Ian MacLeod: Artist Interview — British Columbia

Lynette Haggard's Art Blog Weekly Artist Interview

Ian MacLeod

Lynette Haggard (LH): Where do you live now and where do you make your art?

Ian: I live on The Sunshine Coast in British Columbia — a 40 minute ferry ride from Vancouver and then another 40 drive up the coast to Halfmoon Bay.

Sargent's Bay

LH: Did you receive any formal art training?
Ian: I studied fine arts at the University of Manitoba and graphic design at Red River College in Winnipeg.



LH: Was there a certain point when you decided you were primarily an artist? At what point in your life did you become interested in making art?
Ian: I wanted to be an artist in elementary school. I felt closer to becoming an artist in high school because of the encouragement I was afforded. I worked towards becoming an artist at University where I studied fine arts. I knew it at my core as student of graphic design, but I drifted away from it as I began working as a graphic designer, illustrator and art director.

LH: What is your media?(Please describe briefly)
Ian: Acrylic and materials such as recycled paper, cardboard, plastic drop sheets and plastic bags applied directly to the surface of the canvas.

Composition #195

 48"x72" 

Acrylic, paper, plastic and varathane on canvas

LH: Please describe bit about your work in general.
Ian: My non-representational paintings exist independently of visual references. They provide the viewer with a sense of peace and energy - evocative without objective imagery. In other words they are not representing or imitating external reality or the objects of nature.

Composition #208

30"x40" 

Acrylic, paper, plastic and varathane on canvas

LH:  Do you ever get stuck with your work, and how do you remedy this?
Ian: I don't feel like I stuck although I can slip into slumps that, if it not for an artistic outlet I could succumb to depression. So, I go for a hike, listen to music or go into Vancouver for the day. Or just paint - I find that (for me) my painting is a spiritual journey or quest that it is both uplifting and meditative.


LH: Do you have particular habits that you think support your art practice?
Ian: Get up early, let the dog out, make coffee, come down to the studio and see what happened to a painting over night. Then... (see question above…)

Composition #209
30"x40"

acrylic, paper, plastic and varathane on canvas

LH: What is your current work about? Do you have photos you're willing to share?
Ian: For me it’s about the materials, the paint. Some viewers have expressed it’s about nature and landscape.

LH: Can you share with my readers a little about yourself? Where did you grow up and what (if any) were there any early influences on your work? 
Ian: I was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. I was about 7 years old when my parents told me I was adopted. They were both much older than any of my friends parents and of course I didn't look like either of them. I have always felt different, apart, separate and alone. (though I know that not to be true).

My mother was a huge influence, she was very supportive and encouraging - enrolling me in all kinds of art related classes at an early age. She went to my highschool and demanded they put me in art rather than metal shops or drafting and they complied by sending me to another school where I met ny grade 11 and 12 art teacher Leonard Stone who showed me how important art and all forms of creative thinking were and are, it was a turning point in my life. My wife (we met in high school at age 16).

Frank Mayrs, a mentor and friend who stressed the sense that I should create for myself, not to please others. 


LH: Who are some artists who influence you?
Ian: I love these artists - their innovation and their dedication and the spiritual essence that is their work. Pollock, de Kooning, Franz Kline, Motherwell, Rothko, Rauschenberg, Twombly, Jean-Paul Riopelle, Jack Bush, Ellsworth Kelly, Adolph Gottlieb, Milton Avery, Helen Frankenthaler, Barnet Newman, Harold Town, Gathie Falk, Gordon Smith, Michael Snow, Marilyn Kirsch, Charles Arnoldi, Ronnie Landfield, Brice Marden and the list goes on...

LH: What is your workspace like?
Ian: My studio is in the basement of our home. (Photos below showing a new painting in progress on the floor)

LH: Describe how you work in your studio. How do you get "in a groove" and what inspires you?
Ian: My paintings are made up of many layers and can take several days and/or weeks to complete. I work in brief time periods applying paint and other materials to the canvas surface, and longer periods of time watching the puddles of liquid move around and find their own resting place. This quote from Nick Cave describes how I get in a groove and what inspires me...

"An artist's duty is rather to stay open-minded and in a state where he can receive information and inspiration. You always have to be ready for that little artistic epiphany."

LH: Do you have any web links/site/blog etc. you'd like to share that show your work? Any gallery representation/links where readers can see your work?

http://ianmacleodpaintings.blogspot.com
http://www.ianmacleodpaintings.ca
http://www.westwindgallery.net/macleod.html


LH:  What are you reading right now?
Ian: Six String Nation by Jowi Taylor and re-reading The Primal Wound by Nancy Verrier.

LH: Do you have other jobs other than making art?
Ian: I’ve retired from the world of design and advertising.

LH: If so, please give us some details.
Ian: I worked as an illustrator, graphic designer, exhibit designer and art director in Winnipeg, Ottawa and Vancouver before moving to the Halfmoon Bay 9 years ago where I paint full time.

LH: Where would you like to be in 5 years as far as your art making?
Ian: Satisified, productive, further along.

LH:  Do you have any upcoming shows that you'd like to mention?
Ian: Just finished a couple - nothing on the agenda (yet).

Thank you, Ian!


IAN MACLEOD PAINTINGS

http://ianmacleodpaintings.blogspot.com
http://www.ianmacleodpaintings.ca
macleodpaintings@dccnet.com
604-885-9573