ARTish Plunge

As Lynne Maphies, former Curatorial Assistant at the Blanton Museum of Art, knows firsthand — for many artists, “day jobs” do more than pay the rent. In this fascinating behind-the-scenes conversation, Lynne shares the 10 year process that Veronica Roberts, former Blanton Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art, directed to create the standout exhibit “Day Jobs.” A dialogue with conceptual artist Sol LeWitt prompted Roberts to explore the different ways that artists establish relationships or get material inspiration from the jobs that sustain them. After receiving hundreds of recommendations from colleagues, scholars, gallerists, and artists in the field, Maphies and the Blanton te...

Appreciating the richness of vintage typography and papers inspires both the sublime graphic design work and the whimsical collage art of Connecticut-based artist AMY GORREK. On the way to developing her own design practice, following stints with various design firms including Martha Stewart Living, Amy has perfected the art of appreciating details, instinctively finding the right balance of necessary and surprise elements. Pulling on her years of helping clients with their branding projects, Amy shares insights on how artists can find their own unique branding elements in the fabric of their artwork. 

Find Amy:
A...

How do you see Brahms Symphony No. 4? For Scottish orchestral bassist and abstract painter Kirsty Matheson, music—like days of the week— have color. Kirsty shares how she balances her professional music life with her painting career that took flight during a 100 Day project in 2021. This fascinating conversation allows us to dip into synesthesia, a neurological condition shared by Kirsty and many other creative minds that creates a crossover between senses, in Kirsty’s case allowing her to paint classical music.
 
 Find Kirsty:
Kirsty's Website: www.kirstymatheson.com
Kirsty's Instagra...

A love of research, words and print materials drives Austin-based, mixed media artist KRISTY DARNELL BATTANI’s textile inspired paintings and forms. The host and founder of the ARTish Plunge podcast discusses her art journey from intellectual property lawyer to full-time artist, her love of research, and her "deep dive" immersion into her source materials as part of an artist talk for her recent solo show “How To Be,” a collection of works inspired by thirteen self-help books that have defined our American values.

Find Kristy:
Website:    https://www.kristybattani.com
Instagra...

A lifelong love of prairie led sculptor and former architect BILL MCBRIDE to the rolling sea of grass and sunflowers that is Matfield Green, Kansas—population 45. Serendipitous introductions to fellow environmentalist, artists and conservation enthusiasts enabled Bill to find a home for his own work and his ongoing passion project, the Prairie Art Path. Initially lacking a road map, Bill “lived conceptually,” doggedly pursued his artistic dreams, and eventually created the place he imagined. 

“You have to keep listening to yourself and find your models.”

Find BILL:

Website:  www.billmcbridestudio.com    <...

Have you ever drawn so slowly that you actually saw the ink soak into the page? Massachusetts art therapist and author Amy Maricle shares the benefits of slow, mindful drawing for artists and non-artists alike. The author of Draw Yourself Calm and numerous online videos, Amy pulls on her experience as an art therapist to show us how to tune into the moment by being aware of our senses as we slowly, intentionally move the pen around the paper. Amy explains how slow drawing helps to diminish our anxiety and reveals what movement makes us feel good. Amy ends...

What’s it like to be a “non-traditional” art student at age 55? For Texas-based portrait painter CLIFFORD BUNN, seeking a BFA in Studio Art after a career in law enforcement with the Oakland PD was both cathartic and the fulfillment of a lifelong dream.  As a police officer, Cliff worked among “the layers of lives existing around us” that most of us don’t see, but he often felt like his own voice was not being heard either. Initially turning to art as a therapeutic way of dealing with grief for  loss of his son and other family members, Cliff eventual...

What would you give to have a lifestyle that allowed you to “drop everything and have a swim” in the ocean any time the mood struck you? Cornwall painter TARA LEAVER has created that life for herself, finding inspiration in the sensory experience of being immersed in the “magical garden of wonders” in the cold Atlantic waters. A self-proclaimed introvert, Tara has created a “balance in constant motion” between creating her own fluid paintings and developing an online community for like-minded artists.

But life was not always so easy-breezy for Tara. Tara candidly shares how she grappled with depress...

Often associated with haute pate painting, Atlanta-based abstract painter BOB LANDSTROM found his preferred art medium through metaphysics and Southwestern landscapes—hand-colored volcanic rock. After decades juggling a conflicted existence as both an electrical engineer and an evening/weekend painter, Bob’s persistence in getting his artwork seen has paid off. Now, only a few weeks into his new “full-time” painter role, Bob shares how he has built his presence in the art world, including an upcoming release of his first NFT on Super Rare.

As Bob says, “part of being an artist is being out over your ski t...

Chilean watercolorist GERALDINE MACKINNON didn’t find her artistic direction in art school. Instead, the defining moment in her creative career occurred while assisting an archeological study on Easter Island, crawling through the caves with her sketchbook and headlamp trying to capture the “truth of the plants.”

Fastforward, Geri has developed a sustainable career in the demanding practice of botanical watercolor illustration. Botanical illustration requires the artist to remove all of her assumptions about the subject matter and focus intently on what she actually sees, which for Geri serves as a kind of meditation. Geri's newest adventure: luscio...

With her hands in prayer, still life painter MARYAM AMIRYANI begins each day in her studio with the simple request:  The courage to start; the courage to persevere; the courage to finish.

From her childhood in Iran to Paris, Washington and New York, Maryam followed a professional career path in and around the arts, helping to show and sell other artists’ work before she finally settled into her own painting practice. Sharing her elegantly sparse, light-filled studio in Marfa, Texas with her husband and fellow painter Nick Terry, Maryam now creates small, intimate oil paintings often influenced by...

Blacksmith, Metalsmith, Queen of the Forge— all fitting titles for Atlanta-based artist CORRINA SEPHORA. Introduced to welding before she finished elementary school, Corrina crafted an intentional career path in metal that has allowed her to make her living as an artist for over 25 years. In this episode, Corrina shares how she overcame the barriers to entry of her chosen field and how she manages her team with transformational leadership principles to create towering sculptures and celestial paintings that explore navigation, transformation, love and loss.

Find Corrina:

Website: corrinasephora.com
...

How has a small peasant woman with rudimentary art supplies and childlike paintings of fantastical beasts forced the world to acknowledge the absurdity of war? Ukrainian folk artist MARIA PRYMACHENKO  (1908-1997) —dubbed the People’s Artist of Ukraine—produced hundreds of small, colorful gouache paintings of imaginary creatures, flowers and village scenes filled with traditional Ukrainian decorative patterns that captured the heart and soul of a nation. In this ARTish Words episode, we discuss why the recent Russian bombing of a small art museum that housed some of Maria’s works has unified resistance, why art matters in this moment, a...

How do you create a sustainable art career over 40 years? New Orleans native ADELE SYPESTEYN shares how paying attention to everything— what’s working, what’s not—and not being afraid to change directions has allowed her to  maintain a successful career as a contemporary artist and educator, including walking away from gallery representation, embracing new venues, Instagram sales and YouTube videos.

Find Adele:
Website:  adelesypesteynstudio.com
Art with Adele Academy:   adelesypesteynstudio.com/art-with-adele
Instagram:   @adelesypesteyn
Facebook:  adelesypesteynstudio  

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As in the sea, so in the studio.

In this ARTish WORDS episode, Cornwall painter and educator TARA LEAVER shares what the sea has taught her and how it provides a roadmap for the artist journey. Using three simple words “I don’t know” followed by one word “just,” Tara works her way through things that initially seem daunting, as in: “I don’t know” what I will paint today, so I will “just” go in and clean my brushes.

Tara insists that she is not a superhero or even unusually brave; rather, she is just someone who wan...

No denying it: there will always be P-A-I-N  in P-A-I-N-T.

In this ARTish Words episode, Canadian artist Janice Tanton and Washington painter Valerie Collymore address the issue of pain and beauty by reflecting on French Impressionist Pierre-Auguste Renoir’s struggle with rheumatoid arthritis and the herculean efforts he made to sustain his art practice during the last twenty years of his life. If your life’s mission is to “die with a paintbrush in your opposite hand,” this episode is for you.

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