Pretty Little Felts Mixed-Media Crafts To Tickl...
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0:00foreign0:11welcome to the independent artist podcast sponsored by the National Association of Independent Artists also0:19sponsored by zapplication I'm will Armstrong and I'm a mixed media artist I'm Douglas sigworth class blower join0:26our conversations with professional working artists0:32art show artists artists art directors folks out there listening welcome back0:38to the podcast hey guys how's it going Douglas you've been out there on the road again you were down in Gasparilla0:45soaking in the sunlight and hoping to pick up on some of that fat fat prize money that is lingering down in Tampa0:51area Florida how'd it go well that prize money escaped us we did not get our hands on any of that but we had a good0:58time it was not our best selling event we kind of had a bit of a reality check1:03a little bit of the boom and then the bus to kind of keep us feeling a little humble be honest it always keeps you1:09honest whenever you think you got to figure it out yeah but there are some good potentials we met with a gallery1:14and they placed a nice order for this year and we had some big interests that1:20might pull through later so you know this business is not all right up front sometimes we're planting seeds and this1:26felt like a seed plant this weekend for us painting seeds and laying eggs1:31it was hot as hell was it a lot of people complained about it maybe where we were at it didn't feel too bad but I1:37will remind everyone that I am a glass blower I'm pretty good with heat but some people did act very much like it1:45was record heat and I'm like really this is this doesn't feel so bad but um it was that was the complaint it was a hot1:52one I always feel like a rat in a cage when there's no shade and you know you're hanging on to the the corner of1:58the shade of your booth and somebody will walk in be like well you've got some nice shade I'm like lady I brought2:03it you know it's not like I'm under a big oak tree the only shade is this freaking canopy my dirty craft Hut2:11you know and a lot of us glass blowers we like to be aimed right at the Sun but we weren't aimed directly at the sun my2:18good friend Mark suddath had Sun the entire weekend and his glass was sparkling and Shining so I'm sure it was2:23pretty hot over there you know by this time Douglas the award winners will probably have been compiled into a list2:29I haven't seen them I mean I've seen the big prize money but not a list on some of the the smaller Awards yeah we're2:35recording a couple days after the show and they did not have a full list published right now but we know of the2:43big winner was nanika Jones for her amazing work I loved seeing the photos2:48of somebody new on the scene with work that is that fully realized for their2:54vision and with their booth that they can win a top prize like the the Gasparilla fifteen thousand dollar award3:01that'll keep her going for a little bit so congratulations was really inspired to see some new work and to see3:07something so inspired to see somebody so young I think she's I think she's early3:1420s awesome and I mentioned to her that I was so inspired by one of the big murals she made and she said which one3:20so she's already got a huge body of work behind her she's got big pieces on the sides of buildings she's got a real3:27presence and she is gonna take the World by storm I'm really excited did by what she's doing sounds like she already is3:34we talk a lot about that and and trying to get new artists on the scene involved3:40in our show so it's it's really exciting to me to to see somebody kind of come in and kick the doors in and maybe kick a3:47bunch of our old asses her website is Art you hungry.com by the way and what3:54I'm inspired also is not just the subject matter of her work but I mean she's working in mixed media so she's4:00doing this Embroidery in with painting and it's just so cool she's definitely4:06making statements about Society about her culture check it out when you get time if you aren't familiar with nanika4:13Jones's artwork yeah my first instinct was um like oh man here's this emerging artist and I've been involved with NAIA4:20with emerging artists I'm like maybe I should talk to her I'm like she didn't need any help maybe she should talk to you she is she's not a merchant she's4:30young but she has she known knows what she's doing she doesn't do many other other art shows I think Gasparilla being4:36in her hometown but she's done a lot of other shows and I would like the opportunity to sit down and chat with4:42her so I'm gonna I'm gonna put a bug in her ear and see if she would come come talk to us on the podcast I'd look4:47forward to hearing that talk for sure all right Douglas that takes us to uh another thing on the drama sitting4:54around I have not been doing shows one of the things that uh my wife and I are watching one of these Apple TV shows5:00that is on it's called the servant that's like an M Night shaloman Thing a horror-ish but I'm sitting there5:06watching this show with her and I'm looking at the neighborhood and the entire show is filmed in The Rittenhouse5:12Square neighborhood so if you're a fan of that show and you love going around walking in that neighborhood5:18um it just kind of blew me away I was like I've been there I've been there it's just I know that place so some of5:24those really cool tall row houses the that are there the main characters live in one of the the big fancy one ones of5:31those so if you're a fan of that show and you like uh like that kind of stuff give it a shot check it out a good way5:37to keep yourself connected well you're not at shows but I know you just had yourself a nice week of recharging the5:44batteries I did man uh new studio a new space and um I actually got that thing5:49set up got the got the blinds hung and the easel put in my big box of paint set up on my table I'm ready to go okay5:56nobody can see you right now they can hear how excited you are your face is like glowing your eyes are gonna twinkle6:02in it you are ready to have to work man I am ready to just kick it into gear and6:07I've kind of been a little stagnant and I needed this to uh kind of get me going6:14um I've got low ceilings in the in the room in our home that I have been working it's like a former garage like6:20attached to the house and I just I can't crank the easel up to where I where I want I'm if I'm working on like a six6:27foot by four foot horizontal if I've got it I'm working all the way at the bottom of the piece then I actually have to get6:33down on my knees it's it's like uh one of those obstacle course type things6:38you're trying to paint yeah or it's like just doesn't work it does this sounds perfect right and I'm not the youngest6:44anymore I've got you know back issues and things like that and I don't know it's good to get out there and stretch6:51out and make some new work I'm going much larger this year I've already done some pretty big things I've got uh I6:59just got commissioned for a big one in Park City that I'm excited about and yeah ready to ready to crank out some7:07work so I believe you were looking into ordering up one of those big tall7:12transits too so you can fit some of that nice big work in you yeah what what they7:19literally will not take my money Transit is shut off did they just I missed it by7:24five days oh I'm not even kidding I've been kind of like dragging my feet and all you have to do do is put down your7:30thousand dollars and I built out my dream Transit I sent it to the guy yeah7:36he's like yeah it looks good and then I wanted to actually sit down with uh the dealer guy uh the car salesman and make7:42sure I was missing things or ordering too much and it was like I don't know I'd gotten a little lazy7:47because I knew it was going to be six or eight months and I was excited that I'd be getting this you know in time for7:52like the fall show season the 2022 is shut off so if you want a nutrient7:58designing a whole different vehicle or I'm sure just the supply and demand or8:04what's the deal you don't know I'm sure they put a new cigarette lighter in it or something a call at the 23 but yeah the 2022s are8:12done they're not taking any more orders and not only that I went through the whole process right up to the point8:18where you plop down a thousand dollar bill and hold your place yeah and they were like8:24um sorry yeah which thousand dollar bill oddly that is my hip-hop name so uh just8:30to decide just if you see that around no but seriously when it comes down to it8:37they would not take my money they're like yeah I'm sorry we we can't take your money and the car salesman was like you know he looked like he'd been Shell8:43Shocked I don't think that had ever happened to him yeah they're like that's not our model our model is you want it8:49yeah we'll take your money and we'll get it going for you right and you know you you can find some used ones and I just8:55you know I wanted to get the the new thing and and start brand new and well trust me you buy a used one now it's9:02more than if you can find one we all know what I went through last year but if you can find one it's more than9:09buying it brand new and exactly to the specifications you want so I can see why9:15I was on their website too and it's like you check this box you check back that box you want the EcoBoost do you want9:20this that it can be a long process of going through the menu list of items and9:25then to get to the end of it and be like sorry you can't do this must be just super frustrating I don't know it's just9:31a head scratcher I didn't left the I'm like I I have a blank check in my wallet9:37and I can't give it to Ford like they won't take it sir if you're thinking about building9:43out uh 2022 you missed the boat so last time we talked actually this had happened I just hadn't talked to you9:49about it God dang it but anyway just so weird like that by the second month of9:54the year you can't build out one for that year because of all the delays we're walking to our booth and I saw a10:00red Transit coming our way and I said Renee will ordered one of them Will's getting one just like that he's not I10:07was wrong he might it might be a 23 though by the time I do it all right hey did you see on social media the crazy10:14winds out in California last weekend I did that was heartbreaking I hated hated10:19saying that I was thinking about like our friends Amy and Phil fobot yeah they10:25went all the way out from Raleigh for a Big Show in California you know I mean they are driving for days and days and10:31days and and get there and then they you know it's knocking people down and destroying work they had to cancel10:37Saturday for the show so heartbreak all around I know it um I talked to Daryl10:43Thetford and he was talking about how he had knocked you know they suggest rebar down into the ground and hammering this10:50rebar in in order for for support instead of wait and he had hammered in addition to wait he was saying that his10:57Pro panels were just folded in half at the rebar like the rebar held and his everything was just down but luckily his11:04work he said is like Khan great so it's you know it's totally sturdy and he didn't lose any work oh that's good I11:11sent out some texts to people just to do the check-in because there were there was a lot of photos online and of course11:19you know I thought it was bad for them to cancel on a Saturday but then somebody posted an actual video of what11:27kind of wins they were dealing with and I'm like let's see that was insane it11:33was insane yeah and there were tents up like you you look up at the top of the11:38palm tree and the palm tree is just like you know just whipping and then it was nuts yeah so uh apparently uh Sunday was11:47gangbusters so hopefully you guys made it up um for that well that comes to mind you11:53know I've had this conversation with a lot of artists at other shows we've been at Fort Worth when they've shut down on11:59a big busy day I think it was a Saturday one time and people would often comment oh it would have been a great show if I12:05would have had that data closed or whatever I sometimes feel like our customers they don't live in a bubble or12:12vacuum they look at the weather and think which day of the four days or three days of the show am I gonna go and12:19I think you know what I mean so I've heard from some folks that the Sunday was gangbusters because anyone who wasn't going to go on Saturday is like12:25I'm going to make sure I get there tomorrow so it kind of gets pushed off to one of the other days because it12:30depends on what you have like if you have a a body of work that relies on a sheer volume of people you just oh true12:37you know you can't cram that many people into the street so I you know if I'm averaging per day if if I miss a show I12:46if I'm selling and I I don't know I've got reproductions but I only I only uh bring them out like twice a year but if12:53I have if I miss a day on one of those reproduction shows then I'm kind of screwed yeah and I guess people can only12:59wait so long you're one person and you're saying you're involved in a conversation with somebody who's going13:05to invest in a nice sizable piece to get through that entire conversation you can't juggle between two three couples13:12that might be wanting to have that same conversation so that can be tricky too to get it all in one one time frame13:17Douglas you and I have been talking a lot about shows and I know one of the uh kind of hiccups I say hiccups but this13:24is a pretty pretty major blow um you're you're dealing with some health issues you've got uh got some13:31foot and and leg things that you've been been putting off all the friends I saw this weekend in at Gasparilla the first13:38thing they notice is me hobbling across across the way and my favorite uh comment I can't remember who it came13:45from but they said to me you really just want to be like will don't you13:57with my right foot and it's a congenital thing I was born with issues with with14:02bones how they are formed and I knew that when I was old someday it was going to result in some kind of a bone fusion14:09surgery for me to be able to to move through space on these feet of mine and14:15you know I've had varying degrees of pain throughout the years and I just thought what I was experiencing recently14:22was just another flare-up that I just needed to rest and relax but the x-rays say that I have a surgery on the horizon14:30that I'm just gonna have to deal with so it brings up all those things to mind with being in a career that requires us14:37to be extremely physical it puts your head into a total tailspin yeah God our14:43scriptwriters suck Douglas14:50is it sweep season or something it is it sweeps it's getting ready into the spring show season it's time for one of14:57us to go down it was almost exactly a year ago that you were that that flower flopping around on a dock exactly man15:03I'm so so sorry that sucks and uh hats off to Renee if uh she needs help you15:09got a a mountain of support out here in this community and and you can both lean on on us we will we'll take care of you15:16you'll be all right yeah so um I'm gonna try and get through the show season uh looking into what kind of15:22equipment I can use I'm gonna have some foot bracing I'm gonna probably be getting one of those crazy uh not a knee15:28cart it's actually gonna look a lot like a j McDougall Peg Leg it's uh it's one15:34of those that's that's fancy you making good money what they showed me was basically like15:41I've been at the knee and I put my knee down onto this peg leg that straps onto15:46my leg so that's probably how I'm going to be moving around the studio for a little while sounds pretty pretty crazy15:52run forest run forest Ah that's brutal so I'll just try to keep a positive15:58attitude but after a long crazy breakdown and we all know that the16:04Gasparilla breakdowns are not the easiest of breakdowns um anyway uh after that one have you16:11ever thought I've thought about this a lot like um I would love to do a show like where the breakdown is really hard and we16:17don't need to you know we did just say a show by name but you know we all know the shows where things are micromanaged16:24and you you come in one way and you have to do the other and they do radio people is this clear is this yeah like okay and16:30then you know by midnight everybody is finally broken down and out of the park yeah do you ever wonder what it would be16:37like if you just didn't do anything open the floodgates and a lot of men just16:42open the gate and then we work with each other we do this [ __ ] every weekend and I'll play the doubles Advocate on that16:48one because one of the problems that was causing a at least in our neck of the16:54woods I was in the van stuck in the parking lot while we were all in a bottleneck trying to get untangled but17:00there was a bottleneck with not that many vehicles on the show site where two artists kind of pull nose to nose17:07no one can get by each other booths on either side and it basically created a traffic jam in the show that couldn't17:13get untangled until their booths were completely loaded up and in the van so that's what ended up holding up a big17:19section of our side of the show anyway was it artist like just a couple of jerks or I don't know the details but17:26I'm just responding to the point of you saying if just let us figure it out I think there's just enough people who17:32don't know how to figure it out who who can just create these these bottlenecks and I will say that this show used to17:42have a super micromanaged exit with like you had to get assigned a time that you17:47could pull in to get out they don't do that anymore they do it more reasonably where you get your your when you're17:53broke into the ground you get your Loadout [ __ ] and you go get in line and when there's a spot that you can pull in they they walkie-talkie you in but one18:00of the problems that this show was dealing with this year and a lot of shows are dealing with this year18:06is the issue of volunteers they just can't get the amount of volunteers that18:11they need to to help interesting and so I wonder what's bringing volunteers down I mean I know that um Millennials don't18:18want to work well yeah we've got them you know here's my okay here's my favorite breakdown sure all right yeah I18:24do like break it down break it down to nothing and get a pass go get a lining18:29and come in yeah I mean that that seems to work it seems to wean out the slower18:34people they can take their time like me okay me yeah all right get your get your pet break it down to nothing take a18:41picture of your booth show the person get your pass go again Jewelers out of there yeah let them out18:47of your way because if I've got a pop-up Jeweler uh out of my way if they can throw all of their stuff into a suitcase18:53and wheel out of there then all of a sudden that's double parking for you and me right so anyway okay get your thing18:59then you got uh if there's room you have one roll parking and then you have one19:04row of driving keep a thing clear yeah that's it yeah that's all you need yeah well one of the and maybe if any one of19:11the show is listening out there uh that they would maybe work on for next year is that the artist parking which is19:17great I mean it's not too far from the show it's manageable but it's completely gated around and there's only one way to19:24get out and so when you've got about 6 30 all the artists are completely broken19:29down and everyone's in their van trying to get out of this little narrow exit and you don't have staff to do the you19:37come now you go there you go and you know what I mean in direct you've got everybody stuck in the parking lot and19:42nobody can get out so that's kind of what was one of the the challenges but we all got out of there we weren't there19:47till three in the morning and you know all as well how late were you there uh we were there till about 10. shoot me19:56yeah I don't want you don't want I just20:01kept saying a lot of H I'm sitting there a lot H loditch [Music]20:07I don't I don't want yeah I feel like everything you know everybody's a little bit on edge still from Kobe what are you20:14talking about right and they're coming out of theirselves they're coming you know it's it's a things are harder at the grocery20:20store things are one thing that I have noticed with my wife and her dealings is20:25the demanding customers are coming out of the woodwork like like I got somebody20:30last night I'm on the couch you know I had a long hard day we just made dinner we had an incredible dinner sat down or20:37watching something on TV and I get a text from a client that wants to zoom right like 8 30 at night we realize we20:45don't fit the nine to five model but exactly we do have personal lives I20:50would cut texts and emails from a customer the other day exactly like this20:55was like their house was burning down or something it's an art emergency she wanted to zoom last night at nine21:01o'clock and since I did not respond to that I was like yeah no absolutely not I mean you know how hard it is just to get21:07me on the phone like I don't want to do it you already have an aversion to the phone I do I can't stand it we've got21:14this whole podcast by text thing down we can usually know what the other one's thinking from about three words21:20right but this like this same client like if I'm not available last night she21:26wanted to this is like pre-8 o'clock in the morning I'm like yeah do you really want to talk to me like I haven't had21:32coffee are you sure yeah it's not a super good idea so I honestly21:38I will say that my kids are in their 20s and I saw this starting in their21:44generation back when they were pre-teens about your kids's age and I would see the stress and the anxiety on their21:51faces when we'd be at the dinner table and I'd say put your phone away and their phone would vibrate it and they'd21:56be like but they're gonna my friends are gonna get so mad at me if I don't respond right and it seems so foreign to22:03me this was 10 years ago so foreign of a concept to me that you couldn't just be22:08like busy or your your parents could have grounded you or you could whatever but the the emotional stress and I feel22:16like now 10 years later it's become the norm across Generations that we have a thought and we want an answer right now22:23yeah uh immediate gratification and what my wife is finding too is like people will Instagram message her and then if22:31if they don't get an immediate response it's like 10 minutes later it's an email then a text then a phone call it's like22:38you're trying to pick out a diamond you're not sure yeah you know this isn't like this isn't world hunger it's not22:45Ukraine it's not funny the natural reaction of people is well I just wanted to be sure you got my text well22:54why would you think I wouldn't get it you think I have a secret number or something yeah well that brings me to23:00another one that always cracks me up when you go on to like one of the the social artist pages to me like has23:06anyone heard from X they're like yeah I did they they gave me my booth number my23:12uh loading packet uh Douglas is reading it for me and they told us I'll tell you they only gave it I've already dropped23:19you a PIN to the parking lot but anyway go ahead but seriously right like right like yeah they they let all of us know23:25but but you I'm sorry you're not they said don't don't tell Steve that's23:31that's right you know folks you can go into your search bar and it will look23:37through your junk mail it'll look through your trash it'll find an email that you might be looking for that you23:43might have been missing from a particular show that's a little insight into you and23:49your anxiety I think you're like maybe it's here maybe it's over there well it's like I don't give a [ __ ] I'm just23:54gonna drive to the city and if I don't know where to go I'll text my friends24:02well I just don't you know here's here's the only thing I care about okay all right24:09don't give me directions please don't give up how about an address to where to go24:14just give me the address that's all I care about I don't like don't tell me to24:19turn down Fourth Street to like get to the Texaco and turn right we're not in Vermont you know I I'm not talking to an24:26old guy this year like just freaking tell me what's the address I just want24:32the address that's honestly that's all I care about we all use some form of navigation Services we don't need the24:40turn of the Texaco Jesus Christ it's one way here so if you're looking here and then they're24:46coming down the street like oh what's the address just give me the address I don't care that's honestly that's the24:51only thing in the packet I want that's the only thing that I'll read like just put one page with the address in like24:5772.5 yeah that's the only thing I need and then a nice yard sign at the turn25:02into where artists check-in is just that's all we need is a sign that says artist check-in25:09you know I only want one thing Doug you already said the one thing and that was an address what's the other one thing25:14you want that's it I just said that just the address okay okay well that'll turn off that'll turn off the cranky will if25:20you just give them the address everyone Will's packing and it's just a big old sheet of paper okay there we go all25:27right so anything else uh I went on to zap uh this morning and I was looking at25:33some stuff and I I realized they have their annual artist survey and there's some good stuff in there similar to the25:39NAIA survey uh in that they're asking certain questions what you'd like on zap25:44what you use uh the different help things so they're trying to grow they're trying to get better so definitely check25:51that out uh you'll see the link at the very top of their page as soon as you open it on your phone or on your laptop25:57or whatever I was surprised I didn't know that that they were doing that so um definitely let your voice be heard26:02and get counted there yeah I mean there's certainly features that might have an idea for something I can't think26:08of anything else top of my head right now but you know it's good to let them know let them know what's working for you and what's not working for you I26:14mean in most uh of the stuff is is all working the one thing that I could use on this app that I put into my survey26:21was that you know like you you can fill in the hundred word the 200 or 300. I26:26love that for it to be automated and you can just say that you don't have to rewrite it every time or go on to a26:32Google doc and copy and paste it's just in there yeah it's right in there and so26:37the only other thing that I could use is like sometimes you do these shows where they're like tell us your thing and now26:43if you've made it past a certain point then they read your big artist statement there's no place to keep that like26:49unlimited art statement like keep it under a thousand words if you can but here's a place to describe your work26:55more so that would be great to have that classic Douglas style I said I have nothing and now as we're talking I think27:01of something you know the topic came up last time about artists misrepresenting themselves maybe there could be some27:07kind of profile pic that's considered not part of the application but it's considered part of the about us or27:15whatever in the profile where we have to upload a current accurate photo of27:21ourselves so that the shows can use that as comparison against the cheaters out there so nice just a headshot just a27:28headshot this is me yeah yeah that's a great idea all right we are at the27:33interview portion of the podcast today I sat down and talked with bronze sculptor27:40Kimber feeberger from Minneapolis Minnesota I've never met her before so27:45this is a really interesting talk and I loved the fact that you got to go check out her Studio first and and come in and27:52and talk about the work I've seen it hundreds of times just uh being loaded27:57into shows and she's prolific her work is throughout the country in public squares it's very popular with different28:05towns and when I youtubed her I mean she's a good friend friend of mine I've known her for years we live in the same28:11area and so I wanted to look at what was out there and there's this guy on a bike28:17driving around to different Town Square showing these bronzes and he did that28:22with her he's like showing all her Humpty dumpties throughout the country and it's pretty interesting to see just28:28the spread that she's got out there hey what do you mean he's riding on a a bike this is this guy is just a person just28:36some old person not another person just some kind of old yeah gets on his bike28:41with his camera on and he's riding around the city showing off all the28:46different bronze sculptures in the Public Square actually so he's giving a little tour of he's giving a little tour28:51of him he's giving him loading uh all of bronzes and things on the back of his bike I'm like what are you talking about28:57okay I I am in a little bit of pain ladies and gentlemen it's hard to follow my train of thought I understand but29:04thank you will for getting me back on track yeah so the whole point was that she is everywhere you know what Douglas29:11I have seen kimber's work at a lot of different art shows seen it at one of a kind being pushed by the union guys on29:17cart loads with all the little Humpty dumpties balanced on their shelves making them work for it yeah definitely29:23they get paid might as well uh take advantage of it but man I'm I'm looking forward to everybody hearing this talk29:29okay here is Kimber fee bigger bronze sculptor from Minneapolis Minnesota29:35this episode of The Independent artist podcast is brought to you by zap the digital application service where29:41artists and art festivals connect well sometimes I'm in a real hurry and I just love that I have things that are saved29:47in Zapped to streamline my process saving shows as favorites is my personal way of using zap uh that's my favorite29:55uh I know a lot of people use the calendar they use the events but for me if I'm saving the favorites of anything30:01I've ever looked at or thought about doing then I can check out those deadlines on a regular basis but then30:06there's other times when I have a little more time on my hands and I'm looking into other shows all the information is30:14right there in the prospectus with links to the website I can see who the artists are that have participated in the past30:20that's a great idea Douglas because one of the ways that I was finding shows at the very beginning was to go online and30:27see who I felt my work looked good with it's just great that all that information is organized and easy to30:34look over when planning our next show season are you able to see me okay and we're30:40good yeah right yep got a little stubble just tie just a tiny bit of stuff I30:45didn't clean up for you sorry about that I hope you don't mind it looks good30:53well I'm so glad you took some time to talk to me today Kimber I know that you30:58are like the busiest person I know yeah it doesn't seem to go away it doesn't31:03and I think that's self-imposed wouldn't you say I would say so I'm not one to31:08say I'm bored well we got to your place which I'm so glad we came to visit because stepping into your world was31:15it was so cool your gallery your home your studio it is just it's you you're31:21everywhere yeah I hadn't the dream totally it's you're so immersed in it I31:28mean for one we're driving down Minneapolis down the street and Downtown Minneapolis by the by the university and31:34everything looks the same looking for your place and then out of the blue it's like31:40stucco and bright colors and happy sculptures and it's just this beautiful31:47sight tell me all about how that came to be you know my whole life I think that I31:53just wanted to say something I always had a sense that we're here for such a short period of time yeah and I always31:59had to be different and not be normal I thought normal was kind of boring and32:04had too many limits so the universe is wide open when you're a little crazy yeah for sure yeah so you want it to be32:12recognizable stand out and and and do your thing ironically I don't like attention but I like things to get32:22attention I I don't want it on me personally but it's just kind of inadvertently happens32:28yeah I guess that concept is a little complex I mean to think that you like to32:34put that stuff out there maybe for an effect or is it for a reaction but it's not about you personally it's about the32:41idea or the thought is that kind of what you're saying yeah it's what they do it's like you make it and you need a32:47place to put it and I I never want to quit making it so that a is keep coming32:53I don't know what I'm gonna do when I run out of space because I just don't keep making stuff I don't know where32:59I'll go after my house is done I think you have enough work uh from what we saw33:05this week to go well on into retirement I think there is just this drive and this need in you to be making your spot33:12on I need my hands in something all the time back in the days when we used to visit33:17friends before covid I used to always have a balls of clay in my pocket that I was always squishing through my fingers33:25and making tiny little sculptures and every once in a while like my friends had come and you left your clay ball in33:30my kitchen laughs so uh some people have the stress balls33:37in their pockets you were always had a piece of artwork being ready to be carved out from your pockets yeah33:43there's like a little bit of anxiety in me I think that keeps me wanting to like having my hands on some not a little bit33:50of anxiety it might be a lot a lot okay well it's a good way to channel isn't it to channel that anxiety into something33:56it puts our focus into being creative yeah yeah well tell me about the34:02transformation of your place you were telling us a little bit about it how you found the place years ago and I'm34:09looking at the picture of what it once looked like and I now know what it looks like so tell me about that whole34:16transformation into your home and gallery and Studio well I was studio shopping for a very long time but it's a34:22sculptor you need a lot of different rooms because you need room for mold making it was a pottery the pottery room34:28and woodworking welding patinas um so you need a lot of space so I kept34:35looking at studio rentals and and it seemed like I would have to rent like six Studios to do what I do and of um a34:44friend of mine said how's it going I said well you know I've been studio shopping for about six months and I'm34:49kind of stressed I'm not finding anything to meet my needs and I said how's it going with you and she says34:55well I'm closing my business and I'm selling my building and I'm listing it on Thursday and I said oh that's really35:00sad and then about a minute later I said wait a minute take a look at your building35:07it might be just the perfect thing I'm looking for35:12here and it's so it's so many different was from 18 . it's been chopped up into this room in35:19that room and I thought well there's all my different Studios but I don't have a place to live so it's a matter of35:25cutting off the roof and raising the roof and adding a living space on top and that space is so cool I mean with35:33all the windows and the view throughout Minneapolis I mean to build a place up35:38that was brilliant now you could do that yeah I have a passion for remodeling my parents we're never afraid of taking a35:46sledgehammer and knocking down the wall and I inherited that oh okay it wasn't like don't make a mess that we can't35:53figure our way out of nothing is holding you back basically you have an idea and you just go for it and see what happens35:58with it yeah be it rates Fearless um and what did they do that they kind36:04of had that personality trait my father was electrician and my mom helped in his36:10business but they just weren't afraid to remodel and they they bought property up north and they completely were always36:16building onto it and remodeling so that was a big inspiration for me because it's like entrepreneurial in its36:24nature it wasn't related to their businesses one of their side passions awesome cool so you uh built this place36:31and it is it's interesting we walk in the front door and there's all your beautiful work like a 10 12 foot space36:39you look to the right and there's your kitchen and your and your living room36:44and your living space and then you could you can see from the gallery down the stairs into these rooms you're talking36:50about and it's just all right there the selling the work the living it's all36:56part of it's all part of you because I'm a Potter I make my own dishes I'm a welder I make the stools and the paper37:02or towel holders and what I want is the whole place to be kind of made by me it37:07definitely it feels that way so you said upstairs now you don't live upstairs anymore now you use that space for37:13airbnbs I had three kids and when they were growing and gone it was a big space I37:20had roommates for a little while but the Airbnb is really great extra money and I get to meet people and I get to meet37:26people from all over the world and I have a big circle of friends that's very International37:32it's really great and I kind of lonely when it's not booked which is very rare37:37because it's kind of a demand Airbnb not only is it kind of a place to stay in37:43Minneapolis it's got your artwork it's got people's artwork you've collected it's brightly colored it's designed37:49really cool I mean I imagine it is a really interesting place for people to stay and experience yeah when did you37:57start the Airbnb was that before kovid I'm starting my fourth here right now38:03yeah it's uh it's nice income and it took a lot of the stress of the art38:08world and the ups and downs of the art world because we all know what a roller coaster ride that could be absolutely yeah yeah it's a nice Revenue stream to38:16have coming in yes it leveled my income so I wasn't worried and the Arts kind of38:22made money now so it's fun that's cool that's awesome so38:27um what have you been working on in the studio these days38:34some stools for kitchen I I finished another three foot Humpty today that I'm38:42actually I chopped off his arms and legs to make separate molds okay I'll start38:47mold from the Humpty tonight and then sure those appendages added they're not they're not part of the initial casting38:54I usually do two molds I do kind of adapter enabled when it's in Instagram but39:00because I have smooth finishes on my work because it looks more cartoony then I'll metal finish it and take another39:06mold and that's why I chop off the appendages and to make the the second39:12mold and then I'll weld it all back together and then I'll have the really good mold so I won't have to do as much39:17work and wax and Welding the next time um for those people who aren't familiar39:23with your work they will immediately Know Who You Are by describing the fact39:29that you are the Humpty Dumpty lady the bronze Humpty dumpties you've been making eggs for how many39:35years now um 41. 41 years and how did that come39:42about how did you start making those well back in the old days39:48suggestor did the Renaissance Fair and sold Dragon mugs so I was doing a lot of work in my39:56Pottery Studio and my two-year-old son said Mom will you make me a Humpty Dumpty I thought well you know I can40:03make that egg shape on The Potter's Wheel put a little money slot in the top so it was a bank and I did the arms and40:09legs they were just wildly popular right off the bat people people were yeah it40:16was hot hot ate them yeah but it's a lot of sculpting so then oh you break a40:22finger you break a foot up you know you just Clank them together the wrong way and they're broken I was like damn it40:27I'm gonna make something that doesn't break so I started I started really small by taking a mold of a chicken egg40:34okay I'm doing it carving it in wax and they sold right away the small ones and40:40then I just started making them really big and now the biggest one they've made is probably six or seven feet tall whoa40:48I mean when you first made that transition from clay and into metal and you started small I assume part of that40:55was just you know learning a new material and stuff but did you kind of think I don't know I guess I kind of41:01think when we started in glass I'm like oh who's going to want to pay for a really big one of these and then as we41:07start working in the medium and the demand grows and you're like I guess there is a market for those bigger41:12pieces out there and you know it surprises us yeah I I think it's probably our middle41:18class Spectrum like we forget there that there's people that want a statement41:24piece and uh it's not in the world that I've lived in but yeah I I see it and41:31it's great and I'm so glad that we get the support that we get it's awesome it is it's totally awesome41:38so you didn't start in bronze you started in Ceramics or tell me about how41:44you got into art I was a Potter I I started doing art really young and I actually started41:51welding in high school in the art Department because I wanted to take it in the welding department but I'm 6441:57when I was in high school girls couldn't take welding we couldn't take Auto we42:02couldn't take wood we couldn't even take photography it was in the boy's Wing really boys could not take go back42:11that doesn't sound very inclusive no it doesn't I mean imagine if you're42:18like displaying a gay guy and you wanted to be a clothing designer and you can't even learn to sell it right right yeah42:25yeah it's really really not good stuff so it actually started me in a political42:30group too because I organized protests and I had sit-ins in front of the principal's office this was yeah this42:37was high school you say right this is high school yeah so in junior high school I started having sit-ins42:43so that we could take shop classes there's only like three of us interested so the students were pretty small42:51but but you were an activist early on you were like you were willing to to stand behind42:58a cause that was important to you oh yes I was very early feminist that's great43:04you told me once I saw something where you said that that that welding class43:10looked interesting that there was something about it that would look like a room full of janitors that was just so43:15intriguing you wanted to find out what was going on in there yes that was actually metal casting in43:23college I was I started welding I kept welding in college but there was this one room full of guys and I didn't know43:29what they were and I finally said what is that I see them every day at the same time so I was I thought it was work43:34study boys or something I said oh that's casting well I never knew what casting was so I went back and read about it and43:41it's like oh I'm gonna start casting metal so um we busted into that because I have43:47to be different that's the thing that put it all together my photography and pottery like43:54once I started taking casting it kind of encompassed all that because you had positive negative space and plus you get44:01to do all the sculpting and it's such a gas Spring hot metal it's really fun44:06with photography what what kinds of things were you you know doing with44:11photography what were your subjects a little more abstract I always like figurative things but I like structure44:18and just seeing things differently photographers I mm-hmm and I still love44:24cryptography and there's a lot of great photography out there but I like to pour in hot metal more than I like44:30photography so yeah right right so one thing we've talked about in the44:36past you and me is that you have your hands on almost every stage of the44:42process which isn't always typical with a lot of other bronze or metal sculptors44:48that there's maybe a lot of the stages that that they hand off to somebody else to do the grinding the polishing or44:55whatever tell me about your whole process that goes into building a piece well there is about 15 Steps so you know45:01from from the Armature to the sculpture to the mold making I actually don't do the metal pour part right now but I get45:09the pieces back together and weld it together it initially started because45:15I couldn't afford to have to do all that work so it was a way that I cut corners45:22and I had hide the tiniest little miserable equipment and you know as you45:27sell work I just kept putting more and more into equipment and now I got three face power and a 20 horse air compressor45:33and so it's grown it's grown listening she got the juice45:38yeah I like I like finishing metal I don't know why I could let go of it but45:45um I just can't I'm drawn to it it's I don't know this whole part of the45:50process as much as the sculpting to me one of the pieces you were working on when we when Renee and I came to visit you this week was a big Humpty and it45:59was it a bronze the one you were grinding this week yeah that's the today and cut off his arms and legs okay46:06because it had such a silvery kind of finish to it I guess I've always just46:11thought bronze was probably the color that the patina is on it you know what I'm saying it's all that's because I46:17don't know the medium that well I'm looking at it and I'm thinking oh are you working with a different metal but I46:22didn't I didn't bring that up to you is that kind of that shiny silvery look is that what bronze looks like right after46:28the poor and when you're grinding at it yeah um bronze is 95 copper so think of46:34when you get a brand new Penny out shiny it is and as soon as you start handling it it'll start to turn darker and darker46:40you know if and then if it's laying in the wrong place it'll turn green or blue green you know depending on where it46:47ends up like Brad Koozies birds are bronze they're just highly polished but when you have a really highly polished46:54surface you can't scratch it or you get a big brown scratch eventually once it47:01starts to oxidize from the air you know the gold stuff it's it's hard to47:06maintain especially when you're doing shows you can't ever bump into anything with it it's a real hands-off look so I47:13don't do it very much um the finishes that you're using that are brightly colored is that just paint47:19or is it or is it a patina what what gets the the final colors I47:24have a nation of traditional patinas with chemicals to get the kind of French Brown look that is kind of what all the47:33brands is going to end up over time anyway but the clothes lend itself to color and acrylic paint it's kind of47:40what makes me stand out of speed unique um is all my bright colors because a lot47:45of people don't do that but now they're finding out that the really ancient Roman sculptures were brightly painted47:50it just kind of wore off they wore off oh and yeah yeah and then that way you patina them to look like these antique47:58green things when they really weren't antique green things they were painted like paintings wow that's awesome48:05um the thing I notice about your work is it's never just a Humpty Dumpty it's not just a character there's a story there's48:13a pun that that accompanies each piece something is happening there your work48:18is punny as they say there goes the Iration yeah that's the48:24Irish yes the Irish I like the hard work the hard work of Irish and I I think I'm48:30funny and usually I think of the pun before I48:35even start sculpting the eggs so I have I have a list and I could bake eggs forever I do try to balance it with my48:43figurative feminine work but um I don't know just to kind of keep me48:48centered but yeah the eggs are they're fun and I have some new ones coming out they're gonna be hilarious yeah I'm48:54getting more bold now I mean I'm making more statements about Society I'm not being afraid to insult as much as before49:01I kept them nice yeah a few years ago you actually took some political stabs49:07there with your work you went there yep and I'm proud of it49:14trumpy Dumpty series Trump did Dumpty I guess my favorite is the uh trumpy49:21Dumpty tweeting on the toilet yeah on his throne49:28well did you ever get yourself in any trouble did anybody ever come in and give you an earful for having oh yeah49:35differing opinions but the pro the problem with that is I I49:40kind of a political junkie like I listened to public radio Non-Stop and I49:46can respond to those people with a lot of facts and if they want to give me trouble I'll just give it right back49:54you're not afraid yeah50:04I think it's some it's sad and they have a lot of followers and it's our job as50:10artists to speak up and say something it's not like you're starting a fight though you are expressing a point of50:17view and it may not be at everybody else's point of view I guess what happens is sometimes people50:23just want to like have their knee-jerk reactions which can which can be uncomfortable but you're still being50:29true to your your political voice and your and your voice as an artist yeah and I did have a lot of friends like50:35warned me not to do that I was put myself at risk but I said you know what if50:40if I don't say something who's gonna say something like we have to say something it's our job as artists and so nobody's50:48going to fire me that's right I already fired myself all kinds of times and I keep coming back you keep rehiring50:55yourself yeah yeah damn it nobody else will do it I guess I'm gonna have to go do it oh51:00another [Laughter]51:10um where did you get your start learning to be an artist did you go to the U of M51:16was that what I remember I went to the of them I you know I started at minor state colleges and then transferred to51:24the U because well I was a Potter and you know there's some famous Potters there and Warren McKenzie that's the51:30reason I went to the U oh yeah unfortunately when I went into broadcasting their their casting51:36students were just horrendous and it's a really quite wonderful now but I kind of51:42missed all that you were before the times where they they had the equipment and everything that was they have better51:48stuff now yeah I think the art Department had some really good Deans that did a lot of fundraising and the51:54art Department really got developed after I left I like you know I saw really fond memories of the dump field51:59art Department I know we focus a bit on your your Humpty Dumpty series but you do have a52:06whole other line of work of figurative pieces of women in yoga poses and female52:13forms do you want to talk a little bit about that yeah that is you know that's work that's really personal to me is is52:20a feminist and I I'm an athlete and I just I like making strong women you know52:27not they're not there waiting to get laid or whatever52:34I can't say that you could say that this is this podcast you could say anything52:41they're not they're not Playboy Centerfolds they're they're strong and they're powerful and they have some52:48muscles and they have things to say and they have attitude and um I combine a lot of nature things I I put in some52:54fire my last piece is called women in the wave and she's surrounded by a big52:59wave I don't know it's so it references a lot of stuff so and I know that you use a53:06lot of motion like dancing and yoga in a lot of your poses with with the female forms it's because I do yoga and I love53:13this and I I or I just got done playing hockey an hour ago wow you are an athlete and we53:20were into golf too aren't you yeah I love golf it's really good for your mental focus do you ever sit still I53:26mean did I catch you at a at a rare moment when you get sit still a dog53:32and I'm glad if you're not working or driving to a show or you're on the Move yeah my53:39students in my house as soon as we're done I'll go downstairs and work on that mold you know that's the advantage of53:44having your studio in your house even when I lived in Saint Paul my studio was behind your house but if I was 40 below53:50you're kind of like ah I have to like get in the cold and go to my studio and be like well this you just go downstairs53:56you know you're throwing a load of laundry and you mix a batch of rubber54:01can get a lot done it's just intermixed in your life yeah yeah so the different rooms you're talking about with your54:08work you've got a room for polishing and grinding your pieces but then we went around to the front of the building it's54:14almost like walking into the wax museum it's so cool to see all of these pieces54:20you're making or have made over the years just kind of like sitting all on top of each other and it's insane it is54:28not insane in a bad way it's insane in a cool way yeah I take it out for granted because54:34my mind is always on the you know 15 pieces that I want to make before the end of this year so I forget about the54:41last ones so what do you have planned for this year do you have some shows coming up in Florida54:51it's your first show of The Grove yeah okay yeah we'll see you down there yeah we'll do a little uh tag team you'll54:58pass me and I'll never catch up so55:03take take up golf so we can do some golfing during the week when we're done oh I would love that you know I actually55:09tried golf with my uncles uh several years ago when I was doing more like a55:15season and so I'd stay down there and we'd Golf and I was an embarrassment I mean maybe if I had a little bit more55:22coaching I just hit that baby in the wrong direction and they'd get so irritated with me55:28Doug I've done triathlons I play hockey I've played rugby I play I don't know55:35what sports have done golf is the hardest sport I've ever done it is so55:40hard yeah and you like it because it's hard right I do yeah I do well I have a55:47kind of an obsessive compulsive disorder so it gives me it's like a lot like think about does it make you kind of55:53hone in a bit kind of like Channel and calm and center it's a game of micro55:59milliliters you know if your club's this way or that way or it's not your backswing like there's a million factors56:06that make you hit that sweet spot and and really a thousand things can go56:12wrong and I the people that are great at it is like wow just because they've practiced practice practice well I guess56:19it does take a real like body awareness to know exactly like how your your leg is turned or your hip is turned as you56:25do your swing and all that kind of stuff and when you break and you know it's just like ours exactly like her you know56:32you think of like blowing glass and just that how you made push a color out to56:37the edge just by you know you take for granted your skills probably but just the way56:43you will do a twist will will swirl a color a certain way or how and when you56:48pick up the color or you know things like that yes so when you are when56:54you're in between shows is that what you do do you golf yeah golf Gallery Go Kai57:02around a lot which is unusual for me I'd like to will you go out for like a57:08couple shows and then you have like time in between where you can chill like go to the beach or go golf or kayak or57:15whatever yeah I'll do that this show I'm just I'm actually going to the Grove and flying57:20back on Wednesday and then I'm not and I'm gonna fly back before Naples because mostly because they've been working57:25really hard and I I just wanted like a little month just to kind of chill and57:31be home yeah and I I'm a I'm afraid that I'll be bored down in Florida I'll get57:36bored I got bored boring I don't fish I don't know what you can do you know the57:42restaurants suck 10 minutes on the beach and then I'm like okay can I be doing something now57:48you know what I mean okay this is beautiful I'm getting a son yeah so what57:54do you people do you just lay here58:02touristy and pharmacies and every corner and I don't know it's weird yeah but the58:08other thing that it hit me years ago when I thought well flying home is so expensive but then when I thought about58:13the amount of money I was making in the studio and the money I wasn't spending58:19on hotel rooms it made like it was like a no-brainer then it was like no it makes total sense to fly home and I got58:27round trip tickets for 168 dollars did you have points or what how did you58:32get them that cheap no I don't know just the dates were right58:38flying at five in the morning or actually I'm not but it's Spirit58:43but having Minneapolis airport right there I mean you can fly pretty affordably a Fort Myers is a direct one58:51to Minneapolis Fort Lauderdale Tampa they're all direct flights so it's pretty easy Fort Myers is my favorite58:58airport in the whole country mine too it's just small enough that it's just like you're in and out yeah it's really59:04simple yeah you just perfect goal you know what I'm not applying to as59:10many as I used to so that I could stay home and get things done and that's one thing that kova did is it sort of made59:17me focus on you know our mortality and our limited time and and how much you can get done when things are really kind59:24of calm and and you're not running off to Art Show and working on reproductions reproductions reproductions it was just59:31kind of amazing to look at the body of work that I created just because I could59:37make whatever I wanted not what I needed and I really really like that feeling so I'm gonna stick to that a little more59:43that's an interesting point that is a common theme with a lot of people we've talked to is once we got off of that59:50grind the first fear was like oh my God how are we going to make it through this period of time off but then we realized59:57just how we didn't need that intense schedule to keep going that we could1:00:03have some balance so that's great that you're able to think of other things1:00:08that you actually need to do and where you want to put your focus and I know that feeling like like you're describing1:00:14where you're constantly trying to fill the inventory of the thing you think you need to sell at the next show that was1:00:21before covid but now we are able to just be busy and make the things you want to1:00:27make it's a whole different it's like being ahead of the game yeah just to express ourselves and I feel blessed1:00:34being an older artist the younger artists have a harder time of it because we're far enough ahead of in life that1:00:41our homes are deeper and our vehicles are paid for and you know if you're starting out I mean it's expensive1:00:47getting a new van and a new tent and then if copen hit it would just bankrupt1:00:52you yeah it all depends on timing that's true yeah so talk to me about other means of selling your work because I1:01:00know that you have a lot of your work out in the public like a lot of public art corporate art you know you have1:01:07sculptures and pound squares and that sort of thing did those things come to you from the art fairs or was there like1:01:13a whole separate way of attracting these types of of buyers well the first1:01:19the Coconut Grove Fair where a city they do these lease programs for sculptures1:01:25they don't pay very much and it's like 500 and you paid five thousand dollars1:01:30for the metal it's in your piece I agreed to it but they liked it and they1:01:36bought it a sale and so that would led to another one which led to another one1:01:41which led to another one plus as you know I have a lot of inventory in my house it's some of those1:01:47eggs are pretty big so I started putting those in the lease programs and my work is really popular1:01:54so it wins a lot of people's choices because it appeals to people of all ages especially children who who like to vote1:02:01and so I got a lot of sales from doing that um do you need a drink of water yeah I1:02:08do have something like it might be dry yeah go ahead and take a break and grab a glass of water and then you know when you live alone1:02:15this is probably the most I've talked in a year1:02:20tell me about your life1:02:25so let me see if I understand you right did you say that the first kind of foray1:02:32into public art like that started from the Grove they give you Pennies on the dollar of what you're really asking for1:02:37a piece and that was just to kind of get your foot in the door yeah with having that exposure yeah so I you know I knew1:02:45about those programs but I was like poo poo you know I didn't I didn't want to do it because it's like well for what1:02:52I'm paid for my work but now I I have enough of them out there that I can1:02:59rotate them through if they don't sell then it goes to the next city which you get another thousand dollars for and1:03:05then and it goes to the next city and you get another thousand and pretty soon your pieces paid for but you still have1:03:11it but usually by the time I get to that point one of the Cities will buy it okay1:03:16so a city will lease it for a certain amount of money for a certain amount of time and then once their term is up you1:03:23might lease it to a different city square and then so you're getting paid for it for it to be on display and then1:03:29eventually somebody will buy it for seeing it out and about but then you're also getting paid for people to have it1:03:36out there so it kind of eventually pays for itself that way too right and uh I'm1:03:41like I said I'm pretty lucky because the the kids like my work and so I also win1:03:46a lot of prizes too like cash prices it's kind of a second business as much1:03:52as art fairs like how many pieces would you say you know ballpark that you have out there on this kind of program sold1:03:59and leased probably at least maybe 25. okay that's interesting that's really1:04:04cool they have to be yeah they have to be large so I mean you can't put my small work out there right what would be1:04:11considered a larger piece well their minimum is 24 inches most of my work is like between 40 and 50 inches you're1:04:18everywhere Kimber it's so interesting I've got a friend from college who was traveling somewhere I don't know where1:04:24he was but he had his profile picture of himself with his hand on his hip next to one of your humpties doing doing one of1:04:32the Humpty poses but I'm like yeah my friend makes that you know and then I'm1:04:38sitting it a number of years ago before Trump was President we used to watch the Celebrity Apprentice1:04:43and all of a sudden across the TV screen is like 25 of your humpties The1:04:49Apprentice you didn't know that was going to happen did you I didn't know it gonna happen my phone1:04:57blew up I didn't even know what Donald Trump was and so I watched the show the next week to see who he was1:05:04and I thought guys ow that's mean I don't want to be1:05:09associated with them so I contacted a lawyer and I found out that I signed a release for my work to be on the show1:05:18little did you know that started this relationship1:05:24what are the drop actually yeah you're like what do you want me to sign okay fine okay yeah okay1:05:31[Laughter] oh man it's just bizarre we have such a1:05:38a reach and a spread you just never know where your stuff's gonna end up who who's gonna have it who's gonna see it1:05:44what celebrities come across it have you had any other situations with celebrities like that yeah I think we1:05:51all have the the problem with me is I don't watch TV like I'm on the I'm on the radio all the time so I mean if1:05:58somebody does come up like if Oprah came to my gallery I'd say hi what brings you1:06:04here where are you from what's your name1:06:12should be like uh don't you know who I am1:06:19I had a picture from a collector on my office store for years because they1:06:25built a pool like kind of around my Humpty somebody said is that Tony Hawkins yeah who's that you know I did I1:06:33didn't know this is so unanim I said yeah he was going by with kids were in a1:06:39stroller and he kicked this kid out of the stroller and put my Humpty in walked away of course he paid me for a foot but1:06:45I didn't I just don't know I wouldn't know yeah so you did the ren Fest uh to1:06:51start was that the first way that you started selling your work was through there or had you been doing art fairs1:06:56before that or tell me about that yeah I started um doing the Uptown Art Fair1:07:01when it was little card tables I think it costed me forty dollars and I was on Lake Street so and then they died at Art1:07:08Fair just making little coffee mugs and stuff like that so I started there somebody walked up to me Uptown said oh1:07:16you should do the Renaissance trip and I was like what's that so I did it and um it was pretty good business for a while1:07:21what years was that oh that would have been in the 80s yeah in the 80s yeah but1:07:29it was great I mean it paid paid for my car I got some new Kilns I I built my1:07:34business really organically through small shows up to the bigger shows was that at a time when there were a lot of1:07:41Twin Cities folks who were there I mean who are some of the other peers that were at the ren Fest at that time like I1:07:48know Duke and the Des were there back then there was a lot of glass blowers1:07:53Potter well I'm old I'm older most people are retired now so um we did talk to Jay McDougall last1:08:00season he talked about him and Cindy were there for a brief stint at the Minnesota renaissance fair so yeah I1:08:07know that a bunch of people from around here that that was that was a start for them tell me about how you said it1:08:13started to turn though that that it made it hard to sell because of things that the that they were doing there oh the1:08:21management started making their own kiosks with their own kind of imported work that kind of competed against the1:08:29potters and and then also the art fairs there wasn't very many art fairs I mean1:08:35when when I was young I was like Edina in uptown now there's art fairs everywhere in every city in the1:08:41beginning there was just a few of us artists and there was a few shows and now it's a whole industry when would you1:08:48say you started leaving the area to do shows when did you Branch out I missed1:08:54the really big days um because I took a break for a little while and I had a little restaurant Gallery along Lake Pepin for a while1:09:01because I feel like they cooked yeah so I had a gallery restaurant when I came out of that1:09:08and I had this building and I had a gallery here but the gallery didn't really support me very well somebody1:09:14came in and said why don't you do the Beverly Hills art fair and I said oh1:09:21really so I drove all the way to Beverly Hills I sold every single thing I had like the1:09:27first day so on Monday I had empty pedestals with no bronzes and I thought wow this is great then I I got in the1:09:35best show in the country I got in Coconut Grove and then again in Sausalito and I was like wow it was an1:09:42amazing world and to see a successful artists and they had nice cars and I had1:09:49a stereotype that was broken down Vans and you know card tables like the old days yeah and it yeah I know it wasn't1:09:55it was it was amazing to see the success and how well we were treated by the1:10:00management and it was quite a step up it was great wow that's pretty interesting1:10:06I didn't know that time I mean when I got into it in the early 2000s shows1:10:13were very established there were lots of them you had lots of choices of where to go in fact everybody was telling the1:10:20tale of what the Glory Days used to be like yeah I think these now these post covid1:10:28days are becoming the Glory Days the days everyone's saying that's when we're really like you know coming back out of1:10:33from hiding and the Sails are phenomenal again it's like they missed us they they really did miss us they did they took us1:10:41for granted because we were everywhere there was you know I was like oh oh I'm there they are again you know1:10:47shut down our city streets oh dear we have to drive around them no they're like where did they go we1:10:54missed you I save a lot more money too because they1:10:59weren't spending it on anything they weren't going out to eat they weren't traveling they were sitting home in1:11:05their house for two years going oh I could use a nice piece of art over there in that left corner yeah it's amazing1:11:13how everybody started painting walls and that changed everything it just started a whole new remodeling which meant they1:11:21needed more stuff which we're happy about I know we're happy about it how1:11:26long will it last I don't know you know yeah so you told me one time that you1:11:31knew even as a little girl that you were going to be an artist you didn't know what that meant but you knew1:11:37that art was going to be your career artist was your archetype that was you how did you know that so early on you1:11:44know you got me I don't know I used to go down to the Sand Hill and I just sculpted sand all day long I would draw1:11:51all the time I would make tables like abstract wood tables when I was little I1:11:57couldn't even Hammer nails and I don't know I just I just knew that that was1:12:02where I found my joy and no exposure like never been to art museum no art books on the Shelf no great aunts who1:12:09were artists or I don't know I'm pretty blessed it was just that desire to be1:12:15making stuff that desire to create and express is are you saying is that where it really came from an internal Place1:12:21yeah my mom had these Time Life books on Egypt brominee we just read them over1:12:27and over just to see the statues to them just pick them up and keep looking at them that was your jam that's what it is1:12:33right damn that's what got you going yeah yeah why is Art important I mean1:12:39you've devoted your life to it to creating you live in a place where you can create it's so integrated with1:12:46getting up every day making food to sustain yourself but then your ability1:12:51to then just go like you said throw in a load of laundry and work on your art you've got your gallery up front you've1:12:58got your van right there that you can throw the stuff in there and drive across the country it's just so all-encompassing I guess that's the1:13:06thing I find so interesting about you is it really is such a deeply rooted part1:13:12of you you know my level of passion is really high even my professor in college1:13:18told me that like you could tell what students are going to make it because you could just tell they're the first1:13:24one to turn on the lights in the morning and they're the last ones to turn them off at the end of the day and that was1:13:30me wow that's really cool this is fun this has been a fun talk I1:13:35really I really liked hearing about you and what kind of makes you tick and and1:13:41why you do what you do it but I'm just really impressed with that drive I can relate to that drive that you have that1:13:47not because anybody is is telling you to do it it's it's that internal thing that you just1:13:53you would do it if somebody held you back you'd be like I'm I'm gonna go through and I'm gonna do it1:13:59yeah but when times were hard I thought well you know they're so hard if I had1:14:04to rub a big guy with mine as long as they have our department at the Shakopee women's prison I wouldn't care1:14:11either either I got away with the money and I could I could pay some of my bills1:14:19I've already get caught I have access to a heart Department 24 7.1:14:25you saw the bright side and whatever whatever outcome at least you had art in your life1:14:32and you don't know maybe I really did that and got away with it I got away with it perhaps you did1:14:40remember well I'm looking forward to seeing you down in Miami have uh have a safe drive and thanks for taking the1:14:46time to sit and chat with me yeah it's really fun yeah I look forward to hitting her own again and you know1:14:51when you when you're on the road you're like oh God I don't want to do this and then and then as soon as you're home you're like you're only home like two1:14:58weeks now where can I go yeah I go somewhere waiting for the next one you1:15:03know what I find really I don't know if anyone else experiences this but the lead up to getting out to a show or a1:15:10run of a couple of shows there is such a drive there's such a frenetic kind of a1:15:15panic of am I gonna get it all done am I gonna get it all in the van and then we1:15:20get it all in the van we rush we rush we rush and then we sit behind the wheel1:15:26and we just sit there and we just drive for two or three days you know what I mean and it's just like such a different1:15:33reality isn't it wonderful just listen to books I just love it it's so calm and then you1:15:40get to a show after you've been sitting sitting sitting sitting and then you have to be like physically like ready to1:15:47do the hardest little physical yeah you're just like run run run run run again1:15:52or then you break down your booth and your beat and then you have to sit in your butt and do nothing there's no1:15:58transition between the physical labor and the wow and your physical labor I mean you're lugging around all these1:16:04heavy pieces are you usually traveling with Assistance or do you hire people when you get there how do you get1:16:10everything moved around I have been voted several times as the most athletic1:16:15artist because people watching slept this they watch me lift this stuff you1:16:21know I think after sitting in a show for a couple days and they sit there and you can tell I'm not a sitter like I look1:16:27forward to the breakdown like I look forward to the work and loading my truck because it's like it's like going to the1:16:33gym to me it's a workout it's a it's physical emotion yeah the sitting still1:16:38is more of a torturous feeling than the actual like lifting and moving and being1:16:44active right you got it uh you're a good guy I like what you do you're living the1:16:49dream too you know you're living breathing art it's really cool awesome well thanks Kimber I really1:16:55appreciate your your talking with me today thank you it's great to talk to you Doug all right bye bye now I can1:17:03make noise in the background right yes now you can1:17:09it's really hard for me not to be tapped in my pants like I I peel the paint off1:17:15this pencil way we're talking I told you I didn't hear the excited great talk with Kimber Douglas it's1:17:20really interesting to hear the voice behind all of those great sculptures that we've seen over the years also1:17:25interesting to see her get a little political over the last few years yeah no kidding wasn't that part kind of1:17:31funny where she says she's so passionate about art that her level of passion is so high that she even would joke that if1:17:37she had to like rob a bank that it was still okay with her because then she could just do art in the Shakopee1:17:43women's prison I mean when she said that that actually shocked me I thought that was so funny it's amazing yeah it's a1:17:49great talk sorry I appreciate you sitting down and bringing another voice to some work that we've seen for so many1:17:54years right yeah totally I mean a long time let's think back here somebody comes into her booth and says to her at1:18:01like the Uptown you should consider going to Beverly Hills and do their show1:18:07out there she'd never left the state to do a show and on a whim she's like okay I'll try it out wow signs up for the1:18:14show drives all the way out to Beverly Hills for the first time cross country and sells out insane I mean that's a whole1:18:22different world than we're familiar I mean we've got social media we interact with each other we kind of like carry on1:18:28these conversations so are you telling me that when uh these clients come into1:18:33our booths and say have you ever done the Schenectady uh ballpark sausage1:18:42have you ever done that the hearing aid Festival in my church has a really nice1:18:49bizarre in the basement you're like oh I should give that a shot interesting are they on zap1:18:55great talk Douglas I'm gonna get back into the studio see what I can come up with I've got some great ideas that I1:19:01think I can get outside of my brain and onto the canvas so we'll see where that takes me hey who who do we have coming1:19:07up next week who did you talk to I talked to a good friend uh Mark winner so inspiring talk from Mark and I'm1:19:13excited for y'all to hear him he's a funny guy and uh interesting guy and and1:19:19really organized Creator so I'm excited for that one totally I loved your talk1:19:24and I can't wait for everyone to hear it next week so best of luck to you out in1:19:30the studio I am going to limp my way down to the living room and flip on Netflix so I'm gonna be taking it easy1:19:37for a couple of days good luck my friend and good luck to Renee on dealing with you in pain the Caged animal with your1:19:44foot in a trap hang in there my friend we'll see you next time all right we'll see you next1:19:50time bye this podcast is brought to you by the National Association of Independent1:19:55Artists the website is naiaartists.org also sponsored by1:20:00zapplication that's zapplication.org and while you're at it check out Will's website at1:20:07willarmstrongart.com and my website at cigarithglass.com be sure to subscribe1:20:13to this podcast to be notified when we release new episodes [Music]1:20:22thank you foreign1:20:27[Music]English (auto-generated) 59ce067264
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