Around the Factory

Curtis Miller is a local artist who recently has opened a studio at the Pajama Factory, 1307 Park Ave. Miller often works with oil pastels and creates narratives by combining peculiar imagery with haiku-like phrases. The Sun-Gazette recently sat down to talk with Miller about his art and his big move into the factory.

Matthew Parrish: You live in Montoursville. Are you from the area?

Curtis Miller: Yes. I grew up in Montoursville. I lived in Erie for 10 years during and after my graduate degree and have been back in Montoursville for the past 10 years now.

MP: Where'd you go to school?

CM: Montoursville High School, Susquehanna University for college and Gannon University for graduate school.

MP: How does your Master's in Business Administration influence your artmaking?

CM: With respect to the art-making, not very much. I try to do art that I enjoy and have fun with. My MBA would lead me to paint landscapes or cats, which are more universal and widely accepted art themes. That being said, I don't spend as much time as I would like actually in the act of art-making. The MBA effects every other aspect of the art, from thinking about gross margins on prints, what festivals to apply to and how to maximize the space in a 10 x 10 tent to encourage the participation of festival visitors.

MP: Is there an over-arching concept in your work?

CM: I remember one of the first festivals that I ever did. There were so many people coming to it but they were all passing me by. I was just off the main drag on a smaller side street that was still part of the festival but it looked like the place that they would put the artists you don't need to bother seeing unless you really have the time. After being frustrated the first day, I came up with a way to pull the people into my tent. I cut the word "Think" out of a big piece of foam core, painted it black and hung it on the front of my white tent. The difference was amazing. So many people came in that would have otherwise passed me by because of that sign. There are many themes in my work, but if you are asking about an over-arching concept, it would have to be "Think." Take some time to think about things that you would not normally. It opens up new worlds.

MP: What is the "Clothespin Referee Online Art Gallery?"

CM: It is a Web site, www.clothespinreferee.com, that is badly in need of being updated. It is also a concept that I had for an older version of that website, where the art appeared as though it was hanging on the wall with people standing in front, viewing much like you would see in a gallery.

MP: It says on your Web site that you hope your art can become a beacon that lets people know that they are not alone. Is loneliness a big concern of yours?

CM: My only concern of loneliness is that I do not get to spend enough time alone. I am introverted by nature. That does not mean that I am shy. I am quite the opposite. It means that being around people at parties, barbecues or other social events that many others seem to relish, drains my energy levels. I think you'll find that a lot of artists are that way. I suppose the beacon that I elude to is more to people who are like me. They are the ones at parties thinking, "If these things are supposed to be fun, why don't I seem to be having any?"

MP: Why'd you open a studio at the Pajama Factory?

CM: I have a studio at my house but I get too distracted with television, family and a million other things that I think I should be doing. I feel that this has been a great step forward for me.

MP: How do you feel about Williamsport's art scene?

CM: I think that this area has an abundance of talented artists. It has an established and emerging base of people who support the arts in general. What it does not seem to have is a lot of people who actually purchase a piece of art. I say this as an artist who seems to have a little bit more success selling my art, on a consistent basis, in this area then some of the other artists I talk to. Everyone in Williamsport has walls in their house, why not hang something from a local artist on one of them?

MP: You use oil pastels a lot. What draws you to them?

CM: Serendipity. A friend of mine bought some at an art store while visiting me and forgot them. They sat with my art stuff for a couple years until I tried them. At first, I did not like them because of how they smudged and how difficult it was to get a straight edge. Then, I accidentally scratched the surface of one of the pieces that had some layers built up and the colors came through in an interesting way. Ever since, that has been my primary medium. The technique is called "scraffito," which is Italian for scratching.

MP: I use oil pastels and they get all over everything. Do you have tips for removing oil pastel stains?

CM: Don't lean on the table with a good shirt. My floor is dotted with the little scrumbles that fall off.

MP: Is humor important to your work?

CM: Someone who is drawn into my tent because they hear a crowd of people laughing at the individual pieces is just as likely to purchase something nostalgic, thoughtful or even sad from me. At times I have thought of putting a sign that says "Laugh" to compliment the "Think" sign on my booth. I haven't done it yet; probably because I don't want to create that expectation.

MP: Who are your biggest influences?

CM: Artists whose work I enjoy are Goya, Odd Nerdrum, Egon Schiele, Henry Darger, Banksy and Grant Wood, to name a few. I believe my biggest influence would be my father. He wasn't an artist but he is always working hard and moving forward, and I suppose that I have become that way as well.

MP: What do you read?

CM: My favorite things to read lately are artists' biographies. Favorite all time books would be Thoreau's "Walden" or Vonnegut's "Bluebeard."

MP: Many of the "narratives" in your work are short and ambiguous. What do you hope viewers gets from them?

CM: Honestly, if someone walks away from my work and thinks, "What the heck would make somebody think of something like that?," I would be happy. However, there are some environmental themes that deal with limited resources that I wish we all would incorporate into our lives more.

MP: Do you see art history as a burden or a helpful tool (or neither)?

CM: I value originality, so having a sense of what has happened before is helpful in order to avoid repeating it. Also, I think most artists are making art for the ages and not just to make a dollar now. Paying some regard to those who came before is the least we should do.

MP: Do you see artmaking as work or play?

CM: Art making is play. Ultimately nobody "needs" art. We do need farmers to produce crops to survive. Interestingly, however, the cave paintings in Lascaux France are 16,000 years old. Agriculture is said to be only 10,000 years old. So, we have been doing art long before we thought of planting anything. I always looked at the Ant and the Grasshopper fable from a different perspective. Sure, the grasshopper sang and played his fiddle all summer and wasn't prepared for the winter but that fiddle the grasshopper played must have made their toilsome existence a little more bearable for the ants.

MP: Do you listen to music while you work?

CM: Jazz or NPR mostly.

MP: Do you have advice for young artists?

CM: I think my first piece of advice would be to enjoy the act of making art itself. Regardless of how the world receives it, you should always allow yourself that joy. If your goal is to sell art: I think people want to hear you in your art. They don't want to hear you sounding like someone else or saying something that someone else already said. Find your own voice and what you want to say with that voice, and be true to it but allow it to evolve. Pay attention to your life as it happens because every idea you will ever need is right there in front of you.