I'm a sucker for paintings. Especially ones with extreme sources of light (think ala Edward Hopper), so when I first came across the Etsy shop http://intothepaint.etsy.com, I was immediately smitten. The artist, Adalberto Ortiz, was kind enough to answer my interview questions, so let's all get to know him better.
1.
Were you always an art kid, or did you stumble upon it later in life?
You
might say I was an "art kid." I had the advantage of
growing up in a big city, New York. I went to the High School of
Music and Art in Manhattan where art was a big part of the
curriculum. I also was fortunate enough to live in a city where I can
just take a subway ride to some of the greatest museums in the world.
Looking at art on the web or print cannot compare with actually being
inches away from it. You react differently to a painting or any art
piece depending on its size. That’s also part of the art
experience. You can look at an 8 by 8 inch painting of an apple, for
instance, and feel one way but if you were to see the same painting
at a different scale, say 8 by 8 feet, you would react differently.
The meaning changes, the impact is different. The artist is conveying
something else at that bigger scale. I remember looking at Picasso’s Guernica when it lived at the Museum of Modern Art (it is now in
Spain). It was big, in its own room, surrounded with other smaller
studies for the work. You could actually see the artist’s work
process through the smaller studies right there in that room.
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| Dewey Grain Elevator. |
2.
What style of art is your favorite and why?
I
really have no favorite. I like art for many reasons. Like everyone
else, I like to look at art and respond to it emotionally, as when a
landscape painting captures the time of day or season so perfectly,
with just the right colors and light, that you just feel it in the
painting, or a painting of a portrait that reveals what the subject
is feeling or thinking. I saw a painting at The Wexner Center for the Arts gallery in Ohio by Luc Tuymans, a large painting of a baby’s
face surrounded be a soft white blanket. The painting was called
Silence. It just felt very quiet. I also like David Hockney’s
painting of a flower in a vase in front of a blue Mt. Fuji (Mt. Fuji and Flowers). The flower looks like it’s rendered in 3d. It just
pops out. How did he do that? How can I do that? But, I love to look
at art conceptually as well. I like it when art reveals a double
meaning. I like texture and composition. I like minimalism in art. I
even admire the frame—how clean and perfect–around a painting or
a simple white pedestal holding a sculpture. The presentation of art
is also part of the joy.
3.
What do you use for inspiration, or how do you generate ideas?
Well,
you really don’t generate ideas. They are discovered, mostly.
I don’t look for a subject to paint. I don’t say “I'm going to
paint a still life of a flower in a vase today.” Now, you might
start off with your still life arrangement, but it’s unimportant.
It is how the compositing sits within the picture frame, or the
negative background shapes, or just the light that is important.
Those are the elements that matter to me. The subject can be
anything. You don’t wait for inspiration. Once you start
doing–applying paint to a surface, if you are a painter, you will
begin to see, discover. Anything, any object or scene can be
rediscovered as art. Once you start applying paint to your canvas,
the painting starts talking to you, it will suggest what to do next.
In other words, you give to it and it will give back to you. One
hopes for something unexpected, accidental, and surprising to occur
in order to harness and shape it into something interesting as art.
If I am painting an image of a house, I am really looking at the
negative spaces, the surroundings, and trying to make those shapes
interesting. Perhaps that is what’s important in the painting, the
background, or maybe some object in the corner of the painting will
draw my attention. You don’t need to paint the sky blue. It can be
any color: red, black. You might purposely simplify parts of your
painting in order to draw attention to something else on your canvas.
In other words, nothing needs to be what it appears. In my painting
(Red House) for example, there is a strong white horizontal line
across the canvas. That is an element of the house, the fascia but,
at the same time, because I’ve made it so prominent and flat, it
attracts attention as just an abstract shape dividing the surface.
4.
Walk us through your creative process from idea to finished project.
I
carry a small notebook around to dash down ideas, thumbnail sketches.
I also take digital pictures of anything that captures my interest
and that I want to use as inspiration or to paint from. If I have an
idea, say for a painting, I usually upload my image, however rough,
to my computer. There I manipulate it. I introduce new elements,
rearrange parts, eliminate areas, and simplify. I try out different
compositions and color. With smaller works I sometimes make a print
on canvas or paper with my home printer and start painting right over
the print. When you paint over your print it will sometimes
pick up the ink pigments, resulting in unexpended color bleeds. This
could be interesting. However, I often apply fixative to prevent this
so that I have more control over my colors. I also desaturate the
print so that it is just barely visible. Once I’m well into my
painting, I take a digital image of it and upload it to my computer.
There I try out different color values before going back to the
actual work. I agonize over the work a lot especially when I need to
get the perfect color and value. The computer makes this easier. I
really dread mixing colors and don’t like to spend time gridding my
canvas to transfer an image to it. Another way I work is totally on
the computer. I sometimes use a 3d modeling program to create a still
life or interior painting. I construct my subjects in 3d environment,
arrange the elements in space, and digitally light it. I can
endlessly rearrange things, light it in many different ways and use
my software camera tools to compose a pleasant composition. I can use
multiple camera angles and lighting to explore possibilities. I can
also play with color and values endlessly. My paintings (Open Sky and
Ofrenza) were created totally by this method.
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| Page Corner Print No. 1. |
5.
What is a typical day in your life?
Well,
I don’t paint every day, but I do a lot of thinking about art. I
will do several works in a short period of time. I’m always looking
to see what in my environment, as I proceed through my day, I can use
as a creative spark or idea for my next work. My series of magazine
page corners (Page Corner #1–#6) were inspired by looking
through magazines. I noticed how earmarked magazine pages, when
folded over, reveal the page underneath. I noticed that, together,
the folded image and the partial graphic under created an interesting
abstract single image.
6.
What do you think draws you to other people's work?
I
gravitate toward other people’s work because I often want to create
art the way they do. I wish I had done it first. I am envious. I like
to discover how other artists solve problems. I’m intrigued by how
some artists take an idea and interpret it as art. I admire how some
painters can use their skill with a brush to depict everyday objects,
light, or garments so economically perfect. Think of John Singer
Sargent for example.
 |
| Coca-Cola. |
7.
What are your interests/hobbies?
I
have an interest in theatre. I studied set design at NYU and have
been involved in theatrical productions as a designer. I like
building things. I am interested in 3d art and design. I also have a
strong interest in architecture and product design.
8.
Is this your full time job, or do you have a job out-of-studio?
Right
now this is my job and interest. I’ve done graphic design and done
commercial work designing TV newsroom and studios in the past. I am
always open to doing commercial design work. I’ve done several book
cover designs as a freelancer.
 |
| Page Corner Print No. 3. |
9.
What is your favorite piece you've ever made and why?
There
is no favorite piece. If I had to choose it would be the one I’m
currently working on. I lose interest in my older work. I often see
things in hindsight that I could have done better. Sometimes,
however, a friend or viewer will see something in one of my paintings
that I never intended or planned. For example, I have a painting of
an interior (Moonlight through Window) with a window and moonlight
reflected on a wall. The light on the wall is painted with metallic
silver paint. My son observed that when viewed straight on, you can
see the metallic moonlight clearly on the wall, but when viewed from
the side, the light disappears. The metallic paint color blends with
the wall color. That was a pleasant surprise and added more interest
to the painting.
 |
| Red House. |
10.
What advice would you give to an artist just starting out in the
business world?
Don’t
quit your day job. If you’re truly interested in being an artist,
just stick with it. Over time, you really need to create a lot of
work and have a distinctive style or concept that defines your work,
if you want to exhibit professionally. I would highly recommend
Jackie Battenfield’s The Artist’s Guide to read.
11.
Describe your work space.
My
current workspace is really unsuitable for creating art. Ideally, if
you like to draw or paint at a desk you should be standing. And the
desk should be high enough for that. While I like painting big, I
have focused lately on doing smaller pieces. You can generate more
art quickly and can develop your techniques faster. So I am using a
desk that is totally unsuitable. Ideally, if I had a perfect studio,
I would just staple my board/canvas to a wall or place on the floor
and go at it. I think one has to have an unencumbered space to move
around freely. Make a mess!
 |
| White Farm House. |
12.
Did you face any setbacks on your path to being an artist?
Yes.
Unless you’re independently wealthy most artists have to make a
living, somehow. I had to get a “real” job, leaving little time
to paint. So choose your work and lifestyle carefully to allow enough
time to do art. That said, no matter how much you love art, people
and family are more important.
 |
| Studio Space with Messy Desk (my desk looks very similar). |
13.
What milestones, goals, or achievements are you striving for right
now?
I
like conceptual art. I like to paint bigger and use more unusual and
unconventional subjects and material. I am drawn toward a more
minimalist style of work. I am currently working on a series of 3d
conceptual artwork (Surrender). I am taking several simple identical
wooden chairs and creating a series of 3d conceptual artwork by
altering, repurposing them in interesting and unique way (Artifact). Of course,
it would be nice to be able to make a living with your art.
You can also find him:
Art Website: http://cargocollective.com/ortiz
Theatre Website: http://www.coroflot.com/ortizdesign
Thank you so much for letting us into your creative process. I really enjoyed your answers, especially about what draws you to other people's work because my answer would be very similar yours. I wish you all the best with your future work, and I hope this little blip brings lots of new viewers to your work.
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