Ida VictoriaASK THE ARTIST: 12 Questions & A Joke with Claudia Nery
Updated: Oct 24, 2022
ASK THE ARTIST: 12 QUESTIONS & A JOKE,
is an opportunity for our gallery supporters, friends and clients to get to know our artists a little better. It’s a fun way to get a glimpse into the personalities of the artists and at the same time connecting the artist with their art.
Hope you enjoy!! Ida Victoria
Q If there was a favorite work of art you could hang or display in your home, which would it be?
CN “Tres Personajes en Rojo”, by Rufino Tamayo. My choice for a favorite artist has changed over time, at the beginning Tamayo was my all time favorite, but now I like many. But in this painting in particular, I like the way his technique is managed, and the harmony of the colors. Maybe I’ve become more picky in my visual perception.
Tamayo’s method situates his composition as the focal point instead of emphasizing the subject alone. By doing so, one looks at the painting as a whole. He explained his approach to Paul Westheim as follows: “As the number of colors we use decreases, the wealth of possibilities increases”. Tamayo favored using few colors rather than many; he asserted that fewer colors in a painting gave the art greater force and meaning…With that being said, Octavio Paz, author of the book Rufino Tamayo, argues that, “Time and again we have been told that Tamayo is a great colourist; but it should be added that this richness of colour is the result of sobriety”. By being pure or, as Paz explained, sober with his color choice, Tamayo’s paintings were enriched, not impoverished. “If I could express with a single word what it is that distinguishes Tamayo from other painters, I would say without a moment’s hesitation: Sun. For the sun is in all his pictures, whether we see it or not.” – Nobel Prize-winning poet Octavio Paz
-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rufino_Tamayo
Q If there was one dead artist that you could hang out with for a day, who would that be? Why?
CN Tamayo, I’d like to know everything about his process…how it all starts for him. I would have liked to see how he creates a painting, from the very beginning with the texture he laid down on his canvases before any paint.
Q If there were a magic power you could use in your art making, what would it be?
CN To have the canvases already primed, so it would take me a little less time to prepare them and get to the best part, creating a piece.
Q If we were going to talk about your art, where would you want to start?
CN Her artwork is inspired by ethnic art
Q What quality in others makes you want to slap them?
CN Egocentric people, racists and those who despise animals.
Q Art is so subjective, what kind of art is unappealing to you?
CN Art manifests itself everywhere and its value depends on who is perceiving it. I’m only repelled by grotesque and violent art.
Q What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given as far as your art, inspiration or career?
CN When I first started painting a colleague told me that I was entering into a very difficult and underpaid world. I replied that nothing was impossible. Since the beginning, my instinct has told me that my art would transcend. That pessimistic advice would mark me forever.
Q What is most important to you…the subject, the process or the final work?
CN The final result.
Q If your work was edible, what would it taste like?
CN It would taste like fruit.
Q What is the one thing you need in your studio to work, other than your art supplies?
CN My good health is all I need.