149: Caregiving, Consumerism, and a Love of Materiality with Denise Treizman

Artist/Mother Podcast
Artist/Mother Podcast
149: Caregiving, Consumerism, and a Love of Materiality with Denise Treizman
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My relationship to consumerism and waste is something that really shifted for me when I became a mother. We all feel the pull to consume and to bring objects into our homes, yet the reality is that in creating space for ourselves, we impact our home in a larger-scale way as we damage the planet. I became more aware of this as I realized I had created more consumers and began purchasing things for them. In today’s podcast, I talk to artist Denise Triezman who has been thinking about consumerism, waste, and excess in her work since long before becoming a mother, and now responds to the materials her children use as a continuation of these thoughts.

Denise is a Chilean-Israeli artist, currently based in Miami, who creates colorful installations, sculpture, and work on paper. She earned an MFA from the School of Visual Arts, New York, and is currently a studio resident at Laundromat Art Space in Miami, Florida. She was a fellow at the Bronx’s Museum Artist in the Marketplace program, culminating with “The Bronx Calling”, a biennial exhibition at the museum. That same year, Treizman was awarded a studio residency at the Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts Studio Program in New York City.  In 2016, Treizman created an interactive public artwork at Randall’s Island Park in New York. 

We start our conversation discussing how Denise went to business school in Chile, and much as I did after undergrad, recognized that she didn’t enjoy what she was doing and changed her focus to art. She moved to the US to participate in residencies and pursue an MFA. She describes experiencing a real shift in what type of materials were available in the States compared to Chile, as well as the excess of trash on the streets of New York and how she responded to trash as a material for creating. Having lived in many densely populated cities over the years, her work continues to stem from throwaway culture.

She recalls leaving Chile annually to visit her grandparents as a child, and how she would plan what to purchase during her visit all year long. Then, back in Chile, the materials would seem too precious to use. In her work, she is now using materials with abandon in response to the ubiquitous nature of objects in American culture. More recently, as a mother of two, she uses materials discarded by her children.

We discuss how her practice benefited from the community found in residency programs pre-children, and how now with children, she is seeking community in Miami. I hope you enjoy hearing how Denise has responded to her changing cultural contexts in a way that shines a lens on our behaviors and interaction with material objects.

Final Five: 

Biggest Art Crush: Katerina Gross, Jessica Stockholder, and Judy Phaff

Dream Trip: NY by herself

Film or book: Off the Wall by Robert Rauschenberg

Favorite meal: Sushi

Shoutout: Parents, Husband, Enrico Gomez and Nick Shapiro

To see more of Denize’s work please visit her website and follow her on IG @denisetreizman

The Artist/Mother podcast is created and hosted by Kaylan Buteyn. You can see more of Kaylan’s work on her website or connect with her on Instagram @kaylanbuteyn

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148: Trusting the Rhythms of the Studio and Prioritizing Parenting with Amy Chan

Artist/Mother Podcast
Artist/Mother Podcast
148: Trusting the Rhythms of the Studio and Prioritizing Parenting with Amy Chan
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On the podcast, I frequently discuss balancing seasons of life with the artists I interview. We sometimes explore frustration, evolution, or the benefits of having our work adapt to life circumstances. Today’s episode is no exception as I discuss the rhythms of a year and even a lifetime with abstract painter Amy Chan. Amy is based in Richmond, Virginia, and received her BFA from Rhode Island School of Design and an MFA from Virginia Commonwealth University. Her work is in the collections of the Spencer Museum of Art and Capital One. She has received grants from the Pollock Krasner Foundation and the Virginia Commission for the Arts and teaches at the University of Virginia.

We start our conversation discussing Amy’s childhood in a family of predominantly non-artists, and how because of this she learned to seek out her interests on her own.  As an abstract painter working primarily in gouache with a deep love of paper, Amy leans into working on a smaller scale as a response to the parameters of these materials

Amy’s work is filled with abstract forms. She records shapes through sketches of objects she finds interesting, and then transforms them into something ambiguous that you can’t quite place. The colorful 90s aesthetic that permeates her paintings is filled with slight color dissonance. The almost recognizable forms and her use of color give rise to a body of work that is both playful and provocative.

Amy describes how having young children during the early pandemic lockdown led her to working on a 6 x 6 inch format in whatever time she could find, and how coming out on the other side of stringent Covid restrictions she was encouraged to explore ceramics by a master ceramicist. We discuss how these different modes of making are balanced throughout a typical year filled with the schedules of her young children and the demands of teaching.

We wrap up discussing the evolution of Amy’s practice, and how she had about 15 years working as an artist before becoming a mother. I really appreciated hearing about an experience so different from my own, and how Amy’s perspective has changed, how much she values taking care of herself, and how she defines success as a moving target that evolves throughout a lifetime. This attitude is an inspiration because as we know, more change is always to come. 

Final Five: 
Biggest Art Crush: Kathrine Bernhardt & Jennifer Bartlett
Dream Trip: Japan &  Mountain Lake Biological Station 
Film or book: Trilogy of the Rat /The Rat Series
Favorite meal: Noodles
Shoutout: Parents, Husband

To see more of Amy’s work please visit her website and follow her on IG @amychanartist

The Artist/Mother podcast is created and hosted by Kaylan Buteyn. You can see more of Kaylan’s work on her website or connect with her on Instagram @kaylanbuteyn

Mother Eye 1, gouache and acrylic on panel, 18×24”, 2023
Whammy 4, gouache on paper, 11×15”, 2022
Mother Eye 3, gouache and acrylic on panel, 24×30”, 2023
 Install, Amy Chan with Debbie Quick, Almas, Richmond, VA, 2021
Signal 5, gouache on paper, 11×15”, 2023
Signal 8, gouache on paper, 11×15”, 2023

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147: Mothering and Art Making During Our Climate Crisis with Heather Bird Harris

Artist/Mother Podcast
Artist/Mother Podcast
147: Mothering and Art Making During Our Climate Crisis with Heather Bird Harris
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Can our interconnectedness inspire us towards unity in a time of climate and cultural crisis? Heather Bird Harris is an artist dedicating her life and work towards this effort. Inspired by nature and interested in the human effect on it, Heather has been creating work that responds to and captures the land. From polluted water collected on the banks of the Mississippi River to foraged marigolds, to clay dug up from her own from yard, Heather uses site specific materials to explore behavior, change, reaction and flow.

In this episode we share a powerful and intense conversation about our collective history and how it is connected to our current environmental crisis. From the impact of colonialism on the city of New Orleans and its land to the damage we see in our own backyards, evidence is everywhere of the great things we are losing due to corporate greed and continued climate change. But somehow amidst these heavy topics, I walked away from my conversation with Heather feeling inspired and uplifted. Heather believes that beauty is what will draw us in and invite us towards healing, not fear. Her work is her testament to this belief and it is evident upon first glance.

Heather spent most of her adult life in the great city of New Orleans. It is where she had her babies and started her family, where her career in education and social activism was born. She spent many years as a teacher, principle, and anti-racism educator before her experience of motherhood brought her back to her first love… art.

Listen to this incredibly powerful episode to hear more about Heather’s work and her journey as an educator, artist, and activist. You will be inspired by Heather’s call for intention and care and reminded of your place in this interconnected web of community we are building as you listen.

Final Five:
Biggest Art Crush: Anne Hamilton, Helen Frankelthaler, Georgia O’Keeffe, Rick Lowe, Renee Royale 

Dream Trip: Japan 

Inspiring Film or Book: Braiding Sweetgrass 

Favorite Meal: Sushi

Shoutout: Josh her husband

To see more of Heather’s work please visit her website and follow her on IG @heatherbirdharris

The Artist/Mother podcast is created and hosted by Kaylan Buteyn. You can see more of Kaylan’s work on her website or connect with her on Instagram @kaylanbuteyn

Land Memory Project, Science Gallery Atlanta & Piedmont Park, Atlanta, Georgia | 2023
Water Memory, Clay found in New Orleans and from Bonfouca/St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana, tree bark ink, mushroom ink, synthetic ink and water, 48h x 48w inches

Shoreline II, Clay found from Bonfouca/St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana, synthetic color and water, 60h x 40w inches

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146: Integrating Simplicity and Ease into Your Practice with Leeah Joo

Artist/Mother Podcast
Artist/Mother Podcast
146: Integrating Simplicity and Ease into Your Practice with Leeah Joo
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In today’s episode, I talk with Leeah Joo, a Korean-American oil painter based in Connecticut. Born in Seoul to a sculptor father and an illustrator mother, Leeah moved to Indiana when she was 10. Our discussion ranges from how Leaah navigated the move to the U.S. as a child to how she has told the story of her heritage through her paintings. She studied painting and art history at Indiana University Bloomington and received an MFA in painting from Yale. She currently lives in Connecticut teaching at Southern CT State University and Paier College.

I was fascinated to hear Leeah talk about adjusting to attending elementary school in the U.S. prior to learning English. She describes how her younger self used her drawing skills to bond and communicate with her peers without needing to use words. I can see how her skills with visual communication served her well as a child and as a professional artist!

Leeah also shares that she was encouraged by her instructors in art school to pursue her own identity in her work. She explains that she really embraced this idea when she became a mother and wanted to share Korean folklore with her children. Leeah shares how her mother-in-law’s love of curtains opened her eyes to how fabric can express identity, and she has consistently used realistic renderings of fabric across her various series.Since Leah’s trompe l’oeil paintings consistently include fabric, we spend a moment bonding over the struggle to organize a studio overflowing with textiles. 

Leeah’s work has evolved over time, from more overt storytelling toward more distilled representation of ideas. She tells me how Covid lockdown and the resulting closure of her previous gallery actually freed her to explore new themes in her work. As a grounded and established artist, Leeah is focusing on wellbeing and working towards being the best she can be technically as a painter. We discussed the freedom she has to embrace the ebb and flow of her practice, moving from identity-focused narrative to her more recent more formally focused work with confidence. 

Final Five: 

Biggest Art Crush: Yamoo – shows at gagosian

Dream Trip: Crete and the Hermitage collection in Russia

Film or book: Anne Hollander Fabric of Vision

Favorite meal: Instant Ramen with her own fixings

Shoutout: Roger Shimomora 

To see more of Leeah’s work please visit her website and follow her on IG @leeahjoo

The Artist/Mother podcast is created and hosted by Kaylan Buteyn. You can see more of Kaylan’s work on her website or connect with her on Instagram @kaylanbuteyn

Pojagi Baroque (2017) 48×48” oil on canvas.
 Nine Dragons Asleep (2012) 40×42” oil on panel
Arcadia Contemporary, NYC 2022
Parrhasius No. 34, Helios (2023) 24×18” oil on panel
Everything She Ever Wanted (2007) 40” diameter, oil on canvas
kids/exhibition, Andrew Bae Gallery, Chicago, IL 2014
Me and kids/exhibition, Andrew Bae Gallery, Chicago, IL 2007 (daughter almost 10mos)
Me and kids/exhibition, Andrew Bae Gallery, Chicago, IL 2017
Accidentally on Purpose (2002) 30×30” oil on panel
Installation, Parkland College, Champaign, IL 2019
Parrhasius No. 19, Venetian (2021) 12×16” oil on panel

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145: Chronic Illness, Caregiving and Intentional Leaps Forward with Jean Gray Mohs

Artist/Mother Podcast
Artist/Mother Podcast
145: Chronic Illness, Caregiving and Intentional Leaps Forward with Jean Gray Mohs
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In today’s episode I speak with a friend who has been along the ride with me since the beginning of my artist community building journey. Born and raised in North Carolina, Jean Gray Mohs is an incredible artist and member of her community with an inspiring story. Jean Gray has a BFA in Painting and Masters of Arts in Teaching both from Georgia Southern University. She has exhibited at the Contemporary Art Museum in Raleigh, the North Carolina Museum of Art, Greenhill Gallery, and Meredith College.

We discuss how Jean Gray’s work transformed from traditional painting to wall-mounted wooden forms after facing years of chronic illness and ultimately a double lung transplant. She has always been an artist, from amazing creative output as a young child to boarding school in an arts-focused high school. We talk about how she shifted her work toward watercolor to fit nicely in with early motherhood to twins and how after she received her transplant she felt a tremendous freedom after having faced her own mortality and coming out the other side.

I love Jean Gray’s work and how even though it’s 2D it feels so sculptural! The pieces are collaged wooden shapes forming striking compositions. She shares how much her newfound wellbeing post-transplant led to feeling she could do anything and she was not confined by traditional painting norms, even the traditional rectilinear shape of a canvas. I think operating in this type of freedom is what brings her to her own definition of success: being content.

I really admire Jean Gray’s ongoing commitment to both community building and a serious commitment to the work of building her own practice in a focused and disciplined way. She’s always been there as I’ve built the Artist/Mother Community and more recently the Thrive Together Network. In her own work running collectives and curating shows, I know she really gets the importance of the push and pull between operating in community and then doing the work to build your own practice. I’m excited she will be joining the Thrive Together Network’s upcoming Virtual Art Residency with me this fall, where we do just that! The residency is designed to meet you where you are to help you carve out time to focus on your practice through TTN’s guided structure and weekly check-ins!

Want to join Jean Gray and I on the artist residency this season? We start August 21st!
Learn more here and access our special Artist/Mother discount for a Thrive Together Network Membership!
WATCH THIS for full residency information!

Final Five: 
Biggest Art Crush: Andrea Zittel and CJ Hendry
Dream Trip: New York – finally flying after 6 years for a group show and Japan is the dream
Film or book: No Mud, No Lotus by Thích Nhất Hạnh 
Favorite meal: Any Indian food
Shoutout: Grandmother Blackford, parents, all communities throughout the years

To see more of Jean Gray’s work please visit her website and follow her on IG @jg.fourdots

The Artist/Mother podcast is created and hosted by Kaylan Buteyn. You can see more of Kaylan’s work on her website or connect with her on Instagram @kaylanbuteyn

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144: Getting Back to Your Art After a Break

Artist/Mother Podcast
Artist/Mother Podcast
144: Getting Back to Your Art After a Break
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Transitioning back to the studio after a summer focusing on the family can be a challenge. On this episode I wanted to walk you through 5 steps for getting back to your art after a break! I hope this conversation is a dose of encouragement and affirmation for the season you are in.

Step 1: Set The Date
Step 2: Reflect On The Break
Step 3: Clean Up
Step 4: Make A Mark
Step 5: Plan Small

And my biggest tip is for getting back into the swing of things is to get some accountability and join our Art Residency! We have a 6 week Art Residency program that is launching August 21st… this is your official invitation to join us. 

Join us to learn all about the program!
Thursday August 10th, 2023 at 1:00pm ET
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86109658143?pwd=RVJ0dlNPYWxzdnlRZ1hkUlRXTGVIQT09
Meeting ID: 861 0965 8143
Passcode: artist2023


Here is the zoom link for the Art & Tea mentioned in the episode – please join us for this special session!
Tuesday August 15th, 2023 at 1:00pm ET
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86167273010?pwd=MWIwaWhocG9FZ2lWT3JzYytlUHNtUT09
Meeting ID: 861 6727 3010
Passcode: artist2023


And we mentioned you can join TTN at our discounted rate for Artist Caregivers!! This link gives you $10 off the monthly membership or $35 off the already discounted yearly membership (your best deal)
Artist Caregiver Network Group <— check it out here

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