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 Frank X. Tolbert 2 |
FT: The full spectrum of life is represented in these portraits. I learned I had to keep it one on one with the sitter. For example, a couple came into the studio to each have a study done and the wife kept telling the husband how to hold his hands, how to smile, etc. I don't need any back seat driver! One of my favorite group of portraits I did was of the Hornaday family in Austin. I did each one individually, but the simple fact that it was the husband, the wife and their son made it special. One of the most fun parts of doing these is actually capturing the spirit of that person and its a difficult thing to do. I consider these pieces "presidential scale" because they are typically the size you'd see in the capitol building or in Washington DC. They are a scale and a half above human size.
KB: Why such an expansive body of portraiture?
FT: Because I'm obsessed and it was a body of work, these things can go on for years, you know? I still have about 50 more to do. I am still open for portrait commissions but feel that I have an existing substantial body of them.
KB: Can you tell me about the self-portrait you created in 2005, which you noted was "a very dark period in my life"?
FT: The self-portrait you may be referring to came about during a deep depression for me, stemming from personal things that I would rather not go into, but I can tell you it had to do with the highs and lows of the art world. It actually wasn't just one piece, it was another whole body of work. I showed it at The MAC and in Atlanta at Bill Bound's gallery, who is now a Dallas resident. The piece is owned by the Museum of Fine Arts Houston. It depicts me with my head on a table with a vast space of white above me, other self portraits in this body showed me in various states of vulnerability.
KB: Back in 1986 you collaborated on the stained glass windows that were in the Dallas Hard Rock Cafe. Recently, the Hard Rock was demolished and Shannon Wynne relocated the windows to his new restaurant, the Meddlesome Moth, which is situated amongst the cluster of galleries that exist here in the Design District. What was your role in the creation of the glass?
FT: The stained glass windows came about from a team of artists working with Isaac Tiggrett. There were two fine artists, a commercial artist and a stained glass artist. I submitted my drawings, of which many appear in the finished piece, but a lot more slickly than I work. Actually, it tells all about this on the back of the menu at Meddlesome Moth.
KB: I know you studied with Otis Dozier, one of the Dallas Nine. What kind of impact did he have on your art?
FT: Otis was my teacher at the DMA in Fair Park when I was ten years old. This is basically where I found my calling to be an artist. I still have the utmost respect and admiration for him, as ever.
KB: What artists, who emerged after you, do you feel may be creating from innovations set forth by you?
FT: I have been told that my work has inspired a number of people, but I don't want to name names. That's a two way street!
KB: I wouldn't be shy about naming anyone who has reached out to you and told you that you were inspirational to them.
FT: I don't think I want to go there Kayla. . . . They may be mad at me by now or vice versa.
KB: You have done a lot of printmaking at Flatbed Press in Austin, can you talk about some of the work you've made there?
FT: I've been printmaking since I was a kid, linoleum and woodcuts. To work at Flatbed is a luxury because they do all the printing for you and solve any problems that might come up. I did two woodcuts there 4' X 3' and hand cut the images myself. I did, "The Lady with a Tail" and "Fortune Teller, New Orleans." I also did a couple of leaf pieces out of that botanical body of work. I have also worked with Slugfest and Peter Webb, both are print facilitators in Austin.
KB: How does the photography of your wife, Ann Stautberg—her thinking and rituals in creating—influence your sense of aesthetic?
FT: Ann is my muse.
KB: You will be included in the upcoming Gerald Peter's New York show of Texas artists, in honor of Ted Pillsbury. What can we expect of you in that exhibition?
FT: In New York I will be showing pieces from the body of work that will be exhibited at Kirk Hopper Fine Arts in Fall 2011. After the minimalist portraits I needed to return to my more narrative style. The two pieces were selected by the curator of Gerald Peters Gallery, Lily Burke. One is black and white in oil-stick and depicts Ann and I in Maine, under a full moon with all our accoutrements on the table. The other is a piece of a tiger in honor of the year. The background is full of my personal icons, entitled "Love & Money, Year of the Tiger." Both are 60" X 44" and I'd say both of these, although dark, are also hopeful pieces. I am really honored to be in a show honoring Ted Pillsbury, one of my heroes.