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Exploring the practice of painting as an artistic medium as well as thoughts from creative minds within Meow Wolf on how to get started.
Photo provided by Shannon Slack.
Contributing Authors & Interviewees: Isabel Slator, Caity Kennedy, and Shannon Slack
So, you’ve gone and explored this otherworldly, magical, and immersive place called Meow Wolf (or maybe you’ve seen so many gorgeous pictures of the insides) and you think, “dang, I really want to get weird with some art right now.” Well my friend, let’s get weird! Don’t know where to start? That’s where this series of articles comes in handy.
In our second installment of Approachable Art, we are exploring the medium of painting - what it is, advice from different creative minds within our Meow Wolf universe, and how you can get started. A good majority of us may have dabbled in painting when we were younger, but maybe it’s time to pick back up that brush and see what putting some color to the canvas does for you. It could help calm you, it could give you an emotional release you’ve been missing, or maybe it can allow you to finally paint that demon in your brain that keeps telling you to buy more trading cards (oops, maybe just me on that one).
Before we get on our painting clothes, let’s take a little look into some basic knowledge of painting as an art form. Our first forms of communication as humans are rooted in painting, specifically cave art with berries, ashes, and other earthly materials. These early communications were not only informational, but told stories, as they depicted things like animal hunting for survival and the success or defeat of these attempts.
As painting developed over the eras, it evolved in application, style, and technique. From depicting basic shapes and figures on walls to massive murals in cities and applications on various canvases outside of the traditional, rectangular, hang-on-a-wall version. Painting has traversed so many popular styles of the time, from the European Renaissance, Mughal miniatures, Karo body painting, and beyond.
The painting evolution continues with the digital realm. Our applications of technology change the art we create and how we create the art. Whether delving into using digital canvases or ideating with the help of technology, it allows for a new playground for painting to be explored in.
Now that we have our hands a little dirty in this painting world, let’s talk to some of our artists within Meow Wolf to get their perspectives on where to start your painting practice and advice they can bestow upon us:
What do you do at Meow Wolf?
My title is Senior Manager of Impact. Basically, I help Meow Wolf build deep roots in the community and adhere to our commitment to doing business for good.
How did you get started painting?
Like everyone else, I had a lot of time on my hands during the COVID quarantine and was desperately looking for a way to occupy it other than doomscrolling on TikTok. I decided to return to painting, one of my favorite childhood hobbies. It ended up being a great way to reignite my creativity and is a practice I have continued for the past five years. My primary medium is watercolor but have also ventured into acrylic and oil painting.
How has your artistic approach changed or adapted over time, if it has?
At first, I watched a lot of tutorials and focused on imitating exactly what other artists did. This was a great way to start – it taught me a lot of important basics – but it didn’t allow me to bring my own visions into reality.
Later on, I took a class on abstracts at our local community college. The instructor challenged me to paint without a plan or destination in mind - easier said than done! But it was an important lesson that fundamentally changed the way I make art. Now, I’m less worried about making perfect copies and am more interested in the process of creation.
Do you have any advice for anyone beginning to paint?
Don’t get too attached to your final product. Creating is a beautiful and radical act, regardless of the outcome. Art is a great practice for perfectionists because it’s not held to any objective standard, which means there is no right or wrong way to do it. Everything we make is both imperfect and perfect at the same time.
Allow yourself to be messy and make mistakes. Your art will be better for it!
If your art could talk, what would it say?
My paintings are a reflection of the way I see the world. Or really, the way I want to see the world. I focus on capturing small moments of everyday beauty - the way the clouds cluster around the New Mexico mountaintops, or how the afternoon light illuminates a single flower petal. If my art could talk, it would ask you to appreciate the beautiful things we witness every day.
If you could paint a mural on the side of a spaceship heading to another galaxy, what message or image would you send?
A mural of important moments throughout history, culminating in the iconic 2024 Beyoncé Bowl performance. Things the aliens really need to know!
What do you do at Meow Wolf?
I recently started as the Marketing Campaign Manager for my home base, Convergence Station! However, I’m lucky to have previously worked closely with each location and visited most exhibitions across the multiverse. In my current role, I get to highlight & spread awareness about Convergence Station across Colorado through various forms of media.
How did you get started painting?
Ever since I was able to pick up a crayon or marker I have been drawn to art, whether it was customizing coloring books with crayons or taking it to the streets with chalk. However, it wasn't until AP Art class in high school where I fell in love with painting. The process of transforming a drawing onto a canvas with brush and color and the marks I discovered opened the floodgates to endless possibilities of creation. I was hooked.
How has your artistic approach changed or adapted over time, if it has?
My artistic approach has evolved nearly every five years or so. From the subject matter, style, materials, to scale, my work has changed in parallel with my own evolution through life experiences. My paintings embody/symbolize my own personal interests or messaging about whatever it is I personally am experiencing or what the collective experience is going through. Like anyone, I tend to go through many phases of interests for various durations. My work in high school was crowded and chaotic and filled with psychedelic patterns. I now see my work as being more organically derived with a lot more atmospheric space breaking up the plane.
One of the biggest evolutionary experiences I’ve had was the opportunity to study abroad in Florence, Italy in my spring semester of 2016 where I learned how to oil paint using techniques originating from the old masters. Many of these techniques involve underpaintings in a diluted, thin layer and applying glazes of color to give the illusion of a life-like radiance. This was a game-changer for me and ever since then I incorporate underpaintings into my practice. One of my very first oil paintings can be seen in the above diptych using these techniques.
In contrast, a later piece of mine, “Bitter to Sweet” seen above, takes on those similar techniques of underpaintings but in an entirely different form. The flora, fruit bats, and lemons are all rendered using underpainting techniques with layers built up, varying in levels of detail. This piece was very personal to me, and all about a devastating friendship breakup I had in college. I experimented a lot here and due to the 5’ wide scale, the painting process was very physical in nature, which I loved – wide sweeping brush strokes made using most of my wingspan – which was so freeing and carries a symbolic expression to be set free of the terrible loss I felt. The smudges seen across the painting are intentional and a transformative moment for me where I let go of the preciousness of the painting process itself. Life is messy, paintings don’t need to be perfect, but rather exemplify controlled chaos that is life so often is. This is something I try to remind myself during my painting sessions.
Do you have any advice for anyone beginning to paint?
“Think Less, Paint More”. This was the biggest piece of advice I’d give to my class while instructing at Painting with a Twist. We are all our own worst critics and have enough negative self-talk during the day. Let painting be a release from what clutters your mind and enjoy playtime. Painting doesn’t need to be about making a visual clone from a reference, instead, I suggest exploring painting as a meditative experience where you get to tap into your curiosity and let your mind be set free.
By first experimenting with the materials and being curious, you will hopefully enjoy the act of painting and being curious about how to blend, make layers, be messy. Once you’re comfortable with that and having fun, try painting something that looks like an object or your pet, favorite flower, etc. Visually break down whatever it is your painting by asking yourself what shapes you see, what different colors you see, the way they are placed next to each other, and focus on those smaller sections that will eventually build up and become a part of a larger object.
If your art could talk, what would it say?
**airy whispers** “Join us, frolic in amongst the leaves & flowers."
If you could paint a mural on the side of a spaceship heading to another galaxy, what message or image would you send?
I would depict a portrait of humankind & introduce myself. I’d ask them to come visit me in my dreams & teach me about their species, galaxy, and hopefully uncover the mysteries of our universe.
What do you do at Meow Wolf?
I do so many different things that it may be a little hard to describe, but here’s a list: I am an artist: a painter, drawer, sculptor and installation artist. I am a creative leader: a designer, creative director, and creative advisor. I was the creative director of Numina - the giant green space at Convergence Station in Denver. I am also a Meow Wolf Co-Founder, which for me means I’m an organizer, leader, and thinker - working on forever improving on how we do what we do.
How did you get started painting?
I’ve been playing in whatever mediums were available to me for as long as I can remember! I remember being about five years old and following along to an episode of Bob Ross, but using office supplies like ballpoint pens and highlighters. I remember trying to use crappy paints as a little kid and being frustrated that mixing purple wasn't as simple as mixing the red and blue that came with a kit. My first technical training in painting was in high school, and I loved focusing on the basics like color mixing and matching. But maybe more importantly, in high school we worked in big sketch books, with encouragement from our teacher to make every page into something special - even if that meant spending weeks on one page, or totally painting over it and glueing in something crazy. I majored in painting in college, where it took me a minute to learn how to lean into what I loved doing most, partly in reaction to being asked to explain how my work fit into an art historical context. I got invited to do some murals during my first summer home from school, which turned out to be my first opportunity to make immersive art. I love painting right over everything and every surface in a room; windows, trim, fixtures etc! I made tons of work on my own over the years, and then got out of my personal practice for a while once we started building House of Eternal Return. After our Denver exhibit opened in late 2021, I started again with a big sketchbook. Then in early 2022 I started up my studio practice again by finding new materials to play with and working smaller and quicker to take the pressure off. I've been prioritizing keeping it fun and making sure to enjoy spending time in my studio rather than putting too much pressure on the quality of images I produce. Over time ideas sort of discover themselves.
How has your artistic approach changed or adapted over time, if it has?
Like many artists, I have simply always felt compelled to make images! I adore the sensory experience of the pen on the page, the brush on the board, and now even the apple pencil on the (paper textured) iPad. Learning this about myself has helped me make choices that keep me engaged.
After many years of working with a big group of people on often tight timelines, I now relish making sudden and dramatic changes, walking away from a painting for a while, or spending preposterous amounts of time on minute details, with no one to rush me or be impacted by my decisions!
As a young artist I almost exclusively depicted figures, as a 20 & 30 something artist I painted more of what could be called landscapes or worlds, and now (I’m 41) I’m trying to do more work combining the two. We’ll see!
Do you have any advice for anyone beginning to paint?
Experiment and learn what tools and mediums you like to use! Try different brushes and types of paint. Having the right tools for the job is very important for painting, and is entirely subjective! This doesn't mean you need fancy things - super low quality paints can be really fun if you can enjoy working with their “flaws.” For me, having the right size and shape of brush, the right consistency of paint, and the right surface to paint is super important. Learn what background colors you like to start with (I never start with a white surface, but you can’t always see what color I started with by the time I’m done.) The final product is usually partly my ideas, and partly a result of the mediums and methods I used.
Be playful! Find an inspiring color or tool and just see what it does.
Try dramatic changes halfway through!
If you’re scared to make a change to a piece or don't know what to do, take a picture of your painting and use the crappy photo editing tools on your phone to draw in the change you’re considering onto the photo, I do this all the time.
Get good lighting, buy a daylight white bulb for your nearby lamps at least.
Dedicate yourself. Give it time. Be patient with yourself.
If your art could talk, what would it say?
HHMMM it would probably make bird noises and like, river sounds. Trees creaking, leaves rustling, creatures humming and burbling to themselves. Maybe if it noticed us looking it would look back and say “oOo!”
If you could paint a mural on the side of a spaceship heading to another galaxy, what message or image would you send?
Wow, a message to the other side of the galaxy… I mean I’d want to say “I exist, I love you, I want to know you and be known by you”........ Not sure how to get that into a mural on the side of a space ship that unfathomable beings would understand… So, I’d probably just paint a creature made of flowers and light and wiggly lines (: Maybe if I cram it full of love they’ll get the message.
There are so many ways to get started and express yourself with paint. Taking inspiration from our lovely interviewees, don’t be afraid to play, make mistakes, try new things, and explore what feels good to you in your artistic expression. Not everything has to be picture perfect to others, so long as it is picture perfect to you! The palette is now yours, enjoy the creative adventure, friends.
If you want to play with some other Meow Wolf-minded folks to get your creativity flowing, check out our Meow Wolf Makers events in Denver and various artful workshops in Santa Fe. Take an intro into some acrylic painting, or explore crafting some pieces and adding your own paint-filled touch to the finished product.
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