Steve R. Coffey Artist Statement
As a curious onlooker I am drawn to the ever shifting light and power of the plains. From the patterned intricacies of the land and swirling abstractions of the sky to the mysteries of our existence in between, my impression is presented in painting and song.
Regarding my painting practice: I was trained as a sculptor with a leaning toward formalism but my voice wasn't being fully realized in the three dimensional world seemingly lacking of a doorway to the intimacy of subject matter and storytelling. Through my love of drawing of the figure and landscape in addition to my attraction to the colour of the impressionists and the metaphor of the surrealists I made the obvious leap to oil paint to explore and justify any attempt in portraying this land and skyscape's true power and mystery of it's shimmer and strength and ultimately of our place within it and of it within us.
My paintings are mental snapshots. I don't paint from photographs and I seldom paint plein air. Essentially I gather what strikes me, file it away in my head and draw on it in my studio. These mental files I call ‘Memory Polaroids’ which I describe as a mingling of what's around me with a subconscious inkling of perception of what was, similar to the otherworldly quality of a polaroid picture. This process offers me the freedom to step outside a more traditional palette into what I consider to be the real nature's abstraction.
Regarding my music practice: Much of what I’ve discussed above can be applied to my music career. The reaction, gesture and implied metaphor that seems natural to my painted canvases are equal in my approach, perception and creation of my musical compositions. The only real differences there being is in my training and tools. Whereas I’m a fully trained visual artist I’m a staunch self taught musician and songwriter. This I credit to intuition and my father who was a self taught steel guitar player that believed that trusting in one's ear was the key to expressive uniqueness. Throughout my pursuit of art degrees I leaned on the organic purity of my songs to balance what I thought then was a formulaic, academic approach to art learning & making. This pure musical expression that lived in my back pocket eventually made me realize that it was actually a rounded tool box that I acquired from art school, nothing more. Thus I taught myself to paint with the same freedom and purity I’ve always had in my music and essentially, as with the ear, trusting in my eye.
My natural shift over the years is to utilize the language of music in the creation and discussion of my canvas: Tempo, Lyric, Melody, Rhythm, Verse, Chorus etc. and of course vice versa when writing and playing a musical composition: Hue, Tone, Contrast, Line, Weight etc. Thus- Painting my song and singing my painting.
My philosophy (with a tint of opinion) is that art derives from a personal place and must first pass that inside test before it is let loose to speak publicly. But for me the completion of a work of art is simply a remnant of that moment of expression. At that point the piece is no longer as important to me hence why it is easy to let it go and to move on. A physical painting or recorded song created yesterday gets in the way of the perceived one being created today. The only value to draw on is what may have made yesterday’s work of art visually or sonically successful enough to let it enter the outside world. It is the informant that instigates progression. Nothing more. It is no longer mine as such but an echo of a voice speaking elsewhere in the world, in wherever it ends up and takes on a new role as some sort of purveyor. Now, hopefully, important to somebody else for whatever reason. A collector’s/ listener's perception then becomes an intimate collaboration between viewer/listener and the artist. For me, the truth is: Art that comes from that natural need to express will find it’s place organically therefore should travel carefully through superficial realms such as contests, awards and competitions. There, there is little more than judging the ‘flavor of the day’. Unless they are designed with integrated teaching tools, competitions and contests risk belittling true expression rather than encouraging it by suggesting that only a select few can do it well and ultimately, can set a poor precedent for our aspiring future artists. With art making there is no right or wrong. My process is an ongoing artistic refinement using intuition, instinct and inspiration gathered from what’s around me and those I hold dear and without any public voice saying: “you should create this”.
I don’t rely on other’s artistic approval. Just my own.
I have been driven to create art all of my life whether it be painting or music. I don’t analyze why so much as simply feeding the need. Visual Arts and Music are my chosen languages and my end goal is to perfect them. Something no artist ever really does, hence the painter that dies holding the brush. It’s much more than a passing interest. It’s a way of life. It’s forever learning.
To quote the great Larry Poons: “My only defense against fate (is) colour”.
In the end I would hope that my work triggers the feeling of familiarity, that somewhere at sometime the viewer/ listener has seen or felt this; a familiar mystery that lives on the tip of the tongue. I would hope that my work is accessible for simply what it is; a painting or a song left to interpretation with no tricks.
As a curious onlooker I am drawn to the ever shifting light and power of the plains. From the patterned intricacies of the land and swirling abstractions of the sky to the mysteries of our existence in between, my impression is presented in painting and song.
Regarding my painting practice: I was trained as a sculptor with a leaning toward formalism but my voice wasn't being fully realized in the three dimensional world seemingly lacking of a doorway to the intimacy of subject matter and storytelling. Through my love of drawing of the figure and landscape in addition to my attraction to the colour of the impressionists and the metaphor of the surrealists I made the obvious leap to oil paint to explore and justify any attempt in portraying this land and skyscape's true power and mystery of it's shimmer and strength and ultimately of our place within it and of it within us.
My paintings are mental snapshots. I don't paint from photographs and I seldom paint plein air. Essentially I gather what strikes me, file it away in my head and draw on it in my studio. These mental files I call ‘Memory Polaroids’ which I describe as a mingling of what's around me with a subconscious inkling of perception of what was, similar to the otherworldly quality of a polaroid picture. This process offers me the freedom to step outside a more traditional palette into what I consider to be the real nature's abstraction.
Regarding my music practice: Much of what I’ve discussed above can be applied to my music career. The reaction, gesture and implied metaphor that seems natural to my painted canvases are equal in my approach, perception and creation of my musical compositions. The only real differences there being is in my training and tools. Whereas I’m a fully trained visual artist I’m a staunch self taught musician and songwriter. This I credit to intuition and my father who was a self taught steel guitar player that believed that trusting in one's ear was the key to expressive uniqueness. Throughout my pursuit of art degrees I leaned on the organic purity of my songs to balance what I thought then was a formulaic, academic approach to art learning & making. This pure musical expression that lived in my back pocket eventually made me realize that it was actually a rounded tool box that I acquired from art school, nothing more. Thus I taught myself to paint with the same freedom and purity I’ve always had in my music and essentially, as with the ear, trusting in my eye.
My natural shift over the years is to utilize the language of music in the creation and discussion of my canvas: Tempo, Lyric, Melody, Rhythm, Verse, Chorus etc. and of course vice versa when writing and playing a musical composition: Hue, Tone, Contrast, Line, Weight etc. Thus- Painting my song and singing my painting.
My philosophy (with a tint of opinion) is that art derives from a personal place and must first pass that inside test before it is let loose to speak publicly. But for me the completion of a work of art is simply a remnant of that moment of expression. At that point the piece is no longer as important to me hence why it is easy to let it go and to move on. A physical painting or recorded song created yesterday gets in the way of the perceived one being created today. The only value to draw on is what may have made yesterday’s work of art visually or sonically successful enough to let it enter the outside world. It is the informant that instigates progression. Nothing more. It is no longer mine as such but an echo of a voice speaking elsewhere in the world, in wherever it ends up and takes on a new role as some sort of purveyor. Now, hopefully, important to somebody else for whatever reason. A collector’s/ listener's perception then becomes an intimate collaboration between viewer/listener and the artist. For me, the truth is: Art that comes from that natural need to express will find it’s place organically therefore should travel carefully through superficial realms such as contests, awards and competitions. There, there is little more than judging the ‘flavor of the day’. Unless they are designed with integrated teaching tools, competitions and contests risk belittling true expression rather than encouraging it by suggesting that only a select few can do it well and ultimately, can set a poor precedent for our aspiring future artists. With art making there is no right or wrong. My process is an ongoing artistic refinement using intuition, instinct and inspiration gathered from what’s around me and those I hold dear and without any public voice saying: “you should create this”.
I don’t rely on other’s artistic approval. Just my own.
I have been driven to create art all of my life whether it be painting or music. I don’t analyze why so much as simply feeding the need. Visual Arts and Music are my chosen languages and my end goal is to perfect them. Something no artist ever really does, hence the painter that dies holding the brush. It’s much more than a passing interest. It’s a way of life. It’s forever learning.
To quote the great Larry Poons: “My only defense against fate (is) colour”.
In the end I would hope that my work triggers the feeling of familiarity, that somewhere at sometime the viewer/ listener has seen or felt this; a familiar mystery that lives on the tip of the tongue. I would hope that my work is accessible for simply what it is; a painting or a song left to interpretation with no tricks.