Visual Language Magazine Contemporary Fine Art Vol 2 No 6 June 2013

Painter’s Keys
with Robert Genn
Robert Genn’s
Studio Book
The downside of isolation
Straightforward advice
April 19, 2013
Dear Artist,
Yesterday, Carolyn H. WarmSun of Montclair, California asked, “Do you ever do telephone consultations with
artists If so, at what price and how are they arranged I am imagining us both on the phone in front of computers
where you can see my website as we talk. I’m looking for straightforward advice. With all these paintings around
here, I feel like an orphanage matron--I need to get these kids out in the sun and find them a good home.”
Thanks, Carolyn. I’m sincerely sorry, but I don’t arrange telephone or computer consultations and, when they happen,
I don’t charge for them. I’d love to consult with folks this way, but I’d need two weeks tacked onto every day.
Carolyn’s paintings exude the colour and warmth of the American Southwest. Broadly abstract and Zen-like, they
are loaded with texture and commonly-found materials. Glass beads, fiber paste, tissue paper, even Halloween spider-webs
add to the mystique. You can tell she’s the kind of artist who likes to look at her work-in-progress and see
what’s happening--watching the paint going here and there. A seeking, exploratory and curious worker, she’s having
a lot of fun. FYI, we’ve put some examples of Carolyn’s work at the top of the current clickback.
Requests for straightforward advice come to my inbox every day. Many are wondering what to do with the buildup
of orphans in the studio. Like the art of poetry, where there are more poets than readers of poetry, the art of painting
is heading in the same direction. My job, as I see it, is to try to give tail-wagging encouragement and informed comment
on our miraculous vocation. My suggestion to reconsider chartered accountancy is a last resort.
It’s not just a North American phenomenon, but people often feel the need for green feedback to justify their actions.
In painting, this concept may be unsustainable. Perhaps the best advice is, “Keep at it and let the joy build your proficiency.
Fall in love with your own unique processes. Don’t hide your stuff under a bush. Know in your heart that
there is no such thing as an undiscovered genius.”
Best regards, Robert
PS: “My goal as an artist is to be seen as relevant, unique, and excellent by artists whose work I respect and admire.
I also hope to help people experience their connectedness to Mother Nature.” (Carolyn H. WarmSun)
Painter’s Keys - Robert Genn
Esoterica: Artists generally need a lifetime to build acceptance. Painters like me coast on a legacy of not deserting
the ship. Periods come and periods go, times are up and times are down, but someone is always in the engine room.
My heart goes out to true-to-themselves painters like Carolyn, and there are millions. Still, things happen to those
who keep a steady hand on the tiller. And it’s human nature to keep buying the tickets.
I had a good friend, now deceased, whose path through life was unfocused and lackadaisical. He lacked gumption.
“When my ship comes in,” he said, “I’ll be at the airport.”
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