Hap Phillips and Nita Turnage. Photograph by Thomas Crone
This weekend, the annual Artica festival takes place just north of Downtown, on the grounds of the old Cotton Belt building. While Artica’s been taking place there for years, the vast Cotton Belt’s got a new look ’n’ feel this year, with a huge mural of birds, “Migrate,” now taking up about a third of the building’s expansive east-facing walls.
Starting on both ends and working towards the middle, the huge “Migrate” piece is the work of St. Louis artists Hap Phillips and Nita Turnage, who have begun tackling the project in advance of this weekend’s Artica which, they both say, has less of their stamp this year. That’s because they’ve allowed Artica board member D. Lohr Barkley to run with much of the programming work, allowing them extra time to focus on “Migrate.” This year will be unique for them, as many of the artists coming down to work with the rough spaces of the Cotton Belt haven’t conveyed their plans to Turnage and Phillips.
On Friday, many artists come down to set up and get their projects established. On Saturday, the event takes place in earnest, with a 1 p.m. parade to the Mississippi River an early highlight; post-dusk, a large, wooden, human-shaped structure is burned to dramatic effect. On Sunday, artists disassemble their work and organizers drink beer. It’s a pretty great weekend.
We caught up with Turnage and Phillips yesterday, as they were attacking the wall with another 60 gallons of paint, having already committed 100 gallons. The sun was shining, but the ground was muddy, prompting this bon mot from Phillips: “Always wear boots to Artica.”
The duo took part in our series of conversations with local visual artists.
Art school? Self-taught? Some variety of both? Or none of the above?
Turnage: I have a BFA from Webster University and MFA from Tyler School of Art-Temple University, both with an emphasis in ceramics. I'm mostly a self-taught painter, and continue to delve into new media on my own.
Phillips: I went to college for art, but I am also very much self-taught. The school I went to was a very small art institute in Mexico (very small meaning I and a man from Trinidad were the only people to graduate that year). Also very small in the sense you could do what ever you want, but you might have to first learn to make the tools before you could make what you wanted to make. What they lacked in resources they made up for in encouragement.
Regarding your creative habits, are you a night owl or an early bird?
Turnage: I'm an early bird. I like to be in the studio at 3 a.m., because I feel my mind is fresh in the morning. But if I'm having a good day I'll keep working until around 5 p.m.
Phillips: I am a total night owl. I believe I have a genetic aversion to getting up in the morning.
In basic terms, can you describe the set up and vibe of your studio?
Turnage: Hap and I have our studio in a former bar and grill. Hap has the bar side. I have the restaurant side. The commercial kitchen is great for wet ceramics work and the kiln. That area can get messy with easy clean-up. The restaurant area is where I work on large pieces, paintings, and installations. The space is warm, sunny, and really comfortable. While I like to collect a lot of bones and other strange found objects, I also don't like clutter, so I tend to purge on a regular basis.
Phillips: My wife, Nita Turnage, and I share building in South St. Louis. It's an old bar and restaurant. She has the restaurant and commercial kitchen side, ideal for her ceramics and painting. My side is the bar. I have a great 25'-long mahogany work table, and keep most of my tools in refrigerated cases. Art work in various stages of completion is displayed on the walls, piled on cocktail tables, hung from the ceiling and stashed on our patio. My side is messier than Nita's. I do shove everything in the corner periodically, clean off the bar and floor for special events. My friends know that the bar is always a welcoming place, no matter the state of affairs. You can always shove something aside to make a little room there.
What are your thoughts on crowdfunding for the arts? And is that option any part of your own approach to creating and selling work?
Turnage: I'm new to the crowdfunding phenomenon. Tommy Nagel first pitched the idea of the Cotton Belt Mural to Rally St. Louis, and that's how the project received its initial funding. So I'd have to say that was a plus for us! We're now gearing up to start a crowdfunding campaign with another site, and don't know yet what to expect from the process. I do feel it's a wonderful way to get your idea out to the larger public.
Phillips: We have just begun to discover crowdfunding for the arts with the "Migrate" mural project for the Cotton Belt Building. Tommy Nagel used it to raise money through Rally St. Louis for this project, and was very effective with it. We are going to use crowdfunding to try and raise enough money for the second phase of this project. Wish us luck!
Do you have a dream project that lacks only funding (or time)?
Turnage: The project we're working on right now, "Migrate: The Cotton Belt Mural Project," is a pretty dreamy gig. It's massive in scale, and bigger than anything I've ever done before. The funding we received from Rally St. Louis was only enough to cover Phase 1 of the project, which means that the mural will only cover about a third of the building facade. More funding will buy us more time on the boom rental, more insurance, more paint, and salaries for the artists so that we can fully cover the wall. We'd really like to see the entire mural completed by mid-November at the latest.
Phillips: Finishing "Migrate," the mural project, is one of the dream projects. We think it's really going to change the face of St. Louis. It's longer than the Arch and visible from Illinois. After you drive by the Arch what will you do? Drive on up and see the mural! I do have a couple of other dream projects. One is called "Heaven." It's a very emotional multimedia, interactive theatrical audience participation event that will challenge and change people's perceptions of themselves and art. The other dream project I can't talk about at this time, it's a secret.
To what degree do you enjoy having public contact, whether that means selling your work at a fair, a gallery opening, etc.?
Turnage: I have periods where all I want to do is work in the studio and not go out in public except to buy groceries. But really, I'm a social person. I've done art fairs and I love to interact with the customers and other artists. I love going to openings, because I get to see a lot of my artist friends who have also been sequestered in their studios and are ready to socialize. Working on "Migrate" has been fun, because it's been attracting a lot of curious people. Interesting people whom I may have never met in any of my other social situations. And I really appreciate the community that has developed out of Artica, the excitement that builds as everyone starts setting up their work and the final celebration at the end.
Phillips: I love sharing my art and interacting with the public. Be it at an art fair or gallery opening, the contact and comments from the public are invaluable. I love the feedback and reactions to art almost as much as I love getting the public to participate in creating art themselves. The Artica festival is a wonderful example of having people (many that think they are not creative beings), come to event and discovering that they are indeed artists.
What other St. Louis artists inspire or motivate you?
Turnage: Wow! That's a tough one, because there are so many fabulous artists in St. Louis doing amazing work. I really appreciate Tom Dykas because he's an exceptional potter but he also has the ability to take traditional "craft" materials and turn them into exquisite installation pieces. I love Carmelita Nunez's use of pattern and color. Alan Brunettin, while no longer living in St. Louis, is my inspiration for painting. Bill Russell because he creates what he wants to create and doesn't worry about what other people think. Hap Phillips inspires me because art is his life. He's totally immersed in it, and could never imagine doing anything else. He's the one that keeps me going when things seem too difficult. He's also exceptional at capturing the gesture of a figure in just a few short strokes. Something that is not my forte.
Phillips: Nita Turnage is certainly my most inspiring and motivating artist. We work together and challenge each other constantly. We have a crazy cosmic and deeply loving relationship that lets us both dare to accomplish more than either of us could do alone. Another artist that inspires me is D. Lohr Barkley, because his work always inspires me to be big and great and get people to participate and celebrate in the creative process. Dr. Bill Russell is another one of my artistic inspirations for those same reasons plus the fact that he is always going to do what he wants to do artistically, no matter what. These people are my friends and fellow artists that always support me in whatever crazy idea I have, and motivate me to believe that it's not a crazy idea at all, and it's totally feasible.
For details on events happening this weekend, visit Artica's Facebook page.
