Gallery Direct Interview with Terri Lloyd
http://www.hairycarrionarts.blogspot.com
http://www.terrilloydcompany.com
http://www.cafepress.com/hairycarrion
Terri’s quick wit and zest for humor is ever present in her work. She believes that even in the darkest of themes there is light and by using humor, vibrant color, cartoonish iconography, and the ever-wonderful pun, she shares the irony and the joy that human conditions bring.
Bee Awake: J5MEO
Q
You stated in your Bio that you didn’t go to art school. Could you tell us how you developed your art skills and what formal or informal education you have found most useful?
From the time I could hold any thing in my hands, I was drawing, painting, building, creating. There are some pretty embarrassing diaper painting stories my family is all too happy to share.
The truth is, I wasn’t allowed to go to art school. My mother wanted me to have a solid and safe job. That’s what the perception was back then. It was accepted that a man could have an art career, but not me. “We” decided that I would go to nursing school.
Ironically, two years after graduating, I nursed my mother through a terminal cancer diagnosis. During which time she divulged that I had my first art exhibition at the DeYoung Museum in San Francisco, when I was 6. Apparently it was part of a children’s art project. I don’t have the painting but I do remember it’s name, “My friend Lisa.” I can only suppose this was her way of finally giving me the blessing to pursue what I love.
As far as education, formal or otherwise, I’ve dipped into a class here or there along the way. But it’s my computer and insatiable curiosity that keeps me developing skills; asking questions. The latest of which, “Is there a 12-step program for Google addicts?”
It seems I may have a problem.
The Great Vocho
Q
You have said that you come from the school of hard knocks, could you tell us a little about this and how it has influenced your work?
Well, let’s see... The Reader’s Digest version of my first 25 years can be viewed in my latest work, “The Mommy’s Curse.” I grew up with what would now be diagnosed as a bi-polar mother. My childhood reads like a Stephen King or Clive Barker story. Just when I thought the worst was over, I married a very silly and great cartoonist. He passed away a year after we married. (Cardiac arrest, caught us all by surprise.)
The first 32 years of being me were pretty tough. I’ve had to rise up from the ashes a few times. What always remained was my core, my essence. That essence being an ability to create, and my warped sense of humor.
There was a choice, to be a victim of circumstance or to use this stuff. I chose to see life as material for the next art project. Humor is something that works for me. I find the humor or irony in everything. Even my first husband’s death. He was a cartoonist that died at Disneyland. Can you imagine? Ironic, and how the hell can I ever top THAT? He got the last laugh.
There’s pain. But pain is everywhere. It builds character, and that’s part of the curriculum from School of Hard Knocks. When you can put a spin on pain, your spin on it, you can take your power back. You can own it. Besides, when you lose your sense of humor, I think you’ve lost yourself. What’s that old adage? What doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger. Or better.
Q
What kinds of images did you first start out with and what medium did you use?
In the beginning there was... What? Did you really expect me to say poo?
Okay, I’ll get serious. I painted and drew. I was a fantastic portrait artist as a teenager and developed a love for watercolor too. At that time I was painting landscapes, fantasy stuff (I was a huge fan of Tolkien) and images of whimsy, some psychedelic stuff -it was the 70s.
One could always expect a handcrafted card at holiday time or birthday time. Or a comic book with the year in review, as I saw it, recounting all the high points of family shenanigans. Some years were funnier than others.
Pook
Q
What made you decide to pursue a career in commercial and graphic arts?
I’ve always been fascinated by advertising and it’s influence over culture. Even as a kid advertising sucked me in. I read Mad Magazine regularly, instead of doing my homework. That explains a lot, doesn’t it? I’m amazed at how we are shaped by it. Advertising, that is. Especially today in our political climate. Just look at the latest set of elections in California and you can see how advertising, not information, shapes our choices. It’s an amazing study.
I have to give credit, though, to my step-dad. At the time when mom was pressuring me to be a nurse, my step-dad --a very successful art director-- told me I was missing my calling. It was his support after my mom’s passing that gave me the confidence to move into commercial art.
This was in the mid-1980s, the computer was just starting to change the way we publish media, create art and communicate. My dad had the wisdom to tell me not to go to art school, but to learn the new computer media instead. He felt it would be quite a while before the schools caught up with what was going on in digital media. He was right.
I talked myself into a job at a newspaper with the largest in-house Macintosh publishing unit in the country. And my love affair with all things digital began.
Q
During your career, who or what has given you the most inspiration?
Wow. Much has given me inspiration. My philosophical explorations inspire. The insanity of current events is inspiring. There’s so much material being made by these crazy people in high places. It’s important to say that inspiration isn’t always pretty.
But in the end it’s real people that inspire me more than anything. By real people I mean everyday people. I was watching a local PBS show a couple of weeks ago about a fellow who, in his late 40s enrolled, then graduated from art school and is now highly successful. I found THAT inspiring.
Jerry Xmas*
Q
Your wit and humor definitely shows in your work, but tell us where you get your ideas and what influences these visual statements.
Oh this is where I’d love to give some obtuse art-speak answer, but I don’t know how.
If you look at the art alone, you can see that I’m influenced by many pop culture factors; Manga, Warhol, Lichtenstein, Mad Magazine, consumer product packaging, television commercials, the Sixties. Things like this.
I also spend a great deal of time listening. My husband would tell you that, right now, I’m lying. But I do spend a lot of my time listening for those little gems that I can translate into a visual. There’s a lot of material out there if you just take the time to simply listen.
The news is a great place for some of these gems. Remember when Rumsfeld said that he sometimes spends all day on his feet? This after we were informed of prisoners of war being forced to stand on a small wooden box for up to 48 hours at a stretch? This is crazy, insane stuff. “Hey get those guys at Abu Graib some Dr. Scholls!” Yeah, that must be Rummy’s secret. And yes, there’s a piece in the works.
Just listen and sooner or later, there it is, the next little gem.
Eddie's Fodder*
Q
What was your greatest success and biggest setback in your career as an artist?
There’s always something that distracts or looks like a set back. I don’t mind distractions, in life stuff happens. But I would say having to return to work a regular McJob to pay my mortgage is a set back. Straight gigs suck the life out of me. It’s like having a big fat mung monster perched on your head feeding on all your creative energy. It’s bad. Very bad. (Shudder!)
On the flip side, I haven’t yet had my greatest success. I did win an award recently for my Condi Rice piece. That was a very pleasant surprise. I’ve had many little wins. I know there’s much more to come and I’m looking forward to each and every one.
Q
What do you enjoy most about being an artist?
The free wine at art openings. I’m joking. Well... Okay, I’m joking. I like two things. I like the fact that I can be the iconoclast that I am, without having to explain or apologize for being the me that I am. And I like it when I finish a piece. When it’s framed and on the wall. That’s what I like.
Q
What is your ideal working atmosphere?
I dream of having a studio of my own with a lot of space to make a big mess. But actually, I’m pretty darn happy sitting in my little home office with my laptop and Wacom tablet, my macaw on a chair next to me, cat at my feet. All of us singing along to some old punk or reggae tunes. As long as no people interrupt, I’m happy.
Q
Do you believe that creativity and genius go hand in hand?
Yes. I also believe that we are all born creative and genius. Unfortunately, we get dumbed down to fit into a societal “norm.” Only to spend a great portion of our adult lives unravelling the crap we are force fed in the institutions (schools) and finding ourselves all over again. And they call me crazy.
Oxy-Moron*
Q
What do you think about the commonly-held notion that creativity is linked to madness?
As much as I’d like everything to be fluffy bunnies, butterflies and rainbows, the truth is we live in a realm of paradox and duality. That alone is enough to drive a person mad. We all have some form of craziness or madness. Some obsession or control issue. It’s what allowed us to survive childhood. Some of us are just a little more mad than others. It’s a matter of degree.
Madness is what makes Van Gogh’s work so poignant. His palette is beautiful and haunting at the same time. Those strokes and colors are filled with obsession, pain, love, passion, self loathing. When I saw the Amsterdam exhibit here in Los Angeles, I cried and cried, knowing that if he weren’t so ill, we’d never see such wonderful work.
For me, the madness keeps me honest with my work. I suppose it is a Mad, Mad, Mad world. But I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Q
How do you think or want other people to respond to your work?
Over all, I get a positive response to the work. Most folks get it and seem to like it. At least that’s what they are telling me. As long as they respond honestly, I’m happy. As long as they respond, I’m happy.
