“When will we be allowed to breathe fresh air again?” -Anne Frank
Does it all feel too much? Can you remember a time when things seemed lighter and do you wonder how that ease slipped away? Are you burdened with the weight of a turbulent world, the heaviness of sorrow, the pain of despair? Do you believe there is light and air if only one looks from the correct angle? Do you have the courage to take this moment in hand, draw back the curtains, let in the sun, live, breathe, be…
Anna Conway spoke to us in December of 2021. She explained to us that throughout the pandemic she became a playmate for her only child who participated in remote school in Conway’s studio. While it has been a challenging time, Conway emphasized that it has also been beautiful in a way that challenges often are. In terms of her work, this time has certainly influenced her process. She created a painting depicting the congested kitchen of the single mother of a son – Conway herself has a daughter. The work speaks to the trance of parenthood. To hear more about Conway’s work and how the last few years have affected her, listen to the complete interview.
Donald Sultan joined us in March 0f 2022 from Tribeca. For some time, he has been working on a series of abstract paintings based on the mimosa plant. Recent additions to this series are yellow, while past works have featured other colors. The concept for the series initially came to Sultan when he was in the south of France and someone sent him an envelope of yellow mimosas, which were in full bloom at the time. Ten years later, he remembered this and the series began to take shape. Sultan has a rich history of artwork in a wide variety of series often using industrial materials such as roofing tar or linoleum. To hear more about his fascinating career, listen to the complete interview.
A Few Words to Keep in your Pocket:
If you have fresh air, breathe it.
Interviews are available on iTunes as podcasts, and for Android please click here. All weekly essay pieces in a shareable format are here. The full archive of interviews is here.
Books to Read
What are you reading? Add your titles to our reading list here. I am currently on book #3 of the series My Struggle by Karl Ove Knausgaard. Praxis user Hanna Solin is reading Between Two Kingdoms: A Memoir of a Life Interrupted by Suleika Jaouad.
Deadlines:
Artists are invited to submit their work to an open call for the 2022 Florida Biennial. This juried exhibition is organized by the curator of exhibitions as MOCA Jacksonville. For more information and to submit your work for consideration, visit the website. Deadline is May 16.
Brainard Carey is an author, artist and educator. He is the director of Praxis for Aesthetics. He has written six books for artists, most recently Making it in the Art World.