Interview with Kendrick Mar
Hi Kendrick. Thanks for chatting to i vote for art. Since we have only a one-sentence synopsis of your work on the site, you better tell us a bit about yourself… Who is Kendrick Mar?
Well, I’m a painter and I currently live in New York. Originally I’m from California, grew up in Fresno, then lived in the San Francisco bay area. For my art training, I attended the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, where I got my BFA degree, emphasizing painting.
You have previously commented that your work draws on “childhood emotions and memories”. Can you tell us a little bit more about that?
In my work I mostly seek to depict certain feelings rather than concepts or ideas, those from the pre-verbal stages of childhood. They are usually cloaked in hazy memories and capturing it with images is a bit like trying to remember dreams.
There is an inherent sadness in much of your work - do you find that your audience identifies with the ‘toy-like” images, or do you think people observe your work as a narrative of your own personal story?
I am always interested in how my work comes across to others. I would suspect that people can see there is autobiographical content, and I do hope others can identify with the imagery and that it draws them in.
Did you paint much as a kid? When did you start calling yourself “an artists”, and how did you get to that point?
I didn’t become an artist until I was an adult. Growing up, I didn’t really make art any more than the average kid. I got a late start in art, during my fourth year of college as an engineering major. I took a drawing class and had an epiphany of sorts. At that point I realized I wanted to be an artist. I wanted to keep learning and developing as an artist and since then have done just that.
The visual depth in some of your more recent work is really appealing. It almost looks like ‘clay-mation’. Do you work with clay models or stuffed toys to guide your painting?
I paint from a diorama setup. The figures are sculpted in oven-bake colored crafts clay. I pose the figures and light them and then paint observationally from the setup.
Tell us about your “studio space”. Do you work from home?
I do work in my apartment. I have a space setup with my easel, art supplies, desk and books.
What artwork do you have on your walls (other than your own!)?
I don’t have a lot of art on the walls, but I do have a lot of art monographs and books. Some favorites include Basquiat, Ross Bleckner, Damien Hirst, plus the Old Masters from art history.
What things do you do to promote yourself and your work both online and offline?
With being an artist in NY, promoting one’s work is an ongoing process. Occasionally, though there are long periods of time where step away from it and focus primarily on creating a body of work that I’m happy with. That’s sort of where I’m at right now.
And just for a bit of fun, tell us a bit about your last holiday/vacation!
Sure! Nothing terribly exciting, I went to Montreal to visit someone and see a Cirque du Soleil show.
Thanks for that Kendrick!
And thanks for the fun questions!
So there you have it. A little piece of Kendrick Mar. Don’t forget to check out Kendrick’s new work that we have released on i vote for art: The Red Queen (pictured above). And to see all of the other work that Kendrick has available on i vote for art, scoot on over here!
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