In the Studio with Lori Nelson Clonts

This Saturday we introduce you to artist Lori Nelson Clonts!

How did you start making art?

I began making images when very young. I’ve always endeavored to express myself through various mediums. I can’t remember ever not creating or planning the next thing I would make.

Why do you create and what need does it satisfy?

The act of manifesting an idea into material reality is a kind of hunger that must be satisfied. If it is not satisfied then I am left hungry. It’s possible to be hungry for a period of time but this deprived state is not comfortable, so I’m compelled to make something.

What is your most important artist tool?

I’m painting and drawing at present, so I suppose the paint and brushes are critical, but the most important tool is really an open mind, and a willingness to fail. Making images is an exploration into the unknown. I disappoint myself all the time so courage is also important. If I am afraid to fail then I get stalled, which happens often enough, but not for long. My compulsion to create is stronger than my fear of failure.

Is there something you can’t live without in your studio?

Paint and canvas. Light and a comfortable temperature. Brushes and other things that help me get the paint on canvas. A lack of pain. The ability to separate from all the other stressors in my life. Time. Focus. Space.

My tools are basic since I’m a painter, though I’m discovering new ways to apply the paint. I like to use unconventional items. Brushes are very much under the control of my hand and brain, but if I roll a toy car through paint and then push it around the canvas then I get less controlled marks. I use sponges and rollers. I like the more spontaneous marks unconventional tools make, but I still rely heavily on brushes.

There are no magical items or totems in my studio, but I do like to listen to the radio while working. I usually listen to CBC because I live in a remote location and it’s the only station that comes in. There is no internet connection in my studio. I sometimes listen to podcasts and sometimes music from my tablet but usually, I prefer human chatter that’s not particularly relevant to me. The chatter is good company.

Creativity can be imaginative, inventive, and original. Understanding that creating artwork is a very personal choice; what inspires your creativity?

Just about anything inspires me to paint or draw. Usually, my subject matter is simply what’s around me. The places and creatures I see every day are what I know, so I paint what I know. Often I am compelled by the failures and successes of my last work. I may look at a finished piece and think: Gosh, that angle is so flat. I’m going to make the next piece an aerial view. Or: I’m really sick of this blue-green landscape. I need to find something yellow to paint. Or: I love the fur on that dog I just painted. What else has fur?

What is your least favorite part of your process? What is your favorite part?

The hardest part of making a painting or drawing is deciding what to put on the canvas. Imagine, you are sitting in front of a white canvas and someone comes up to you and hands you a set of paints and a few brushes and says, “Paint something”. It’s not easier for me even though I do it all the time. Plus I have high expectations which I rarely meet. So this is not my least favorite part of my process, but it is the most challenging.

The most exciting part of the process is usually when I’m a day or two into the painting and I see the potential. The under-painting is raw and speaks to possibility. I’m in love with it. And then I proceed to ruin and then rescue the painting. Ruin, rescue, Ruin, rescue. It goes like this until I am finally done. I know I’m done when all the problems that come up are resolved.

Satisfaction with my work is rare, but once in a while one of my pieces speaks truth, so I keep going. I have more to learn than I’ve learned.