Art of White

 

I first encountered the art of Todd White while shooting a digital film at TAMBALEO, a small club here in Austin.  I was just out of college and working my first job as a director of photography on a quirky, under funded, and ultimately doomed romantic comedy.  The club has a great vibe: good atmosphere, dim lighting, and comfortable couches.  All along the walls were these fantastic paintings of barflies of every shape: heavy drinkers and martini sippers, suave yet well worn men and seductive women.  They captured that stunning coexistence of energy, hope, loss, the beautiful and the grotesque, tragedy and absurdity that is the modern nightlife.  They were done in a not-quite-cartoonish, somewhat surreal style that was entirely unique.  The characters were so exaggerated and yet subtle... the paintings captured something true about their subjects.  The paintings struck the perfect balance of sadness and whimsy.  Not only did they fit the tone of the film and the club perfectly, but I was captivated by them.  I scribbled down the web address of the artist and would visit the site several weeks after the film wrapped.

 

Todd had just gotten his start as an independent artist and his work was showing at random venues around the country,  mostly little cafes and bars that exhibited quirky artwork.  I e-mailed back and forth with him a few times, expressing my interest in purchasing one of his affordable prints (if only I had been of means to purchase one of the originals that were, at the time, a true bargain).  Ultimately any purchase went the wayside because of other distractions, lack of funds, and the pieces I really wanted not being available.

 

I've visited his web site on occasion over the years since then, and have watched him become as close to a celebrity as a painter can be these days: his work is collected by Hugh Heffner and several Hollywood stars, and he recently became the official artist of the 2007 Grammy's.  And his work just keeps getting better.  He's expanded his cast of characters to include fighters, lovers, musicians; his style has evolved from the caricature into something more expressive.  All of his subjects seems to contain the same fragility, we just happen to find each one handling it in a different way.  Perhaps his success has only given him access to even more intriguing subjects, or reaffirmed and indeed enriched his perception of our complexity.

It's his attention to detail, most notably in the faces and hands, that make his figures so evocative (though his backgrounds and sense of movement also have a profound impact).  Every character is painted with such attention to detail and passion that we cannot help but feel that there is a much bigger story to them.  No woman is simply a temptress, no man is merely a depressed drunkard.  We recognize these characters, both because of their similarity to those we have seen or met, and because of their likeness to ourselves.  Thus we feel that every painting is part of a larger history.  To spend an evening people-watching with Todd White would undoubtedly be an interesting one.  As his success and rockstar status continue to grow, I look forward to seeing his continued evolution as an artist... because his increased popularity might actually contribute to even more intriguing subject matter.

You have to love the titles of his work, which he professes he usually comes up with first, and which give you a little insight into the story behind the character (see his web site for more).  I can't decide whether I like his paintings of men or women more: the male characters for their complexity or the female for their sexiness and mystery.  I now doubt whether I'll ever be able to afford to purchase an original White painting (I actually have a very small reproduction of a male martini drinker that I found at a Bed, Bath, and Beyond of all places...), but I'll always admire his work and enjoy seeing him continue to evolve.  If I do come to have the opportunity to purchase his work, I'll know I've made it big.  Or maybe I need to take up documentary filmmaking. . .

Comments

[Brett Swanson]

Brett's deal:

I will post a new blog with every new blog that you post. It will be of roughly the same length.

I've been meaning to write Something, but I'm not sure what, and most of the time my thought process leads me to play basketball or sing songs and play ze guitar and maybe have time to shower before I write a blog.

Such is camp life at this point. As the summer gets rollin', I'll get tired of all the fun and such and feel like splurging intellectually onto the webnet.

[Brett]

When's your sopranos-finale blog comin'?

I somewhat accidentally caught the last 4 minutes of the show.

Hmmph.

-Brett

[brian scofield]

Hopefully I'll get a post up about it tonight. The last four minutes, ay? That must have been an interesting / confusing experience. The ending will be controversial to say the least.