martedì 23 febbraio 2010

Interview with Alex Chavez





q) Well, first of all please tell us a little about yourself.


a)I was born in East Los Angeles, California. Where after achieving a

Bachelors of Fine Arts degree I painted portraits and murals and

worked in the graphic arts field. 15 years ago I moved to the town

where my mother was born. Taos, New Mexico. Where I currently reside.



q) Had you always planned on being an artist [or had you other hopes]?



a)I've always been and will be an artist first and foremost. I started drawing

and painting since I was 5 or 6 years old. And received accolades from

almost everyone who saw my work. Which in turn reinforced my need to create them.


q) Do you have a preferred medium to work on? Why?



a)I put down my paint brushes in 1999 to work digitally. I felt was a new

medium for our age and best expressed my art philosophy that art history

as a linear progression has reached an end by fulfilling its goals. Leaving us

only to keep reworking the art of the past by exploring new mediums


q) How would you describe your style?



a)My work is a mash-up of appropriated images creating new

Gods, Goddesses and Deities. Demons and Angels, Saints and Sinners.

And generally images that arouse contemplation, mystery and hopefully

conversation. My methods employ sampling, cutting and pasting images

from a variety of paintings, photographs and scanned in objects.

Recombinant re-workings of old art and themes into new icons.


q) Do you go through any certain processes while trying to produce your work?



a)I usually have an image in my mind that inspires me. (actually I always

have a few of these backlogged). But the end result is a total surprise to me.

Sometime shockingly so. I hunt and scour for images to sample, finding surprises

along the way. I suppose you can call the process is combination of intuition,

sub-conscious seepage, and accidental serendipity.


q) What are you working on at present?



a)I've left creating images of religious criticism and am now exploring art criticism.

I hate being so specific in interpreting my work. How the viewer interprets my work

is much more important.


q) What about recent sources of inspirations?



a)Art philosophy, art history.


q) What are some of your obsessions?



a)wine, women & music.


q) Which galleries have you shown at and which galleries would you like to show at?



a)Jennie Cooly Gallery Santa Fe, NM. 105 Studios Albuquerque, NM.

National Hispanic Cultural Center Museum of ArtAlbuquerque, NM

I would like to start showing outside of New Mexico.


q) If people would like to contact you, how would you like to be contacted?



a)http://www.alexchavez.com


q) Do you have any suggestions or advice for artists that are just starting out?



a)Do your art for the love of it not to get rich. And to get rich invest your money in assets not liabilities.


q) Who are your favorite artists?



a)Raphael, Hieronymus Bosch, Picasso, Salvador Dali, Francis Bacon, Andy Warhol, Joel Peter Witkins.


q) What books are on your nightstand?



a)The 4 hour work week, Tim Ferris. I am secretly an important man, Steven Jesse Bernstein. Ubik, Philip K. Dick


q) To what weaknesses are you most indulgent?



a)My obsessions (see above)


q)….your contacts…



a)info@alexchavez.com

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