Interview with Ruth Marks

q) Introduce yourself first please?

a) My name is Ruth Marks and I make small figurative pieces, some people call
them dolls. I live in Ypsilanti, Michigan, USA with my husband and two
children.

q) How did you get into art?

a) When I was a little girl I wanted to be a medical illustrator. I loved to draw
and look at anatomy books. I made my first doll as a gift for my mom's friend
when I was nine. It was a marionette that had a light bulb for a head. As I
was growing up, everyone told me that it would be impossible to be an artist,
and I listened to them. I went to school to be an art teacher instead. I was an
art teacher for seven years and finally last year I left the profession. I have
been working as an artist full time now for a year. I will soon get a side job to
supplement my art. My bills come in every month, and you get paid for
artwork in a much more sporadic manner. I will feel calmer having money
coming in from a few different places.

q) Who has been the biggest influence on you?

a) My biggest influences are the books I read as a child like The Chronicles of
Narnia and other adventure novels. Tracy Gallup is a doll artist who lives in
my town. As a young person, I loved to look at her work and now as an adult
I am her friend. I love to look at classical art in museums and books, but
recently my most inspirational artists are New Brow or Pop-Surrealist. When I
found these artists, I felt like I was coming home.

q) Do you rule by any tendency in your creative work, or you only
follow what comes in your mind?

a) I just make what comes to me. There is a pattern and and a unity to my
work, but at the time it seems like an isolated idea.

q) Do you have a preferred medium to work on? Why?

a) Paper clay is my medium of choice right now. It is very beautiful and
forgiving.

q) Tell us about your studio space. Where do you work? Do you listen
to certain types of music while working?

a)We live in a huge old Victorian house with many rooms. The house was
divided up into apartments when we bought it, and we converted one of the
kitchens into my studio, which is perfect because of the great light and the
running water. I listen to podcasts and books on tape. I work best with voices
talking. Music is easy to walk away from, but a conversation you have to stay
till the end, so it is more conducive to working.

q) Who are your favorite artists?

a) I love Scott Radke, Red Nose Studios, Cristina Cordova, Sylvia Ji, Kiki Smith,
Fuco Ueda, Audrey Kawasaki, Jen Corace, Tracy Gallup, Lotte Klaver, and on
and on.

q )When have you started using the internet and what role does this
form of communication play for you, personally, for your art, and for
your business?

a) I built my first website a few years ago (maybe 2004?) It is a useful
portfolio. I love having it available to offer to people when they want to see
my work. I love the internet most for the things I have found on it. So many
artists are so generous and put their things where we can all see and be
inspired.

q) What books are on your nightstand?

a) I am rereading some novels from my bookshelf... books that are dense and
have interesting characters.. Ahab's Wife, Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell.

q) What's playing on your stereo?

a) Outkast, CSS, The Faint, Fiona Apple, Bjork, Hot Chip, YACHT, LCD
Soundsystems, Noisettes, PJ Harvey, Soundtrack to Juno.

q) Any interesting "rituals" before you start creating?

a)Get my coffee and toast, set the ipod up to play my podcast, go.

q) What is your favourite colour?

a)Dark Blue.

q) What is the best time in the day for you to work on a project? Is
there one, or is it more about the environment -- maybe the right
mood?

a)I work best in the afternoon and evening. In the morning I am better at
paperwork and email.

q) What projects mean a lot to you at the moment?

a) I am working on a new series of adventure girls. They are climbers and
stilts walkers. For the climbers I am "re-writing" the Rapunzel story so that
she climbs down her own hair to escape.

q)Your contacts…

a) http://www.ruthmarks.com/

HAPpy neW YEar!!!FELiz+++2008!!!

www.claudioparentela.net

Merry Xmas!!!Happy Hanukah!!!

www.claudioparentela.net

Interview with Derek Albeck

q) Introduce yourself first please?

a)My Name is Derek Dale Albeck and I live and work in Los Angeles

q) How did you get into art?

a)I was always surrounded by art growing up and I've always been into drawing since I was a little kid. My Grandma was a painter and she would paint portraits of my family when we would visit. Every time I went to her house, there was always something new to look at so that was where my interest in creating art first began.

q) Who has been the biggest influence on you?

a)Family and Friends

q) Do you rule by any tendency in your creative work, or you only follow what comes in your mind?

a)I generally begin reading/ researching things I want to focus on in my art. Develop concepts and a general direction for the work, then I get to painting. My process for creating works is pretty structured at the beginning, after all the research/ concept material is done I tend to work a little freer.

q) Do you have a preferred medium to work on? Why?

a)I work on wood panels and rag papers. I prefer a smooth surface to any textured surface.

q) How much does your environment have an effect on your pictures?

a)It's always varying, right now not so much.

q) Tell us about your studio space. Where do you work? Do you listen to certain types of music while working?

a)I split my time between working from my house and a friends warehouse. My house is pretty clean and organized while the warehouse is filled with art supplies, music equipment and a vast array or random stuff, extra hectic.. I spend a good deal of time working on smaller works and doing research stuff out of my house. The warehouse I use for producing larger works and screenprints. The music always varies no real specifics.

q) Who are your favorite artists?

a)Francisco De Goya, Marcel Duchamp, Raymond Pettibon

q )When have you started using the internet and what role does this form of communication play for you, personally, for your art, and for your business?

a)I started using the internet during high school. I think the net is a really good tool for researching information and fact finding in relation to concept stuff for my work. I do conduct a bit of my business stuff over the internet and it is quite helpful with my art stuff internationally. Other than that I think it's a pretty efficient tool for communicating and networking with friends around the globe.

q) What books are on your nightstand?

a)"no god but God" Reza Aslan, "the Anti Aesthetic, essays in postmodern culture", "The FIrst Man" and "Exile and the Kingdom" both by Albert Camus, Mike Kelly's interviews, conversations and chit chat (1986-2004) and there are about 5 more books. I read alot

q) What's playing on your stereo?

a)The Black Heart Procession

q) Any interesting "rituals" before you start creating?

a)I'm super OCD about prepping the surfaces I paint on so that process i guess that could be considered a ritual.

q) What is your favourite colour?

a)Brown

q) What is the best time in the day for you to work on a project? Is there one, or is it more about the environment -- maybe the right mood?

a)I use to work only at night then during the day but nowadays I don't stick to any particular schedule. These days it's more about what needs to be done and how much time I have to do it. I like my work schedule to be random.

q) What projects mean a lot to you at the moment?

a)The Vans billboard project was a great experience, we got to align ourselves with a charity of our choice with proceeds from the project going to the respective charities, mine was Invisible Children (www.invisiblechildren.com). Other than that I'm currently in the process of developing a new body of work so I'm spending almost all of my time and effort working on that.

q)Your contacts…

a) http://derekalbeck.com/

Interview with Anthony Zinonos

q) Introduce yourself first please?

a)My name is Anthony Zinonos. I live in the fine city of Norwich in the UK. I was born in South Africa in November 1981, moved to Cyprus at age 11, where I lived till I was eighteen and then I moved to Norwich to do a foundation course in art and design. I then spent a year at a photography school in Athens, Greece then returned to Norwich to study for a degree in Fine Art, specialising in printmaking and photomedia.

q) How did you get into art?

a)When I was about 2 years old I pooped in my toy box then proceeded to redecorate the hallway with my newly found finger paint. It’ss been down hill since then.

q) Who has been the biggest influence to you?

a)My father, he has always been into art and photography so I guess his art genes rubbed off on me. He used to own a screen printing factory in South Africa and I used to love going there and looking at all the paper and misprints. Also, there was loads of Letraset and different kinds of tapes which I would fiddle around with.

q) Do you rule by any tendency in your creative work, or you only follow what comes in your mind?

a)I follow what comes into my mind.

q) Do you have a preferred medium to work on? Why?

a)Paper! I love it, I collect all kind of different types. Also magazines- I have piles of magazines all around the house just waiting to be cut out and reused.

q) How much does your environment have an effect on your pictures?

a)My environment has a big impact on my work, I tend to feed off the places and people that are around me. That’s why I think travelling is so good; you get to step out of your day to day life and see new and different things. It seems to put things into perspective ‘cause sometimes you can get so caught up in your own life you forget that there is a whole other world out there.

q) Tell us about your studio space. Where do you work? Do you listen to certain types of music while working?

a)My girlfriend and I share a studio space, it’s the biggest room in our house and ideal for storing all the crap we collect. Its great sharing a studio because we encourage each other to work and there is always someone there to have a laugh with. I mostly work on my desk but a lot of the time it gets too messy and I have to work on the floor. Lately we have been listerning to Sleater Kinney, The Books, Modest Mouse and The Stooges. The other day my girlfriend made me listen to some musical theatre soundtracks which was stressful and I nearly cut my finger off.

q) Who are your favourite artists?

a)My current favourites are Thomas Schostok, John Stezaker, Sergei Sviatchenko and Neasden Control Centre. They are all Brilliant artists and get me excited about making work.

q)When have you started using the internet and what role does this form of communication play for you, personally, for your art, and for your business?

a)I’ve only recently discovered the wonders of the internet and I still get amazed by its capabilities . It’s a great way of presenting your work that endless amounts of people can access and appreciate.

q) What books are on your nightstand?

a)I have three books next to my bed “Return of the lost consonants” by Graham Rawle which I was looking at a few weeks ago. “Bob Dylan chronicles Vol. 1” which I read about half of then gave up cause it just wasn’t going anywhere. I'm now reading “The Jokes Over, memories of Hunter S Thompson” by Ralph Steadman.

q) What's playing on your stereo?

a)Radiohead “Kid A”, one of my all time favourites.

q) Any interesting "rituals" before you start creating?

a)A lot of the time I start cleaning my desk, trying to sort things out then ill find an image or bit of paper and start creating.

q) What is your favourite colour?

a)That’s a tricky question because I seem to be obsessed with all kinds of colours right now. It used to be blue, so I’ll just say blue.

q) What is the best time in the day for you to work on a project? Is there one, or is it more about the environment -- maybe the right mood?

a)I work best at night, I find it easier to concentrate. There is also that joy of working till the early morning and feeling really alive and full of energy and knowing that everybody else is fast asleep.

q) What projects mean a lot to you at the moment?

a)I’ve been working on a clothing company with my friend called “dirt box”, it gives our idle hands and minds something to do when we are not working. I’ve always had a love/hate relationship with fashion so this is my way of sticking my finger into the fashion pie. We have some big plans for the company next year.

q)Your contacts…

a) www.anthonyzinonos.com
www.dirt-box.com

Interview with Nava Lubelski

q)YOU IN 1-2-3… IN HOW MANY WORDS YOU WANT…

a)I'm an artist. I grew up in New York City, but am trying a different life for the time being in the mountains of North Carolina. I didn't study art when I was in school, but instead got a degree in Russian Literature and History. My artwork right now is going in several directions at once: I make stitched paintings which mimic abstractions, but are in fact repairs of stains, either naturally occurring stains or those created by me through an act of impulse - this is by best-known work. I'm also working on several other projects, hovering again around this theme of destruction/repair. A current series of sculptures are made from shredded groups of paper, which are compressed, through rolling and gluing, back into a slab like a tree cross-section.

q)DO YOU REMEMBER THE FIRST DRAW YOU MADE?

a)The earliest drawing that I can remember the experience of making, was of two people playing tennis and is from when I was around 7 or 8. I made a girl holding a tennis racquet, drew a net across the middle of the page, and then turned the whole drawing upside-down to place the other player, so the two opponents are feet-to-feet. I knew it didn't look "right" when it was done but wasn't sure why. I also wasn't sure why my father seemed to think it was so great and hung it on the wall, though now I understand that.

q)WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE THING TO DRAW AND WHY?

a)I draw mostly "ideas", which appear as abstractions. It's an interesting challenge to try to draw something that isn't inherently visual.

q)OTHER ARTISTS DO YOU LIKE…?

a)I don't like to pick from all the amazing artists, past and present, but I mention dozens of my favorites in my book: "The Starving Artist's Way" - I'll refer your readers there.

q)WHO AND/OR …WHAT ARE SOME OF YOUR INFLUENCES?

a)My biggest influence is the everyday response I have to the sense of something as being "failed", "useless", "wrong" and the impulse to intervene. I've been influenced by artists like Tim Hawkinson who layer complexity in their work, but maintain a simple point of approach for viewers.

q)IN THESE DAYS YOU’RE WORKING TO…YOUR CURRENT PROJECTS…

a)I am doing a paper piece constructed from a box of love letters, emails and other ephemera donated to me by an investment banker who had his heart broken and stashed all the evidence in a box for 5 years. I have a few more projects waiting until this one is complete.

q)WHAT KIND OF MUSIC DO YOU LIKE AND YOU LISTEN…AND IS THE MUSIC IMPORTANT FOR YOURART…?

a)I love music, but I don't listen to music while I work because I find it too distracting and too emotionally insistent. I often listen to "books on tape" - really on cd - that I take out of the library. The monotone of the voice reading and the fact that the books go on for 10-20 hours without a break suits me better when I'm working.

q)WHAT IS CREATIVITY FOR YOU?

a)Creativity is a normal responsive instinct. I always find it sad and stupid when people say "I'm not creative" as I think that is never true, even if people don't know how to recognize that instinct in themselves. This is not to say that I don't admire and enjoy some types of creativity more than others. I make judgements about what is interesting to me, because you can't spend your time with everybody's ideas.

q)FAVOURITE BOOKS?

a)I have a real love for "War & Peace" from the Russian Literature days, as well as "Pale Fire", but I am reading contemporary English-language fiction more often now - I just started on "Cloud Atlas".

q)WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE MEDIUM TO WORK ON?

a)This is in flux right now. Most of my art career it has been thread, but I am more into paper right now. Or really glue. I love glue.

q)WHAT ELSE ARE YOU INTERESTED IN BESIDES VISUAL ARTS?

a)Languages, plants, animals, humans, what will happen after the end of civilization as we know it.

q)GOT ANY PROJECTS PLANNED…?

a)I'm in the planning stages of a narrative installation work combining elements of many of my previous projects.

q)HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR ART TO SOMEONE WHO COULD NOT SEE IT?

a)A blind person could touch it and everyone else has the internet. For someone who can't see and can't touch I would say that it's crude and detailed. Impatient and patient. Careless and careful.

q)WHAT DO YOU FEAR MOST?

a)Fear itself! Seriously.

q)WHAT IS YOUR GREATEST AMBITION?

a)To be a person that I like.

q)HOW IMPORTANT IS SELF-PROMOTION FOR AN ARTIST NOWDAYS?

a)To have a career as an artist you need to let people know you exist - & that's always true in all lines of work. But subtlety is important too.

q)A MESSAGE FOR THE READERS FROM YOUR HEART…

a)Work hard.

q)YOUR CONTACTS…E-MAIL….LINKS…

a) http://www.navalubelski.com/
http://www.thestarvingartistsway.com/

THANX…

Interview with Micah Lebrun

q) Introduce yourself first please?

a)Hello, my name is Micah LeBrun. I am 31 years old and live in San Francisco, California.

q) How did you get into art?

a)I remember drawing since I was 2 or 3 years old. I became more serious about art and decided to make a career out of it when I was around 15 years old. I think I got into art out of boredom, but my older brother drew also and we became sort of competitive. I would say my brother had alot to do with me sticking with it.

q) Who has been the biggest influence on you?

a)I am influenced by so much in life and by many other artists....it is a bit difficult to say what has been the biggest influence on me and my work, but I was heavily supported by a couple of teachers I had in grade school, John and Evelyn Hardy. They were both literature teachers and they always told me to be an artist and not to settle for any thing less.

q) Do you rule by any tendency in your creative work, or you only follow what comes in your mind?

a)I feel that my work has changed so much over the last ten years I've been painting...I do tend to use the figure more often to display my visual ideas. I will step into a grove and paint similar themes over the course of a few months, but I prefer to use different colors and styles with each individual piece. Overall, I would say I paint straight from my mind; I rarely to preliminary sketches before painting a piece.

q) Do you have a preferred medium to work on? Why?

a) I prefer to paint on wood. Wood excepts liquid mediums in a different way than canvas and it is always unique based on the grain and type of wood I use. Wood can be stained w/ color and still display it's organic nature which can then be implemented as an element of the painting. After painting for twelve years with acrylic paint, I am just now beginning to work with oil paint which is really taking the feel of my work into a new direction. I am really enjoying the process more w/ oil. It is more difficult, but it feels good to be challenged by the medium and it's more engaging.

q) How much does your environment have an effect on your pictures?

a)Environments...well I've surely been in some which have inspired me to paint. Prague was big in that way. I rarely try and recreate the environment around me in my work. Painting is escaping for me...it doesn't really matter if I'm in Hawaii or in my studio, if I'm painting,everything else melts away, including time and environment. I do try and create unique environments in my work which do not directly mimic the environments in which people identify with on a daily basis.

q) Tell us about your studio space. Where do you work? Do you listen to certain types of music while working?

a) My studio - I am fortunate enough to have a garage under my house (which is rare and expensive in San Francisco) which I have converted into my studio. It's a no frills sort of place. Paint all over the concrete floor,but aside from that mess, everything has a place and is kept in impeccable order. I'm a bit of a neat freak that I believe people can see in my work and the way in which I paint. Colors are quite literally displayed in color wheel format; purple, blue, green, yellow, orange, red, brown,black. I have flat files and racks for my paintings to keep things organized; they are covered by black fabric to keep the dust out. Mirrors on the sealing above my drafting tables and work benches so that I can use my own face as a structure reference when painting portraits. Good stereo system, ipod, three easels, two chairs, supplies galore, lights, lights and more lights. There is also plenty of room to park my ride...a 1966 Chevelle Malibu Super Sport (I am a bit of a car freak also)As far as music is concerned, I listen to everything; hip hop, rap,electronic, breaks, classic rock, blue grass, jazz, blues, funk, classical and on and on. Lately it's been a lot of Miles Davis, Johnny Cash, Neil Young and the Doors. I know a ton of DJ's in the city so I am fortunate to receive many mixed cd's with a variety of stuff on them.

q) Who are your favorite artists?

a)Favorite artists: Istvan Sandorfi, Erin Eisenhower, Crayola, Mateo(Berlin - ZoZoVille Gallery) Da Vinci, Picasso, Jud Burgeron, Alanzo Smith, Nome Edonna, Mars One to name some.

q )When have you started using the internet and what role does this form of communication play for you, personally, for your art, and for your business?

a)The internet has been clutch! I mainly use it to research images. My website has been up for a few years now and has made things a lot easier regarding promotion and sales. I plan on revamping my site next year to show more detail. As it is now, it is hard to get a feel for how involved the work really is; my work is heavily carried by the meticulous details I paint in. It is hard to imagine life and career w/ out the internet. It is a wonderful tool that truly simplifies many aspects of life.

q) What books are on your nightstand?

a) I have only one book on the nightstand at the moment, "VERT" and I don't remember the authors name I just started it, but have been painting so much lately that I haven't picked it up in awhile. I do most my reading when I travel. I have a hard time taking the time out to read...I'm usually always doing something.

q) Any interesting "rituals" before you start creating?

a) I used to have many different rituals before and while I painted, but I have slowly cut them out of my work process because, well, they weren't all that healthy for me if you know what I mean. Now, I pretty much just paint...no nonsense; get in and get out. Times a wastin'.

q) What is your favourite colour?

a)Favorite color isn't one - BLACK. Nothing can balance, contrast or set off another color like black.

q) What is the best time in the day for you to work on a project? Is there one, or is it more about the environment -- maybe the right mood?

a)I usually don't begin working until around 8 pm and will work until around 2 - 4 am. I also like blasting through weekends though. Start around 10 am and paint until midnight or so and again the next day. Ipaint hard for a few months at a time and then I won't paint anything for a few months while I play and satisfy the rest of my desires in life. I'm still looking to instill a more consistent balance though.

q) What projects mean a lot to you at the moment?

a) I am currently painting a large piece called, "The Fattening of the Humans" which means a lot o me. The image came from a dream I had of two giant, obese women feeding an equally giant pig - I mean GIANT. Huge women and huge pig (it was actually a hairy hog in my dream, but I opted for the smooth skin pig in the painting.

q)Your contacts…

a)Contact: micah@micahlebrun.com

Micah LeBrun

325 Montcalm

San Francisco, CA 94110(415)987-7614

micahlebrun.com

email: micah@micahlebrun.com