Friday, March 13, 2015

Interview with Dave Pollot






 q)Walk us through an intimate day in your life

a)Most of my days are spent at work (I write software by day), and painting when I get home.  I like to have a great craft beer while I paint, so it's become something of a ritual.  I live with my fiancee and our two dogs - so they're a pretty big part of my day-to-day.

q) Where did you grow up/where do you live now and how does that contribute to your art?

a)I grew up in a small town in upstate NY.  I don't know that where, so much as when, has really influenced my work.  I grew up in the 80s and 90s with all of the movies & video games of that generation.  These are the things that have most influenced my work. 

q) What is your earliest memory that propelled you to create?

a)I think that I've always loved to paint.  My father used to paint, and my aunt took me to an art supplies store every year for Christmas.  I'd paint using whatever I could (old paints and cardboard if necessary). 


q) Tell us a little bit about your creative process.

a)I don't know that there's much process to it other than the ritualistic beer that I have while I'm painting.  Lately it's been very spontaneous.  I have a basement full of unaltered pieces waiting for me, and I'll typically look around until I find one that suits what I'm thinking at the time.  From there, I might sketch out the placement of my additions, but very often, I just dive in.  It's pretty hard to leave my easel once I start and so there are times when I'll paint for eight hours at a time.


q) How do you wish for your art to be perceived?

a)I think people should take it for what it is... a parody.  I love the idea of taking pop culture from one generation and adding it to the artwork of another.  It's even better if I can make it seem like it [impossibly so] belonged there the entire time.  Hopefully people will laugh a little as well.  


q) What do your internal dialogues sound like?

a)This is a great question!  They must be very confusing or really boring because I cannot for the life of me recall any!  I think they're mostly a bunch of unfinished sentences about my Fiancee, dogs, beer, and paint. 


q) Do you feel that there are limitations to what you want to create?

a)I feel like never have enough hours in the day to do/paint all the things that I'd love to do/paint.  I don't think I'll ever run out of ideas, so let's just hope I don't run out of thrift art to paint into! 


q) Do you feel art is vital to survival and if so, why?

a)I think that what I do (and what I would consider my "art" to be) is pretty important to me.  It's really great to have an outlet, and it's just amazing to me that people get a kick out what I do.  At this point, it's become such a part of my life, that I'm not sure I'd know what to do without it. 


q) Describe a world without art.

a)It's made of nothing but blank paper and inhabited by people without senses.


q) Tell us a secret, and obsession.

a)I used to honestly believe that if I concentrated hard enough someday I'd be able to move things with my mind.
 I'm obsessed with mashed potatoes & gravy.  


q) Where can people see more of your work on the internet?


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Dave Pollot Art
Art with a Sense of Humor
www.davepollot.com