Memories from Dumpster Reading #6. Sycamore and Munger.
-Location: green dumpster behind 12 unit apartment complex.
-Some contents: diapers, stray beer cans and cereal boxes from torn open trash bags, oily rags, cardboard boxes, used prophylactics, bicycle chain, and some dried up tissues.
-Smell: nothing potent enough to unclog my sinuses.
-Audience: hippie looking dude in cowboy hat and homeless black guy who wanted the cans.
-Hippie jokes: 3.
-What I did: read six poems from "Ahora, tengo que ir..." and closed with a newly minted short story called, "When you get fucked at the Motel 6, you really get fucked at the Motel 6."
-Time: 23 minutes, 17 seconds.
-Talking with hippie guy:
Me: So, what's up ya hippie fuck?
Hippie: Not much. You Port-o-Reekin?
Me: I'm American.
Hippie: Oh. Me too.
Me: Yeah. Well, if you're a Mexican day laborer, you disguise yourself well.
Hippie: I'm not a hippie. I was born in '68.
Me: Look, if you don't have no thai stick or LSD or shit, you're wasting my time.
Hippie: Oh. So why you standing in the dumpster?
Me: It's a statement on artistry and a strong re-affirmation of the importance of the DIY ethic.
Hippie: No clue what yer talkin' about.
Me: It just means that I'm a cheeky fucker. I don't have a fuckin' book deal, and I don't roll 6-10 deep in some internet writing clique. Every artist I associate myself with I respect and would never want to emulate them or have them emulate me.
Hippie: Oh.
Me: You're really only like forty? Dude, you look sixty.
Hippie: I useta do drugs.
Me: I still do. Fuck me you look like shit. Best anti-drug abuse ad ever.
Showing posts with label Interview. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Interview. Show all posts
8.2.10
3.11.09
FUCK YOU, an interview with a douchebag
Some fucker had the audacity to ask me for an interview after a reading. So I gave it to him.
He was white, tall, had long hair, and wore glasses. Argyle sweater. Apparently his name was Pete.
Pete: Hi Stu.
Me: Hi Pete.
Pete: So, what's your chapbook about?
Me: It's poems about the aftermath of drunken sexual encounters with strange women.
Pete: Oh. Doesn't seem very riveting.
Me: I guess not.
Pete: Wouldn't you agree that the subject has been beaten in much the same fashion as a dead dog?
Me: Probably.
Pete: One of the poems you read, I found, was very offensive to women.
Me: Oh.
Pete: Aren't you going to defend yourself?
Me: Nah. In fact, the subject bores me. Sex and drinking is infinitely interesting, malleable; while gender politics seems to be the sole focus of the intellectually stunted.
Pete: That's a bold statement.
Me: Only if you think there is some kind of intellectual fulfillment in making the dialectic of the penis vs. the vagina the point of convergence for all of history. If you're a guy, I think it's even more useless. Foolhardy. Dishonest.
Pete: Oh. Well. Don't you think you're just contributing to the further...
Me: Hey, can you buy me a drink? I'm trying to save up for an eightball later.
Pete: Uh...
Me: Nevermind. Hey, your questions are boring as fuck. Why don't you ask me about our justice system? Something important. You're wasting my time.
Pete: Who is your favorite poet?
Me: South Park Mexican.
Pete: Who?
Me: I gotta take a shit, dude.
---
I get out of the can, and he still thinks it's okay to interview me.
---
Pete: Why do you mix Spanish in your poems? Seems affected. Adds nothing to the meter.
Me: Hey. My last name is González; makes sense, right? Is your last name douchebag? Because you're mad reppin' that right now.
Pete: I hate that word. Even for an ad hominem it's bad.
Me: You're right. Strike that from the record.
Pete: It seems sexist.
Me: Hey, do you have sex with girls or boys?
Pete: Girls, dude.
Me: Ever had sex with a tranny?
Pete: Uh. No.
Me: Me neither. I don't think.
Pete: What is "Coyote Real Fuckin' Ugly" really about?
Me: It's about the fact that I'm just another male pig wallowing in a sea of mud and excrement, who has no appreciation for the love of a good woman. The fact that I am trying to escape from her is a testament to my very weakness, and indeed, the weakness of all young males. Shallowness. Frivolity. Triviality. The entrancing lure of homosexual lifestyles.
Pete: That's kind of what I suspected.
Me: Hah.
Pete: Do you think the world needs more of this poetry?
Me: I don't think it matters. You are the arbiter of your own taste, and if something you read offends your little namby pamby fucking senisibilities, then perhaps you should stay away from the elements that spawn said scribblings.
Pete: Hmm... I don't get it.
Me: It's hard to get anything when your head is wedged up your asshole. Where's my drink?
Pete: You know what? I don't think you're tough at all.
Me: I don't think I even insinuated a stance of toughness. You're inferencing. Projecting, probably.
Pete: Fuck you, dude. I don't think you're clever, and your chapbook sucks. Everything inside it is cliché riddled and empty.
Me: Thanks for your assessment. Can I get that in a blurb? And fuck you, by the way, you emasculated, sanctimonious prick.
---
At this point, he shoots me the bird, and exits stage left. As for me, my night wasn't done. I had to clean the tables in order to cover my tab. Good times.
FUCK YOU.
He was white, tall, had long hair, and wore glasses. Argyle sweater. Apparently his name was Pete.
Pete: Hi Stu.
Me: Hi Pete.
Pete: So, what's your chapbook about?
Me: It's poems about the aftermath of drunken sexual encounters with strange women.
Pete: Oh. Doesn't seem very riveting.
Me: I guess not.
Pete: Wouldn't you agree that the subject has been beaten in much the same fashion as a dead dog?
Me: Probably.
Pete: One of the poems you read, I found, was very offensive to women.
Me: Oh.
Pete: Aren't you going to defend yourself?
Me: Nah. In fact, the subject bores me. Sex and drinking is infinitely interesting, malleable; while gender politics seems to be the sole focus of the intellectually stunted.
Pete: That's a bold statement.
Me: Only if you think there is some kind of intellectual fulfillment in making the dialectic of the penis vs. the vagina the point of convergence for all of history. If you're a guy, I think it's even more useless. Foolhardy. Dishonest.
Pete: Oh. Well. Don't you think you're just contributing to the further...
Me: Hey, can you buy me a drink? I'm trying to save up for an eightball later.
Pete: Uh...
Me: Nevermind. Hey, your questions are boring as fuck. Why don't you ask me about our justice system? Something important. You're wasting my time.
Pete: Who is your favorite poet?
Me: South Park Mexican.
Pete: Who?
Me: I gotta take a shit, dude.
---
I get out of the can, and he still thinks it's okay to interview me.
---
Pete: Why do you mix Spanish in your poems? Seems affected. Adds nothing to the meter.
Me: Hey. My last name is González; makes sense, right? Is your last name douchebag? Because you're mad reppin' that right now.
Pete: I hate that word. Even for an ad hominem it's bad.
Me: You're right. Strike that from the record.
Pete: It seems sexist.
Me: Hey, do you have sex with girls or boys?
Pete: Girls, dude.
Me: Ever had sex with a tranny?
Pete: Uh. No.
Me: Me neither. I don't think.
Pete: What is "Coyote Real Fuckin' Ugly" really about?
Me: It's about the fact that I'm just another male pig wallowing in a sea of mud and excrement, who has no appreciation for the love of a good woman. The fact that I am trying to escape from her is a testament to my very weakness, and indeed, the weakness of all young males. Shallowness. Frivolity. Triviality. The entrancing lure of homosexual lifestyles.
Pete: That's kind of what I suspected.
Me: Hah.
Pete: Do you think the world needs more of this poetry?
Me: I don't think it matters. You are the arbiter of your own taste, and if something you read offends your little namby pamby fucking senisibilities, then perhaps you should stay away from the elements that spawn said scribblings.
Pete: Hmm... I don't get it.
Me: It's hard to get anything when your head is wedged up your asshole. Where's my drink?
Pete: You know what? I don't think you're tough at all.
Me: I don't think I even insinuated a stance of toughness. You're inferencing. Projecting, probably.
Pete: Fuck you, dude. I don't think you're clever, and your chapbook sucks. Everything inside it is cliché riddled and empty.
Me: Thanks for your assessment. Can I get that in a blurb? And fuck you, by the way, you emasculated, sanctimonious prick.
---
At this point, he shoots me the bird, and exits stage left. As for me, my night wasn't done. I had to clean the tables in order to cover my tab. Good times.
FUCK YOU.
18.8.09
Stuart González gives me the Q&A treatment.
Name and number?
Me: Patrick Patterson-Carroll. And man, I will not have sex with you.
That makes me kind of sad. You work?
Me: In so many words, yes. I have a job.
And what do they make you do?
Me: I have an official title. Theater Technician. It means that when my boss is too busy, I run the theater. Sometimes it's work. Sometimes it's just babysitting. I get plenty of time to write. Just not a whole lot of money to piss away on drink and dame.
I just yawned.
Me: Big enough so my dick got's ta fit!
¡Ay papi chulo! Why do you write?
Me: Because I ain't so pretty.
For the record, I find you pretty fuckable.
Me: Thanks, man.
Read any good books lately?
Me: "Nights of Paris" by Restif de la Bretonne. I read half of "The Picture of Dorian Gray" and that is one of my favorites.
You must be one of those who finds Wilde quite witty.
Me: Sure.
Why?
Me: I don't know. I read his shit, and it's like, it seems very tame by today's standards, but he was really going against the grain in a lot of subtle ways. I mean, he wasn't freaky like de Sade, but his wit contrasts greatly with the prevailing attitudes.
I disagree.
Me: Of course.
You must be shocked, being that you're the contrarian. But I think Wilde was a self-loathing homosexual who hated women, and used his wit as a way to mask those latent sensibilities. Well, he couldn't hide his hatred of women.
Me: I disagree with some of that.
Fuck you. Still into Asia Argento?
Me: Of course. She's perfect in every way. Ever seen "Scarlet Diva"? Which reminds me, when I take my laptop back to Conn's for a repair, I need to remove the nude photo of her from the log-in screen.
LOL. Worst sexual experience?
Me: I'm going to say the worst was an experience that didn't lead to actual penetration. In fact, it didn't lead to anything other than making out in an SUV.
So Strange and I went out to Cedar Springs to hit some clubs, get drunk, and maybe meet some girls. We were winding down the night and met a couple of girls outside. I got the "pretty one," though being drunk, who fuckin' knows? So this girl and I, we were trading affections. Kissing. Licking each other's ears and shit. So anyway, we get into the backseat of her SUV, and Strange is caressing the "ugly one" or something. I don't know. To be honest, I didn't want to look at it.
The girl tells me that messing with her nipples is pointless because they aren't sensitive. In fact, she was kind of bossy for a desperate woman. I wasn't kissing hard enough. I wasn't being "aggressive enough" for her liking.
Long story short, we end up at this Chinese Restaurant on Lower Greenville. Strange starts talking politicks, and it spirals into some brainless bullshit about how she (the girl I was making out with) thinks GW is awesome and that the war is righteous and that we're a bunch of liberal pussies, etc. My penis got pretty soft at that point.
You don't think Republican girls are hot in the sack?
Me: I don't know if I've ever been involved with one. But I don't care about a woman's political affiliation. As long as I don't have to hear about how horrible I am for being who I am.
You're a despicable human being.
Me: Now who's editorializing?
I think conservative chicks fuck the best.
Me: No one asked you.
Favorite movie?
Me: "How Tasty Was My Little Frenchman"
Now you're just being purposefully obscure.
Me: I had a French roommate. He was very amused by my smoking habits and my sexual proclivities. He'd ask me about "ze black girlz" and if I "liked zem" "to... fuck zem." My answer, of course, was "I've never been there, but I'd like to go there." And I did eventually. I guess the cool thing about him was that we "got" each other. He thought my description of "the ripple" was beyond amusing.
"The Ripple"??
Me: It's not important.
I don't believe you can speak Portuguese.
Me: I can't. I can read it and kind of write it. I just started, man.
Why Portuguese?
Me: Because Spanish is only impressive to people because I'm a gabacho. And besides, girls just laugh when I use the clicking consonants thing. You'd think they'd be like, "Whoa, hey! That's neato! Khoisan languages!" But no. It's just a laugh followed by, "Got something stuck to the roof of your mouth?"
You cunning linguist, you.
Me: Now I remember why I always wanted to choke you.
Hell is other people.
Me: Indeed.
Top five records?
Me: We Are the Romans-- Botch, The Tyranny of Distance-- Ted Leo + Pharmacists, Kamaal the Abstract-- Q-Tip, Mos Def and Talib Kweli are Black Star, Calculating Infinity-- The Dillinger Escape Plan
Who's the better writer, me or you?
Me: A better question is whose sister is more attractive. Hint: I don't have a sister.
I notice this blog doesn't get a lot of comments, and one person said you were a pussy drinker.
Me: I notice you make a lot of dumb ass observations.
I hope Adam Strange is cooler than you.
Me: He is. And is more punk.
So what's England like?
Me: Cold. Stark. All the pretty girls are foreign.
Man, you really got comment checked by a girl? About booze? I thought you were the big drinker?
Me: I kind of liked that. There's something about a woman who calls you out, but doesn't make you look stupid. Besides, you don't even like Everclear in your Four Horsemen.
I don't boast, either. Okay, words to live by?
Me: Double. Down.
This has been an illuminating conversation.
Me: Fucking liar.
Patrick is a 25 year old writer who is working on a "novel." He edits this blog and laughs at his own genius. Women want him, men want to be him. At least that's the fantasy world he resides in when not existing within the boundaries of reality.
Me: Patrick Patterson-Carroll. And man, I will not have sex with you.
That makes me kind of sad. You work?
Me: In so many words, yes. I have a job.
And what do they make you do?
Me: I have an official title. Theater Technician. It means that when my boss is too busy, I run the theater. Sometimes it's work. Sometimes it's just babysitting. I get plenty of time to write. Just not a whole lot of money to piss away on drink and dame.
I just yawned.
Me: Big enough so my dick got's ta fit!
¡Ay papi chulo! Why do you write?
Me: Because I ain't so pretty.
For the record, I find you pretty fuckable.
Me: Thanks, man.
Read any good books lately?
Me: "Nights of Paris" by Restif de la Bretonne. I read half of "The Picture of Dorian Gray" and that is one of my favorites.
You must be one of those who finds Wilde quite witty.
Me: Sure.
Why?
Me: I don't know. I read his shit, and it's like, it seems very tame by today's standards, but he was really going against the grain in a lot of subtle ways. I mean, he wasn't freaky like de Sade, but his wit contrasts greatly with the prevailing attitudes.
I disagree.
Me: Of course.
You must be shocked, being that you're the contrarian. But I think Wilde was a self-loathing homosexual who hated women, and used his wit as a way to mask those latent sensibilities. Well, he couldn't hide his hatred of women.
Me: I disagree with some of that.
Fuck you. Still into Asia Argento?
Me: Of course. She's perfect in every way. Ever seen "Scarlet Diva"? Which reminds me, when I take my laptop back to Conn's for a repair, I need to remove the nude photo of her from the log-in screen.
LOL. Worst sexual experience?
Me: I'm going to say the worst was an experience that didn't lead to actual penetration. In fact, it didn't lead to anything other than making out in an SUV.
So Strange and I went out to Cedar Springs to hit some clubs, get drunk, and maybe meet some girls. We were winding down the night and met a couple of girls outside. I got the "pretty one," though being drunk, who fuckin' knows? So this girl and I, we were trading affections. Kissing. Licking each other's ears and shit. So anyway, we get into the backseat of her SUV, and Strange is caressing the "ugly one" or something. I don't know. To be honest, I didn't want to look at it.
The girl tells me that messing with her nipples is pointless because they aren't sensitive. In fact, she was kind of bossy for a desperate woman. I wasn't kissing hard enough. I wasn't being "aggressive enough" for her liking.
Long story short, we end up at this Chinese Restaurant on Lower Greenville. Strange starts talking politicks, and it spirals into some brainless bullshit about how she (the girl I was making out with) thinks GW is awesome and that the war is righteous and that we're a bunch of liberal pussies, etc. My penis got pretty soft at that point.
You don't think Republican girls are hot in the sack?
Me: I don't know if I've ever been involved with one. But I don't care about a woman's political affiliation. As long as I don't have to hear about how horrible I am for being who I am.
You're a despicable human being.
Me: Now who's editorializing?
I think conservative chicks fuck the best.
Me: No one asked you.
Favorite movie?
Me: "How Tasty Was My Little Frenchman"
Now you're just being purposefully obscure.
Me: I had a French roommate. He was very amused by my smoking habits and my sexual proclivities. He'd ask me about "ze black girlz" and if I "liked zem" "to... fuck zem." My answer, of course, was "I've never been there, but I'd like to go there." And I did eventually. I guess the cool thing about him was that we "got" each other. He thought my description of "the ripple" was beyond amusing.
"The Ripple"??
Me: It's not important.
I don't believe you can speak Portuguese.
Me: I can't. I can read it and kind of write it. I just started, man.
Why Portuguese?
Me: Because Spanish is only impressive to people because I'm a gabacho. And besides, girls just laugh when I use the clicking consonants thing. You'd think they'd be like, "Whoa, hey! That's neato! Khoisan languages!" But no. It's just a laugh followed by, "Got something stuck to the roof of your mouth?"
You cunning linguist, you.
Me: Now I remember why I always wanted to choke you.
Hell is other people.
Me: Indeed.
Top five records?
Me: We Are the Romans-- Botch, The Tyranny of Distance-- Ted Leo + Pharmacists, Kamaal the Abstract-- Q-Tip, Mos Def and Talib Kweli are Black Star, Calculating Infinity-- The Dillinger Escape Plan
Who's the better writer, me or you?
Me: A better question is whose sister is more attractive. Hint: I don't have a sister.
I notice this blog doesn't get a lot of comments, and one person said you were a pussy drinker.
Me: I notice you make a lot of dumb ass observations.
I hope Adam Strange is cooler than you.
Me: He is. And is more punk.
So what's England like?
Me: Cold. Stark. All the pretty girls are foreign.
Man, you really got comment checked by a girl? About booze? I thought you were the big drinker?
Me: I kind of liked that. There's something about a woman who calls you out, but doesn't make you look stupid. Besides, you don't even like Everclear in your Four Horsemen.
I don't boast, either. Okay, words to live by?
Me: Double. Down.
This has been an illuminating conversation.
Me: Fucking liar.
Patrick is a 25 year old writer who is working on a "novel." He edits this blog and laughs at his own genius. Women want him, men want to be him. At least that's the fantasy world he resides in when not existing within the boundaries of reality.
15.8.09
Q&A with writer Stuart González
Hello, my name is...
Stuart González.
Age?
SG: Chasing after 30 like it's a large breasted cougar in a low-lit bar.
Employed or Unemployed?
SG: I write. What do you think?
Good point. Unemployed. Okay. So, for the edification of our female readers (haha), single or taken?
SG: Definitely taken. Taken with ideas. Bad ones. Ones that wear ripped stockings and such...
So, what did you write?
SG: What didn't I write? In college I wrote essays about Lydia Lunch, Philip Roth, George S. Schuyler, Jonathan Borofsky, Albert Camus, and myself. I wrote lots of book reports in high school. I have a myspace, a fb, a lj, and at one point I had a black planet account. I like bootay.
But what did you write that people know you for?
SG: I ghost wrote everything by Stephanie Meyer.
I just puked in my mouth a little.
SG: Don't editorialize.
Seriously...
SG: Okay, I wrote a self-published novel with an egregious, ridiculous title: ¡El amor existe solamente para matarme! or Love and Me Have No Business Doing Business and I couldn't even give it away.
What's it about?
SG: It's not about love. I don't know. It might not even exist.
But what would it be about if it did?
SG: Good question. I think it would be about a guy kind of like Charlie Sheen's character in Two and a Half Men, you know? A guy who has no real job, but lives la vida extravagante because of kickbacks from some shitty kid's book he wrote years back (instead of jingle writer). Except, instead of being a drunken womanizer, he'd be a chain-smoking, cocktail drinking homosexual with style. I fucking hate those bowling shirts Sheen wears. Talk about puking in your mouth.
Isn't that part about being a homo and having style redundant?
SG: Don't be ignorant.
Right. Is that it?
SG: I guess.
Speaking of cocktails, what's your favorite?
SG: Four Horsemen. Jim, Jack, Johnnie, and Jameson or Jose.
...And Hell follows...
SG: Fuck that. I'm trying to get drunk, not die.
Fair enough. So are you reading anything worth mentioning these days?
SG: Just finished the Twilight series. Good shit. Bella is my heroine. If she were real I wouldn't fuck her and leave... I'd marry her.
...
SG: ...
Isn't she jailbait?
SG: Dude. It's fiction.
Right. If I open a pack of cigarettes and you take one, how many do I have left?
SG: Trick question. I don't smoke, and you're gonna get cancer, dude.
If you could say one thing to any person, living or dead, what would you say, and who would you say it to?
SG: "Are your tits as soft as they look?" -- to Eva Angelina
Best movie you've seen recently?
SG: "Paris, I Love You" was interesting. Nick Nolte is almost as godly as Gary Busey. Sometimes I mix them up, but they're both in my top 20.
Best music to make love to?
SG: Nothing. Music is overrated. The only thing I want to hear is my girl moaning or screaming or sighing in disappointment.
Really? So... you don't like a soundtrack with your casual sex?
SG: Music is best when I'm doing nothing. Ever stared at a white wall while listening to Division of Laura Lee? Or laid in bed and counted the oscillations of the ceiling fan with Morris Day and the Time funking out from the shitty speakers of your boombox?
Can't say I have.
SG: It's funny how people put so much stock in music and assign it such grandiose meaning. It's not that great. Just a bunch of notes and words and shit. And musicians are bigger assholes than athletes and writers. Actors are the biggest assholes. But at least they don't try to sing... most of them, anyway.
So no top fives?
SG: My top five records are: 5. Temple of Low Men-- Crowded House, 4. Ice Cream Castle-- The Time (with Morris Day), 3. Revolver-- The Beatles, 2. London Calling-- The Clash, 1. To The Extreme-- Vanilla Ice
So what's pissing you off right now?
SG: Being poor.
How do you feel about Sotomayor?
SG: She looks like my mom. So I kinda get pissed. But I think it's cool that she's an intelligent latina inspiring hope for the younger latinas. Ever heard of the reconquista? Slowly but surely, man. Slowly but surely.
Hahaha! So, are you working on anything you want to talk about? Hint: time to pimp yo shit.
SG: I'm writing a screenplay right now. It's about a guy who spends his entire day at a bar jabbering-- to anyone who will listen-- about his disjoint philosophies on everything from life and women to politics and cars. It's called, The Barstool Conversationalist. I'll be publishing a collection of poems soon. All of them are in Spanglish and dedicated to my mother.
And finally, I wrote a section of your short story. So technically, it is mine as well.
Thank you.
Stuart González is the author of "¡El amor existe solamente para matarme or Love and Me Have No Business Doing Business". He likes porn and drinking and eating. He lives in Dallas.
22.6.09
Artist Interview: Jessica Terry
Interviewing "one of our own."
Over a period of a couple of days, I had a chat with my friend, colleague (we work for the same company), and fellow DbFP contributor Jessica Terry about her art.
Foreign fairy tales and video games inspire Jessica Terry. Jessica is a local Dallas art student and musician who is currently studying art in all its aspects. As of this moment she is not a well known artist (yet) as she is still a student but is content with just getting her thoughts alive on canvas or whatever medium she fancies at the time. She has shown in several art galleries in Dallas such as H. Paxton Moore Fine Art Gallery, The Kettle and Hal Samples Gallery. (At current all shown pieces have been sold). The next show for Miss Terry will be a group show at the MAC in uptown Dallas TX. The show is being called 'XV'. The exhibit will open August 1st at 5:30 p.m.. The exhibit will be open until August 29th. For purchasing, requests/commissions or any other inquiries contact : jessica.terry@gmail.com
The following interview happened over the course of three nights on gchat, and have been edited slightly. ...
Jessica: (with regard to the idea of photos of works in progress) I knew the documentation of my work in photos would be useful for something.
Patrick: Yeah, I'm all about the process stuff.
Jessica: Yeah same here.
Patrick: What's the saying? Sometimes the journey is just as if not more important than the destination... with any kind of art, I think that's true. For the most part.
Jessica: I agree with that... or at least it has been that way for me.
"Elepants Phobia" Sculpture in progress
Patrick: Well, it's always nice and fulfilling to finish something, but you're never AS connected to something as when you're in the process. Everything after that is hindsight. It's the same way with writing stories or poetry. Like, I look at some of the shit I wrote in hs and freshman year of college, and some of the stuff is so embedded in events and thoughts and reactions that I can't even remember... it's hard to decipher. There's a disconnect in that. I mean, sure, I wrote that stuff, but it's not the same me.
Jessica: Yeah.
Patrick: I imagine it's like that with anything one creates.
Jessica: It is. It is also very hard for me to let go of my artwork.. and sell it but that is what I have the photos for.
Patrick: Does that have to do with the difficulty in replicating pieces? I would imgaine that a photo is hardly a substitution for one of your sculptures.
Jessica: I thought so at first but it feels like giving a something personal about myself away.
Patrick: I understand that. Hell, Will Self says that when you read his novels, you know more about him than you could by meeting him and spending prolonged periods of time with him. Something about intimacy. Because the art is something you do when no one else is around.
Jessica: Exactly .. it is weird is a way to feel that way.
Patrick: It makes a lot of sense... but then, what exactly inspires you to create? And why should we care?
Jessica: I kick general ass in art.
Patrick: Well, I enjoy large healthy egos. So, tell me, do you remember the first time you ever tried something artistic?
Jessica: My grandmother was an artist and taught me to oil paint when I was five. Not sure why she did that since oil paint is toxic....
Patrick: Anything come of that?
Jessica: I am not sure of any abnormalities, but I love to paint.
Patrick: Okay, I want to talk about two of your pieces. Specifically "Elephants Phobia"* and the "Cash in Space" painting. Can you explain the genesis of these works and also detail where they've been showcased and where they are now?
Jessica: The elephant was conceived from an Asian influenced phase in my artwork with a color palette from a dream I have had often. It is not so much the elephant but the colors and shapes I want the viewer to see.
Patrick: I notice there's lots of curve to it. Admittedly, I'm not a fan of sculpture, but it always drew my eye in the gallery. Some of Borofsky's stuff at the Nasher does that to me as well.
Jessica: I tend to put curves in everything I create. Organic shapes with curves I have found are something we as humans can relate to.
Patrick: I do like a curvy lady.
Jessica: Well there is a sexual element that draws us to organic shapes and curves.
Patrick: Yes. There's not a whole lot of straight lines in the human form to begin with, sex only adds another dynamic, what with the shape of genitalia, etc.
"Elephants Phobia" complete. Sold for $200 in the private collection of Mrs. Vickie Walker. Can be a commissioned for the same price in other colors. Shown at the H. Paxton Moore Fine Art Gallery.
Patrick: Was the piece shown anywhere besides H. Paxton Moore?
Jessica: Not currently but it has been sold and I have been commissioned to make more by other clients. Cash in space was created for Hal Samples english bulldog "Cash". There was a fundraiser show to help the sweet pup with expensive vet bills related to chemo it needed. I cant say no to anything that cute ... It was shown at the upstairs "space" section of Hal Samples Gallery and auctioned off for the cash's benefit.
Patrick: That reminds me of the basement punk shows where bands would play to the benefit of struggling friends. Art and punk... go hand in motherfuckin' hand.
Jessica: Yeah it was similar to that.. We also had a band performing and shooting a music video there..
Patrick: are there any big time artists that you really can't stand? Since we here at DbFP are negative nancies. Haha!
Jessica: Yes but if I were to name her it might jeopardize my current job position but I can tell you she shows in New York and has a pedigree of art schools in her bio and an ego bigger than what she craps out and calls art.
Patrick: Some people are assholes, and some art sucks dick. Call me a cynic. Please.
Jessica: :)
Patrick: I always try to look at the bright side.
*"Elephants Phobia" is accompanied by a smaller piece. A mouse. I never noticed this before, but it can be seen, as close to scale as possible, in the completed picture.
Over a period of a couple of days, I had a chat with my friend, colleague (we work for the same company), and fellow DbFP contributor Jessica Terry about her art.
Foreign fairy tales and video games inspire Jessica Terry. Jessica is a local Dallas art student and musician who is currently studying art in all its aspects. As of this moment she is not a well known artist (yet) as she is still a student but is content with just getting her thoughts alive on canvas or whatever medium she fancies at the time. She has shown in several art galleries in Dallas such as H. Paxton Moore Fine Art Gallery, The Kettle and Hal Samples Gallery. (At current all shown pieces have been sold). The next show for Miss Terry will be a group show at the MAC in uptown Dallas TX. The show is being called 'XV'. The exhibit will open August 1st at 5:30 p.m.. The exhibit will be open until August 29th. For purchasing, requests/commissions or any other inquiries contact : jessica.terry@gmail.com
The following interview happened over the course of three nights on gchat, and have been edited slightly. ...
Jessica: (with regard to the idea of photos of works in progress) I knew the documentation of my work in photos would be useful for something.
Patrick: Yeah, I'm all about the process stuff.
Jessica: Yeah same here.
Patrick: What's the saying? Sometimes the journey is just as if not more important than the destination... with any kind of art, I think that's true. For the most part.
Jessica: I agree with that... or at least it has been that way for me.
"Elepants Phobia" Sculpture in progress
"Cash in Space" in progress
Patrick: Well, it's always nice and fulfilling to finish something, but you're never AS connected to something as when you're in the process. Everything after that is hindsight. It's the same way with writing stories or poetry. Like, I look at some of the shit I wrote in hs and freshman year of college, and some of the stuff is so embedded in events and thoughts and reactions that I can't even remember... it's hard to decipher. There's a disconnect in that. I mean, sure, I wrote that stuff, but it's not the same me.
Jessica: Yeah.
Patrick: I imagine it's like that with anything one creates.
Jessica: It is. It is also very hard for me to let go of my artwork.. and sell it but that is what I have the photos for.
Patrick: Does that have to do with the difficulty in replicating pieces? I would imgaine that a photo is hardly a substitution for one of your sculptures.
Jessica: I thought so at first but it feels like giving a something personal about myself away.
Patrick: I understand that. Hell, Will Self says that when you read his novels, you know more about him than you could by meeting him and spending prolonged periods of time with him. Something about intimacy. Because the art is something you do when no one else is around.
Jessica: Exactly .. it is weird is a way to feel that way.
Patrick: It makes a lot of sense... but then, what exactly inspires you to create? And why should we care?
Jessica: I kick general ass in art.
Patrick: Well, I enjoy large healthy egos. So, tell me, do you remember the first time you ever tried something artistic?
Jessica: My grandmother was an artist and taught me to oil paint when I was five. Not sure why she did that since oil paint is toxic....
Patrick: Anything come of that?
Jessica: I am not sure of any abnormalities, but I love to paint.
Patrick: Okay, I want to talk about two of your pieces. Specifically "Elephants Phobia"* and the "Cash in Space" painting. Can you explain the genesis of these works and also detail where they've been showcased and where they are now?
Jessica: The elephant was conceived from an Asian influenced phase in my artwork with a color palette from a dream I have had often. It is not so much the elephant but the colors and shapes I want the viewer to see.
Patrick: I notice there's lots of curve to it. Admittedly, I'm not a fan of sculpture, but it always drew my eye in the gallery. Some of Borofsky's stuff at the Nasher does that to me as well.
Jessica: I tend to put curves in everything I create. Organic shapes with curves I have found are something we as humans can relate to.
Patrick: I do like a curvy lady.
Jessica: Well there is a sexual element that draws us to organic shapes and curves.
Patrick: Yes. There's not a whole lot of straight lines in the human form to begin with, sex only adds another dynamic, what with the shape of genitalia, etc.
"Elephants Phobia" complete. Sold for $200 in the private collection of Mrs. Vickie Walker. Can be a commissioned for the same price in other colors. Shown at the H. Paxton Moore Fine Art Gallery.
Patrick: Was the piece shown anywhere besides H. Paxton Moore?
Jessica: Not currently but it has been sold and I have been commissioned to make more by other clients. Cash in space was created for Hal Samples english bulldog "Cash". There was a fundraiser show to help the sweet pup with expensive vet bills related to chemo it needed. I cant say no to anything that cute ... It was shown at the upstairs "space" section of Hal Samples Gallery and auctioned off for the cash's benefit.
"Cash in Space" complete. Auctioned at an undisclosed price. Shown at the Hal Samples Gallery.
Patrick: That reminds me of the basement punk shows where bands would play to the benefit of struggling friends. Art and punk... go hand in motherfuckin' hand.
Jessica: Yeah it was similar to that.. We also had a band performing and shooting a music video there..
Patrick: are there any big time artists that you really can't stand? Since we here at DbFP are negative nancies. Haha!
Jessica: Yes but if I were to name her it might jeopardize my current job position but I can tell you she shows in New York and has a pedigree of art schools in her bio and an ego bigger than what she craps out and calls art.
Patrick: Some people are assholes, and some art sucks dick. Call me a cynic. Please.
Jessica: :)
Patrick: I always try to look at the bright side.
*"Elephants Phobia" is accompanied by a smaller piece. A mouse. I never noticed this before, but it can be seen, as close to scale as possible, in the completed picture.
4.6.09
Artist Interview: Raymond Butler
Top left: Gorilla Warfare Oil on canvas
Recent interview with local starving artist Raymond Butler. A man of many talents in the arts, music and taekwondo. He has shown at local galleries such as H. Paxton Moore fine art and The Kettle to name a few... okay so maybe that is all he has shown at so far not counting a bare city wall or train car but his art is defiantly worth checking out.
(Jess) What is the significance of your post-apocalyptic concepts and is your animal imagery symbolic?
(Ray) Well I guess the idea is that there is an unheard of or unseen war that people tend not to recognize or acknowledge between ourselves and the animals and planet. The animals are trying to adapt and survive everything we are doing to this planet. We are destroying their habitats with our buildings we are destroying their food supply by cutting down their trees. The animals do not even have the same diets they used to. They are entering our city areas more and more looking for food and shelter cause maybe that is where they were born or use to live. People do not seem to care that we are being brutal to the animal world.
Take for instance when someone hits a dog they say "oh well it was just a dog" and keep driving they don't seem to freak out as much as if they hit a human. I think that it should be just as serious. I try to show in some of my paintings that if you are brutal to an animal it is just as serious as if you are brutal to a person.
(Jess) What is the reason behind your use of such vibrant colors?
(Ray) I use the vibrant happy colors as a play on how people seem to not take the damage we are doing to the planet and its inhabitants very seriously. For instance in my piece "Gorilla warfare" the colors are happy and the imagery of the baboon with his mouth open appearing to be laughing or yelling a war cry, depending on how you view it. People have been divided on what is going on in this piece. Some think the baboon is laughing and some see the pain behind its expression.
(Jess) As an artist that has had his "gallery cherry" popped is there any advice you would give to the virginal artists out there?
(Ray) I would tell them don't let anyone censor you. Paint, sculpt, and write exactly what you want to do. This is the world inside your head and you are writing it down on paper, painting it on canvas or sculpting it and it should be what you want it to be. You are taking something that was not 3d and bringing it into this world and it should not be watered down by other peoples opinions as that would just defeat the purpose of art.
(Jess) Where will we be able to see your artwork next?
(Ray) The next thing for the Ray-man in the art world is the "Cash for cash" fundraiser show at Hal Samples gallery in Deep elum on June 10th. And there are a few other festivals and events later this summer that have not been confirmed yet.
Raymond butlers work and info of upcoming shows can be found on:
Bottom left: Murder of Crow
Oil on Canvas
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)