People often ask how long it takes to create a work of art. Usually it is an innocent question from someone who does not create, sometimes it is a criticism implying that the work is so simple that anyone could have painted it. The truth is that it is almost impossible for me to calculate how much time I spend working on a painting. The physical act of painting is a lot less than the amount of time I spend thinking about my painting, dreaming about my painting, and looking at my painting in progress. The honest answer to the question is that it has taken me my whole life to create this painting - it is the sum of everything I know, have learned, and have experienced.
I am also happy to let you know that
Seeker has been selected to show at the 2015 Biennial Exhibition at Olin Hall Galleries. The show opens on March 13 at 6:00 pm with the Juror Lecture and Awards Announcements by Doug McClemont. Reception at 6:30pm. The show closes on April 5th. For directions see
www.roanoke.edu/olingallery. I look forward to seeing you. suzun
If you would like to see some of our recent completed work that is for sale go to
www.wilsonhughesgallery.com or visit us at the gallery.
John Wilson & Suzun Hughes
Wilson Hughes gallery - contemporary fine art & craft
How does one become a creator again after a period of inactivity? The answer is far from simple, and for me it meant going back to my artistic beginnings by exploring shape, structure, and statement, and thinking about creating and not copying. Going back to your base and working on perfecting your skill is the best method of being creative, and the way to turn the switch back on. Mastering technique allows you to explore without thinking about how to accomplish that thing. JW
What do artists think about making art?
My creative process revolves around three things: the material;
what it wants to reveal of its self; and how I can transform it into the
thing that it wants to be. When I was younger and heard statements by
sculptors that all they do is discover what is inside the material they
have at hand I would think WTF are they talking about. I mean a block of
stone is just that; a block of stone and a lump of clay is just a lump
of clay. Then I started sculpting and discovered what they meant. I use
structural steel for my most challenging, and to me most interesting,
pieces. Now how much soul can a W12X50 I-beam have after all? A lot! For
example there is my sculpture on the Roanoke River Greenway called The Mutated Snail.
After I found the I-beam, it sat around my studio for several months.
Finally, one day I said, "well let's see about doing something with this
beam". 
People often ask how long it takes to create a work of art. Usually it is an innocent question from someone who does not create, sometimes it is a criticism implying that the work is so simple that anyone could have painted it. The truth is that it is almost impossible for me to calculate how much time I spend working on a painting. The physical act of painting is a lot less than the amount of time I spend thinking about my painting, dreaming about my painting, and looking at my painting in progress. The honest answer to the question is that it has taken me my whole life to create this painting - it is the sum of everything I know, have learned, and have experienced.
