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An Interview with Artist Justin Vining

Back in September, I posted a huge list of contemporary artists.  One of the artists, Justin Vining, saw that I included his artwork in my post and left a comment on my blog.  We exchanged a few emails and I decided to use him as a resource in my classroom.  I was excited that one of the artists reached out to me through my blog and I thought it was especially cool that Justin used to be an elementary art teacher!

First of all, I love his artwork.  My favorites are his whimsical landscapes.  I think this kind of imaginative style resonates with elementary school children.  Living in Wisconsin, we are surrounded by rural areas, farms, cows and barns.  Justin lives in Indianapolis and is influenced by his surroundings.  He is also influenced by Vincent Van Gogh, Thomas Hart Benton, Andrew Wyeth and other rural landscape artists that came before him.   I showed the students some of his videos on his website, which are high quality, informative and have good music.  He explains the inspirations for his artwork and influences from art history, which are clearly shown in the videos.  Can you see the influence from Van Gogh on this artwork?

On his website, he also includes time lapse videos of some of his paintings.  The kids loved these videos.   After showing the videos and some artwork from his online gallery, the students came up with some questions to ask him about his art.  His answers are given below.  The students are now working on their own imaginative landscapes using a variety of water soluble media (watercolor paints, washable markers blended with water, watercolor crayons and pencils.)  Thanks Justin!

1.  How long does it typically take you to make a painting?

  • Most of my paintings take between 6-12 hours to complete.

 

2.  How did you decide to become an artist?

  • I always had a passion for art but never thought of myself as good enough to make a full-time living painting so I decided to be an art teacher. I was an art teacher for 3 years and left that to go to law school with my little brother. In law school I found my artistic voice and started selling paintings on the side to make additional income. Through my years in school I kept painting and came out of law school as a painter.

3.  Why do you make the landscapes abstract?

  • I like the idea of taking a familiar place and making it unfamiliar. Also, it is more fun “making things up”. Because I paint in a more abstract manner each painting can become its own adventure and I don’t always know where that adventure will take me. I enjoy that journey

4.  What is your favorite painting that you painted?

  • My favorite painting of mine “The Wreck of 09” which is inspired by the American Artist Thomas Hart Benton. I painted that piece in the spring of 2009 and today it is still one of the best pieces I have ever painted.

5.  What is your favorite painting by someone other than Van Gogh?

  • Favorite painting by someone other than Van Gogh.. lots by Thomas Hart Benton, Grant Wood, Edward Hopper, Andrew Wyeth, but I am going to go a bit more obscure — “Red Roofs” by living artist Wade Zahares has to be one of my favorites ever.

 

6.  Tell us about your life. Do you have kids? What do you like to do in your free time?

  • I have a wife, no kids but 2 dogs, a chocolate lab named Watson and a black lab named “Wyeth”.  In my free time I love to take photographs, explore the countryside both in the car and on my bike.  I play way too much chess and enjoy rock climbing.

So what do you think of his artwork?  Wouldn’t this be a great connection to how artists are influenced by art history and their surroundings?  Have you seen Justin’s artwork before?

 

Soon I will show you the artworks my students made in response to learning about Justin’s art.

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About Marcia Beckett

Marcia is an elementary art teacher and loves painting, drawing, sculpture, art journaling and clay. Her blog, Art is Basic, features many exciting art projects for kids.

6 Responses to An Interview with Artist Justin Vining

  1. Kathy says:

    That is so-o-o cool he reached out to you. I love the questions and answers in the interview. They are things I think the kids liked to know too. Now I want to see your projects and do my own!
    Thanks for a great post!

  2. kwsacher says:

    Very cool! Thanks for the great post!

  3. onlovinglucy says:

    This was great! Thanks for sharing.

  4. I wanted to thank you for writing and sharing this interview with Artist Justin Vining. I have learned a lot from it. Great artist guide line for every creative persons.

  5. Pingback: Inspired by Artist Justin Vining: Abstract Whimsical Landscapes -

  6. Pingback: Blogging Basics: Part Two – Art is Basic | An Elementary Art Blog

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