Artist of the Week: Max Bare

There are two key factors to art in Chicago, collaboration and fluidity. The scene is constantly changing as galleries open and close. The artist has to have the ability to connect, communicate, and relate on a variety of different levels. A good way to make these connections is to provide a stage for others, curator shows, learn how to stage and present a show, and build a reputation. Max Bare is an artist, illustrator, but above all else is a quality curator and person. He has worked with several galleries and is currently working with OhNo!Doom Gallery. I met Max at OhNo!Doom and could instantly tell that I needed to find out more about his projects.

Orange Alert (OA): You are involved in the current Torn Pages at OhNo!Doom here in Chicago. What are your thoughts on the show as a whole?
Max Bare (MB): I have been anticipating the culmination of Josh Lucas’s project since I first learned about it last fall. It’s a fascinating thing to see portions of the Chicago writers world converge with that of Chicago artists. The show resulted in compelling and fun pieces. At the opening we had this great mix of artists, writers and their friends, new exposure for everyone. In our gallery experience, artist/artist collaborations are common but this show addressed an exercise that we don’t see enough of, I think. I am honored to exhibit/participate with artists like Dominique Holmes, not to mention fellow Doomers, Andrew Thompson and Joe Call who brought Josh’s show to the gallery.

OA: How did you come to work with Alex Willan and what was the process like?
MB: Alex and I met in Savannah. We both graduated from the illustration department at SCAD. He spent some time in Chicago afterwards and now resides in L.A. exhibiting in galleries and whatnot. It may seem funny that we decided to team up for “Torn Pages” with Alex as the writer. His painting portfolio features whimsical characters and situations, so in his spare time he dreams up stories of similar whimsy. He’s toyed with the idea of penning a collection of children’s poems illustrated by our artist friends. Josh’s show therefore seemed like a perfect opportunity to try this out. Following the approach of the other pairings, Alex wrote his poem “The World’s Hungriest Monster” first, then I tried to add to his humor in my illustration.

OA: What is your role at OhNo!Doom and how do you feel the gallery fits into the art scene in Chicago?
MB: I along with Lana Crooks, joined the other 4 Doomers during their move from the old location in Logan’s Square to the new digs. I used to curate and run Get Knifed gallery in Pilsen with Nate Bettinger. Afterwards Lana and I were curators for A.Okay Official’s gallery. We basically joined up with ON!D to contribute our experience as curators.

In the 5 plus years I’ve lived in Chicago, I watched as a lot of galleries I would frequent or work with, sadly close their doors. OhNo!Doom reopening in Wicker Park, has been received with a surprising amount of excitement from a community that already embraces this kind of underground or commercial transition to fine art sort of scene. I think people find it refreshing to see a new business look this economy in the face and sell it artwork.

OA: You have been working on Mystery Afoot with LowCarbComedy for a while. Tell us a little about the comic.
MB: Mystery Afoot is the brainchild of Zoran Gvojic and Dave Schneider who also make up LowCarbComedy, a video website that has received a large youtube audience along with attention from college-humor type sites and MTV. The basic gist behind Mystery Afoot is this: Bigfoot and Nessie open a detective agency and hi-jinks ensue. There are some special details that separate us from all those other Bigfoot comics out there, such as Nessie’s drinking habits and Bigfoot’s upbringing as an orphan raised by blind alligator farmers.

OA: How excited are you to finally see it published and what was the process like with Low Carb?
MB: Very excited! Dave and Zoran are hilarious and talented writers especially in this medium, we share a similar taste for zaniness, so illustrating this series has been a blast. We’ll be printing this ourselves in limited runs for the time being. The first issue premieres at C2E2 this April at Comic Vault’s booth. C2E2 promises to be a must-attend event for nerds and non-nerds alike. As a nerd, I am very excited about that as well.

OA: Do you feel it is a good time to be an artist in Chicago?
MB: I do! Chicago is very nurturing to the artist community. We have at least 6 defined artist districts. Living in East Pilsen for 3 years, I felt very much that I was part of a community, I am proud to be creating in Wicker Park for the same reasons. Granted, venues open and close their doors, as is the nature of things. But each door is more like the ending of a chapter than a book. Everyone is in flux, moving on to the next project. It’s exciting to visit that new gallery or to attend that next opening if not only just to see who is working with whom. I won’t be the first to say that there is a ton of talent in Chicago, let alone the entire Midwest, enough to put the coasts in their place. In turn I feel Chicago recognizes and welcomes its natives without overshadowing them with the artists we bring into our city as well.

OA: What's next for Max Bare?
MB: Immediately after finishing this comic book, I begin cranking out work for an exhibition with my sister, Zoë. We’re creating a sibling collaborative project that opens at OhNo!Doom September 4. Zoë is an accomplished photographer who also exhibits in Chicago, lends her skills in the couture department for LH auction house catalogues, and frequently travels Europe with her cameras. We’re combining painting, photography and printmaking and applying these mediums to 3 dimensional wooden constructions that will narrate a variety of relationship themes in a sequential manner. It should be an exciting process for the two of us and I expect what we learn on a personal level to shine through in the artwork. The exhibition opens along with the work of Amanda Spayd, who like my sister and I, is an Ohio native.

Bonus Questions:
OA: If you could sit down to coffee with anyone (alive or dead) who would it be?
MB: Jim Henson. He proves to have a tremendous impact on my upbringing and who I am now. That humor, intuition and dedication, he was a truly inspired creator. It would be worth it just to catch a glimpse of what went on in his head.

OA: What type of music do you enjoy and who are a few of your favorites?
MB: Right now I’ve been listening obsessively to the new Visqueen I’ve acquired. I admit with all of the music I have available to me, I am a sucker for some catchy pop music hence why I bought the new “Fun.” cd. Plus Rachel from Visqueen has an insane voice and rips up some mean guitar too, and her touring with Neko Case has really rubbed off in a good way. I also have been enjoying a Max Tundra album I bought a while ago. It’s so manic and mathematically orchestrated to electronic bliss I love it, not to mention a fantastic first name.

For more information on Max Bare please visit his website.

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