// July 28th, 2010 // View Comments // b-loud
Commission art from Caitlin Hackett (interviewed below). She is an artist, illustrator and creature-concept designer based out of Brooklyn, NY who joined our art community in June. She creates astonishingly fantastical creatures exploring the relationship between humans and animals; the idea of the human denial of our animal nature and of humans as the dominant species. You can buy art from Caitlin’s meticulous and imaginative hand by using our commission art service at b-uncut.
“I grew up in northern California, in a tiny town in an area called the “lost coast”, due to it’s remoteness. I grew up hiking and backpacking in the Pacific Northwest, living amongst the ancient redwoods and the many creatures therein. From an early age I came to respect the natural world, and to be intrigued by it’s creatures, rituals, mythology, and sciences, thanks especially to my father who taught me much about the natural world. I always wanted to be an animal as a young child, mostly I longed to grow up to be a cat, a dream which of course, did not come true ; ). This unusual childhood longing did however shape my later work, where often human and animal figures combine to form new creatures. I have now been living in New York City for roughly five years, and although I miss the wilderness of my youth, the urban landscape of New York has become a fitting home.”
What was your very first artwork?
That’s hard to say, I’ve been drawing since I could smear paint or crayon on a piece of paper, my parents used to set my twin sister and I down with a stack of printer paper and we would draw for hours, and apparently narrate the stories of our drawings out loud to one another the whole time. Some of the first drawings that could actually be recognized as mine though were all of cats and horses, running through bizarre landscapes. My mother has told me that all of my drawings were always filled with action, creatures running and flying and building nests, never at rest. One of the earliest drawings that I have is of a tiny, scribbled pink creature with wings, vaguely reminiscent of a Pegasus, which I did when I was four, and which my grandma of course has saved in a large file full of other such creatures from my youth.
Describe the piece you love the most—why?
My favorite piece currently is the drawing that started my current trend of work, it is approximately four feet by four feet square, done mostly in ballpoint pen, with water color, ebony pencil, micron pen, colored pencil and gesso. It is of a two headed, vulture like bird, with bubbling wattles on it’s neck, irrationally small wings for it’s size, human arms instead of bird legs, and a gaping mouth in it’s stomach from out of which small birds fly. This is was the first piece where I really began to use color, the first piece where I achieved the level of detail I was aspiring for, and the first piece where I put in a background instead of just having the creature floating on white like a scientific specimen. This drawing was a launching point for me, into more detailed, more realized, more colorful works of ever growing scale. I love it’s detail, the faces of the birds alone took a month to do, and the pinks and reds in it’s skin and wattles remain some of my favorite colors to work with, along with the smokey blue green of the sky behind it.
What are your methods? Your inspirations?
When I start a large drawing I rarely do sketches unless I know I’m going to need to figure out scale for multiple creatures, most often I just cut off a big piece from one of my paper rolls, and just start sketching with pencil straight onto it. My ideas change as I work, so I start in pencil then let the ballpoint pen take over slowly, as the piece becomes more conceptually realized. I love ball point pens, although finding archival ink ballpoint is actually very challenging. If I am drawing an animal I haven’t drawn before, then I use reference, but since so many of my creatures are collages of animal parts, I most often just work from my mind. My inspiration comes from all kinds of things, images I see in magazines, things I hear on the news, conversations, dreams, I have more ideas for pieces than I will ever be able to complete, and they are constantly shifting and changing, so that I have to start a piece as the inspiration hits me, or it will fade or shift away. Because of that I usually have more than one piece at a time that I work on, so that I can continuously start new pieces and not let good ideas pass me by. Also due to how long each drawing takes me to complete, it’s essential to have multiple drawings to work on so that I never get too sick of any one of them. Animal rights issues are my main inspiration, I have always been moved by the natural world, it is the source of my greatest curiosities and passions.
What did it take to make it to where you are now?
Moving across the country, having some brutal professors while at Pratt, some who loved my work and some who hated it, to push me to work harder, to focus on the art that I really wanted to do. The turning point had to be during my sophomore year in school, when I went to see a show at the Brooklyn Museum of Walton Ford’s watercolors. It was then that I realized that I could draw what I wanted to, (which of course is eerie animal hybrids), and that forcing myself to draw and paint things which were more acceptable as “fine art” but were not my passion was not going to work for me.
Do you make a living from your artwork?
Only partially, I have sold some works, and I also do creature concept design for a small Brooklyn based gaming company, but mostly I waitress and serve steak to customers who are often as monstrous as my creatures ; )
Who has helped you along the way?
My parents, who have always supported my artistic endeavors, my sister who is an artist as well, a few professors in particular have guided, pushed and inspired me, Chris Wright, Nanette Carter, Dennis Masback, and Dominique Nahas, all of whom are artists and art critiques in their own right. All the people at Ox Bow, an amazing artist residency program out in Michigan, my good friend and fellow artist Christina Mrozik who’s amazingly detailed work has pushed me to do better in my own, and my boyfriend David McHale, who has photographed all my work for me, and continually pushes me to do my drawings even when all I want to do is be lazy.
What 5 artists (dead or alive) would you invite for the ultimate dinner party?
James Audubon, Walton Ford, Hieronymus Bosch, Martin Wittfooth, and Hannah Dougherty.
Your favourite curse?
Honestly I think I say Damnit more than anything, which isn’t really that colorful. God fucking damn it happens too.
Your biggest (albeit endearing) flaw?
I don’t know about endearing, but part of my process of coping with stress or anger is having minor to major freak-outs and panic attacks that nothing can solve and wherein I refuse to hear any advice and am convinced that everything is hopeless. About half an hour after a good freak-out session, I’m fine and ready to go as if nothing happened, it’s annoying for those around me I’m sure, but it helps me work.
Qualities a man needs to seduce you and the flaws that will repel you?
Funny, motivated, creative, goal oriented, animal lover, adventurer, and more than a little bit silly/nerdy, with a great sense of curiosity for the world. Flaws would be; judgmental, hubristic, lazy, hairy back, butt or shoulders are a big no, bad breath is one of my ticks, and anyone who isn’t driven by something, it doesn’t have to be art, I just like to be around people with passion.
Your parents advice you should have followed, but didn’t?
Maybe, “read all the instructions first” that’s definitely one I have trouble with haha.
Your idea of the perfect weekend?
Camping at surprise creek, way up in the hills of northern California, surrounded by ancient trees, warm sun and water a that’s a deep, clear green so that you can see straight down the bottom no matter how deep. Staying up all night telling stories around the bonfire on the river beach with the people I grew up with, sleeping without a tent and waking up throughout the night so that you can see how the stars have rotated through the sky. That’s my perfect weekend, back home in the wilderness.
Who would you chose to rule the world?
I have no idea, off the top of my head I can’t think of anyone who would be able to rule the world alone, I don’t think any one person should have that much power or responsibility.
Favourite ice-cream?
Mint chip. Or black raspberry cheesecake. It’s a hard choice.
Where do you see yourself in…..One month?
Probably hanging out with my cat in my apartment, working on my next large drawing, and trying to get more shows.
One Year?
Starting graduate school to get my MFA, living in New York, LA, or San Francisco, or who knows where, depending on where I get accepted. Drawing and meeting fabulous new people.
One Decade?
I don’t know what coast I’ll be on, but I’ll be doing show’s, teaching, working on an animation, and will have at least one, hopefully more, illustrated books out. By then hopefully I will have seen more of the world, and who knows what turns my art will have taken, I’m curious to know myself. I will be well on my way to being a crazy cat lady.
