ART
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Gregory Casey
www.gcasey.com
When did
you really get into art?
Hmmmm...I'd like to think around conception, but I can't remember that far
back. Probably around 2nd grade...I was drawing a lot, doodling, making
landscape sconces of mechanized battles between good and evil. I can remember
drawing in 3-D perspective at a pretty early age as well.
How did
you come to the realization that you should try your luck at art on a more
serious level?
Not to sound crass, but there was no "trying my luck about it." I can be
impulsive at times, and I'm competitive as well, so when I put my mind to
something, its 200% - balls out, or I don't do it. It comes down to commitment,
desire, talent...and then, a short time later you realize..."well I can possess
all those things, but if I don't apply them, they really don't mean shit." I
got motivated one day, basically on a paradigm shift, went out bought some
paint/canvas and got to work. Soon after I was in the mix of my peers, doing
shows, and painting my ass off. Up to that point, I did do some illustrations
for people that made me a couple bucks, but really nothing consistent.
How did
you discover the particular style that you have?
Um....hmmm, I guess just picking up the paint brush and going to work. Then
again, I'm also a graphic designer, and I think, since adding that to my mix, I
can see its influence on my art at times. I like complexity, I like color. I
just started building off that. I like internal investigation, and my painting
is the way I express it. You know, the way you deal with everyday life, the way
you internalize it / grow from it / fail from it...the way your mind powerfully
creates, manifests, misunderstands, captivates, and motivates your actions.
How
would you describe your style?
I'm kind of all over the place, I think...and I think that's a good thing. As
an artist, I think its important to diversify your interests...be dynamic, not
static. I like the idea that beauty is found from chaos, and vise versa...I
guess that's very yin-yang...but to me that's how I see things, that one doesn't
exist without the other. I'm a very cerebral painter, I get deep inside my head
and let the painting happen...automatically, in some ways like Jackson Pollock,
just letting myself go. I like making the painted/illustrated object, "pop" if
you will, from the canvas its created on. I want your eyes to move
around...stretch beyond the borders of the canvas, and feel depth rather then
the flatness of the "2-D." Um...yeah, you asked about style? Sorry...I guess
medicinal, organic, cerebral, scientific, atmospheric, chaotic.
Who or
what influences your art? How often do you create a new piece?
I think that you're influenced by everything around you. Objects, nature,
people, anything and everything. Not to cheapen the response here, but
seriously, the commercial and non-commercial world we live in, is and has been,
developed by our mental depiction of "what is." Sometimes we see something and
boom!, your instantly influenced, and captivated to create
something that may or may not be based off of what you just saw. The
mind also has a way of storing information, and then one day it becomes
something else for you. I know that when someone asks me about a specific piece
that I've done...that yeah, there's a story there, but I don't think you can
always recognize what that is until you've created the piece, and
that...hopefully is ever changing.
As far as other artists who's work I like and respect: H.R. Gieger, Rembrandt, DaVinci, Michelangelo, Alex Grey, a couple of my peers - Mark Gregory, and Tim Jordan, and finally and this is the big one...Jackson Pollock. That guy's work inspires me more than anyone. He was one motivated SOB...rhythmic, automatist, passion filled, balls out, creative, super dynamic and motivated guy. Um, well...was motivated, he's about 6 feet deep now.
I create some pieces super fast, the idea just pours out of me, and then other times, I'm a sludge factory. I've had successes on both ends of those production schedules. It comes down to alot of things...time, motivation, what else I'm in the middle of.
What
kind of success have you had with your art?
First off...I just moved here a couple of weeks ago from Albany NY. I usually
work fairly large...8' x 5', 9' x 5', 5' x 3'. I had a pretty consistent
following for my work, as well as pretty consistent commissioned job schedule.
So that was good, but I also worked a fulltime design job for an NBC affiliate
television station, and that soaked up A LOT of my time, which in turn,
created havoc on the development process. I've sold some work through shows,
and I sell a lot of prints (mostly because they were more accessible for people
then the original 9'x5' they spawned from). So I would say I've been pretty
successful, but it comes down to what you measure success with. Is it the
number of pieces you sell? Is it the number of pieces you create? Is it in the
following you have? What you're happy with?
What
would be the ultimate goal for you and your art?
I want to be mass marketed in shopping malls and on jigsaw puzzles, much
like Thomas Kincade.
Right.
Now the real answer: I want to feel that sense of accomplishment when I finish a piece, but more regularly. I hope for enough financial success to be able to go the artist path full time with no additional jobs to support me. Maintain a steady growth overall with my objectives as an artist...being better, more prolific, more aware.
What do
you see as an accomplishment in the way of art?
Education. Education. Education. Educating others and each other as artists
alike. I know that a big reason for me leaving upstate NY was that the
community that I lived in, generally liked art, but I don't think they necessary
understood what went into it...at least not everyone. It became frustrating...I
mean when you work your ass off all year creating new pieces...quality pieces,
self promotion, doing shows, working on commissions, etc., and then the average
Joes down the block aren't looking for quality...they're looking for the $5
drawings of a flowers or birds. Don't get me wrong that stuff is fine,
everything has a purpose...but to not avail yourself to a better, if not,
different understanding of what art is...your just adding to the sea of
mediocrity. It is easy, in this society, to remain willfully ignorant, to not
ask the questions, to not try to see things in different ways. Portland...now
living here as well as in all the visits I've made here...to me, well it offers,
if anything, a better opportunity for an artist. There are some great art
schools, an actual community for artists, affordable living, and just a better
atmosphere for an artist, then where I came from.
What
kind of message, if any, do you try to convey through your art?
I think it depends on where your at with what your doing. Each time I paint I
think that changes. Most of all, I want my art to serve as the opposite example
of everything I don't like.
Sum up
your art in one word.
Cerebral.
Any
additional comments?
First, I apologize for my atrocious spelling. One other thing to work at in
life, I guess...really I'm just a chicken scratch writer...emotional, off the
hip, long winded...yeah, I'm sure you didn't already pick up on that.
Born: 3/23/75, in Albany NY. I have been a freelance painter/illustrator/designer for about 9 years. I've worked as a grocery clerk, roofer, carpenter, bread delivery guy, soccer coach, athletic trainer, host at a restaurant, a brewer, and a graphic designer to name a few. I love long walks in the...whatever...as a person, I'm relaxed with pep, sarcastic, confident, love meeting new people, and the only two things I know for sure is that there is always more to learn and more work to be done. Peace.
I'm looking forward to seeing what I can offer and contribute this already diverse art scene here in Portland.
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