Community Building in the Washington, DC area!!

SFP Editor: What inspired you to producte a film about Artomatic? Jay Krasnow: After a long hiatus from filmmaking I decided to make make a documentary on the arts, but wasn't set on any topic. But when I heard that Artomatic was returning to town I decided that I'd document the event that answers the question: "What if anyone could be an artist?" Joined by an army of volunteers, I set out to tell Artomatic's story, and Journey to the Center of Artomatic was born.

SFP Editor: What is Artomatic?

Jay Krasnow:Artomatic is a month-long multimedia arts event that draws together visual artists, musicians and performers and brings their work to the community. It was originally conceived as a way to break down the geographical and social segmentation of the Washington arts scene, to bring art directly to the public and to build cohesion among artists. Artomatic provides a forum for Washington area artists to convene, perform and exhibit, strengthening the visibility, cohesion, and marketplace of Washington's arts community. Artomatic has grown considerably since the first one was held in Washington’s historic Shaw neighborhood in 1999. Over 20,000 visitors attended Artomatic 1999. The number of visitors grew to over 40,000 in 2004.

SFP Editor: What inspired you to create your exhibit for Artomatic?

Jay Krasnow: I didn’t start out with an “ah-ha!” I had been an eclectic artist as far back I can remember. But I hadn’t done anything substantial since college. A few years ago I started creating oil paintings on a standard 11”x14” artist’s sketchpad. I didn’t really have anything in mind, but ended up making t-shirts for myself. I then did a few t-shirts for friends.

I had a vague idea of selling these t-shirts but did nothing substantial. I kept on painting though, and created my smaller (11 in. x 14 in.) “Dancing Cats” painting, then created the larger (36 in. x 48 in.) “Dancing Cats” painting. I heard about Artomatic by chance. About a year ago, around the time I was creating the “Dancing Cats” painting, I attended a presentation given by the creator of PostSecret (www.postsecret.com), who was one biggest successes from Artomatic 2004. It was then I decided I would submit an entry for Artomatic 2007.

I owe the idea for the “Dancing Cats” exhibit to one of my Georgetown University classmates who brainstormed with me about 10 months ago. What we conceived and I made reality was a 15-panel, life-size diorama that recounts the story of a starving artist who suffers a diet of Ramin Noodles while working to create the next masterpiece from a blank canvass. Though the artist succeeds in his quest to create a masterpiece he destroys its authenticity by commercializing it. In the end he devalues his masterpiece to such a great degree that he’s forced to give cheap copies of it away for free.

SFP Editor: What do you hope to achieve with your exhibit?

Jay Krasnow: There are several things I will accomplish with “Dancing Cats.” First, “Dancing Cats” will spark a serious discussion about the impact of art’s commercialization at Artomatic and beyond. Eventually I will enable HyperActivists --a term I use to describe art lovers--to continue this discussion on my website, www.hyperactivestyle.com.

Second, I made the decision in late January to personalize the exhibit. After taking a seminar called the Landmark Forum in January I decided I would make radical changes in how I lived my life. So I added the story of how I transformed from a private and uncommunicative person to an open and communicate person, overnight, after taking the seminar. This transformation has made it possible for me to stay focused on the exhibit despite the occasional 12-hour days necessary to make “Dancing Cats” happen. Another consequence of completing the Landmark seminar was realization that the more I talked about my transformation, the more creative, goal-oriented, and more successful I have become.

It should also be clear from my exhibit and Website that I intend to commercialize my art. Over 40,000 people attended Artomatic 2004. Many of the people who will see my exhibit at Artomatic 2007 will take “Dancing Cats” souvenirs home with them.

“Dancing Cats” will also be my launching pad for showcasing several of my other commercial pursuits. One of these projects is volume of haikus with my “Dancing Cat” artwork that I’ve dubbed “1,000 HyperActive Haikus.” I’m currently seeking a publisher for this manuscript, which will be complete by early next year.

SFP Editor: What was the most challenging aspect of creating your exhibit?

Jay Krasnow:The devil was in the details. For example, I needed know how big the exhibit was so I could determine how much space I would need at Artomatic. At 43.5 ft. in length and five 5 ft. in width, the exhibit is considerably larger than I originally expected.

Another challenge was dealing with suppliers. One of my vendors went out of business but didn’t inform me. Another vendor printed an order incorrectly. Luckily I followed up on these orders and was able to save myself from disaster.

The final challenge, after deciding to personalize “Dancing Cats” was deciding how to do that. A big part of this is seen in my representation of dialogues I’ve had with people in my life over the past several months. As those dialogues progress during Artomatic, those representations will be updated accordingly. However, I decided to leave some things to the imagination, as HyperActivists will see by examining the crumpled phone messages in the wastebasket. Another aspect of the personalization is the changes that HyperActivists will notice to the two life-size mannequins in “Dancing Cats” around the second week of Artomatic. I’m not saying what that personalization is at this time.

SFP Editor: What is your viewpoint on the acceptance of various art forms by mainstream society?

Jay Krasnow: All art forms are accepted by someone and art forms not accepted by mainstream society eventually find their way to the public anyway. This is how the Impressionists got started. Since juried exhibits rejected their works, --because of the realistic nudes portrayed in contemporary settings-- Monet, Renoir, and other impressionists banded together to exhibit in their own venue. In some ways, Artomatic operates this way. Several successes, including PostSecret (www.postsecret.com), have come out previous Artomatic exhibits.

SFP Editor: What is the most critical impact of the commercialization of art?

Jay Krasnow:The commercialization of art devalues the authenticity of the original. If you can have an exact copy of the Mona Lisa displayed in your living room then that lessens the impact of the original. I’ve seen computer icons, key chains, t-shirts and mugs with images of the Mona Lisa. These replicas of the Mona Lisa devalue the original even further.

But let us be clear about what I’m doing. I will be displaying copies of my own art on key chains, t-shirts, and mugs at Artomatic with the vision of commercializing it. In as much as I acknowledge that the impact of the commercialization of my own art is no different than the commercialization of other art works, I am at peace with this reality.

SFP Editor: What do you think of the art scene in Washington, DC?

Jay Krasnow: The art scene in Washington is both vibrant and diverse. The exhibits at the Smithsonian museums are just the tip of the iceberg. On almost any given day, you can find a place to go for an exhibit opening, closing, or special display. I publish the details on many of these exhibits in HyperActive Haikus & News (HHN), my monthly digest of upcoming events in the Washington art scene. As editor of HHN I also put on my art critic hat. As such, I typically review an opening or other event in this publication, which HyperActivists—may obtain by requesting it at www.hyperactivestyle.com.

SFP Editor: What artists have influenced you the most?

Jay Krasnow: Though I don’t have any one favorite artist, I have always enjoyed Impressionism. What I love about Impressionism is how the painters played with colors in a way that makes late 19th Century scenes they portray appear fun. I admire the Impressionists because they were rule breakers. They broke the rules of the day by leaving visible brush strokes on the canvasses and by emphasizing the colors of ordinary subjects rather than the lines in prominent figures of the day, among other things. I also like how the Impressionists put, say, pure yellow and blue paint on their canvass, and let them create the impression of green when they mixed together as they blended on the canvass.

One of my favorite Impressionist painting is Renoir’s “Luncheon of the Boating Party” because the canvass involves so many characters, all real people of the day. I found out many years ago that each person in the canvass had his own story and the canvass is a snapshot of that person’s life.

SFP Editor: What advice do you have for aspiring artists interested in Artomatic?

Jay Krasnow: Though I am not involved with planning or registration, according to Artomatic’s website registration is full. I might suggest they get involved with DC metro area artists’ organizations like ArtDC www.artdc.org. Members of organizations like ArtDC collaborate with galleries and other arts organizations to make events like Artomatic happen.