WHAT: Natalie Phillips solo show
WHEN: Fri. June 5th, 6-10pm
WHERE: 19th and E Burnside
DJ: Mighty Moves
DRINK: Captured by Porches keg
Our first official show of summer – newly local gal Natalie Phillips from the Bay Area. We love solo shows as they’re strong, focused, and easy to digest. Natalie will put on a great one for us. Come party with us and celebrate the privilege of great art and Portland summers.
ARTIST INTERVIEW:
Q: So you just moved here from the Bay Area…where did you grow up and what brings you to Portland?
A: I grew up in Oakland, close to the Berkeley border. “Formative” high school years were mostly in Alameda. Portland seemed like the city most like the bay area that I could afford to live in…
Q: So were you able to find a job in Portland or are you strictly a starving artist?
A: I was a waitress but I got fired almost immediately (for being a terrible waitress).
Q: What are you impressions of the Portland art scene so far?
A: Cool art is really spread out around here…you can see something tucked away in a little coffee shop that’s just as good as a big show downtown, if not better.
Q: You recently graduated from art school – what was that experience like for you?
How did influence your artwork?
A: Art school was frustrating because so much of my education was conceptual. I didn’t get a lot of the technical skills I wanted originally, so I’ve had to teach myself a lot. You can see this in my complete failure to understand the basic rules of perspective.
Q: If someone gave you a $10,000 grant to work on any crazy creative project you wanted, what would you do with that money?
A: I’d buy out Paxton Gate, the taxidermy store in SF, and do detailed oil paintings of all the animals. Then I’d paint the animals and pose them threateningly in front of the paintings.
Q: If you weren’t an artist, what do you think you might be doing instead?
A: I don’t have many other skills, so I’d probably be an on call daytime stripper…huddled in the back, afraid of the patrons.
Q: What are your career dreams as an artist?
A: I just want to work on a steady stream of interesting projects until I die.
Wonderful, Natalie. I am every so proud of you.