Artist Interview | John Wolseley

Summary

The artist shares their deep connection to nature and how it inspires their creative process. They discuss using organic materials like clay and watercolor to reflect the natural world, along with employing ancient techniques like stenciling. The artist views their work as a gesture that harmonizes with nature, aiming to capture its rhythms. Emphasizing spontaneity, they allow nature to leave its marks on their pieces, symbolizing a partnership between the artist and the environment. Through their art, they seek to bridge the gap between the human-made and the natural world, celebrating the dynamic flow of life.

Takeaways

• 😀 The artist views their work as a way to reconnect with nature and the world, aiming to bridge the gap between humanity and the natural environment.
• 😀 A quote by Daryl Blake is referenced, suggesting that true joy comes from embracing life's flow rather than trying to control it.
• 😀 The artist practices an ancient 16th-century art technique called 'sugar random bit like a stencil,' emphasizing the importance of ancient methods in their creative process.
• 😀 The artist compares their work to scientific exploration, showing how natural processes can be captured through art, likening it to what scientists do when they study the natural world.
• 😀 The artwork includes elements from the natural world, such as clay and organic shapes, reflecting the artist's desire to integrate with the environment rather than impose on it.
• 😀 The artist celebrates the preservation of a wetland, using it as a subject of their artwork, representing nature's resilience against human development, such as encroaching cotton farms.
• 😀 The use of watercolor and clay in their paintings symbolizes the earth and its organic forms, contrasting with the straight lines of industrial farming.
• 😀 The artist incorporates a playful, almost performance-like approach to creating art, imagining themselves as a tractor moving through the landscape, creating marks that reflect the environment.
• 😀 The artist contrasts the 'magisterial gaze' of imposing one's will on art with their own approach, which involves a more humble, interactive, and natural way of working.
• 😀 Some works are left to interact with the environment, such as leaving a piece of paper in the burnt valley for months, allowing nature to leave its marks, reflecting the spontaneity of the natural world.

Q & A

Why does the artist paint, and what is the primary purpose behind their artistic practice?

The artist paints to connect with nature and the world around them, aiming to restore a sense of belonging and connection. They seek to bridge the gap between humanity and the natural world, aligning with its rhythms and using its materials.

What is the significance of the quote by William Blake mentioned in the transcript?

The quote by William Blake emphasizes the fleeting nature of joy when it's possessed selfishly, in contrast to the eternal nature of joy when it's appreciated in its natural flow, symbolizing a deeper connection with life.

What does the artist mean by 'entering into the flow of the natural world'?

The artist refers to the process of becoming in tune with nature, observing and participating in its cycles and rhythms. This approach involves using natural materials and being attuned to their inherent properties to bridge the human-nature divide.

What is the role of science and nature in the artist's work?

The artist incorporates scientific curiosity and natural history into their work, using their understanding of nature to demonstrate how things work. They see their creative process as similar to scientific exploration, observing and documenting nature's processes.

How does the artist use clay and watercolor in their work?

The artist uses watercolor to depict organic forms, while clay is employed to represent the earth. This dual approach helps highlight the contrast between the natural world and the structured, human-altered environments like cotton farms.

What is the 'magisterial gaze' and how does the artist’s approach differ from it?

The 'magisterial gaze' refers to the imposition of one’s own ideas onto a subject. In contrast, the artist deliberately avoids this, opting instead for a more interactive and fluid approach where the artwork evolves organically, influenced by external forces like nature.

How does the artist use paper and natural elements in their creative process?

The artist sometimes lets a piece of paper wander in nature for months, allowing it to be inscribed by natural elements like charcoal or leaves, creating organic marks that reflect the interactions between the paper and the environment.

What is the significance of burying paintings and letting them interact with nature?

Burying the paintings for a year allows nature to interact with the artwork, leaving behind delicate traces like filigree from leaves or markings from insects. This process transforms the artwork, adding a new layer of meaning and connection to the natural world.

What does the artist mean by 'drawing as a gesture made permanent'?

Drawing is seen as a physical, spontaneous gesture that, once made, is immortalized on paper. The artist sees their work as a reflection of natural movements, capturing the flow of life and energy in a permanent form.

How does the artist view the relationship between their art and the landscape?

The artist views their art as a dance with the landscape, where the marks made on the paper are a reflection of the trees, earth, and natural environment around them. The artwork becomes an embodiment of the land’s movements and rhythms.