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Last week, we sat down with our spring instructor, Marshall Jones, and asked some questions about his studio practice...
Do you have any particular rituals in your practice (sweeping the studio, meditating, listening to music, etc)?
MJ: The studio is a very special place; it's where I feel most myself. Routines get Ritualized in special places. First I will choose a record according to my mood. Music is very important to me and physical records help me be more intentional with what I listen to. Then I will sit in my chair and organize my palette while looking at the painting I will work on this helps me make a plan for the day, then I will start to mix colors according to the plan. I always listen to things while I paint– music, podcasts and books. It's a great way to learn while my eyes are busy– my ears are open. I've listened to a ton of books. However sometimes that can tax my attention so I have to choose when to put on a book. Podcasts are great comfort like a friend but it's getting harder to find interesting information with those. Music is best but it's hard to just listen to music all day.
What is the relationship between Marshall the teacher and Marshall the artist? How do they influence each other?
MJ: They definitely do. For me art is all about questions. I think we can often get into mindsets where we reason, explain and try to make fit, but I think the great artist questioned, however, that can be a difficult place to live in with all that uncertainty. But with teaching you realize that you have a lot of answers. It's grounding to to be able to give others insightful answers.
James Elkins talks about painters thinking in their own, non-verbal language: the language of viscosity, the syntax of color, words in the pressure on the brush. Does that resonate with you? Do you ever struggle to explain in words what you already explained in paint?
MJ: I'm fairly verbal, maybe for that reason I’m suspicious of language. I can see how it’s misinterpreted and manipulated. For me personally painting an image is much more honest and less gets lost in translation. I look to David Lynch in this regard. How his films don’t rely on conventional narrative manipulation. but they make perfect sense In the visuals almost as if your subconscious understands and relates to them in a more profound and direct way.
You just got back from residency in upstate New York at KinoSaito. What was your time at KinoSaito like, and how are you transitioning back to your studio practice after residency? What feels different, where is your work heading now?
MJ: That was an amazing experience! My life was on pause and I was able to focus on creating. I found my routine shifted to a more generative schedule. In my regular life days are more fractured, which leads into more task focused studio time I get in and focus on what I'm going to paint that day. On the residence the line blurred leading to more sketching and image generating time a bit looser and intuitive studio life. I would love to keep that flow moving forward but life’s demands have a compartmentalizing effect on me. I'm fascinated by how creative we naturally become when we have time. It’s a shame that time isn’t a reasonable expectation for us. I mean scheduling a phone call or remembering to write a email will take me right out of a creative space. Coming out of the residence my work is completely different. I feel like I’ve been able to synthesize what I love about Ab-Ex paintings and representation in a way that feels fresh and exciting to me.
What is it like to be on the other side of the interview? (We love The Art Grind Podcast!)
MJ: It's interesting, it's much more relaxed on this side of the questions!
We can't wait to host Marshall for Indirect Figure Painting in Acrylics and Oils from May 18th - 24th, 2024 - have you signed up yet?
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