marla baggetta interview, part two

Interview with Marla Baggetta, part two
In the first part Marla talked about her 100 Variations and about giving yourself permission Click here to read part one.

Marla, "I throw a lot of stuff away. I have four categories: trash, wall, drawer, and frame. The trash, well that means I never want to see it again. The wall means there is something there and I will dig it out later. The drawer, well work goes in the drawer because there is something there but I really don't want to deal with it now. And some things get framed."

me- How do you get started each day?

Marla- "Getting started is the most difficult thing. I have every reason to be drawn to go into the studio and work or out to paint. I have all the stuff, the galleries, no financial restraints, and my husband is very supportive- he's an artist too. It couldn't be more perfect, but still I find myself procrastinating. I start the laundry, make some coffee, etc. I guess part of it is ok. We need to do it. You have to train yourself. Wherever you go there is inspiration, you have to train and be ready. I find that if I set up the night before, do a sketch, get something on the easel it helps. The blank page is the most scary thing. We artists are brave. Each day we approach that blank and create something new every single time. Give yourself credit for that. It's hard."

me- What do you listen to while you paint?

Marla- "Oh, my ipod is my friend. I would be embarrassed to say what is on it. Just total trash. I listen to trash because its like a big wash. I pay no real attention to it. If it was interesting I would pay attention to the music."

me- Would you talk a little bit about how you use concepts?

Marla- "I don't have a concept. I paint whatever entices me. I feel if it enchants me it will do the same for someone else."

next part..thinking about titles and favorite materials

Marla has many workshops coming up. I wish I could take one.

marla baggetta's interview, part one

Imagine painting this!!!!??? It's one of Marla's recent paintings. The minute she finished it and put it in a frame it  sold. She painted it after her series of "100 variations," a series many of us enthusiastically  followed. When we spoke it was the nucleus of our talk. Post by post I will reveal what Marla said.

Here is just the beginning:

me- I have watched your work for a long time, before the 100 Variations and after the 100 Variations. Would you please talk about the metamorphoses you experienced both in process and personally?

Marla- Before the Variations I didn't do much mixed media. My work was predominantly representational- pastelist's pastels. By doing the 100 Variations I felt so opened up, cracked open. I would now try anything with pastel. Nothing was precious. I was no longer trying to make something to see, I was just curious- what could  I make work? I tried so many things- oil, pastels into wet oil,  and monoprinting, to name a few. Anything goes. I would dig, scratch, and scrub.
I would just start and respond. I would not set out to do, say, a winter scene. Instead I thought how many times can I switch the color and value and still make it work? I wasn't thinking it, I was responding.
Now, I have more detail coming back in... but I feel I have that feeling of responding. It changed everything. A transformation.

me- I look at your new work, like "Evening Fire" (pictured above) and I see how different they are.

Marla- Variations gave me permission to do whatever I want to do. I used to feel I had to do a "Marla Baggetta." Now there are a whole bunch of Marla Baggettas and there is a thread that carries through them. Before I never would have painted colors like you see in Evening Fire.

me- What advice would you give to another artist reading this?

Marla- Galleries want the artist to have a consistent body of work. But remember you can do a lot of different things for yourself. Try everything you want. Paint everything. Give yourself PERMISSION.

give yourself permission

9x12 oil (with pastel) on marble dust
So I have been working with oil in the studio, experimenting with surfaces. Recently I have been loving using oil paint on my marble dust boards (that I normally use for pastel.) After a few layers of underpainting in oil I kept trying to get the feeling I wanted. Paint, scrape, paint, scrape, paint wash off. Add pastel, take off pastel, add more oil paint, wipe, scrape..... and on and on....Now, what is it?
After yesterdays' s talk with Marla I kept hearing her words in my head.."nothing is precious..give yourself permission." So, as you notice, I gave myself full permission, And the painting has gone through many metamorphoses. Like a child growing, some phrases are more delightful, some are awkward. No regrets..... because it's not about keeping, it's about exploring.
I am not really looking for another pretty picture.