Gary Honig

About the Artist

Born in Washington D.C. in 1954, the year Elvis Presley recorded his first record, I am a child of rock and roll. Being part of the original baby boomers, I enjoyed my formative years watching the transformation of this country through the sixties. My immediate peers were heavily involved in music which included being in bands, touring and producing on various levels. My college education did not result in graduation as my life outside University was becoming more interesting. This is fairly typical of individuals who are more into doing than being told what to do. Many years of making music, producing albums, touring on the road and odd jobs here and there eventually brought me to being a $5 an hour house painter’s helper. Being ambitious, for the next decade I painted houses and buildings. It was during this period, I came to fully understand how proper use of applications results in better outcomes. How to best prepare a surface, how different paint products interact with each other, I became an expert painter. My high point was painting a dozen 6 over 6 double hung windows in one day – in other words, an exceptional amount of precision production painting. Mix this with an innate ability to seek out new connections, I eventually threw in with a group of downtown artists who were renovating buildings in questionable neighborhoods. Each of us had a particular skill, and I was the painter guy. This allowed me to expand my repertoire to include all facets of building – electrical, plumbing, masonry and carpentry. This was fantastic because we were all artists and the rule “it’s art, there are no rules,” made everything a creative experiment. After a while, watching people create art wasn’t enough for me. So, at some point in 1990 I made my first wooden stretcher, stretched canvas on it and began painting. One of the earliest paintings I did called “A Mile Off the Dry Tortugas” hangs on the wall at the foot my bed. I wake up every morning looking at it.

Artist's Statement

I am a painter. I am a maker. For 30 years I have been pursing a career in the arts. My hands are constantly making things. Everyday I'm making something out of nothing. My work incorporates layers both literally and figuratively. Having studied, visited and watched contemporary art closely, I recognize where my techniques match artists who came before me. It can surprise me when I find what I have been doing all along is validated by art history. I usually begin a painting by entering a conceptual phase, where I'm paying very close attention to opening the channel of my intent. This could come in the form of what a painting might look like, a possible title, and largely working on figuring out how I can physically do what my mind is envisioning. From there, I start gathering materials. I am, what is regarded as a process-oriented painter. This could include construction skills, sourcing, hunting, testing and planning. I prefer to work large canvas pieces. I've used a great variety of materials over the years in my paintings usually adding repurposed items. Finally, the paintings are colorful with a lot of movement. The physical movement of my body when I am painting. While I am in the critical channeling mode, I am choosing my palette, which set of colors will go into the final production. Through trial and error over the years I have gained confidence in directing my choices and setting my path. My background is heavily influenced by musicians. And like any artist, we have to wait for a fertile moment where we pluck inspiration out of the air. It doesn't happen all the time and we can't force it. I have experienced the magic and there are paintings that reflect it.