Get Out the Votes

Jane Michalski, Memory Construct III   [FusedChicago]

How we experience art is changing much like many other things in our lives. With recent technology comes immediacy and the ability to participate, comment or vote on something…including art.

Notice the headline said, “Get Out the Votes,” not “Get Out and Vote.” It refers to a new way of experiencing art in Chicago, the Art Loop Open. From October 15-29, Chicago’s new art competition will transform ten venues throughout Chicago’s Loop into interactive public art exhibits. 200 local artists have been selected from a pool of 750 entries, and they are vying for more than $60,000 in prizes, as judged by the public. The event mirrors the popular ArtPrize event in Grand Rapids, MI (a burgeoning franchise perhaps?).

Has art become a popularity contest? Hasn’t it always been? For artists it’s now become about motivating your “constituency” to get out and vote. Personally I find the event an opportunity filled with possibilities. I do know I’m excited that FusedChicago’s Jane Michalski’s painting, “Memory Construct III,” has been selected and will be on view at Block 37.

JR: Jane, what’s your take on Art Loop Open?

JM: I’m proud to be included. The jury was made up of some highly regarded people from The Art Institute, Museum of Contemporary Art and the University of Chicago. It provides a great vehicle for me to get exposure and show my work in a downtown location. The whole contest concept is admittedly a bit weird. Especially since the people who get the most votes for their art will win some substantial prizes. It draws attention to Visual Artists in the Chicago area and if it can build some excitement in the general population it’s a good thing. My prediction is that the winner could be a photographer with a very strong, easily understood but arresting image. People seem to like art they can easily understand. We’ll see!

JR: Tell us about your selected painting.

JM: “Memory Construct III" is part of a series. The first "Memory Construct" is a small piece that Shelley Gilchrist bought from me at Around the Coyote and her buying it is actually how I first met her and ultimately became involved in FusedChicago. I chose the name because I recognize that part of my creative process is building a structure with the wax and then altering it; covering and uncovering parts of the painting as I work. This often suggests the idea of time and memory to me. I also like the idea that we build up mental structures for thinking about things and remembering things. For me they can be visual rather than verbal.

JR: Why work in encaustic?

JM: I was already working on constructed panels and I had done a lot of painting with cold wax medium. After seeing Joanne Mattera's book, I felt compelled to try encaustic. I watched a demo by Kathleen Waterloo and got the basic method. I set my studio up to do encaustic, started making my own paints and just dove in. I feel in synch with the layering, the translucency—the process is interesting to me. It results in a complicated surface quickly without having to wait days for oils to dry. I love working back and forth between trying to control the wax and seeing what it will do on its own. I don't have a set concept for what I will find and I just keep layering, scraping and scoring until the piece feels right to me. I take the approach that you can't discover anything new unless you are willing to move forward without knowing exactly where you will end up. The painting tells me where it wants to go.

JR: What are you working on currently?

JM: I’m creating a large surface that is quiet but has subtle variations — two panels (each 36" x 24") that work together as one piece. I'm getting some momentum with what I'm doing and getting into some interesting shows, it's motivating me to work as much as I can. I just walk into my studio with a cup of coffee, turn on NPR and the fan, and melt wax. There is a spiritual connection to making art for me. I sometimes hear things that resonate such as a quote from Karen Armstrong that’s pinned to my bulletin board and reinforces why making abstract art is meaningful to me,"The Brahmin is present in the space without words or language."

I vote that we all get out and support Jane, other artists and art in Chicago by “getting out the votes!” That means encouraging friends and colleagues to enjoy Art Loop Open. Send an email, do a post on your personal Facebook page, invite people to join you. It will be interesting to see how this event evolves in the coming years.

- Julia Ris