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Paul Sutfin is a brilliant young artist currently residing in Portland, Oregon. I was immediately intrigued by Paul, because when I asked him to describe his work - the only thing he could say was "I really can't - you have to see it!"
So - I saw it - and guess what - I can't describe it. Amazing. Simply amazing. Paul fuses traditional painting with subtractive and heat-induced methods to create beautiful and complex images that challenge and excite your imagination. I found myself looking at each painting on different day - each day trying to decipher what it meant to me - and coming up with a different answer each time. One day I see a mountain range through the eyes of an angel - peering through the clouds; the next day I see the rage of an ocean storm at night.
Let me take you on a journey through the mind and heart of a true artist by telling you a little about Paul - I'm sure you'll be as impressed with him as I am. Then we'll take a tour through a few of his creations. I'll explain what I see - and he tells me how little I really know about art!
Paul, tell us about you creation "song of the beggar". This is first piece that our readers will see when they visit your website. As I mentioned above, I see something different every time I look at this piece. Tell us about what it means to you - and how you went about creating it.
Song of the beggar is a thumbnail image of a larger piece that is deeper into the website. I painted it a huge barn this summer that was torn apart by a storm. The light was epic. This gist of this image comes from an ancient Chinese painting that Vie adopted with my own hands and mind.
"Untitled 3" I found to be a particularly powerful piece. The dark background and deep reds you used really seem to stir the emotions. When I see this piece, the first thing that comes to my mind is a vision of tortured souls writhing in hell! Am I even close, or have I just spent a little too much time listening to hellfire and brimstone stories as a child!
If that is what you see, then that is what you see. The sun is a god to one man and a flaming ball of gas to the next.
As I looked through your work I observed many images that seemed to have religious themes. "Annunciation" (seems to be a distorted view of a church or religious structure), "Immaculate Conception" (appears to be a bright figure emerging from - or being pulled pack into - darkness) and "Death of the Virgin" (I love it - but I have to admit - I have no idea what I'm seeing - it just ‘speaks' to me somehow). How has your experiences with organized religion, belief, dogma and spirituality influenced your art? What message are you conveying to us about religion through your work?
There is no message. What you see is the message. You can gather and sift as much information out of an image that you want. Or none at all. There is not much beyond the paint. This is the beauty of it and its ability to transcend culture and cut into your being with the glance of an eye. Images of cathedrals were the perfect platform for me to play with the ideas of light and paint that I moved towards. These houses of worship were designed to send a message of awe and terror into the visitor via the play of light and the spatial relationships of the structures themselves. My only problem as a painter is light. The eye cannot see without light and I am thus occupied.
In your "Earth Covers Earth" series you utilize your unique style to capture various landscapes. Which of your works in this series means the most to you and why? Which of these works was the most difficult to create?
The years of creation have compressed themselves into a dream. A painting can take months and be pure improvisation or a painting can take years to prepare for and only an hour to realize.
Tell us about your "WW2 London" series. What inspired you to create an entire series of works with this theme?
I was blown away by images of the Great World Wars along with aerial views of war stricken cities. Time seems to have stopped in photographs like These and I was to compelled not to do anything about it.
Tell us about your beginnings as an artist. When did you discover that art was your passion?
When I made good art.
Where have you studied art?
Unofficially. I can't 'not' study it. If I am occupied with the object and the world is inundated with objects.
What inspires you?
Everything inspires me. This is the mark of a good artist.
Has there been anything tragic that has happened in you life that has influenced your art? If so, tell us what happened and how it has affected you.
There is pain, yes, but the physicality of Things seems to call beyond tragedy.
How do you feel about where you are in your career?
Poor yet rich. Possessing nothing yet beholding all things. Tell us about your toughest critic. Have they had a positive or negative impact on you as an artist or as a person?
Iron sharpens iron.
Your primary media is painting with "subtractive and heat-induced methods". Tell us about your experience with this method and how do you feel, using it to express your creativity. Have you tried other types of media?
Okay. "Subtractive" means only that I am taking paint away from the painting. A layer is added and a layer is taken. A structure begins to form. With these paintings there are hundreds of layers of paint. This is why they glow. Something is happening to the inside of the work when it is stripped down and rebuilt again and again. Not unlike an old man. "Heat induced methods" means that I am painting with fire. The soot from the flame is embedding itself into the surface and this is the painting. I am trapping the elements of nature for my own means. I am harnessing the architecture of smoke and fire. Most of the black and white works you see on my site are done with this process.
How did you develop your artistic style?
Endless experimentation.
Other than painting, what other types of creative expression do you enjoy? I am a pianist. I sing myself to sleep sometimes. I arrange words. I play the flute.
What is a normal day like for you?
I have no normal days. I guess this is kind of normal for me. Where do you work?
Wherever I can paint. Thank you, Paul, for your words and your art. Art does not have to have a 'meaning' or a message. If we give it one, then it has one - if we don't, then it doesn't. Sometimes a painting is just that - a painting - it doesn't mean anything - unless it means something to you! You can see all of Paul's creations at his website
Enjoy a preview of his awesome work below!
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This world never ceases to amaze me!
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