get an accountant (as an arts org. you can often get them for free or reduced costs). Boring I know, but so true. Be on top of your press. Be willing to see yourself as a used car salesman, and if you're not the retail type get someone to help you who is. Often art doesn't sell itself. Be willing to tell your artists "how it is."
-and now a tangent-
It is totally unacceptable as a professional artist to adjust your prices for the percentage being taken by the consignment, the market, etc., etc., etc. Gallerists talk to each other and they will quit showing you. Buyers, i.e. collectors, talk too, and those who paid retail will loathe you if they find out they could have gotten it for half that. Wakka wakka wakka. Be professional and consistent, as a gallerist and an artist.
It is totally unacceptable as a professional artist to adjust your prices for the percentage being taken by the consignment, the market, etc., etc., etc. Gallerists talk to each other and they will quit showing you. Buyers, i.e. collectors, talk too, and those who paid retail will loathe you if they find out they could have gotten it for half that. Wakka wakka wakka. Be professional and consistent, as a gallerist and an artist.
Thanks for this opportunity Hissingfauna, I'm super flattered and you're the best!!!
-JPM
Aw, shucks! Well, that wraps up our first interview, hope you found it informative...thanks again JP. Until next week!
PS, to see more of JP's work or to comission her, visit her website -
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