Tom Kochheiser

Too Tired To Post

Tom — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 01:26:08 +0000

I’m too tired to pozzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz…

Artforum Performance Art Piece

Tom — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 02:28:10 +0000

I picked up an old copy of Artforum today and noticed the pages inside were ripped and chewed. Then I remembered it was part of a performance art piece done in collaboration with my studio assistants in late 2007, I believe. Here’s a shot of the piece, entitled Untitled (Artforum), in process:

Now a shot of my assistants during the performance:

That’s Cream on the left and Rex on the right. They are quite skilled and dedicated collaborators. I was pleased with their work.

Things Are Quiet

Tom — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 01:13:16 +0000

Not much going on today artwise. Bought some acid free tracing paper to do more paintings/drawings on. Work for paycheck has been busy x 10 and it is hard to find time to create. Not impossible. Just difficult.

Here’s a detail of Tower of Power I posted on recently. I got out photo lights and shot it proper this time.

Can you imagine it took me three years of drawing every day to develop that scribbling line and style?

Best Artist Book

Tom — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 02:16:49 +0000

The best book I have ever read regarding creativity and the process of making art is Steven Pressfield’s The War of Art.

Here it is. I always keep it close by, reread it often.

Mine is marked up and well worn. I have never read another book that encapsulates the artist’s process and points the way to unlocking creativity in such direct prose. It is easy to read but pulls no punches. It smacks you upside the head in the most wonderful way.

Listened to a report on NPR today about Art Basel Miami Beach. The Big Time. Collectors, galleries, money, business, sun, sand, ocean, sky, clouds, air…probably fun. The people watching I imagine would be great.

Off to draw…

Noodling Around

Tom — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 03:09:04 +0000

The Muse has been good to me the last couple of days. After my noodling around with The New York Times (see last post) I found a pad of tracing paper and got out some pens and acrylic paint, threw some gestural drawing together with cartoon speech balloons and came up with this (after a few trial sketches):

It’s 9 x 11 inches. The title Tower of Power popped into my head. Funny.

Here’s a detail:

I painted the body of the balloons acrylic titanium white and tipped a bit of paint around some of the squiggles. Just having fun, seeing what would happen.

I like it hung with only blue masking tape; no frame – makes it more iffy and ephemeral.

I am pretty happy how it turned out.

What To Do After You Clean Your Studio

Tom — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 01:01:33 +0000

I got into the studio today.

First I had to clean (I hadn’t been in there for two weeks because it was such a disaster).

Then I worked.

But what to do? I had recently finished a series of acrylics…

I decided to mess around. Here’s what happened.

I tried a few things in gouache and acrylic on a NY Times front page. Some cartoon balloons, some squiggles, marking out random words. Just playing around.

I liked the white swirls around the traffic lights in the fire picture. Those cartoon balloons are pretty crude and stupid, but in a kinda good way.

The best things happen when I have no idea what I am doing. Then again, ordinary stuff just happens. But that’s ok, it gets me down the road a piece, closer to seeing what’s around the next bend.

NYC- Feeding the Inner Artist

Tom — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 00:53:08 +0000

I was in New York City a couple of weekends ago. Was flown in by the Neuberger Museum to participate in a panel discussion regarding the Hannah Wilke exhibition they organized (I organized her first retrospective exhibiton back in 1989). They did Hannah’s work justice. I enjoyed my time there.

I had the rest of the weekend in the city; stayed with dear friends in the West Village.

With the New York art world at hand, what’s a painter to do?

I took it easy. I saw a few shows in Chelsea; really liked Lisa Sanditz’s paintings at CRG Gallery. Went to the New Museum to see the new building (the exterior is stunningly simple and playful) and view the Elizabeth Peyton exhibition now on display.

Her portraits have intrigued me since I saw images of her Kurt Cobain paintings in the 1990′s. This was my first look in person. I don’t quite know what to think; they are beautifully ephemeral, colors are vibrant. The sitters though seem vacant, like the lifeblood or force has been sucked out of them. That’s ok. I do believe they are significant works of art. They engage me on a number of levels. I particularly liked the Keith Richards portrait from the Guggenheim; just lovely; I have had a repro of it in my studio for a number of years.

But to truly feed my inner artist, all I needed to do was to walk the streets, engage the senses, breathe. That’s where the real aesthetic action was for me.

Begin at the Beginning

Tom — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 01:26:38 +0000

Well, I have finally done it. After nearly eight years, I have an exhibition of my artwork in a gallery.

Sixteen paintings, the largest 12 x 12 in. Here are some gallery views I took while installing the work. They are in a small gallery in my neighborhood. Actually sold one at the opening last Friday. Had a nice crowd for a snowy, 20+F night.

There’s a Buddhist saying I read in a book a long time ago. “You are perfect for where you are at right now.” I’m an art historian turned painter, starting over, at the bottom. First steps. Perfect.

This is also the first post for this blog. I have kept this blog as a website only for about a year; a place to show images of my work. It’s time to write a bit about what I do.

You can click on the page names to the right if you want to see better images and some info about me.

Stay tuned…