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by Kareem Samuels

I have been going to any place that I can eat, restaurants or markets and that kind of thing. Anywhere around the city to find food. I order food that I like and take pictures of myself with the food and then post them on Facebook. I do this and it is something like a food diary.

This was a Sausage Mcmuffin and a hash brown.

A chocolate croissant that I got at Towson.

This was a grilled cheese sandwich from the cafeteria [at my new job in Towson].

This was called a brownie cheesecake with strawberries.

  She has more art from me than any other person anywhere, certainly more than anyone at St. Elizabeth School!  She is my former guidance counselor, Ms. Lori Revitz.  She loves me like a third born son and thinks my art is amazing.

Sue Ellen, as I call her, has at least 8 framed pieces and many saved pieces that are not framed from when I was a student.  Many of the unframed pieces are from my  “Arthur” era that came before my “Wizard of Oz” era. My mom is “Fern” in the Arthur art. Sue Ellen tells me that she loves the pieces the most that feature Sue Ellen the Cat, of course, because that means she is in the art!   Sue Ellen’s sister also has one of my works of art.  She lives in San Francisco.  They are sisters who collect art like the Cone sisters! https://artbma.org/collections/cone.html  That’s why it’s called the Revitz Collection, just like the Cone Collection!

I wonder how much more art they’ll buy from me in the future because she loves me like a son and my art is worth it!  Well, I’ve finished a 60th anniversary portrait of James Dean and now I’m thinking of drawing my Aunt Gretchen as Batgirl.  You know, the original, Yvonne Craig!

In honor of our 5th year here at The Make Studio, we asked our fabulous artists to share with us a memory from when they were just five years old. Here is what some of them said…

Aimee… “I have always drawn since I was little. My grandparents bought me all the art supplies and things I needed. I think it was when I was 5 that I painted on the walls and got into lots of trouble!”

Kareem… “I liked to draw houses and trees, like other little kids!”

Louis… “I played with my toys. My favorite stuffed animal was a teddy bear.”

Margie… “I wore glasses when I was five. I remember finger-painting.”

Gary… “I had a nice childhood. It’s been so long, but I still remember that my mom would ask me how old I was but I didn’t know how to answer. Once when she asked me when I was 5-and-a-half and she asked me how old I was going to be
next, I answered, “Five” as a joke. My favorite cartoon back then may have been Looney Tunes or Winnie the Pooh.”

Tyrone… “I remember pretending to be Superman in my “tighty-whiteys”. Haha! I injured myself jumping off of so many things like the dresser. I did it over-and-over until I hit the lamp! I was an adventurous 5-year-old and am still
adventurous now.”

Dave… “When I was 5, I liked to read children’s books and play video games!”

Mandi… “I liked to play with dinosaurs when I was 5. They’re giant lizards with sharp claws and pointy teeth. What’s not to like!? And then I moved on to dragons (as you can tell)…”

Can you think of a memory from when you were five??

Bart O’Reilly: City Project(ions) is an ongoing series of experimental videos to highlight work made in a studio setting with artists whose work has been under-represented due to social or economic circumstances or through having a disability. The project has already received pilot funding from The Warnock Foundation and was featured in The Baltimore Social Innovation Journal this summer.

So far working with artists at Make Studio in Hamden I share processes developed in my own practice in a working studio setting. The plan is to expand to include many more artists so if you want to get involved or know someone who would benefit please get in touch. The work we make is being projected publicly outdoors in and around the city of Baltimore.

I had a chance to sit down with Erika Clark today and speak a little bit about the project and her thoughts on art in general.

How long have you been making art?

Erika Clark:I have been creating art for 4 to 5 years.

Bart O’Reilly: What is your main source of inspiration?

Erika Clark:My main source of inspiration comes from stories and images that I create usually linked to the fantastic.

Bart O’Reilly:How do you feel about City Project(ions) and exposing your process in a public way like this?

Erika Clark:It is a great opportunity, I am sure people wonder how long it takes to make a piece of art and all of the changes and different processes that go through it.

Bart O’Reilly:What other artists inspire you?

Erika Clark:Other artists from Make Studio can inspire me.

Bart O’Reilly:What else?

Impressionism and I get inspired by the games I play and stuff I watch on TV.

Bart O’Reilly:What media do you like to use?

Erika Clark:I like to use different mediums now and then right now I am I use a lot of watercolor and watercolor pencils. Other times I am more into drawing with oil pastels or coloring pencils.

Bart O’Reilly:What would you like people to get from your art?

Erika Clark:I would like them to be inspired, live in two different worlds and hopefully see something beautiful.

Bart O’Reilly:What else are you interested in?

Erika Clark:Cooking, baking , video games anime and manga. Reading books and listening to music.

Make Studio artist Mandi McKinney has been working with me on City Project(ions) since she joined the studio in June of 2014. She came with an interest in traditional skills like painting and pen and ink drawing as well as digital media so she seemed like a perfect fit for the project. I sat down with her today and asked some questions.

Could you describe your work for us?

I have mainly been working with inks and figuring out watercolors and how I can use them to make good art. My themes have been fantasy and surreal themes, but not fully surreal.

What has changed in your work since you started working at Make?

I have more focused goals instead of just creating something and bing bang boom there you go.

What do you think about having the opportunity to project your work around the city?

I think it is pretty great to see the work in progress shot by shot. It is not technically an animation more of a progress video.

Can you tell us about your digital artwork?

All I can say is that like traditional art, digital art can have a somewhat unpredicable element. It is generally a nice surprise to see how things turn out.

What is your main source of inspiration?

Inspiration mostly comes from video games, specifically the sound tracks of the games. Not just generic games but a vast variety of interesting games. I also don’t stay console restricted.

What artists inspire you?

Japanese artists and English cartoonists. I also look at Hayao Miyazaki’s films and they are a great source of inspiration.

What are your plans for the piece you are working on right now?

Once the inking is done on this dragon I will do watercolor techniques such as adding salt and maybe some masking.

What would you like people who see your art to get from it?

I would like them to be inspired for the most part. To see something more than life like, not in a realistic way but in a fantastical way. I want them to see things that they would not see in real life.

What would you like them to know about you as an artist?

I am the kind of person who likes to let themselves go into a fantasy. I go into a kind of meditative state, not like sitting down but in listening to music and working with color. I loose myself in it, it helps me to get out of reality and helps me to think of interesting things.

Today marks our final studio day at 3500 Parkdale Avenue in the Woodberry neighborhood of Baltimore City.  As we ready to move to our new studio space in Hampden over the next two weeks, Louis Middleton wanted to share his thoughts on the big move:

“It’s the last day on Parkdale. We’re going to miss it. I’m going to miss the view of Television Hill from the windows. And the stairs that lead to Stefan’s property. I’m going to miss the closet. The acrylics, watercolors, the colored pencils, and the pastels are in there. Going down the hall to the bathroom. It was a break. I’m going to miss riding on the elevator. And the fire escapes were everywhere. Suite 16 was our space. We did artwork in this space. We had special events. We made new friends in the space. It feels sad.

The new space is two stories. It has a kitchen. It has a gallery. It has a main studio. I wonder what the new studio looks like. I will see it on January the 5th. I feel excited about the space. That’s it. Bye, bye, Parkdale!”