Pam Douglas – Art and Cake

Pam Douglas
Los Angeles, CA
Age over 60

What keeps you excited in the studio?
Deep immersion in the process of bringing the meaning of a project to life. If I’m making something 3-dimensional I might see if a bit of rusted wire attached right there will have an emotional impact, or is it too much? If it’s a drawing of a figure on raw linen laid flat on my outdoor table, will the charcoal line above the eyelid convey the strength of the figure if it’s darker, or is there a more subtle way? Or did I just get lucky with a color bleeding accidentally and surprising me with its beauty. Those kinds of questions infuse the moments on good days. But on other days I might be sewing on twigs or adding lettering to an almost finished painting, and it takes the slow hours it takes, not because it’s exciting but in service to the work.

Looking back at your trajectory as an artist, how would you say your work has developed?
I recently re-discovered some work from when I was a teenager, and though I’ve explored many phases over the decades I was surprised how seamlessly the best of my early work connects to what I’m doing now. Of course, I developed skills. Through the years, though, my most valuable lessons did not come from expertise at life drawing or composition or any technique, but permission to experiment. Some series went in the wrong direction for me. I’m really not into plastics. I’m not primarily an abstract painter. Landscapes aren’t my thing unless they’re part of some greater understanding. But I’m happy I ventured into all those and more, though I’ve come back to a figurative expressionism using natural materials, where I began. All the byways have deepened my understanding of ways art can communicate, and that is at the core of my mission.

What role do you think the artist has in today’s society?
I believe the artist’s calling is to shake people awake and open their eyes. For the past 8 years, I’ve used my voice as an artist to honor refugees all over the world, recognizing the power of mothers, especially. My guiding light is the work of Kathe Kollwitz from 100 years ago whose images of women prevailing over grief and poverty inspire me to more impactful visual expression. I’m also impressed by the evocative black and white portraits by Charles White in the Harlem Renaissance era. But… I do recognize alternate ideas that art offers beauty as an antidote to ugliness, and that the artist owes nothing to anyone besides themselves, except perhaps to provide joy. I read that Henri Matisse, the famous French painter, responded to the Nazi subjugation of France in 1941 by painting only pretty flowers, nude young women and mild domestic scenes, while refusing to acknowledge his country had fallen. I understand that choice by other artists, but it is not my way.

What’s the most important advice you could give to an aspiring artist?
Life is longer than you may think in your twenties and has surprises and shocks you can’t anticipate. The value of art as you journey is like a beacon through tunnels, a light that moves ahead of you, making it possible to press forward. Don’t let that light go out, no matter what discouragement or setbacks or distractions appear – and they will. Your styles and materials and forms of art will change, but the core is your own spirit that lasts your whole life.

Does age matter in art? Why or why not?
This is not usually seen as a gendered question, but I think for many of us, it is. Many women “emerge” four times in their art careers. The first time, shared by men, is when they hatch from MFA programs in their 20s. While it’s tough for anyone to “break into” the art world, young women may have an advantage of a supportive social structure and a willingness in the business to entertain the next new thing. After that the male/female disparity may begin. Many women in their 30s and 40s have two full-time jobs. The first is whatever they do to pay the bills. (Of course, men have those jobs too.) For women, though, an unseen second full-time job takes up the rest of their potential time: raising children. This happens even when partners “help.” Those women “emerge” a second time at around 50 when the children are grown. Now, here are women with half their lifetimes ahead, who have benefited from experience and sharpened their perceptions. All this time the men have continued showing art, but many women face starting over exactly when gallerists may close their doors to “older” artists who don’t have established clientele or recent credits. The third “emergence” is when the women retire and devote full time to their art at around 70. Here is a cohort of experienced artists with much to say who may be at the peak of their skills. And if doors were softly shut to them at 50, they are slammed now by young men gallerists who are uncomfortable working with what they call “old ladies” (but not established men) and by granting entities that are tasked with investing in developing future careers. The fourth emergence is when the women artists are dead. While I appreciate the efforts by museums to correct the historical omission of women by belatedly holding retrospectives, emerging after you’re dead doesn’t help your career a whole lot. For every Betye Saar, whose great work continues to be revered and exhibited in her 90s, how many other women of age go overlooked, depriving the world of their brilliance?

What can we look forward to from you next?
Right now, I have two major projects that will each take at least a year to complete. That’s frustrating because I’d like to stay on the artworld radar, but I also respect the fullness of the installations I’m planning, and hesitate to exhibit fragments, though I might start doing that, maybe this fall. One project is a sculptural installation titled “Welcome” that continues my commitment to refugee issues. It’s a single free-standing “altar” and is awaiting a grant. The work that now occupies me every day came as a surprise. My daughter, Raya Yarbrough, who is an accomplished musician and poet, invited me to collaborate with her on visual expressions of some of her poems, together with musical performance. I’ve never collaborated with anyone, so this is a fresh adventure. Most of our mutual creations deal with issues I’ve cared about all along and add a spiritual outlook. The one I’m painting today has six panels, one for each stanza of a poem that are each 6 ft high and 3 ft wide. They will be displayed in a semi-circle on free-standing room dividers, so visitors walk within the poem. Other multi-panel pieces will be displayed other ways to maximize “inhabiting” the poem’s space. This one is kind of a love poem, a subject I’ve never done. So, at this stage of life, I’m growing into work that’s new to me.

Is there anything else you would like to share about being an artist later in life?
I don’t believe in being later in life. I’m in the midst of life!

https://pamdouglasart.com
@pamdouglasart