Beauty in the Breakdown : Interview with Sarah Joncas

Sarah Joncas Painting

Interview with Beauty in the Breakdown artist Sarah Joncas

Warm-Up Questions:
SH: Coffee or Tea?
SJ: coffee @_@
SH: background noise – music or tv show?
SJ: music, clearly!
SH: snacks – savory or sweet?
SJ: Mmm, fruit and pastry sweetness
SH: dogs or cats?
SJ: No need to fight, I love them both <3

SH: When do you get the most painting done? Morning, Noon, Night, Middle of the Night/Morning?
SJ: 10am to 6pm. I work whenever I get the chance, but because my man works during the day, it’s most convenient to paint then. I think I prefer nights though. The day is better light for sure, but the night has better mood!

SH: Have you ever accidentally drank or was about to drink the dirty ‘paint’ water?
SJ: All the time… all the time. I also end up stirring my paint brushes into my coffee rather than the dirty water. So irritating. At least this is only a problem when I work in acrylic though, never with oils.

Sarah Joncas Anybody Out ThereSarah Joncas “Anybody Out There” – Oil on Canvas 18″x 24

SH: What inspired the direction of your work for the upcoming show, Beauty in the Breakdown?
SJ: I was playing with ideas surrounding environmentalism and escapism for this show. Having grown up as a kid with the solace of a forest in my backyard wherever we lived, it was a stark contrast moving to Toronto as an adult and adjusting to the new urban landscape.. These paintings feel like a partial nostalgia and need of return to nature, as well as a critique on the effects of urbanization for both the physical and psychological worlds. Stylistically the show was also about pushing my aesthetics in other realms, enjoying a graphic mix of design alongside my more traditional, oil rendered portraits. What other artists work are you ‘

SH: What other artists work are you ‘fangirling’ over right now?
SJ: A lot of contemporary artists I show with at group exhibitions actually, or at least show at the same galleries! Keita Morimoto, Kelsey Beckett, Erik Jones, Hsiao-Ron Cheng and more. Such wonderful work!

SH: What motivated you to choose the life/career of an artist?
SJ: Always knew, I loved painting and drawing as a very young kid and didn’t want to stop doing it!

Sarah Joncas Something in the Air “Something in the Air” – Graphic & ink on paper 9″x 12

SJ: What brand of paint so you use? What’s your favorite color and brush right now?
SJ: For oils, mostly winsor&newton and liquitex for acrylics. Favourite colour? I tend to mix a lot of my paint colours from a small set of primary, but I really love deep turquoise and the various analogous shades I can make from it. I like cheap synthetic brushes, haha. I love my detailing brushes though, tiny tiny. The most enjoyable work in a painting for me is done with the smallest brush! Sometimes, with all my dry brush and scumbling, I can engineer a pretty sweet nub of a brush too.

SH: How long does it take to complete a single piece? Do you work on multiple pieces at one time?
SJ: Usually 1-4 months, depending on size. And yes, it’s like a one-woman factory in my studio! 8-12 painting at any given time. I work on them in a cycle between layers of drying oil.

SH: What creative person; artist, musician, director, family member etc… has had the most influence or inspired your own artistic voice?
SJ: Man, how can I choose! There’s so many that have had so many different and meaningful influences on me. To settle for sake of the question though, maybe Radiohead is king. Since I was 15 till today, they have been a constant and feverish love. Music is most important to my painting process, I think. It sweeps me into the right mood and mindset for work when I need it.

Sarah Joncas The Wishing WellSarah Joncas “The Wishing Well” – Oil on Canvas 24″ x 30” 

SH: What do you know now, that you wish you would have known when first embarking on your artistic career?
SJ: I was so shy and struggled so much with confidence when I started out. It’s still a battle, to be honest, but as I’ve gotten older I’ve learned to put most of that on the back burner and to go after things with less hesitation. I don’t think these lessons are something you can just know and follow though, you need the progressive experience.

SH: If your could invite 5 people dead or alive to a dinner party, who would be on your guest list and what’s on the menu?
SJ: The decision is crippling, haha. So many possibilities! At the moment, I’m all in the mood for intense and passionate music though… So how about stewing together some awesome musicians and making some sweet, sweet tunes! Let’s throw in some Thom York, a little dash of David Gilmour, some smoky Clint Mansell, a pinch of Danny Carey and some sweet Natasha Khan! I can play the triangle or something stupid… More cowbell? Oh yeah, do they still need food? Alright, let’s make it some crazy ethnic potluck then; Indian, Mexican, Japanese, Thai, Mediterranean etc. I love all of it.

Sarah Joncas AngelSarah Joncas “Angel” – Oil on Wood 8″ x 10″

Beauty in the Breakdown new works by Sarah Joncas & Camilla d’Errico on view February 28th through March 21st.

Opening Reception with artists on hand: Saturday, February 28th 6-9PM

Beauty in the Breakdown – Sarah Joncas & Camilla d’Errico + free prints opening night!

 

beauty in the breakdown sarah joncas and camilla d'errico

In our main gallery:
Sarah Joncas & Camilla d’Errico
‘Beauty In The Breakdown’

Opening Reception with all three artists on hand:
Saturday, February 28th 6-9PM
Both exhibits on view February 28th through March 21st

Beauty In The Breakdown is an exhibition by two Canadian based artists who wear their femininity on their sleeves. Having first shown together almost a decade ago, this special exhibition is a reunion and anniversary of sorts for both artists.

Each artist wields a certain kind of mojo that make human hearts skip a beat. The more one looks at their works, the more one will start to see the emotional complexity that makes their paintings far deeper than just being eye candy for the soul. Their works span the full array of human emotions, from longing to innocence, to surreal flights of fantasy that only begin to hint at the more solemn emotions that most of us try and hide.

Sarah Joncas oil painting Schoolgirl Burial Sarah Joncas ‘Schoolgirl Burial’ – oil on canvas – 24×30 inches

Sarah Joncas was born in 1986 and grew up in both Hamilton and Niagara Falls, Ontario. Her interest in the visual arts developed at an early age, starting with the dedicated drawings of dinosaurs and lizards. Eventually the study and enjoyment of working from existing images stirred up the need in Sarah to create images of her own; ones that could reflect the world, yet also appease the personal feelings/ideas that she herself maintained. With this, her direction changed gradually from the world of animation, towards a path in fine art.
Joncas is a graduate of the Ontario College of Art and Design and currently resides and works out of Toronto, Canada. Her work focuses on the mysterious lives of her female protagonists placed within film-noir atmospheres. In this exhibition, Joncas explores themes of mystery, troubled relationships and betrayal taking cues from modern day symbolism and contemporary technology.

Camilla d'Errico Madame Butterfly

Camilla d’Errico ‘Madame Butterfly’ – Oil on wood panel – 9.5×11.75 inches

Camilla d’Errico is a product of her split heritage, Italian and Canadian rolled into one: Italian fiestiness, Canadian politeness, and an early addiction to Saturday morning cartoons, comics and manga. Growing up she was more often doodling sexy damsels and dragons on her textbooks than reading them. In 1998 when Camilla first attended her first San Diego Comic Con she realised that a 9-5 day job would kill her and this was what she wanted to do. Thanks to her relentless energy, dedication, and just enough sleep deprivation, she has followed her dream of working creatively for a living.

Camilla’s unique style continues to be in demand and her client list includes Dark Horse Comics, Image Comics, Random House, Tokyopop, Hasbro, Disney, Sanrio, Neil Gaiman and she also works with video game and movie companies on character development. Her own characters and properties, Tanpopo and Helmetgirls, are loved by fans and followers and now inspire Cosplay costumes. She has successfully merchandised and licensed her beautiful artwork across a variety of categories: clothing, stationery and gift, accessories, art prints, etc. and continues to expand her licensing program. Her emotive and eloquent paintings have propelled her to the top of the ranks of the New Contemporary art movement
~ Free Prints To The 1st 30 Guests Through Our Doors This Saturday ~ 
Free to the 1st 30 guests through our doors this Saturday evening. Please do not call or email asking for one, they are strictly for our local patrons on opening night.
Camilla d'Errico 'Bubble Bubble Toil & Trouble

Camilla d’Errico
‘Bubble Bubble Toil & Trouble’
Edition of 30
8×10 inches
Hand-signed by the artist

Sarah Joncas Nightshade

Sarah Joncas
‘Nightshade’
Edition of 30
8×10 inches
Hand-signed by the artist

The Withering – Anthony Clarkson

beauty in the breakdown

In our project room:
Anthony Clarkson
‘The Withering’

Opening Reception with all three artists on hand:
Saturday, February 28th 6-9PM
Both exhibits on view February 28th through March 21st

Anthony Clarkson is a Los Angeles-based artist/designer with over 10 years experience in both the contemporary art gallery circuit and the music entertainment industry.

When Clarkson graduated from the Colorado Institute of Art in 2002, he was resolute in his decision to make a living as a graphic artist in the music industry. He was hired as the head graphic designer for a prominent record label in Los Angeles shortly thereafter.Embracing a vibrantly

Embracing a vibrantly hyper-realistic digital photo-manipulation technique, his first published album cover followed shortly after joining their ranks and quickly established a long list of published album covers for several bands on various labels.

In 2005 an opportunity presented itself that renewed Anthony’s creative juices and he found himself diving headlong into a new career as an active artist in the new contemporary movement. His ghostly surreal work has shown in several galleries throughout the States and abroad and continues to attract an ever-growing collector base in the process.

anthony clarkson mind body soul
Antony Clarkson ‘Mind / Body / Soul’ – Acrylic on wood panel – 24×18 inches