Artist of The Week: Katy Keefe & Scott Cowan

I suppose it depends on the type of art you are interested but typically when you hear the phrase art exhibit you think a serious affair. However, Katy Keefe and Scott Cowan have taken a different approach in their new exhibit, Breaded Bread. This is not to say that these two do not take their work seriously, but they have been able to incorporate elements of humor into their custom built show. This is a humorous exhibition that was made with an active balance between frustration and friendly relaxation (featuring: secondary objects, eye movement, paintings of paintings of paintings, patience, stability, the formation of doing things together, and 125 lbs. of wax). As you can see below, this duo had fun installing the show as well.

The Hills Esthetic Center">The Hills Esthetic Center hosts an opening reception for Breaded Bread on Friday, April 16th, 2010 from 8-11 PM at 128 N. Campbell Street, Unit G, Chicago, IL. This exhibition will close Saturday, May 1st, 2010.

Recently, Katy and Scott were kind enough to answer a few of my questions.

Orange Alert (OA): You two are sharing an exhibit this month at The Hills Esthetic Center. What can you tell us about the exhibit?
Katy Keefe (KK) & Scott Cowan (SJC): The show Braided Bread is a site-specific installation we are creating at THE HILLS ESTHETIC CENTER. .We found ourselves planning and trying to make a somewhat serious and almost solemn show. It turns out it is quite colorful and humorous. We sort of question the importance of objects when compared to something like friendship or working together. What sort of end is reached when the means of achieving it are the focus?

For this show we focus our energy towards the formation, reproduction, and experimentation with what we like to call "secondary objects" - this will hopefully be translatable to people viewing the show. We use stuff like wax, wet paper, painting with our butts, and trying to reproduce paintings. The show was all created as a team and the importance of this work ethic beholds the conclusion that because of our closeness, we were able to create the work in a collaborative fashion that taught and guided our artistic process.

OA: You both have very different approaches to art. How might these two style come together?
KK: It is true that Scott and I choose different mediums to work with and have different outcomes with our personal work, but I believe alot of our ideas towards art, process of artmaking, and ending goals are similar. We both question, in our different ways, the purpose/purposelessness of art, experimentation within the mediums we choose, and ideas we want to get across; one being the individual and how he/she chooses to live their life. Given our differences, this is the most exciting part of how we work. We teach each other, learn from each other and grow with each other. I never thought I would be making full-on gallery installations until I met Scott, and as a result my paintings, and how I chose to show my paintings, has completely changed. He has made me a better artist and been a huge inspiration.

SJC: I hope what brings our work together is that we make an almost entirely new and separate body of work when we work together. The things in this show are not things I would make on my own at all. An if they were to be made by only myself they would turn out much different.

OA: The Hills is a fairly new gallery. Describe the space and you set up this show?
KK: Well I'm a little biased because I am one of the organizers of THE HILLS ESTHETIC CENTER, but it really is a fantastic, unique space within the Chicago artist-run gallery scene. Ron Ewert, Michael Kloss, and Dustin Ruegger have been running with this space for 5 years (?) now, and have successfully built up a rapport with musicians and artists. It is unique as a space because in comparison to alot of artist-run spaces, the gallery is very clean and professional. This allows us to choose from a talented pool of artists, welcome them into a comfortable environment, and give them a professional gallery to show in. The reason Scott and I chose to do a show with this particular space was for several reasons; the loft, the 2 foot break from the top of the ceiling to the top of the wall, and the narrowness of the gallery. This will all make sense if you come see it. Each show we have had, the last one in Chicago being at Caro d'Offay Gallery, are really particular to the space.
SJC: The hills is a place where 3 dudes live and they lost one of their studio mates so they turn his place into the gallery.

OA: Katy, you were recently involved in an interesting show called 50 Alderman/50 Artists. How did you get involved with that and how did you piece turn out?
KK: I got involved with the 50 Alderman/50 Artists show because my friend Caitlin Arnold, who runs Johalla, sent me an email about it. I have been trying portraits lately (and have a portrait series in mind) and I thought this would be a good opportunity to portray a stranger, where I normally only paint those close to me. I was really happy with the piece; it ended up being this sort of psychadelic frenzy of Toni Foulkes (the alderman) and magnolia flowers, a big ring of marble rye braided bread, copper fencing, chicago flag colored frosting, all surrounded by a 3-D frame of drywall mud painted frosting. I think ever one thought it was really weird, but I was really happy with it.

OA: Do you feel it is a good time to be an artist in Chicago?
KK & SJC: Yes we do, but then again, we haven't been artists anywhere else. There is a huge community of approachable artists who enjoy networking, sharing, collaborating and growing. There are new residencies popping up, grants to be had, galleries always forming, and a group of people who take the time to discover these new opportunities.

OA: What's next for Katy Keefe and Scott Cowan?
KK: Lots of stuff. I will be organizing THE HILLS ESTHETIC CENTER with my friends, which takes up alot of time. Summer is coming so Scott and I may go work at this new ACRE Residency Program in Wisconsin, or down at Harold Arts in Ohio. Scott and I are both in a group show in London right now at THE AGENCY gallery; part of a residency that we did last summer in London. We also won an upcoming window display down at Co-Prosperity Sphere auction so that should be interesting. I personally don't have any shows coming up because I am really really trying to focus on my paintings, but that may change very soon.

SJC: I am going to be graduation college this semester - that is exciting. As katy said - we are a part of a show in london right now. I also have a show coming up in Oakland this May and a show at Roots and Culture (in chicago) in September.

I am mainly focused on photography as of late (it is what i am graduation school for) so I will probably try to take as many rolls of film of as many things as I can. Plus my friend is getting married in a couple of weeks so I will go home for that and maybe just enjoy the year 2010.

Bonus Questions:
OA: If you could sit down to coffee with anyone (alive or dead) who would it be?
KK: Every single friend I have every had at once.
SJC: probably Thomas Merton or Peter from the New Testament

OA: What type of music do you enjoy and who are a few of your favorites?
KK: Right now I've been really into late 70's harmony: I mean Crosby, Stills and Nash, Van Morrison, Jefferson Airplane, and always always Neil Young.
SJC: I like six organs of admittance and new orleans jazz

(The last three images are courtesy David Robert Elliott)

For more information on Katy Keefe please visit her website and for more information on Scott Cowan please visit his website.

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