Jackie Clark
Where did it all begin: I've been an artist all my life, there was no specific starting point. It was always important to me from a young age, I still have a memory of being in kindergarten and the teacher's response to my finger painting. I Made a decision at 13 to become a painter and I committed to it, absorbing everything I could about the history of art and taking up life drawing classes after high school when I turned 15.
Photography/subject matter: Photography isn't my subject matter it's just a tool I use to document my subject matter, which is the environment. I then translate the images I take in to a painting. I document journeys I take or environments I feel drawn to for their atmosphere and usually produce a small series of painting.
Time: My work is currently quite small, no larger than A4 sized and takes me approx 2 to 3 days to produce a piece, I then go back and finish it off a week or so later after I've let it rest for a while.
Experiences: I don't think anything has particularly helped me as an artist, it's making the art and being around art and the inspiration of seeing certain work etc. from that I can draw inspiration and it encourages me to continue my work.
Influences: My influences include photography, film making and philosophy as well as painting. I've been producing landscape paintings for the past 12 years after moving away from abstraction, I wanted to document environments and respond to how they made me feel in a more realistic and less constructed way. I occasionally film the landscape as well, and paint from the film still. My work is about capturing experiences.
Richard Billingham's series of photographs taken of his family interested me while I was a student studying my Bachelor of Arts and influenced my final year series of photographs taken around my neighbourhood in Melbourne documenting my journey home from University. I enjoyed the chaotic chance element in his work, the movement, realism and use of narrative. I was also influenced by the Australian photographer Bill Henson. Other influences include French realism and impressionism as well as the Australian painter Clarice Beckett.
Routine: A typical day would consist of a lot of walking and documentation of my journeys, if I can capture an image I think is worth painting I take if from there. I paint straight on to the wood and allow the painting to develop on its own. I largely document and paint my local neighbourhood and London, occasionally I paint other journeys I take overseas etc. But I like to focus on my everyday landscape and the subtle changes in environment you can only notice if you spend a lot of time in a particular area.
Titles: I try not to reference much more than the actual place and possibly time and date of the area I paint in the title, I want the work to be specifically about the feeling of being there.
Future: With regard to the future I plan on continuing my work and will see where it takes me.
If you would like to see more of the artist's work click here for their website.
Publishing date of this interview 12/01/16
