Maggie Macdonald
““I see my work as a grounding force in my life, which I find to be much a reflection of the grounding forces of nature.””
You grew up in California, surrounded by water which obviously influenced your work. Are you bringing pieces of South Carolina into your work as well?
The beauty of the California coastline is not really something that can be easily topped- however, the east coast shoreline is fraught with a set of beauty marks all it’s own. South Carolina is lush and alive and aside from the coastline, it is rich with flora, fauna, waterfalls, and tons of wildlife. It’s an absolutely stunning place to glean inspiration from. Aside from an obviously visually stimulating place, the most “inspirational” part of living in South Carolina, for me at least, is the incredibly encouraging humans I get to spend my life with. There is nothing more meaningful than incorporating bits of knowledge or reflections on the human experience from the people who mean the most to you into your work. I usually do this through the actual incorporation of text into my work, under and over layers of paint. And then sometimes this reflection shows up as color, motion, line quality, etc… just depends on the day- the piece- the mood.
Were you always interested in art growing up? What inspired you to choose art as a career?
I have wanted to be an artist for as long as I can remember. There was a brief period of time, like ages 6-9, when I might have thought I’d be able to pull off being a marine biologist, but the sciences were not my strong suit. My whole life I’ve held a lot of my identity in being an artist so as I grew older It just seemed obvious to me that I would pursue art as a career. It perhaps sounds a title tacky to admit, but when I was maybe 16 years old I sold a bigger painting for a good chunk of cash and I remember thinking to myself, ok babe you’re totally gonna do this, you’re gonna be a professional artist and like one of the ones that actually make it. And ever since that sale, through the end of high school and all through college, most of my decisions were made in service of the goal of becoming a professional.
2020 was a challenging year for everyone. How did the pandemic affect your approach to painting?
2020 has taught me many lessons, of those I think the most important would be flexibility. Obviously, nothing went anyone’s way this year. I had to learn how to be ok with the cancellation of 7 shows and all my well thought out plans. That being said this year has also been an incredible blessing in that I was given the opportunity and time to finish construction on my new studio space in Downtown Spartanburg SC with limited distractions. The whole timing on the pandemic allowed me to focus and get my space ready to really hit the ground running in 2021.
You use different mediums in your work. Acrylic, chalk, pencil, watercolor, gold leafing, etc. In addition to technical variety, your art is very much grounded in the environment, you said that your art is "informed by the movement of earth's many bodies of water". Can you tell our readers about your process and how you go about creating a painting? How do all these elements come together to create a work of art?
You know the saying “getting back to your roots or getting back to nature”? That’s kind of what it feels like to paint. Almost as if it’s a removal of the unnecessary noise of the world, I think the things that come out as a result of being in this headspace are the most primal element, such as the sea, the sun, the air, etc. I see my work as a grounding force in my life, which I find to be much a reflection of the grounding forces of nature.
In an interview, the abstract painter Dana Gordon talked about how productive it is to let the process guide you instead of you taking charge of it. He said that "there is much more in the unconscious than in the consciousness". How much of your process involves improvisation and how much of it carefully planned and thought out?
I completely agree with this idea that the most profound things come from the subconscious. The actual creation of a piece for me is absolutely meditative and I also find I am much more pleased with the outcome of work when I am able to disconnect from the world for a period and try to enjoy and cultivate an energy of doing without the overthinking and conscious criticism of every move. The best things come naturally. Just as the most meaningful words come without rehearsal- the best marks come simply. The most profound details are born when one allows oneself to just take a deep breath and simply move.
Do you have any favorite artists who influence your work or whose work you simply enjoy?
My favorite artist right now is Shawn Huckins. He’s a damn genius and unbelievably witty. I have so much respect for his work, his practice, and his personality. I don’t know him personally just yet, but anyone who creates the work that he does is someone I would definitely like to ask for coffee.
Your work is mostly abstract. Even though we have about a century of collective experience with abstract art, it's often still misunderstood, at least by laypersons. The famous "my child could do that" argument. How do you introduce this type of art to people who aren't necessarily involved in the art world or understand it intuitively?
Abstract art is funny to me. People either love it or make confused snarled faces in response to it. Some spend so much time staring at it that you feel they might see something in the work that you never even knew you had included. Still, others try to understand it so desperately that they make assumptions about the work that you never intended for. The criticism of it all by laypersons, or otherwise, I think can be sorted quite easily. To those who might say “what? I could totally paint this” I would like to respond by saying - “that’s possibly true, however you didn’t.” Half the game of being an artist, whether or not you’re considered successful, is having the courage to create and then go one step further and share. The courage to create holds a significant amount of value all on its own. Even without a single hand-stretched canvas or a tube of paint in sight. The audacity to bring forth newness and creativity in the world is sometimes the pinnacle victory of it all.
www.maggiemacdonaldart.com
