001 How does your background (family, place of birth, social, etc.) affect the work you produce today?
It doesn't.
002 Do you have concerns or fears about the future of the arts, especially as concerns funding and social valuing of the arts, in the current sociopolitical climate? Do you think about these kinds of issues in relation to your work?
No.
003 What life experiences have been the most important in inspiring/determining/ framing/ your work?
My time in the United States Peace Corps program. I am a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer. I was in Papua New Guinea 1999-2001.
004 How did your experiences in Papua New Guinea affect your work?
So many languages! I tell people it is like going to a big city and every block or two a new language is spoken. Fortunately English and Pidgeon English got me through my time there.
005 How has your work changed and evolved (if it has) over the years?
While the pattern(s) have not changed, the materials I use in making the pieces are always changing.
006 How long have you been an artist/sculptor?
Professionally, the day I walked in through the front door at the Johnson Atelier And Technical School For Sculpture. That was October 11th, 2001. One month after 9/11.
007 When did you first know you would like to sculpt or be an artist?
My background was welding automation: robotics, seam welders, circumferential welders, etc. One day an artist walked in with a piece from his studio he was making as a visual for the Philadelphia Flower Show. He asked my boss if he could get it blasted so he could paint it. I just thought, how cool is that!
008 Can you define art for you personally?
Nah.
009 Does your art have political and/or social functionality?
What is this, question number nine of two hundred? For right now then, let's me just say no.
010 Does/should art in general have political functionality?
I suppose it could. Mine doesn't.
011 What separates/distinguishes sculpture from painting and other, possibly more familiar, visual arts?
So as not to offend anyone, let me just say that to me sculpture has more physical . . . depth. Yeah, depth. I can live with that answer.
012 What distinquishes, or is special to, sculpture and visual arts in relation to other arts (performing, literary, etc.)?
It communicates through the visual. For example, while I do not speak Chinese, I can go to China and look at sculpture there or look at sculpture made by a Chinese artist and visually see what he is presenting. Now if I was blind, I could use my hands then to "see" the object.
013 Do you find that the various art forms have more in common or more that separates them from one another?
I'll just say that I feel all art is a form of communication and leave it at that.
014 Where, if at all, do you think the arts overlap and complement one another?
A live simulcast opera shown at a local venue. I've been trying to catch at least one of the Met Opera productions per year. It has it all: singing, set construction, dance, orchestrated music, a thematic story, the pressure of performing live . . . . I love it.
015 Can you link your work to a particular artistic period or school? (e.g. Surrealism, abstract modern, realist impressionist, expressionist, etc.)
A co-worker tagged it once but I can't remember what he said. But of course that was his opinion, and artists are opinionated people.
016 Who are the artists who have influenced your work (even if you are not officially a part of that school of artistic thought or if that school does not exist in a current form)?
Who have influenced my work? None. Who have influenced me? Two. Mr Seward Johnson and Christo.
Mr. Johnson has over 700 life size pieces. To me, that is monumental. As for Christo, he made my dad laugh. "What a crazy nut." My dad was not one for expressing emotions so making him laugh made me laugh and feel good too.
017 Do you think that influence will show to the educated observer?
Not unless I tell them, which it seems I am doing right now.
018 Are there intentional homages to other works/artists in your work?
If there is, I make note of it either through the title or haiku. Young Marylin for Marylin Monroe. Andrew's Sarmata/God's Pinata for Andrew Pitynski. He's A Real Funny Bunny for my dad.
019 What do you hope people will think and feel when looking at your work?
Boy, he's a creative son of a bitch. And ultimately, I want them to say, I hope he can make his goal of eight hundred and ten. I'll even settle for Wow.
About goals : I saw a man walk on the moon in 1969. That was a team effort. I also remember seeing Hank Aaron break Babe Ruth's home run record. That was an individual effort.
020 Is there a message or messages you'd like people to receive from your work?
In Papua New Guinea, there was a tok pisin (Pidgeon English) expression used - "Olsem, na narapela". Translated, it goes as"all the same, yet different". Look at my cat sculptures - they are all the same, yet different. Now let's go one step further and equate that to people - we are all the same, yet different.
021 Do you see art in terms of communication?
Yes.
022 Out of all the arts, what attracts you to sculpture?
I especially love it when I have to fabricate, weld, and metal chase things. I love the heat, the noise, the dirt, the various tools needed to get the job done.
023 What do you think the 3-dimensional element of sculptural works adds or changes about the audience's experience of the works, as opposed to two-dimensional canvas or words on paper?
There is a 360 degree view.
024 Do you see art in terms of commenting on the external; as a tool of personal communication and creative expression; or as some combination of the above?
Combo.
025 One of your projects, as indicated on your website, involves sculpting a cat to match each of the 810 languages of Papua New Guinea. How do you represent a language in cat form?
Simple. I have a list from A to Z of all the languages in PNG based on what the Summer Institute of Linguistics compiled. When I make a sculpture, I take a picture of it, give it a number, and match that number up with the corresponding language from the list. it is purely methodical. No randomess. No favoritism. I am waiting for the day when a language group tries to bribe me into switching things around. Because that would mean to me that I am that much closer to getting the Kula ring going again. Let's get back to this later. This is the real important thing that would be my joy of joys.
026 Why is the cat your chosen form to explore this subject?
Cats are not indigenous to the island. They were introduced. Which is where my story of the first catin P.N.G. originated.
"About the time of the American Civil war, another sort of war was happening on a tall ship out in the western pacific. The ship's cat spied a rat, and what became known as the great chase began. Into every hold . . . up the great mast . . . into the crows nest . . . back down to the deck . . . even into the captain's quarters. When land was spotted, the rat knew what to do. He jumped off the ship hoping to escape the terror chasing him. But the cat was jumped off too! The chase took them through all the outlying islands of New Guinea. Next all the coastal towns. Way up into the mountains and then back out onto some more islands. Non stop. All in one night. Most people slept through the whole thing, thinking it was just another earthquake. But the next morning, as people were leaving their huts to get ready to go to work in their gardens, or to the market, or even just to go roundabout, they began to story about what happened. And the general word was that everyone knew what a rat was, but no one knew what was chasing it. No one had ever seen such an animal before. Those who did not see it asked those who did to describe it for them. "What did it look like?" Did it talk? Did it fly like a bird?" In one village, a girl said - "I will draw it for you in the dirt". In another, someone went to the local dump and came back with found objects to make one up. One carved one out of wood. And so on. Until every place had a visual of the animal that chased the rat. The animal we all know as cat.
027 Are there any memories or people from Papua New Guinea that you find particularly motivating and would like to share?
My mind is ready to explode! Visuals of faces, memories, sounds just flooded my head. Its like my life just passed before my eyes. Too many. No, not right now.
028 What did you learn or discover in/about Papua New Guinea?
I learned that people who live in grass huts sitting around three-stone fires laugh, cry, bleed, gamble and worry just like the rest of us.
030 To what degree have you studied the 810 languages?
Believe it or not we had classroom lessons for writing and speaking Pidgeon English. We even had a copy of an English to Pidgeon/Pidgeon to English dictionary that some missionaries published. I remember it had a bright yellow shiny cover. It is sitting on my bookshelf at home right now. With that and regular English we were able to communicate quite well. Generally at least one person in a village or area could speak some English. Enough for us to have meaningful conversations.
031 What do you know about them that you might use in your work?
I am not sure of the proper term but I love their double words: lik-lik, long-long, wil-wil, mu-mu, sip-sip, was-was, etc. So many of them. If I have not done already I know I want to incorporate the double word into at least one of my pieces.
032 How much do you have to know a language before you can create its cat?
Zip. That is why I am making them. Even though my story of the first cat a few questions back mentions how it ran through all the villages, I am pretty certain I could find a place or two today where a cat has never been seen. Some languages still might not have a word for cat. How can you have a word for something you have no concept of? Even us white people were still a novelty, especially in the remote mountain regions, to the point where people would sing out "White man comes!" and the adults would exit their huts and children would run after our vehicle as we drove through their village.
033 What kinds of materials do you sculpt with?
As for the metals, there is silicon bronze, brass, cast iron, aluminum and stainless steel. I have made castings from each of those. As for the rest, whatever I can get my hands on. Wood, clay, plastic, foam, acrylic, etc.
034 Do you have a particular artistic process that you can explain?
I'd love to. It all starts with an idea. For example, I have a book. On page one of that book I have a description of a cat - Pussy Full Of Holes. My notes say make a bronze pattern and then drill it full of different diameter holes and add raffia grass and patinate it green but patinate it before I drill the holes so that all the inside of each hole is golden like the raw metal. Right now I have four notebooks and I am up to cat/kitten idea number six hundred and eighty-nine. They are stored in a fire and water proof box. I have to go back and refer to my notes all the time and then also to see which ones I need to work on yet.
035 What kinds of hours do you work and why?
I work a normalfive day - forty hour week at the Seward Johnson Atelier where I work on Mr. Johnson's pieces. I have a studio nearby at the Grounds For Sculpture so I sometimes work there before my 8:00 a.m. start or on my morning break or hour lunch and sometimes after 5:00 p.m. when my regular day is done. I work at home in my basement shop or my dining room work table and on the weekends or holidays I often go back to the studio. When I pour metal I like to start early so I am starting at 4:00 a.m. And then sometimes I am sound asleep and wake up at 2:00 a.m. and get dressed and head off again to the studio. It is really a matter of whenever the muse strikes. So you see, my time for sculpture is pretty random. As opposed to when I would work on my screenplays. I needed no distractions or noises. I had to be rested and not would up from too much of the days excitement. I found the best time was right after Anne (my wife the bread baker) would leave for work - 1:30 a.m. I would sit and write until 3:00 a.m. Hop back into bed and sleep and then get up to go to work. I'd be fresh and wide awake. But figuring that out was a lot of trial and error.
036 Do you find a certain time of day or night more conducive/inspiring?
Every two weeks Anne will overnight down at her 91 year old dad's place. When she does that, I know I have usually 24 hours of making noises and messes in the house on my pieces and still have time to clean up before she gets home. I'll plan things out in my head like what pieces I want to make or photograph in my back of the house solarium and then as soon as she is out the door I begin and will usually not stop until I am all done.
037 How long do you work without stopping?
When I pour, those days (Saturdays or holidays) are from 4:00 a.m. to noon. Normal days would be 2-4 hours of physical work and then there is the time spent on the website or times when I am out at the stores getting supplies.
038 What are the mental, emotional, and physical demands of sculpting?
The mental part is staying focused on the big picture. The 810 project is my life work. Every now and then I might do a side job for a local art show, but really all my time and money and energy go into making the language cats.
Emotionally, it can be a bit rough when I get judged by people who say "Oh, he does cats." My work is about more than that but I've come to realize that if that's the way people want to pidgeon hole me then so be it.
Physically, sand molds can get pretty heavy. And getting up early or staying up late is not as easy as it used to be.
039 What does a typical "day at the office" look like?
My studio is located in a segregated building located in a 30 acre sculpture park - The Grounds For Sculpture located in central New Jersey. It's is a 30 minute bicycle ride from my house. I live by the Delaware river in Trenton, New Jersey.
Our building is madeup of about 20 artist studios. We are pretty lucky because we have bathrooms, showers, shop air to run our tools, heat in the winter, lighting, and even a place to pour our metal for those of us who sculpt. Not all of us are sculptors. Some are painters. They can be high maintenance because they hate all the dust and grindings sculptors tend to make. But we all get along.
In my studio, I have a green sand mold press, a shake out table, circular table saw, two pattern (jig) saws, a sand muller, a drill press, and various electric hand tools, air tools, and just various manual tools. I even have a chain hoist to lift my molds onto my special scissor jack. And two furnaces for pouring metal.
We generally have an open door policy, but if someone's studio door is shut and you knock and you do not get an answer then that means the person inside does not want to be bothered. Not that they are being rude, but go away and try again later I am in the middle of something is what is going on.
040 How did you get to where you are now, at Mr. Johnson's atelier?
When I got out of the Peace Corps, I was lucky enough to have friends who immediately hired me to scrape the paint off their Tudor style home. It gave me work and gave me money which is exactly what I needed. Then I put my resume out on the internet. Monster.com. Not sure if they even exist anymore. And then one day they (the atelier) called me and asked me if I was still interested. "Sure, but I am not an artist." And they replied - "We do not need artists - we have plenty of those. We need someone who can weld." So one weekend Anne and I drove up from the Philly suburbs and peaked in through the fence and I just knew I wanted to work there. Then we drove up to Princeton and on the health food co-op store was a sign: Bread Baker Needed. If Anne could bake bread in a drum oven In the bush in Papua New Guinea, then what the hell go in and apply. She did and she got hired before i did!
041 You sometimes work at home. What are the differences (benefits, drawbacks, etc.) between working at home and at the atelier?
At one time I did it all at the studio. That was when I still lived in the suburbs of Philadelphia and commuted everyday. Then when we moved to Trenton, I had the dirt floor in the cellar cemented over and started doing work down there. Then I just migrated upstairs into our dining room. It became my staging area for photo shoots out in our back porch solarium. I just have to keep it clean, unlike the studio at the Grounds.
042 Do you prefer one work space or the other?
My space at The Grounds For Sculpture is by far my favorite.
043 Website mentions spirituality; what is the spiritual component of your work?
It does? Hmm. Maybe in one of the haikus. I do not see my work as spiritual, at least not in the father- son - holy ghost way.
044 Is your work influenced or touched in any way by religion/faith?
I think I had a burst there where I did the Lord's Prayer (Catholic), Sanctus Bells (Catholic); Tibetan Shaker (Buddhist), and Muhammad's Cat (Islam) but other than that . . . . Praise Him was a recent one but that not so much about me but about the PNG people. They were big on religion whether animism or organized religion.
045 Can you define "spirituality" as it signifies to you?
5% alcohol content in a can of beer.
046 Where do find the intersection(s) between spirituality and art?
Having been raised a Roman Catholic, if you walk into any church, it is loaded with art - from hymnals to stained glass to sculpture. That is my extent of art and religion. Although, when I had Open Studio Day (we open our studio to the public) a few years ago, a local Jewish synagogue/school employee asked me if I would take some scrap brass/bronze to make some art with it. I was thrilled for the metal and told him I would not sell it on the internet or make pornographic art with it. He smiled at me and said "Don't worry, we are a liberal synagogue. You can do what you want with it." When I went to pick up the metal, he gave me a tour of the place. It was loaded with 1970's stained glass that had penises and .38 Special hand guns incorporated into them. Wow. Art has opened a lot of doors for me.
047 Is all art spiritual?
You are asking the wrong person.
048 Do cats have spiritual significance?
It is said that the old Egyptians worshiped them. I believe a cat was one of their gods, or should it be - one of their gods is a cat?
049 What other projects might you have in development or production, besides the cats?
Just the cats and kittens. And three screen plays I wrote.
050 Do you have multiple projects in development simultaneously, or just one at a time?
Rarely one at a time. Although right now "stilts cat" is the only one I got planned for the weekend.
051 Can you discuss the symbolic and thematic value of cats, in your work and generally?
Once again, I chose the cat for my pattern since it is not indigenous to Papua New Guinea. Think Santa Claus visiting every house in one night, but Santa is now a cat and instead of every house I just made it every language group.
In the U.S. back in the late 1940's - 1950's alien spaceships were the craze. Same thing. No one saw them before and suddenly they show up and everyone is talking about them. What were they called? Flying saucers, flying pie tins; UFO's (which is what they were really). Newspaper writers coined the term UFO and that stuck. Everybody jumped on board and next thing you know that is what we all called them. But what if we had no name? What if one of these things came to your street and you saw it and next day you had to describe it and give it a name? That is what I am doing with cats and PNG. But like I tell everyone, I am not a linguist. I could not make up 810 different words for cat but maybe i can physically represent it - 810 different ways. And remember, with nobody helping with suggestions. This is all on me. Not for ego purposes, but to see what my creative capacity is . . . to see what my stamina is . . . can I endure?
This all started one day at our first site in Tari when Handape (Hon - duh - pay) asked me about life back home in America. I was showing him some pictures and he saw our orange tabby Max and our Siamese Sophie. I asked him if he knew what they were and he said "cats". What would you call them in your native Huli language? "Cats." What would the people in Lae call them? "Cats?" Port Moresby? "Cats." I thought of every town/area/language group and every time he said cats. I was getting frustrated because I thought he didn't know what I was asking. We talked some more. He explained that all people in PNG know them as cats since when they were brought here that is what the foreigners called them or that is the name they learned in school. And this is how the seed got planted in me.
052 For your work, what is your ultimate vision?
This may sound crazy but I would love to make a slide show of all 810 finished pieces and show them on the big screen out in various bush villages and film and record their reaction. I even contacted an old friend who worked for NPR(National Public Radio) to feel her out on the idea but she told me when the U.S. economy tanked in the late 'oughts she had to give the that life and so she switched to something else - nursing. She did say she still had contacts who might be able to help me out so that kept me feeling positive. So that is crazy idea number one.
Crazy idea number two is a take on the old Kula trading ring. But instead of being out in the islands, I would have it open to all PNG. And what would they have to trade? The cats/kittens! It is simple really - village A contacts village B and says we want to rent your cat/kitten. Village B says okay, what will you give us and for how long are we talking? Back and forth they go on negotiating until success or failure. Maybe a village C comes along and competes with village B and then even more negotiating. Tempers flare! Fights break out! Men think about meeting new women/women meet new men, pigs slaughtered, food cooked, new clothes get worn, old tribal customs get shown off. Exciting times. Hope. Dreams. Cargo.
053 Do you have a "mission"?
To get all 810 pieces done before I die.
054 What do you hope people will gain from spending a day, or even a few hours, at your gallery?
You mean my website? I want to get their minds churning. I want to get them daydreaming.
055 Do you have ideas or "tips" on art appreciation for the curious?
Try to imagine the process. If you are looking at a stone sculpture, see it first as one giant block of stone. If the sculpture is metal, think of it as first a pot of molten metal. A painting, see the original blank canvas and try to think how you would go about getting to the final product. And if you get stuck or just can not fathom the process, ask the artist!
056 Say that someone tells you, "I do not understand sculpture", or "I don't get art". What would you say to that person to enlighten them?
Don't give up. New art is being created all the time. Maybe they just have not found the piece that will trigger a reaction in them.
057 What about young artists looking to find success in the field? What does it take to break in and "make it" in the art business?
With sculpture, there are many skills needed. Modeling, mold making, welding, assembly, installations, paint/patination, etc. When people tell me their kid goes to art school, I tell them that's great but learning about art and making art are two different things. I tell them make sure their kid learns at least one of the essential skills so that they can get a job after they graduate. If they get lucky they can maybe intern with an established artist. Really successful artists do not have time to make their own work so they hire people to make it for them. It's like an architect designs houses. Then other people come along and build them for him.
058 How do budding artists find opportunities?
Find out where the local artist hang out and start hanging out with them.
059 Can you give a rough narrative of your artistic career?
I was a welder in industry for 15 years. I learned to weld aluminum, steel, stainless steel, cast iron. I made satelite containers, nuclear fuel rod containers, computer racks. I repaired derailed railroad cars. I made giant trash sorters for land fills. I made engine components for trucks. But I never did bronze. That was the metal skill I was lacking. I knew shipyards did a lot of bronze and Philly had a shipyard and I was all set to apply when my path took a different direction and off I went into the Peace Corps. When I returned, I just started putting my resume out and got a hit with the atelier.
060 Do you have any business or creative advice for young/beginning artists?
Learn a trade or a skill. Something you can fall back on. And hang around other artists.
061 Speaking of the business side of things, you work for another artist at the atelier. How do you separate the business/financial side of things from the pursuit of art itself, or do you need to?
At the atelier, I get paid to make the art envisioned by other artists. The paycheck I get then helps fund my own art projects along with the day to day living expenses.
062 More broadly, can you speak about the intersections, in our society, between art and business/economics?
All the time I preach to people - "If you want to help the economy, buy art - specifically sculpture. Not just as individuals, butlocal town governments!
To make sculpture today you need graphic artists, modelers, models, photographers, mold makers, pattern makers, seamstresses, welders, painters, stone masons/cement workers to lay the base/plinth, landscapers people to install the work, people to maintain or restore the work, and then just the trickle down aspect of all the raw materials and supplies needed into generating work. When I am on road trip installing a piece I tell my site contacts to look at the big picture. Not only are you getting a sculpture that people will like to look at and have their picture taken with but look at the crew that came to your town to install it. We rent crane crews, we need truckers for transport, hire people for traffic control, we need motel rooms, restaurants to eat at, etcetera.
063 What is the impact of business on art, and vice versa?
When businesses that supply artists with their raw materials start to go our of business, then artists have to go elsewhere.
064 Do you feel any tensions/conflicts between art and business? If so, how do you resolve them?
Pricing my work. I know one guy who charged $i,000 for every inch of height. So I decided to just charge by the pound. On my website, that is why you'll see an image of my Bernie's Deli sign. Hopefully PETA will not complain that I am being insensitive.
065 When, why, and for how long did you go to Papua New Guinea?
I went in as part of the United States Peace Corps program. It was 1999-2001. Back then you could not choose your assignment - you were given it.
066 Can you point to differences in your work from before versus after Papua New Guinea?
There was no work before PNG.
067 Can you track progress/evolution of your personal work over the years?
The pages on my website are in chronological order. They show what year and month each piece was made along with the materials used for each piece.
068 Do you sculpt other animals, plants, or things from nature, or just cats?
Just cats.
069 What fascinates you about cats?
We had a stray by the name of Boxer in PNG. What a layabout. Someone had given us a calendar which was loaded with old timey historical facts. One dayI was commenting out load to Anne about how in old England a cat who was a proven mouser could be had for 6 shillings whereas an unproven one was worth only two shillings. Very loudly to Anne and with loads of sarcasm so Boxer could hear I made a crack how she was probably only worth 2 pence!
That night as we lay in bed there was such a ruckus going on outside we were worried what the morning would bring. Well morning came and in strolled Boxer with a giant dead rat in her mouth. She dropped it on the floor in front of us both and hopped up on her chair all lah dee dah and puffed up with pride. the thing was a third her body weight! After that we gave her the royal treatment, and made sure to whisper our conversations when she was in earshot.
070 Are cats popular and/or significant in Papua New Guinea?
Not that I ever saw.
071 What do you wish to express/share/show about Papua New Guinea and its people through your work?
That I was very fortunate to have been placed there. I hit the lottery.
072 Is there anything about Papua New Guinea, or your work there, that the average person might not realize and you'd like to share here?
We were close enough to the equator, so that the sun rose at 6:00 a.m. and set at 6:00 p.m. Without access to clocks or watches, it was comforting to have that constant.
073 Another question on behalf of young artists: how much formal education in fine art is necessary and/or beneficial to developing as an artist? (In other words, "do you really need school?" Elaborate on your educational background.
Did the people who painted on cave walls aeons ago have a degree in fine art? All an art degree does is teach you about art. Not how to make it. You learn by doing. When I first took welding lessons, I asked the instructor how does one learn to weld? Who did he become a weldor? His answer was simple but true - "Burn a lot of rods."
074 You went to P.N.G. with the Peace Corps. Can you explain how the ideas and values of the organization resonated with you? Do those ideas tie into your work?
Our first three months were host country immersion classes. In a classroom setting, you learn about thehistory, language training, and even live in a host village when the days schooling was done.
Peace Corps was big on our being there to help the host country nationals but also to learn from them. Let them teach us their ways. And then when we were done our service, it was expected that we would go back to our homes and help teach our friends and families about our host country.
So, Papua New Guinea is a country of about 4.5 million people and it has 810 languages. That's like going to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the United States and every block or two a different language is spoken. Or in my way, looking at 810 differnet cats - all unique and individual. Some we can relate to and some are just too far out there.
075 Do you believe your art can or should embody your values and ideas?
I just want people to look at my website and go wow.
076 Do you think you will ever produce 810 unique cat sculptures?
That's the big unknown, right? I was asked this question a couple of years ago by a visitor to my studio. It was Open Studio Days hosted by The Grounds For Sculpture. The public is given access to the studios by participating artists. Someone is a group of about twenty people asked me that. I hemmed and hawed for an answer and then some voice from the crowd yells out "Oh, you'll do it. I just know you will. I can feel it in your passion." That made me feel good. My own little pep rally. Well I certainly will die trying.
077 How long do you think this project will take to be completed?
Maybe another five years. Maybe I will hit the lottery and then I could devote all my time to my goal. Maybe a rich benefactor . . . . It is what all artists dream of - being able to spend allmy time on my work.
078 When you sell a work, how do you put a value on it? How do you price it?
Our starting rates here at "Bernie's Deli" are $50 US dollars per pound. Shipping and handling are extra. I always picture myself in a white hat and butcher's apron holding a meat cleaver when I tell people that. Ha!
079 If you complete the 810 cats, what's next?
Well, I will always have my film scripts.
080 How important is it, to you, to simply be working on an idea/process as opposed to actually finishing a large project like this?
I absolutely want to finish. When I was in the theater, months went into production: people learned their lines, set design and construction, costumes, props procurement, lighting and sound, rehearsals. For what? Back to back Friday, Saturday, and a Sunday matinee. All gone in a flash. But at that final cast party the tsunami of built up, pent up, stored up emotionsletting go by everyone at once was just incredible. I suspect that is how I will be when this is all over.
081 If you weren't sculpting or couldn'tcontinue to sculpt for some reason, what would you want to do with your life?
I do have a few hives I tend to and I love to read books and I have a closet of old cricket videos I have to watch, but none of that will pay the bills now, will it? So I guess it is the old German adage "work, work, work, die" for me.
082 Do you think you'll ever fully retire, or is art for life?
No, I am like Doctor Faustus. I made a deal with the devil. Once this project is done, I am done.
083 Would you still be trying to find time/resources to do this, just for yourself, even if you weren't getting paid?
You mean like I am doing right now and have been doing since the year 2002? Welcome to my world of obsessive addictive compulsion.
084 How important are aesthetics to your work?
Clean lines and smooth surfaces are not what drives me. Just look at my digital images. The same H beam base all dirty from previous pieces. Same with the white paper stock. And my shots are all sunlight or shadows.
085 Philosophically speaking, can you define"beauty" and relate the concept, both to your work and to art in general?
How about beautiful? If I hear a nice classical piece on the radio or see an opera or look at another artist's work or a craftman's work and I say " that was beautiful or that is beautiful" I saying " I like it."
086 Do you think of art as necessarily beautiful?
Here is an expression I never heard until I started working with artists. It is what I have to come to call our "Get Out Of Jail" card or our "wild card" or our "joker" card. We use it when we get a question which we do not have an answer for. You asked me if I think of art as necessarily beautiful. Well, it is what it is.
087 Is your work designed to be beautiful? Truthful? Both?
It is what it is.
088 Do you hope to amuse, excite, provoke, or stir up any other particular emotion(s) through your work? Any or all of the above?
My work is for curious people.
089 Artists talk about having a "muse"; do you feel you have one?
No.
090 What is or can be the role(s) of art, both personally (to you or another individual) and culturally (to society)?
It is what it is.
091 Are there any stereotypes about artists you would like to dispel? Or are the stereotypes true?
They are true. Every one of them.
092 Authors, painters, composers, etc. are often seen as people who spend a lot of time thinking. Does that hold true for you? In terms of your work and what goes into it, where is the balance between thinking about it and just feeling about it?
The feeling part comes after for me. I usually think up a new idea for a cat piece, write it down in my book, and then think about how I want to go about creating it within the following week. If it is something I can do quickly then I am on it. If it is something that might take a while then I write about it and put it away for future creation. The one good thing about my goal of creating so many pieces is that I am always thinking about creating my art. Believe it or not, when my doctor told me I needed to get my cardio up, I started bicycling to work. Thirty minutes to work; thirty minutes home. It is at this time when I get some really good creative thinking in.
093 Do you plan artistic endeavors carefully, or is there a degree of impulse and improv?
Both. I am always at used book sales looking for inspiration. And then a couple of summers ago I was on vacation in Jamaica and as our p.m.v. (public motor vehicle/taxi) passed a cattle farm I saw white birds hanging around the cattle. The driver told us they were there eating the insects off the cows. Anne told me that was a symbiotic relationship and so that inspired me to create "Symbiotic" - # 354.
094 Can you pinpoint any formative event(s) or moment(s); either personally and/or artistically, that fuels your work and has brought you where you are not?
Absolutely. Mexican-American artist Frederick Morante said: "I will show you what San Diego State showed me about pattern making and green sand casting - and then some"; Ghanian artist Joseph Acquah said - "I will help you pour your metal right"; Jamaican born Autin Wright said "Come look at my website. It is on the cloud for all the see. You must get a website and do the same."
095 We keep separating"personal" from "artistic", but can the two really be put in separate categories? Are they overlapping or one and the same?
Whenever an artist signs his name to his work, then as I see it it does not get more personal that that.
096 Art seems to be both private/personal and public; you create something that may be very meaningful to you and that you may be attached to, that may even represent something housed deeply inside you, yet as an artist, part of the process is to then share it with the audience. Often the artist sells the work and may never see it again. Can you explain or expand on this tension/contradiction between public and private? On the seeming paradox of mining something intimate to you, so you can share it with the world?
In this age of the internet, I believe that if I put something out there on the cloud I can always see it again so I have not worries on that matter. Even if someone says"solar flares can erase the cloud!" I am still not worried. I did my part- my work is out there. And If someone finds my creativity inspiring then I have not problem exposing myself.
097 Are there any other symbolic elements or motifs in your work to which you would like to draw the audience's attention?
No.
098 Would you like for the people you met in Papua New Guinea to have a way of seeing your works?
810 images x 5 seconds per image= 67.5 minutes. I would love to go on tour there not unlike a rock concert. Hit all the big venues: Port Moresby; Goroka, Lae, Madang, Rabaul, Tari, Mount Hagen, Popondetta, Bougainville. A master of ceremonies getsup and announces the title of each image as it is viewed on a big outdoor screen. Five seconds, and on to the next on. And as all this is going on I am filming and recording the audiences reaction as they view each slide. Instant grading by my peers. Oral thumbs up, thumbs down, or meh.
099 Do you thing art can be a social service or, possibly, a public good once it is ultimately finished?
Sure. I dream my art can recreate the Kula ring on a national scale in PNG. Tribes doing a time share by trading worthless art and trying to outdo each other on who can be the most giving of cargo. An exchange of food, men/woman, histories, tribal customs and stories, making new alliances. It's all good.
100 In creating your art, are you serving yourself or others? Or both?
I get so much hope and energy out of creating my art. In reality, I am doing it for me. I am some crazy marathon runner trying to go the distance and seeing if I am capable.
101 Can sculpture, as a three dimensional art form, capture action/movement/drama. If so, how?
While they are limited in what they can do, kinetic sculpture has movement. There are some artists who only make kinetic sculptures.
102 Is there a thriving arts scene in Papua New Guinea?
I saw very little public art. Most is just tribal art kiosks set up for tourists at major city tourist hotels. One time I had some welding class students at the technical high school start work on a six foot metal pineapple. My plan was to sell it to the local guest house. We stopped halfway through the project. The whole concept was just too foreign for them. They just wanted to make ash trays to take home to their villages.
103 Is sculpture popular in Papua New Guinea?
Wait! Back to the last question. That answer should be the answer to this question. And then to answer the question about whether there is a thriving art scene, my answer is still no but they do have an active craft scene. They make string bags everywhere. And various woven baskets and some wooden bowls. They even pound out tree bark and make coasters, clothing, and bags from those too. And at home we have some Christmas tree ornaments made from bamboo that has wood burned images on them.
104 Do the various peoples of Papua New Guinea have folk art practices unique to their culture(s)?
Yes. For example, the string bags. Even though they are a craft, there are designs woven into the patternalong with certain chosen colors that represent what village or region the bag came from. There is also coastal art which is different from mainland art.
I'll never forget when we first drove into Tari. We passed all these places with what I thought were decorated dog houses located in from on their dwellings. Fortunately I was tipped off very quickly that they contained the bones of dead ancestors. That could have been a major faux pas.
105 If "yes" to above, have you researched Papua New Guinea traditional artworks?
In a very limited way. For example, the Huli wigmen are famous for their hair wigs. The coastal people decorate their outrigger canoes. The men's and women's communal long houses have story boards. The Sepik river region has lots of masks and shields with crocodile motifs.
106 Are your cat sculptures, or other works, influenced by such folk art?
I believe it was from viewing some of the Malanganmasks that influenced me into putting raffia grass into some of my pieces. And then just the colors used - white, black, dark reds, browns in their art along with some cowrie shells on occasion.
107 Do you seek, through your art, to shape the audience's perceptions of Papua New Guinea, its people and cultures?
Maybe by looking at my works or reading my answers to your questions, people will want to learn more about PNG. Who knows, perhaps they will want to travel there.
108 Are your cat pieces meant to be enlightening to those who may not know much of Papua New Guinea?
They are meant to show the number of languages.
109 How do you feel about the idea of that audiences might be learning about Papua New Guinea through the eyes of the "white man", if your (or others') artworks shape their perception?
Great!
110 What are your thoughts on the ability of the privileged, through their position and relative wealth, to influence wider perceptions of people who may not have the resources or opportunity to equally represent themselves on the global scene?
As long as they are culturally sensitive then I do not have a problem with it. I just remember as I was boardingthe plane to leave hearing the people say "do not forget us". My art and website are my way of not forgetting them.
111 Trying to break down a little further what I'm getting at: What are the cultural links, if any, between the peoples of Papua New Guinea and Western Civilization (U.S., Europe)?
Western explorers landed there. The Finchafen peninsula was where all the Germans settled. The country was also a colony of Australia up until they gained their independence in 1972. The Japanese had bases there in World War II. Bougainville and Ok Tedi are two big copper mines of international conglomerates. And then all the religious groups with their missionaries. Even the Peace Corps was there for 20 something years.
112 Do your artworks comment on, or refer to in any way, these cultural legacies?
I believe I have a piece I called Goldy River. This is in referenceto the 1920-1930 period when the Australian prospectors discovered gold in the highlands. And then another piece Praise HIm is influenced by all the outside missionaries.
113 Do you think your perspective, as an "outsider", is inherently different (predudiced, less clear, more clear?) than that of a Papua New Guinean?
Westerners see PNG people as violent. As for the highlanders, they are, but that machismo is part of their culture. It is how they learn bravery and the bravest gets to be leader and get the women to be his wives. A few spears get thrown, maybe one person is unlucky and get killed out of hundreds/thousands, and then they all sit down and have a big peace party. Western interference really screwed up their culture. Now they don't have that release valve, male bonding, etc..
114 Are there any Papua New Guinea artists you know of, to whom you would like to draw Westerners' attention?
I never met any when I was there or even back here in the States.
115 Are there PNG artists on the scene who offer their own perspectives about PNG identity, aesthetics, and experiences?
I had a show once in northern New Jersey, not far from NYC. A PNG diplomat took it in and afterwards told me not to sell my pieces. "They are too full of memories."
116 How does your experience/perspective differ from that of such artists?
I have an outsiders perspective butit would be fair to say mine would be more than just that of a tourists.
117 Do you feel any sense of responsibility that, in the eyes of some audiences, your works may be, to an extent, defining "Papua New Guinea" in their perceptions, irrespective of whether such is your intent?
In my work, I always try not to show PNG in a negative way. That might give my viewers the perception that the place is paradise. It is not. It is just like any other place, yet different. Another take on their expression "Olesem, na narapela" which translates as: all the same yet different.
118 More broadly, do you feel any degree of cultural, community, social, or global responsibility as an artist, or that such responsibility is conferred on artists generally?
I feel there is enough pain and suffering in the world already. I do not want to add to what is already here. If someone else wants to use art as their soapbox to raise the worlds awareness to what they feel are injustices then that is on them. I just want to raise the world's awareness to PNG's linguistic diversity.
119 Do you care about what people take away from your work, or is your pursuit of pure creative expression a more important concern?
Yes!
120 Do you think of works of art, including your own, as cultural productions? (A popular term in the arts and humanities.)
My work, it is what it is..
121 What responsibility (or credit) do you personally feel for the possible impact your works of art could have on an audience once published?
I was the inciting incident that got the whole thing going, right?
122 The corollary to this line of questioning: Is art sometimes over-intellectualized?
Even art critics need a paycheck.
123 What is the value, if any, of scholarly criticism (including critical theory) to appreciating and understanding art?
Scholars need a paycheck too.
124 Do you yourself have a preferred critical lens or perspective on the intentions, workings, and ultimate assessment of works of art?
I like to look at the materials of sculpture and try to figure out the process a sculptor used in making it.
125 How do you go about appreciating works of art (created by others)?
If it is a very time consuming piece or a monumental work I try to figure out what parts the actual artist worked on and what parts he brokered out to other to perform for him.
126 Do you have ideas about what can make art palatable or accessible for wide audiences, while still maintaining artistic integrity? (Not that the two necessarily need be in conflict.)
I feel the internet is a great pathway for people to get out and explore the art world.
127 We've recently had news that President Trump's first budget blueprint advocates eliminating the National Endowment for the Arts and would cut federal funding to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. As both an artist and a person, do moves such as this concern you? Do you worry about the potential consequences for both producers and audiences of art and cultural productions?
I wish I could dictate how my taxes are to be spent. But I can not, so I donate money to causes that I want to support.
128 As an artist, do you see a value or compelling interest for public funding of arts and cultural works?
Yes. It creates beauty and it creates jobs.
129 How would you rate the USA's cultural attitude to the arts as compared to other countries and cultures?
I can't.
130 Do you think the USA's attitude to art is affected by the possibility, that as part of the New World, it doesn't necessarily have the deep pools of traditional music, poetry, visual arts, and so on that other, older cultures and civilizations have?
I don't know.
131 How has the "melting pot" aspect contributed to the arts propagated in the US?
My only first hand experience of such came in my early years at the atelier when it was still a school for sculpture. We had staff and students/apprentices from all around the world. There is still some remnants of that period existing with the staff today, One co-worker is from Ghana and one is from Jamaica. Both are active in the local arts scene.
132 Have we managed this melting pot to its best advantage?
I do not know.
133 Is there one thing - or maybe a few things - you wish people would understand about your artwork?
Yes, but not just the artwork but also me as the artist. Instead of using the onion analogy - peel off the top layer to get to the one beneath - lets just use a flower with petals. One petal represents the actual pieces - the cats and kittens. Another is the time since 2001 spent working on this project. The early mornings and late nights working in the studio. The money diverted from home and family to support this art addiction. The number of times explaining to people that the cats/kittens symbolically represent the various languages of Papua New Guinea. How when I am at work or on vacation or even sitting down and having dinner my mind will be thinking about finishing cat # 452 and working out in my head the start of 453. And another petal cold be my getting older and questioning if I have the stamina or enough time to complete the project. How another petal could be all the various materials I used to make all the pieces so far. The talks with my co-workers and other artists to learn how I can figure out how to cut a piece of wood or what clay to use or when can you come by to help me pour the metal for the patterns . . . . Buying a used enameling oven and they by trial and error learning how to use it just so I can make my Paul Simon kitten. And so on with other petals and the future petals.
Thanks. That was just me venting. Yes, we all see the flower but it is a huge production behind it that people do not often get to see.
134 Do you even want to influence the way others perceive your works (or those of other artists), or do you wish to leave it to the eye of the beholder?
I love the New York Metropolitan Opera simulcast of their live productions. Beside just seeing the actual performance, I get the excitement as the cameras pan the filling theater; the noise of the crowd; the before, in-between, and after interviews with the guest conductor and actors/actresses; the changing of the scenes behind the curtain between acts.
I love our open studio days where the public can come in and watch us work and ask questions. I love your questions. It all gives the public insight. Can that be bad?
135 Have you branched, or thought of branching, into areas other than the visual arts?
I have written three screenplays about my days when I worked in the boat delivery business. Sounds cut and dried but those were some interesting times.
136 Do you have a favorite work of art or perhaps a short list of pieces that have influenced/meant something to you?
Moby Dick at the Grounds For Sculpture. A bunch of cement bags stacked in the rough shape of a whale. After time, the white cement is all that remains. I love it. Pretty inexpensive to make for a monumental. Easy to maintain. Holds up well over time in the outdoor elements. Memorializes a great work of literary art and its author Herman Melville. Call me Ishmael!
137 As a child, did you ever think you would grow up to be an artist?
Not even on the radar.
138 Did you like to do artistic activities as a young boy?
No. All I recall ever doing was reading and riding my bicycle at every opportunity.
139 Can you remember the first piece of art you produced?
Coat hangers and a block of wood. I wish I still had it. I created an uproar in the house. I raided the clothes closets of both my older sisters. I thought I was being sneaky by taking a few from each and then doubling up the clothes on the remaining hangers. Of course they found out and went right to my dad and complained. Even with his bad knees from being a mailman he climbed the stairs to my attic room and was horrified to see me soldering the hangers together. "You'll burn the house down!"
I was out of hangers anyway and needed more. I went to Philly to a dry cleaner supply warehouse and bought a box of 500 hangers for I think $40 bucks. I lugged them back home on the train. I was so thrilled. But then I tried soldering them and could not do it. I went downstairs to our encyclopedia Brittanica set my dad bought us when I was in third grade (which we never used - there were no pictures!) and looked up soldering which led me to the properties of metals. Soldering could not generate the heat required to melt aluminum and that was what I just bought - 500 aluminum hangers. Well we never had a hanger shortage again in our house after that and I was inspired when I got older to take a course in welding.
I'll never forget my dad standing in our lining room doorway as I flipped though the encyclopedia. "After all the money I spent on those, it's about time someone used it." I think that was the one and only time.
140 Is the label or title of "artist" significant to your identity?
Only when I fill out my juror selection form. I put down artist/sculptor and try to imagine what goes through the lawyers heads when they read that. Do they see it as a good or bad thing?
141 If so, when did you first feel that you qualified as an artist?
I was working in my studio and I got a knock on my door. An artist was passing by and asked "Can I come in?"
142 Can you recall some milestones of your artistic career?
What I consider milestones? After #1, every time I reached the century mark - one hundred, two hundred, three hundred . . . .
143 What other jobs did you work leading up to the atelier? How did those jobs prepare you/ lead you to this point?
In my mid-teens I was elected to the board in our local town community theater. I was chair for lighting and sound. (My first years dealing with artists/creative people). Restaurant work: dishwasher, busboy, bartender. (Endurance). Sailboat and yacht delivery. (Coping). Manufacturing, welding, and automation. (Working with materials and different processes. (Craftsmanship). The United States Peace Corps program. (Being in a fishbowl).
144 Can you look at your career as a linear progression (straight line), or does it seem more complicated/less straightforward or organized than that?
My artistic career is very straightforward. Between Clint Eastwood's Dirty Harry Callahan saying "a man's got to know his limitations" and a co-worker/artist telling me to find my medium/outlet/niche "and stick with it" instead of floundering around. You can say that has been my north star, my direction. It kept me from ever doubting myself.
145 In a society that increasingly values the STEM (Science/Technology/Engineering/Mathematics) model in both education and career paths, what do you think is the prognosis for careers in the arts and humanities?
We will always need arts and humanities for communicating but that won't necessarily be a reliable way to pay the bills and put food on the table. I always push people to learn a craft such as welding. The pay might not always be great but there seems to always be a need for weldors.
146 What is the value of such careers and education in the arts and humanities?
It is like being left handed in a predominantly right handed world. (That's a good thing!)
147 In what way does studying and/or appreciating the arts and humanities make a person more well rounded and prepared for the world?
I believe it helps a person understand that this vast world does not revolve around around just them but everyone.
148 Are you interested/optimistic about the STEAM educational model (which includes Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics)?
Why not?
149 When people look at your works of art, do you hope they are enlightened or turned onto something in the "real" world, or do you prefer that they focus on the beauty and joy of the work of art as, say, an aesthetic object?
It is what it is. They are what they are.
150 Back to Papua New Guinea: Would you like to travel there again in your lifetime?
Not as a tourist. Only if it was related to my art.
151 Do you recommend other people travel there?
Yes, as a learning experience.
152 If so, do you have tips for travelers to Papua New Guinea?
If one does not go with expectations ahead of time, then they will not be disappointed.
153 Are there good resources you can point people to (e.g. books, etc.) for further education about Papua New Guinea, its culture, and the 810 languages?
Travel guides are helpful. And if you can get your hands on a award winning documentary film called First Contact that would help to prepare a possible traveler.
154 Are there particular resources you consult as research for the cat project?
Just for the ethnologue. SIL Linguistics created it. We actually stayed at some of their guesthouses that they had built since their presence is so continuous in PNG.
155 How do pressures or significant events in your personal life affect your work?
When the atelier school closed, the staff lost the use of the foundry and the after hours program. But if an artist really wants to get their work done one finds a way. And when I bought an old house, funds which would have gone to art went to making the place more livable. And I spent all my time working on the house. That is why there is such a big gap in my project history.
156 Do you work every day, or certain days of the week/month/year?
Pretty much every day. Now that I am getting older, I am racing time on this one.
157 Do you take time off from creating works of art?
The only time I really shut down is when I am on a vacation with Anne. It is not fair to her, and the guilt of not working on my art makes me work even harder when I start up again.
158 If so, how much time, and what are you doing when not working?
Generally a week. Some years if I am lucky (or unlucky!) then two.
159 Are you a "workaholic", or are you able to pace/structure yourself more carefully than that?
I am not a workaholic, but often when I am "in the zone" or "feeling it" I work without stopping. No food,;no sleep. Anne will have to tell me to stop or take a break or "time to shut down". And I usually listen to her.
160 How has your decision to focus on art (and to pursue life experiences like going to Papua New Guinea) affected other parts of your life? Have there been sacrifices, or things about your life that have been different from many other people because of your passions and pursuits?
Not having children has allowed me to have a lifestyle I prefer, especially since I feel we only have one life to live.
161 Do you have a future in mind for your work and career outside of Johnson's atelier?
My goals are to stay at the atelier until I can retire and my art goal is to make one piece for every language in PNG.
162 How long have you been working at the atelier and how long do you expect to stay?
I started one month after 9/11 and I will stay until I retire.
163 Will you ever be taking any Peace Corps type trips to other countries besides Papua New Guinea?
Last year to Jamaica. We bypassed the all inclusives and just did our own thing.
164 What kind/how large of an audience do you hope to reach, or think you can reach from the atelier?
Zip. If I reach anyone it will be through social media and the internet.
165 Can you discuss the role/importance of aesthetics in your work? How do you value aesthetics?
My work is visual. It does not have to have clean lines, be proportional, or even make sense. I am after uniqueness in each piece.
166 The cat sculptures on the website have names, albeit sometimes provisional ones. How do you devise these names?
I guess you mean the four or five that I list as untitled. Those are not provisional names - those will be the final title. I really put a lot of thought into naming these pieces, so on the rare occasion when I can't, that is almost noteworthy in itself.
167 On various parts of your website, there are cryptic but rather interesting bits of verse. I presume you wrote them. Would you care to discuss the significance or inspiration of these bits of poetry?
Ah, my haikus. Well, besides each piece having one I believe my mission statement is one too. I will start with that one. At our first site in PNG we have to be helicoptered out due to a breakdown in society. Tribal fighting broke out and while we were never in any serious personal safety issues, the unknown length/duration of the fight was too disruptive to our work. As we boarded the chopper, the locals came out crying and yelling for us not to forget them. And then on our last day in PNG as we were being flown out on a plane the same thing. Locals were crying as we boarded at the airstrip and yelling out for us not to forget them. So my whole project is not about forgetting them.
And then the haikus for each piece - it is a way for me to distill my thoughts and feelings for each one.
168 In particular, what is the relationship between these verses and your sculptural work?
I am just trying to give each piece a little depth, a little background. One of my major pet peeves is looking at old photographs and flipping them over and finding a white blank square. Even a date is something! So when I find a picture with some written details I love it. These haikus are my back of the picture so to speak.
169 Are you writing poetry on the side?
Not! It is just these haikus force me to be precise and concise..
170 Sculpture, by its three - dimensionality, seems to have a special multimedia, or cross media, aspect: it can communicate directly to more than one of the five senses. How do you regard or reconcile the relationship between visual and tactile (touching) appreciation of a work of sculpture?
I would love for people to be able to touch my sculptures as long as they do not get too heavy handed. I believe the expression today is "You may touch the sculpture with respect".
171 Is sculpture more visual, more textural/tactile, or both - from the perspective of both the artist and the audience?
I guess it depends on what we are looking at. If a work consists of fresh animal turds, I sure would not be touching it.
172 Or in more down-to-earth terms: is it permissible to touch the sculptures on display in order to experience how the materials feel?
It all depends. Some places let you touch. For example, the Please Touch museum in Philadelphia. Some places let you touch if you are gentle. And some place are just no way. Why? All the touching over time wears away a the actualphysical properties i.e. paint, patina, etc.
173 More broadly, what is art gallery etiquette?
Signage for each piece generally says whether you can touch the work or not. If in doubt, ask the gallery staff. they may have you wear special art handling gloves. Believe it or not the oil on your fingers wreaks havoc on finishes.
174 If someone is going to spend a day for a few hours at the gallery (any gallery), what should they expect?
A knowledgeable and helpful staff; interesting art; and if lucky an artist in residence.
175 How do you respond to or push back against the notion of art as an elitist pursuit?
Anyone can write songs or perform on a stage or paint or sculpt or direct movies. Why not? But making a living at it generally requires some sort of backing. So unless you come from a family with deep pockets or are a savant you won't live your dream very long if you are starving to death.
176 Does art have the potential to move people from various nations and cultures around the world closer together, to increase mutual understanding as a sort of equalizer or universal language?
Sure. Look at reggae music.
177 Back to the poetry: Do you have any poets or literary works that particularly influence your verses?
No. Just old teachers who preached that one needs to be "precise and concise".
178 Are the poetry verses on the same level of artistic importance/significance as the sculptures, or are they just a sideline?
Absolutely not. They are just to add some depth.
179 Do these two artistic threads intersect or do they run parallel?
I could cut away all the verse and just leave the visual images of the cats. But if I cut away all the images and just leave the verse then there is just gibberish.
180 Do you think there is something about poetic imagery that better expresses the essence of your work than if you wrote short, factual blurbs of information?
I see my haikus as a combo of both poetic imagery and short factual blurbs of info.
181 When someone looks at the website or comes to a gallery opening, to what degree are you letting that person in to your world?
I try to be open and honest. If someone asks me a question"about my work", I am not evasive.
182 How much of yourself do you intend to share through your work?
All of it. It is all my creativity. That is the point. No outside influence.
183 Do you believe in art for art's sake, a la Oscar Wilde?
I am not sure what is meant by that anymore.
184 Are there particular writers or theorists on art that you find especially influential or astute?
No.
185 Are there resources/authors you recommend burgeoning artist to study?
No.
186 To what degree are theoretical concerns about art related to A) Creating art as a personal practice for you, and B) The final product created by this process? In other words, do you find theory helpful to your work?
When I exercise, it is for me. I get my cardio up, I lose weight, I get fit. But ultimately, the world benefits too.
187 Would you compare art in your life to exercise, recreation, hobbies, etc., that others take up, or is there more to it?
I am running a marathon but instead of twenty-six point whatever miles, my goal is 810 cats and kittens.
188 What do you think drives artists to create?
To counterbalance something . . . maybe craziness brought on by enlightenment. Being alive? Heart ache? And yet if one day medical science comes out and says that a virus is the cause of it all I would not be shocked.
189 What drives you to create?
I am a well with a bucket at the end of a rope. I drop the bucket down the hole pull up Pussy Full Of Holes. I drop it again and I get Shadow Cat. And I keep doing this until I reach my goal or my end. I am never sure what will come up. But that is the joy of it. The surprise. And just hoping the well does not go dry.
190 What is the purpose or value of art in your life?
I go to operas to be entertained. I created my own art to get my cardio up.
191 Can you discuss/explain your working style a bit?
I get an idea and I write about it down in a book or I sketch it out with as much detail as possible. Then I work on gathering materials to create it and then I create it.
192 How does it differ from other working styles you may have come across?
This is all I know.
193 Does each artist have an utterly unique working style?
The ones I know do. One works with stone. Another is reclaimed materials. Another is a muralist. Another just bronze abstracts. Another is plaster and cloth. Etcetera. That is how I know them. Of course they have names but I know them as Thomas /wood; Lisa/fabric; Scot/sand mold. Just like to them I am known as Bernio greensand or Bernio cats. I even thought of changing my name to Bernie Katz. No, just joking on that one.
194 What's the best etiquette when you're inside someone's studio or personal work space?
Do not touch anything!
195 Should people entering a studio feel like they are interloping on something personal and intimate, and be thus inclined to tread carefully? People may be concerned about offending or stepping on the artist's toes, and if it is a new environment for them, they may not be sure how to act?
Once again, do not touchor move anything and no pictures.
196 On "Open Studio Days", what kind of questions do you routinely get from spectators, be they professional critics or just art lovers?
"How can I get a studio here" is a popular one. And "how much do you sell your art for"?
197 Is there one question, or questions, you wish people would ask?
Not really. I've been asked pretty much about everything and they are all good questions.
198 What about the inverse: Is there that one question you're sick to death of hearing, or even find unanswerable? This is your chance to set the record straight.
Young and old alike are forever asking me - "do you make anything besides cats"? I've given up trying to say that my work is more than cats - that is is symbolism and language and creativity and endurance and so on and so on. Now I just smile and shake my head and say "No, just cats and kittens".
199 In general, how do you feel about answering questions about your work? E.g. Do you hope the works will communicate for themselves?
But that is unrealistic with my pieces. And that is why I am putting all your questions on my website. It will be interesting for me to go back in a few years and read my answers again. I'll be like "Gor blimey I said that?!"
200 Do you find sculpting easier than talking? That is to ask, is it easier or more comfortable for you to express yourself through art than conversation (or vice versa)?
Unless you are an abstract artist who has to spend his time explaining his work. Which is why we created the expression - "it is what it is". That is the out for all tongue tied artists.