New Art Series in Ej Arnold's The Pinto Bean People Collection

Detail from "Curtain Call"

I first saw Ej Arnold's hyper-focused Dali-esque pen-and-ink drawings in a four person show at Washington Gallery on Duluth's Central Hillside. I was captivated by the detail and shared his work on my blog here in March 2014. I later published our interview on Medium in 2019. In December Ej contacted me to say he was completing a new series of images in The Pinto Bean People collection. Naturally I was eager to see what he was now doing. Here's a note which Ej sent regarding the new work:

This second series started way before its time, with visuals seen seven years before they actually happened, I found myself questioning the placement of these art pieces.

It would be these three art pieces, not in numerical order, but in time of order; meshing together a time line of unfortunate events, but with good outcomes. Told of the days to come, and realizing it, from the past now… 

Curtain Call, 

* A premonition piece… 

* A piece that simmers to a point of almost… 

* A piece that is brought spiraling out in between it all

* * * * *

1. "Curtain Call"

2. "Spiraling Out with a Non-Violent Apple Core" 

"Spiraling Out with a Non-Violent Apple Core" (detail)

3. "Warm Progressions"

EN: Where do you live now and what are you currently preoccupied with?

Ej Arnold: I'm still residing in a small but growing town in GA and continuing to "mental shelf" new ideas for upcoming art pieces that will be able to be incorporated with previous pieces that mesh together to keep the collection going. Even with new pieces surfacing in mind and in sketch; they somehow all seem to tie together quite nicely for future viewings. "Compatible pieces" I guess you could say is the word(s) I'm looking for to describe the new ideas for this collection. 

EN: What is your preferred medium?

Ej Arnold: Still creating art pieces on 11"x 14" mixed media sheets, and still creating pen and ink surreal images with my favorites of all time, Faber-Castell Pitt artist pens. 

Interested parties may contact Ej Arnold at: pintobeanpeople@gmail.com

Happy Birthday, Ej

New Work by Shawna Gilmore Catches My Eye and Sparks an Interview

I can't recall where I first noticed Shawna Gilmore's distinctive paintings. It may have been at the Kruk Gallery in Superior, or maybe not. Perhaps it was Art on the Planet, or not. Last summer her Woodlandia show at Lakeside Gallery proved utterly delightful, and Aaron Kloss has continued to carry some of her upbeat work to this day. During Wendy Clouse's exhibition at Lizzard's this past month I noticed that Jeff there had taken in some of her work, and I also noticed she was moving into some new kinds of dimensions. Same spirit, new designs... always fun.

As a result I reached out and ask if I might share a little more about this Northland painter who has been capturing a lot of attention.

EN: I see that you now have some of your work at Lizzard’s. How did that come about?

Shawna Gilmore: I've wanted to have my work in Lizzards since I first visited there as a college student many moons ago. Over the years, I had checked in with them and they were too short on space to take me on. I had a few Chameleon paintings remaining from my winter show and decided to float these by them. I think the timing was right this time. That's how the art world is, you really have to put your time in and just keep trying. There are so many reasons a gallery might not take you on. . .  sometimes it is a space issue, sometimes your work doesn't fit their style or it's the wrong timing, and sometimes your work needs to mature. It's really important not to take it personally or it can paralyze you.

EN: What does your painting regimen look like? Do you have set hours each day or is it a muse-driven affair? How many hours a week are you in the studio?

SG: Painting is my full time profession. I dress for my work. I have set hours. I limit distractions(including my husband who works from home as well). And I treat it with the seriousness I would if I worked for someone else. I don't have time to sit around waiting for a muse. I've learned that by daily exercising creative muscles, you rarely have to wait for the "muse". Actually, I've found I have the opposite problem. . . .I have more ideas than I could ever paint in a lifetime. They aren't all good ideas, but they just keep coming.

EN: Do you listen to music while you paint? Or… ? If yes, what kind of music do you paint to?

SG: I tend to listen to music when I have to focus on business-y stuff like working on the website, responding to emails or anything that requires me to use words. In those times I need wordless, atmospheric or classical music to really declutter my mind. Weirdly, I find music boring and exhausting while I paint. Painting requires a different part of my brain I suppose. I listen to lots of podcasts, audiobooks or have Netflix going in the background. I wish I could even say the stories I have going are directly reflected in my work, but usually I enjoy crime dramas or science fiction action/thrillers. I'm sure there's an Oliver Sacks theory on why that might be, but I just know a good story energizes me and activates my brain.

EN: How long have you been painting professionally?

SG: I've been professionally painting since 2010. Before that it was more of a hobby and I would paint in the evenings after the kids were asleep.

EN: The whimsical nature of your work seems like it would lend itself to picture book illustration. Have you ever considered that kind of avenue? Do you draw your ideas from children’s picture books?

SG: I have and it was something I was seriously considering over the years. But as I looked into it more and as I've gotten more busy with galleries, etc, I just don't have the time to apply myself to pursuing the illustration field. Financially it doesn't make sense for me to sacrifice time away from my main job right now. You have to be careful to not get derailed and not to spread yourself a mile wide and an inch deep. Perhaps down the line. I'm open to it at some point, but thankfully I have more than enough to focus on at the moment.

I pull my ideas from a lifetime of loving stories. Very rarely are they direct references to any one story. Most often they are culmination of different threads that are subliminally working themselves out in my paintings.

EN: You mentioned having an over-active imagination. How do you decide which of your many ideas to pursue next?

SG: Sifting through the ideas to find one that has staying power is my greatest challenge. Some ideas, just from past experience, are obvious solid ones, but some are more risky. I try to stay playful. . .to not get caught up in fear of failure. We all have the natural desire for safety, comfort and predictability. . . essentially avoiding fear or pain. But if you're not failing and learning, you're not growing as a person and that's a stagnation more risky than failure. I'm not interested in things I already know. I want to learn. I want to be challenged. I want to stitch together new understanding with old. I want to find the nugget of discovery about myself or humanity or this beautiful world. To jump over the hurdle of fear, I remind myself that I can always paint over it if in fact I'm not able to execute it in a satisfying way. Ideas don't always come to me fully formed either. Sometimes they are more of a seed, but with age or experience or developing skills sometimes those seeds from years ago become a viable series.

EN: What are you working on now?

SG: I have some Chameleon paintings I'm busily finishing for a small June showing at Gallery 360 in Minneapolis. I just sent a bunch of work up to The Big Lake store opening in Grand Marais in May. I also just sent some work out to Coastal Contemporary Gallery in Rhode Island that I recently connected with. It's an exciting time. :)

EN: I see your work at Lizzard’s, Art on the Planet and Lakeside Gallery. Anywhere else in town?

SG: I have a rotating selection of work at Amity Coffee as well as a collection of paintings and prints at Makers Mercantile in West Duluth.

* * * *
To see and purchase more of Shawna's work, visit www.shawnagilmore.com

Meantime, art goes on all around you. Get into it.

Local Art Seen: Robin Murphy and the Clay Show in Duluth

Gatherer by Barb Broadwell

Nine days ago I shared images from the Possession Show, which will be on display in the Morrison Gallery at the Depot till November 2, and Canvas of Flesh. This past Thursday the Duluth Art Institute (DAI) held the opening reception for its three current shows, which included Robin Murphy's New Work in the Steffl Gallery.

Robin Murphy lives in Bayfield, on the south shore of Lake Superior. This truly great lake inspires artists on all of its shores, from Thunder Bay down through Grand Marais to the tip here in the Twin Ports and on to points east in Wisconsin. Little hideaways like Cornucopia and Oulu and Madeline Island are rich with arts expression.

Murphy received her M.F.A. from the Cranbrook Academy of Art and has taught here at the University of Minnesota, Duluth among other places. Like much of our local talent, their work has a far great reach than simply this region.

Robin Murphy's New Work

Evidently the past few years have proven to be a time of transition for her. When I found her artist statement on her website, it seemed to make a good to introduce you to what her current work is about. You'll want to be sure to check it out. In person it's simply wonderful. Thank you, Robin, for sharing yourself here at the DAI.

The Explanation

My work has undergone major transitions the past two years, from functional ceramics to animal and figurative sculpture. I have always been interested in sculptural work but didn't know where to begin. It's difficult to try something new when you have achieved a certain level of success with your present artistic direction.

The initial animal pieces were simple silhouettes resting in pot-like forms and highly decorated. Once I decided to abandon the pot and just make the animals/figures, a new door opened artistically for me. Function and decoration were no longer the issue, it was now about the animals/figures and how they exist as objects in contemporary society; what are they doing, asking, implying. Those questions became the basis for investigation.

Perplexing Endeavors

Each piece presents a range of didactic possibilities. How the work exists sculpturally as a 3-dimensional piece is layered with the emotional response posture, gaze, surface treatment, etc., suggests. How to marry the particular animal or figurative form with this myriad of possibilities is the challenge. The reward begins at that extraordinary moment of recognition within the clay, whether intended or something surprisingly different, but you see it and work with it to completion; then, give it to the world and begin again.

Meantime, art goes on all around you. Engage it!