1xRun Thru Interview
Hide And Seek by Glenn Arthur
1xRUN: Tell us a little bit about this original piece, what materials was it created with? When was it created?
Glenn Arthur: This piece was created for a show called Incognito: A show of disguise, which was in October of 2012 . The original sketch is graphite on bristol paper, and then painting is acrylic on wood. I paint in thin layers of light washes of color on gessoed wood gradually building up layers until I achieve the desired look. The final painting is also coated in a satin varnish. The original is $700.00 and is currently for sale in San Francisco, CA at Mission: Comics & Art.
1xRun: Tell us how the idea and execution came about?
Glenn Arthur: I wanted to create a bit of a surrealistic piece for the show where it was unclear whether or not the girl had eyes tattooed on her hands or her hands were actually transparent. It was kind of a throwback to the days of playing hide and seek as a child and trying to sneak a peek through your hands to see where your friends were hiding.
1xRun: How long did the piece take?
Glenn Arthur: This piece was created in about two months from original sketch to finished painting.
1xRun: What is unique about this piece?
Glenn Arthur: This piece is unique because it is much more surrealistic than most of my work. It was a bit of a challenge for me to step outside of my norm.
1xRun: Why should people buy this print?
Glenn Arthur: It’s a really cool image. Why wouldn’t you want it?
1xRun: Describe this print in one gut reaction word.
Glenn Arthur: Surreal!
1xRun: When did you first start making art? What was your first piece?
Glenn Arthur: I’ve been drawing my whole life but didn’t start painting until my late twenties when a friend literally forced a paintbrush into my hand and said, “You need to do this!” My first painted piece was made in 2009. It was called “Sugarcoated Contraband.” It was a painting of a 1940’s era woman in tattered clothing holding a tray of cupcakes with grenades in them. She has a very sullen look on her face as she realizes that a hummingbird wearing a gas mask has pulled a pin from one of the grenades. The piece was for a show called Black Market Sugar.
Sugarcoated Contraband by Glenn Arthur
1xRun: What artists inspired you early on? What artists inspire you now?
Glenn Arthur: I remember going to book stores years before I started creating art and reading books on Alphonse Mucha, J.C. Leyendecker and Gustav Klimt and feeling endlessly inspired! I was also very influenced by pin up artists, Gil Elvgren, Alberto Vargas and Olivia De Berardinis. My current inspirations are Audrey Kawasaki, Charmaine Olivia, Leilani Bustamante, Jason Levesque, N.C. Winters and Tatiana Suarez just to name a few.
1xRun: Do you listen to music while you work? If so what? If not then what is your environment like when you work?
Glenn Arthur: I do listen to music when I work. My musical tastes vary but some of my favorites are Depeche Mode, Ladytron, Late Night Alumni, Garbage, VNV Nation, Radiohead, Ladyhawke and I have a whole playlist of classical music that I like to listen to. If I’m not listening to music, I like to have familiar TV shows on in the background. My absolute favorite is the Golden Girls.
1xRun: If you could collaborate with any living artist who would it be and why?
Glenn Arthur: I would love to collaborate with my good friend Jason Levesque (aka the stuntkid)! We’ve done a lot of shows together and hang out whenever he comes to visit Southern California, but somehow we haven’t managed to create a piece together yet. I love and respect his work and think it would be great to combine our styles!
1xRun: If you could collaborate with any deceased artists who would it be and why?
Glenn Arthur: Alphonse Mucha! His work inspires mine the most. I’ve been studying his work for years and I learn something new from it everyday. It would have been an amazing experience to meet and make art with him!
1xRun: What was the first piece of art that you bought? Do you still have it? What was the last piece of art that you bought?
Glenn Arthur: The first piece of art I bought was a Gil Elvgren poster of a 40’s pinup girl in black lingerie ironing her dress. It still hangs in my room. The last piece of art I bought was a gorgeous print by Jason Levesque of one of his lovely women with her visible skeleton beneath her transparent skin.
1xRun: What else do you have in the works?
Glenn Arthur: I’m currently working on a new series of tattoo inspired, illustrative paintings to be shown in June of 2013 at Thinkspace Gallery in Los Angeles.
1xRun: Where else can people find you?
Glenn Arthur: Website – Blog – Facebook – Twitter – Instagram
-1xRUN