q)please tell us a brief info about yourself.
a)My name is Shawn Eisenach, I live in Northern California and like to draw and make prints.
q)Tell us about your humble beginnings, When did you you first realise that you wanted to be an artist?
a)I didn’t start pursuing art seriously until college. I took an etching class and it clicked somehow.
q)What are your tools of the trade and why?
a)For the last couple of years I’ve been drawing primarily with rapidograph and fountain pens. I like using a fountain pen to get the contours in place and using the rapidograph for detail and hatching. Using the fountain pen makes for quicker drawing, and a wider range of line quality. These days, unless I’m working on a show, I only draw in a sketchbook. I like keep the drawings in black and white so they reproduce better. I can then post them online, burn them to silkscreens/lithograph or use them as guides for etching.
q)Who or what gives you inspiration on your morbid art?
a)I’m a big people watcher.
q)Is your artistic background self-taught or did you go to college to study?
a)I went to college and have a BFA and MFA in printmaking.
q)How do you keep “fresh” within your industry?
a)I don’t spend a lot of time thinking about that.
q)What are some of your current projects?
a)Right now I’m working on some drawings for Canteen (http://canteenlife.com/) in Ottawa for an Alice in Wonderland group show.
q)Which of your works are you the most proud of? And why?
a)I’m pretty obsessive with my sketchbooks. With my artwork I find that after a while I hate all of it. But I never get tired of looking through the sketchbooks.
q)Are there any areas, techniques, mediums, projects in your field that you have yet to try?
a)I’ve always wanted to learn engraving... Its one printmaking technique I’ve never really gotten a handle on. I’ve been looking at a lot of commercial prints from the turn of the century and just really enjoy that specific type of line.
q)What do you do to keep yourself motivated and avoid burn-out?
a)Reading helps. You’ve got to fill the well somehow. I find that traveling or just being somewhere new is great for inspiration. The biggest thing is to just work through the burn-out.
q)how do you spend most of your free time?
a)If I’m not drawing, I’m probably reading, wasting time on the internet, or watching a film.
q)What contemporary artists or developments in art interest you?
a)I’m looking forward to the SFMOMA’s Luc Tuymans retrospective in February. But lately I’ve been more interested in older artists then new. That being said, I’ve really enjoyed the resurgence in zines and artist books.
q)We really like some of your pictures, how can we get our hands on them? Do you sell them? How?
a)You can go to my web site www.wholewheattoast.com, or Flickr at http://www.flickr.com/photos/wholewheattoast/. Recently I’ve been excited by services like Society6 or Magcloud for providing print on demand options.
