Artist Interview: Lisa Congdon

Lisa Congdon is a San Francisco artist who is quickly making a name for herself. Best known for her graphic yet delicate collages, Lisa came to art after getting a degree in history and having a career in education. Less than four years after her first show is moving into a permanent studio space and preparing for five shows in the next seven months.

Even if you haven’t seen her work before, Lisa’s name may sound familiar as she was one of one of the organizers, along with her mother and sister, of the Kim Family Benefit art and craft auction last year.

To see Lisa’s work in person check out one of her upcoming shows:

Solo show: The Candy Store, San Francisco, September 2007
Group show: SQFT Gallery, Nashville, September 2007
Solo show: Firefly, Venice, CA, November 2007
Solo show: Swallowtail, San Francisco, November 2007
Solo show: Redux, Portland, OR, March 2008

le system nerveux

How do you describe your work?
I don’t have much to say about my work except that I love the creative process, and I love putting bodies of work together and showing them. I think my work is more powerful in groupings than individually. I make pieces that are connected to each other, through imagery, color, size. I don’t really describe my work in words very often. I usually share photos and let others decide how to describe it. I am very public (using visuals) about my creative process and my work. I post photos of nearly everything I make on the Internet via Flickr as I make it. None of my work is a secret.

How long have you been "seriously" making art (i.e. trying to show/sell):
I have been “seriously” making art since I was offered my first show in February of 2004. I’d barely started making art (and most of what I made were gifts for friends and family), but a really cool girl who owns a shop and gallery in Seattle saw the few things I had made on my blog and offered me a show out of the blue for the following September. I had nine months to make enough art to fill the walls of her tiny shop, which, at the time, seemed incredibly daunting. I had never done anything like this before, and didn’t even consider myself an “artist.” I was working out of my apartment at the time, and had never made a body of work before. It was overwhelming, but in a good way. I was going through a horribly painful breakup then and this new goal literally saved me. After that show, I realized I’d found what I loved to do. I set forth to make it my whole life. Slowly but surely, I have gotten there. The rest is history.

an ink drawing

What is your favorite medium?
That is such a hard question for me. It changes all the time! I used to say collage, and that’s actually probably still true. But right now I am really into painting. I am taking a painting studio and doing lots of painting for my next show. Oh, and I love to draw with India ink. I love it all. Even sewing. I miss sewing. I don’t do it as much anymore with all my shows.

You separate your online portfolio into "art" and "craft" sections. How do you differentiate between art and craft in your work?
Ah, that’s a hard one. It’s an odd distinction. I mean, really, to me, everything I do is my “art.” But I guess, for me, craft is the stuff I sew. And art is all other mediums that I use—paper, ink, paint, glue, varnish. That distinction varies depending on who you talk to. It’s not that important to me. I just like making stuff. 

quilted pillow

Tell me about your working habits and style.
I am fortunate enough to have a wonderful studio space outside my apartment now, which has changed my working habits quite a bit. I used to be one of those people who set up shop on my coffee table, drank wine and watched old movies while I worked. And because my work was in my home, I worked a lot at night after work. There was something about this set-up that was really wonderful. There was something I loved working in such a private environment, always close to my cats and my TV and fridge. But the downside was that I had very little separation between my home and my work—and sometimes I’d get lonely since I live alone. And my apartment was a disaster from working in my living space. So now that I have my studio, I go there and make a mess and I don’t have to clean up if I am in the middle of something! I love going to my studio. I have awesome studio mates and we have a blast working together. My favorite time to work is during the day. I like to get there by 10 on the days I am not working at my other job. I have room to spread out and work on like eight things at once. My mates and I listen to music, and take short breaks to talk to each other and share food. It’s an awesome set up. I am kind of sad because I am leaving this studio soon to move into another space (the woman from whom I am subletting is coming back from her out-of-town residencies). But my new studio is just as great, and I will have a larger working space and new cool studio mates. And I get to stay there permanently. I am really excited. 

You've written and spoken about being happy that you haven't had any formal art training. Are there ever times where you wish you did? Do you ever think about going back and getting some formal training?
I used to think about it all the time. At one point about two years ago I was going to apply to art school. And then one night I was hanging out with a few friends who are working artists/art school graduates, and they were adamant that while it might give me some really important new skills—and that the experience would be good in many respects—that it would also put me in deep debt. I’m almost 40. I am past having deep debt! So I put that idea behind me and moved forward. Of course, there are ways that I would be far more skilled and developed if I’d had formal training. There is so much I don’t know. And so many connections I don’t have. But on the flip side, I feel quite free to make what I want, and I don’t feel confined to certain rules that I see cramp the style of some of my friends who went through it. Years of critiques and intense pressure have taken the life out of a few of them. They don’t even make art anymore. All of that said, their technical skills are insanely good, and they are all so developed conceptually. I don’t want it to sound like I am bashing formal art training. Or bitter that I never got any. Or to imply that having art training means you are automatically beaten down and become imprisoned by your training. Of course that’s not true. I am just trying to see the bright side of my lack of training, and I think my lack of knowledge about the “right” way to do stuff frees me up in a way. That’s all. And I do take classes to work on my skills. Right now I am taking a painting class. It’s been hard, but so good for me.

several of Lisa's pieces displayed together

You've recently dropped down to part time at your "day-job" and are about to move into a permanent studio space. How are you feeling about this new stage in your life as an artist?
It’s like living a dream. I have finally figured out the kind of work that makes me want to get out of bed in the morning and leave the house, and I get to do it everyday now. I couldn’t be happier. I sort of wish I’d discovered this earlier in life after having spent 7 years as a classroom teacher and then 10 in an office. But at the same time I feel grateful that I found this love when I did, and that I’ve been so successful at it. I feel really blessed. 

How do you think the internet has affected both you as an artist and your art career?
I would not have a career as an artist were it not for the Internet, especially without any formal training. Period. It’s how I got my work out there to begin with. It’s how almost every gallery or shop I’ve shown in has found me, and it’s how I continue to show others what I do, get feedback, and promote myself. It’s also how I’ve connected with other artists and gotten constant inspiration. I feel so lucky to be working in this day and age. 

sense

What has been the most significant moment in your "art life" up to this point.
There have been so many, but the most significant was when I showed a collection of my work at Rare Device in New York a majority of the show sold out the day it opened—before the opening party! People were calling and emailing the owner from all over the country to buy pieces. It was one of the coolest experiences of my life.

How do you think your work has evolved?
I think mostly my techniques are more refined and my style is more recognizable on its own. I am working bigger now, painting more. I draw everyday, and my drawing is improved. I am starting to look back at photos of my work from even a year ago and I don’t like them so much. I want to go back and rework some of them. But it’s hanging in people’s homes. So I can’t. Kind of funny how that works!

Where do you see your work going next?
I am just happy doing what I am doing right now. I don’t have any huge plans to delve into any new mediums or anything, except that I want to do more three-dimensional installations. I am working on a show right now that includes a lot of birds and geometric imagery. It’s called, The Tenderhearted, and it’s about the juxtaposition between the sweet vulnerability and impenetrability that exists in all of us. I’ve got a show coming up in November for which I will be using imagery from the ocean. I am excited about all of it. I am never bored. Frustrated at times, yes, because things don’t always go as I envision them. But I am never bored. It’s a good feeling.

Where I End and You Begin

Thanks for the interview Lisa!

-Elizabeth

Comments

[Amy]

Lovely, lovely interview! The formal education in art particularly speaks to me because I thought I might be better if I had gone for a proper degree in art. But I do know how the design critiques can get to you (I was trained as a landscape architect), and in my personal opinion, sometimes it's better not to know so much, so that your boundary isn't defined by preconceived ways of doing things. I'll be looking through my process with newly tinted eyes now--thanks for the inspiration! :)

[VERA]

Wow..I like it...so much...