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My art reveals who I am, but it doesn’t tell the whole story. There are innumerable aspects of me, and only a few fight to the fore with need of expression. Rainbows, monkeys, and tragedy all have iconic significance in my life experience, but as yet only one has been the subject of my art.
Now there may never be a Tragic Monkey Rainbow Period in my oeuvre. I just discovered that John Lytle Wilson has been swirling these three ingredients across his canvases to hilariously terrifying effect for quite some time.
Who is John Lytle Wilson?
I was born in South Carolina in 1977. I grew up loving science fiction movies, cartoons and my older brother’s Ronnie James Dio tapes. Now I live in Florida and paint monkeys and robots which draw on those childhood experiences. My work also reflects my interest in how different religions use art in their rituals. I like to draw on contrasting sources. Big, bright, tacky things make me happy. Art should be more like firecrackers.
When not painting I teach at Florida State University and Valdosta State University. I spend my days walking my pug, eating macaroni and cheese, and thinking about the future. I believe the children are our future. Teach them well and let them lead the way.
Why do you create?
I’ve always liked to do stuff with my hands. If I wasn’t painting I’d be sewing, or building, or cooking, or fixing something.
Calamity!
Rainbows appear in both my website and your art. What is their significance to you?
Good question. Rainbows are tacky, happy things, but they happen just before or just after a storm. I like to set up a contrast between the rainbow and some dark goings-on in the painting. I began using rainbows when I was teaching kid’s summer art classes. I did a piece that was supposed to be the generic little boy’s drawing and one that was the generic little girl’s drawing. The latter had hearts floating everywhere, flowers, teddy bears and a big old rainbow. I’ve been using them off and on since.
To me, in addition to the happy childhood thing, rainbows also deal with color, scale and light. These are all important ingredients in my work. So for me they are as much a visual ingredient as a symbol of anything. I like the viewer to have some leeway in interpreting the work.
The Robot’s Disciples
I set up my first e-mail account just before I earned my college degree in 1996. Today, the Internet is an intrinsic aspect of student life. As a university art instructor, how would you summarize the web’s impact on education?
Well as far as art education goes, the internet is a way for students to know exactly what’s going on in art and what everyone else is making. When I was in school we would see work in the local museums and galleries or what was in the magazines but it was hard to see overarching trends in art. As a student in the mid nineties, it seemed the notion of isms had pretty much fallen by the wayside. Now you see that coming back, with artists connecting online and playing off each other’s ideas. I think the internet is having a decentralizing effect on the art world. You can be connected to what’s going on without being in New York, LA, London, etc. in a way that was impossible in previous decades.
Oh Majesty!
Reading your blog, I see that you are very successful at getting your art shown both across the country and around the world. What advice would you give to artists looking to expand their audiences?
I think artists starting out need to put their work online, and the more places the better. So many of my opportunities have come through the internet. I also think, particularly early in a career, artists should show anywhere they can. In college I remember being averse to showing in restaurants and coffee houses. I thought it would make my work look bad or be “misunderstood”. Good work looks good just about anywhere, and most bad work isn’t helped too much by being in a gallery. In fact, my first year of grad school, I had a two person show at a nice on-campus gallery. I realized that the stuff I was making was weak. Looking back, it was a catalyst for me getting my act together. You also have to be prepared for rejection. Far more galleries have rejected me than have given me shows.
My thanks to John for sharing his work. Please visit johnlytlewilson.com to see more of his art.
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