What is your earliest memory of your burgeoning interest in art?
I recall at a very young age, maybe 6 years old, making a drawing which my Dad refused to concede that I had made. My guess is that he was kidding me a bit, but it was clear that he was impressed. So, I've felt talented or artistically observant for most of my life. I didn't really feel like I 'got' art until college, however. That door in my mind was opened by the other student painters at SCAD.
How have you witnessed this early interest reveal itself in your current work?
Being hyper observant felt like a curse as a young person. "Why do I notice everything?" The artistic part of the brain naturally reflects and renders its environment, mostly without judgement, but it is difficult to accept and process this as a kid. However, I relish it now, as a man of a certain age. Though life can still be scary, the outlet of art making is good and necessary medicine for me.
What motivated and/or inspired your latest exhibition Fragile as Fruit?
My latest body of work, called A Family Affair, is the result of 8 months of painting with my parents, John and Linda Greene.
My mom's grandfather, Herbert Morgan, was a Southern Baptist preacher in the small Georgia town where my Mom grew up. He never learned to read very well, so he would sketch out his sermons, in a crude comic book fashion, onto 4" x 6" index cards, which he would keep hidden in his bible for reference while he preached. It was a secret kept from everyone but his wife, Ida. Herbert died in 1982, but the cards survived and were passed down to my Mom. We made a body of paintings and sculptures based on these images from his sermon cards.
How does this collection of work demonstrate a departure from some of your earlier art?
I have been making art based on these sermon cards, off and on, for years. What was new and invigorating about this incarnation was that my parents were willing to co-create the work with me.
I was growing bored with myself and all my tricks for producing images and wanted a fresh approach. At first, my Mom was pretty reluctant at the prospect, but eventually acclimated herself to the process like a pro. My Dad draws well, so he wasn't as reticent, but the subject matter and execution of the paintings was challenging for us all at first. It took some time to gel, but we were eventually working in silence together, for hours at a time.
“What was new and invigorating about this incarnation was that my parents were willing to co-create the work with me. I was growing bored with myself and all my tricks for producing images and wanted a fresh approach... It took some time to gel, but we were eventually working in silence together, for hours at a time.”
How did your work come to find itself hanging in a variety of galleries and museums throughout town?
I have been very fortunate as an artist. People have come to my shows consistently over the last two decades, and I have felt very supported and encouraged to keep going.
Anne Brown at the Arts Company was very instrumental in connecting me with countless art enthusiasts, including the Tn. State Museum. Joe Nolan, Ron Yorke, Ann Daigh, Robin Vernon are a few more local names which come to mind regarding keeping me connected to the living.
Has the southeastern US, and specifically the city of Nashville, had any particular impact on your art? Why or why not?
I am a big fan of folk art and artists like Howard Finster, Bill Traylor, Mary Tillman, Thorton Dial to name a few. I don't think art gets better than the best folk art, and most of it is very thoroughly Southern. The sincerity and absence of pretense in genuine folk art is attractive to me. I have tried to emulate my favorites to varying degrees of success.
I think it's that combination of unbridled 'play', coupled with a deep sense of calling that is so compelling to me. I am a sucker for artists with visions or who hear the voice of God telling them to go out and make something.
I'm not sure how Nashville itself influences me artistically. I am leary of the intense speed of growth and changes the city has experienced in the last decade. There is a subterranean anxiety about it within me that certainly shapes my perspective and informs the imagery.
What insights or realizations, if any, do you hope your viewers will understand when they observe your art?
I suppose that as creators, we hope and aim to ignite the feelings in a viewer that we ourselves had when a painting, film, or song spoke to us. Art has the power to open doors in the mind leading us into a deeper or higher consciousness, I believe. Whether you are making it or are open to be moved by it, art can shift your perspective suddenly like drugs can, but with fewer side effects. An artist is always hoping that 'thing' will happen. The muse showing up, the juice flowing, the zone appearing, the 'thing' is what we're after, right?
On the flip side, what are some aspects of your work that may not be evident to your audience based solely on its surface/appearance?
I strive for simplicity and an economy of marks, which I don't pull off very often. I think I overwork pieces consistently.
Also, I've gotten to a point where I have no use for my own work after it is completed. Hoarding my own output is not for me. So, I tend to work on pieces longer than necessary, simply to keep from having to stack it somewhere. I have tried giving it away, but the "pay what you want" model has proven to work better for me.
Building upon the previous question, what method would you prefer one take when making a critique of your art: a formal, contextual, or expressive approach? Why?
We all want to feel intelligent. I think it's universal that we want to feel like our efforts are worthwhile and come from a deep and informed place. That said, I'd love for people to find my work at least interesting. I don't know if it is Kafka's ice-axe to break the seas frozen in our soul, but I hope sometimes it is. Time will tell, I suppose.
I'd like the work to be seen as referential and not derivative. Inspired, not forced. A natural byproduct. The older I get, however, the less concerned I am about being critiqued. There was a time when I cared about being taken seriously in the art world, whatever that is, but now I do it because I enjoy it. I do want people to like it, of course.
“I’d like the work to be seen as referential and not derivative. Inspired, not forced. A natural byproduct. The older I get, however, the less concerned I am about being critiqued. There was a time when I cared about being taken seriously in the art world, whatever that is, but now I do it because I enjoy it.”
Who and/or what are some of your biggest artistic influences? How? Why?
I'll leave out the more obvious giants of the art world and name a few peripheral influencers that have informed and loved me through their work.
Jack Davis and Mort Drucker were the first illustrators (both famous for their work in Mad Magazine) to knock me out with their abilities to render and lampoon. The effortlessness of their drawing skills, to this day, mystify me.
David Hockney's work and his writing about art is so very pleasurable to me. His penchant for speaking plainly about art, both demystifies and remystifies it.
I think Thornton Dial will go down in history as one of the most important artists of all. Although a self-taught painter and sculptor, the complexity of his compositions are every bit as inspired, informed and intelligent as any Jasper Johns or Robert Rauschenberg.
Louise Nevelson's sculptures are unmatched in my mind.
The humanity and beauty revealed in Diane Arbus's and Sally Mann's photography always inspire me.
And, more recently, the hyper-realistic fantastical sculptures by Patricia Piccinini seem like something only God could make. Ice-axe level artistry.
How does your work demonstrate departure from the above influences?
I don't know if I've managed to depart, at least not very far, from the people who have influenced me. I constantly have the feeling that what I am doing has already been done and better by much more gifted artists. So, in that sense I feel like a fraud or poser a great deal of the time, but I guess I'd rather be a living hack than a dead master.
I don't think that what I do is terribly original, but I believe it was William S. Burroughs who said that originality was overrated anyway.
I do find art making fun, however, and I know that my abilities have improved over the years.
What upcoming projects and/or exhibitions do you have planned within the next 12 months?
I am in negotiations for a show in 2020 at Julia Martin Gallery, where I currently display single panel cartoons.
My 9 year old son strong armed me into applying for a school art show in May.
I have plans to collaborate with longtime friend and artist, Andrew Harding.
And, I've started an Instagram only series called, "Sunspot", with that aforementioned, strong arming, 9 year old called.
What are your goals for your art within the next 12 months?
Saying yes to everything is dangerous, but I plan to do that artistically in 2020. I believe more collaborating with friends and family is in store.
There is a real freedom in the 'pay what you want' model. It has left me feeling like I can do what I want, when I want to do it. A different kind of wealth.
Goals for your life in general?
Goals for life: Less complaining. More artistic risk taking. Make a documentary. More meditation. Less worry. Be more present. Be more generous. Compliment my wife more.
Since we’ve brought up life in general, what’s your favorite food and drink?
One of my favorite meals on earth is the Slice Special at Manny's House of Pizza in the Arcade downtown. It is a last meal before execution kind of thing for me.
I recently had one of the best meals of my life at a restaurant called, Korean Bar b que, in a strip mall on Nolensville Rd, almost all the way to Nolensville. I was with somebody who knew what they were doing with the DIY cooking. Unbelievably good.
The Old Fashioned at Bastion is a pretty dang good drink. Some great craft beers at Tailgate.
“I think Thornton Dial will go down in history as one of the most important artists of all. Although a self-taught painter and sculptor, the complexity of his compositions are every bit as inspired, informed and intelligent as any Jasper Johns or Robert Rauschenberg.”
Band(s) and/or record(s)?
Musically, I am currently smitten with a couple of artists. Cate LeBon and Weyes Blood. They both seem to have created their own worlds. Familiar, but alien. I can't get enough.
Movie(s)?
Some of my favorite movies are: 2001 A Space Odyssey, Bladerunner, Solaris, and Raising Arizona.
A couple faves (but don't necessarily recommend) of the last few years are: Hereditary and Mandy.
Hang spot(s)?
I really enjoy hanging at Headquarters Coffee on Charlotte Ave. They have a cool, secret back patio. I'm embarrassed to say this, but I've only recently discovered Betty's just around the corner from Headquarters. Pretty amazing place.
Portland Brew on 12th. And, still enjoy our public libraries.
Weekend activity(ies)?
Weekend activities do tend to revolve around your kids for better or worse. So, lots of soccer lately. My son is a Cub Scout and I'm the Den Leader, so there are quite a few activities involving khaki shirts on Sunday afternoons. Coffee. Naps. Occasional art shows.
Money’s not a factor, you will burn no social bridges, and you’re guaranteed a comfortable lifestyle no matter what—where would you live, and what would you do?
I'd love a big ol' weird house or hotel on Tybee Island, near Savannah Georgia. It is one of my favorite places of all. I love the heat. The ocean. The weirdos. It has dodged the corporate bullet somehow, and still has that local, leathery, beach bum, feel.
Maybe a ‘lil place in Parma Italy too.
Thank you for humoring me!
To learn more about J. Todd Greene and his work, please visit him online at www.jtgreene.com and at his Facebook page @JToddGreene.
