Artist Survey #14: Lindsey Lutts

I met Lindsey during preparations for the Returning Show. The punk rock attitude captured in many of her photos contrasted nicely with the clean photography of other artists (check out her web page for more examples). She grew up here in Sonora and has since moved to the Bay Area. Despite the distance she is always willing to make the drive up to the foothills to help with our struggling youth art scene. Look for her work at the next foothill art event.

lovedeath

necklace

(Ocean Necklace by Lindsey – Silver hand made chain mail all soldered
with turquoise and hydrologic press silver charms etched in acid.)

boat

Name: Lindsey

Location: San Francisco

Medium(s): Photographer, Metal Artist/ Jewelry, Ceramics, Knitting, Graphic Designer

What do you consider yourself (artist/designer/other)? Starving Artist maybe because I am still trying to figure out how to do it for a living. It’s hard to consider myself an artist when everyone thinks they are an artist. Anyone with a finger can push a button on a camera. It takes a lot to stand out in the world today and to not blend in with the masses.

Where can we see your work (place/publications/url)? Photolindsey.com but it is very out of date. Myspace.com/photolindsey has weekly updates of musician/band photos.

When did you start gaining interest in artistic forms of expression? Ever since I can remember.

Who/What inspired your interest? Almost anything can inspire me, a color or combination of colors, a smell that reminds me of a time, a feeling, the way light falls upon something, and pretty much every kind of art.

Where do you first remember being exposed to art? My family has always encouraged me be artistic from the time I could hold a paint brush. We made ceramics, paintings, and various crafts all the time. When I was 12 I took an underwater photo with one of those plastic disposable cameras that came out pretty cool. I think it still might be my favorite photo I have taken. Right away it stood out so my Grandma took it to get enlarged at a photo shop. Someone there saw it and bought a large copy for his law office wall. When my Grandma called me from the print shop and asked me if she could sell it and than brought me a check, I realized that this was what I was going to do for the rest of my life.

What is your day job? Accountant (yeah boring I know). I have worked in many types of photography jobs in the past but sold out for the higher paying job. I am not sure if I would recommend it but I have learned a ton that will help me when I decide to start my own business.

Why do you create? It is the only thing I do that makes me completely one hundred percent happy. It is my escape from the world but it is also my interpretation of the world and how it affects me.

Is there any recurring theme in your work? I go through different phases and if I figure out what they are at the time I am shooting them instead of after, I go with it and try to stick with it. It is usually just one word like decay, serenity, or sound…

What do you want from your work? I don’t think I want it to give me anything but I will give to it. Does that make sense at all? Haha

What do you want viewers to take from your work? To see me. Also if my work provokes a feeling inside someone no matter what the feeling is, it is successful.

How often do you work on personal projects? Always. I consider it all personal.

How often do you work on commissions or commercial work? I work for a small magazine photographing bands and submit to many other magazines monthly. Some of my photos will be in AMP Magazine’s next issue. I recently set up a studio in my house so I am starting to shoot a lot more band portraits, families, kids, and pin ups.

Does your art support you financially? No, that is my ultimate goal though.

Do you feel preoccupied with your art, do you think about it often during the day and night and do you anticipate your next session? Yes, like right now I am at work and really need to be at home working on some Riverboat Gamblers photos for a magazine. If I wait too long, other photos will be used.

What do you do in your spare time besides your art? It is really hard for me to go anywhere without a camera. I am trying to think of an instance when I do not have one with me. I think I am always working and looking for things that inspire me. It could be something as simple as a color or texture or something amazing that is just about to happen around the corner and I am ready for it. If I did not have my camera I would miss it. I have this strange kind of fear that I am going to miss something and in turn am constantly shooting. I do other things in my spare time but they always end up becoming about the photos that I can get while doing it.

Which musicians are you currently interested in? Gaslight Anthem, American Steel, Get Dead, Dead to Me, Samiam, The Clash, Drag the River, Devil Makes 3, Johnny Cash…

Are there any events you are looking forward to attending? Punk Rock Bowling in Las Vegas next week. Hundreds of bands and record labels form bowling teams and come from all over for a crazy week in Vegas. There are tournaments and shows going on the whole time. The teams all make their own uniforms and come to bowl and drink 24 hours a day. This is one of my favorite things to photograph every year.

Have you jeopardized or risked the loss of a significant relationship, job, educational or career opportunity because of your art? I don’t think so but I know a lot of people who have. I have only lost parts of myself and my time by not doing more art.

Do you work on multiple projects at once? Always. Imagine trying to take just one photo, or trying to choose just one after a shoot.

Do you have trouble parting with your finished work? Sometimes. I make handmade jewelry and that is much harder to part with than a photograph. A photograph can be duplicated in its raw form but Jewelry can not. I once spent over 200 hours on one piece and don’t see myself selling it anytime soon.

Artist Survey #12: Hanah Hicks

Hannah is basically my other sister. I have known her my whole conscious life and our families remain close friends. She is currently finishing up a degree in fashion and apparel design in San Francisco and hopes to start designing/manufacturing bold clothing and outerwear to fit today’s board culture.

fullzip

jacket

hoodie

Name: Hannah Hicks

Location: San Francisco, CA

Medium(s): Clothing.

What do you consider yourself (artist/designer/other)? Designer.

Where can we see your work (place/publications/url)? On people, in magazines. The ski and snowboard community. MySpace.

When did you start gaining interest in artistic forms of expression? I’ve always liked making things, but my fashion designing focus started about 3 years ago.

Who/What inspired your interest? I was inspired by a woman I lived with when I was in New Zealand. She taught me how to create my own clothes instead of using a pattern.

Where do you first remember being exposed to art? From an infant when my dad would play his guitar and sing.

What is your day job? In the winter I work in the Sports Shop at a ski resort.

Why do you create? To inspire others.

Is there any recurring theme in your work? I like to collaborate with my friends and family.

What do you want from your work? I want to make people feel better about themselves and happier with life in general.

What do you want viewers to take from your work? I want them to find innovation.

How often do you work on personal projects? Once a month or so. But these projects stem into lines that are for others.

How often do you work on commissions or commercial work? Never.

Does your art support you financially? Not yet.

Do you feel preoccupied with your art, do you think about it often during the day and night and do you anticipate your next session? I think about it all the time. I check out pretty much every person I pass. Haha. I am always looking for a source of inspiration. I should execute my ideas more though.

What do you do in your spare time besides your art? I travel and enjoy the snow and go to school.

Which musicians are you currently interested in? I will always be a fan of the Beastie Boys and Sublime. I am getting more into the Brazilian Girls, although I haven’t heard much of them. And I love to dance to BLVD!

Are there any events you are looking forward to attending? Yea. Sea of Dreams. Everyone should go. Its gonna be an amazing new years eve party in SF.

How long do you generally take on a piece? It depends on what it is. I can make a shirt in about a week. Or it can take me a few months to plan out an outerwear jacket.

Have you jeopardized or risked the loss of a significant relationship, job, educational or career opportunity because of your art? I think that art has only been beneficial in my life. Who needs money?

Do you work on multiple projects at once? Not usually. I usually work on multiple pieces at the same time but they are all part of the same line.

Do you have trouble parting with your finished work? Most of the time. Sometimes I make a few of each piece just so I can have one around. But I usually just take lots of pictures. I wish I had a website to show you all. Coming soon, hopefully. Most of my pictures from my first two collections are on myspace.com/hanneyhi. Just take a look in my pictures in my Palindome:We’re Gonna make it Album. Thanks!!!

palindrometat

Artis Survey #7: Paris Raupach

(Domestic Spying)

(Gay Marriage)

(Capital Punishment)

Name: Paris Raupach

Location: San Francisco, CA

Medium(s): Watercolor, Digital

What do you consider yourself (artist/designer/other)? Artist/Illustrator/reluctant designer

Where can we see your work (place/publications/url)? www.parisraupach.com

When did you start gaining interest in artistic forms of expression? I’ve been drawing and creating art for as long as I can remember.

Who/What inspired your interest? I don’t know if I had a specific inspirational figure, but my parents always encouraged my artistic tendencies.

Where do you first remember being exposed to art? I remember having a baby sitter who always had us doing crafts… paper bag puppets and things like that. I always liked making things with my hands.

What is your day job? Custom picture framing

Why do you create? I have to… I’m driven to it. I’m naturally lazy so if it weren’t something that nagged at me all the time I probably wouldn’t bother.

Is there any recurring theme in your work? Yes. Politics almost always finds it’s way into my work.

What do you want from your work? Essh… what a question. Practically… employment, spiritually… I’d like to shock my audience into questioning their preconceived notions about a given subject.

What do you want viewers to take from your work? I would like people to ask themselves why they accept a particular belief as true. They may change their mind or reinforce what they already believed, but what I’m looking for is the act of questioning.

How often do you work on personal projects? These days… not so much. In a bit of a rut.

How often do you work on commissions or commercial work? These days…not so much. 😉 Not enough to quit the day job anyway. I’ll usually get a design job every couple months or so.

Does your art support you financially? Nope.

Do you feel preoccupied with your art, do you think about it often during the day and night and do you anticipate your next session? Yes. I constantly have new ideas. The difficulty is finding the time and motivation to work. Making art is not easy and can be heart breaking. Right now I’m having trouble getting started, but the ideas are always there.

What do you do in your spare time besides your art? Spare time? I guess walk the dog, or watch a good movie. I definitely spend too much time watching T.V. I am a news junky. I’m always reading political blogs or listening to talk radio.

Which musicians are you currently interested in? I’ve been rediscovering hip hop in my older years. Right now I’m really into Lupe Fiasco.

Are there any events you are looking forward to attending? I’m looking forward to going to the San Francisco Symphony. I’ve never been. It seems like something really classy to do.

How long do you generally take on a piece? I can put something together from concept to sketch to final painting within a day or two, but I usually spend a week or so on a painting.

Have you jeopardized or risked the loss of a significant relationship, job, educational or career opportunity because of your art? Yep. Ended a six year relationship in part to pursue an art career. I also quit a pretty well paying job to go back to art school.

Do you work on multiple projects at once? Sometimes.

Do you have trouble parting with your finished work? Eh… not so much. I always photograph and often make prints of my work so I have a record. Plus my goal is to sell it, so it’s a good thing when a painting goes out the door and I have a check in my hand!

Graffiti

This is some script on the side of a mail box in San Francisco, CA. I have a great fascination with graffiti, but not the stones, nor the disrespect for public property to participate. Or course I live in a small, rural town which still holds some natural beauty, rather than a concrete jungle where most graffiti is found. And, of course, the possibility for anoninimity drops incredibly as the population does. I will post more graffiti as I capture it.