An Artist, an Influence

“Firestorm” by David Franke.

There are two artists who have influenced me – one dead and one living. Jackson Pollock (1912 – 1956) made a deep impression on me at an early age. I have read his biographies, studied his paintings, and have tried to get inside his disturbed mind.

Pollock’s use of color, movement, and space has always intrigued me along with the spontaneity of his approach to painting – he never planned a painting, it happened. He also believed there were no accidents in art.

There are those who thought one of the founders of Abstract Expressionism would end his career as a sculptor; experimenting with chicken wire forms covered with painted Japanese rice paper. I too have journeyed from pure abstract on Japanese synthetic (YUPO) paper to conceptual, environmental wall sculptures of wood, stone, and copper tubing.

When I started painting ten years ago, Jan Forkert taught several abstract classes at The Clearing in Ellison Bay. She impressed on me that there is no wrong way (until proven) and experimenting with materials and methods is the key to creativity.

As was Pollock’s artist wife Lee Krazner very influential in his success, my wife Kathy’s support and encouragement to think way outside the box has been instrumental in my future success.

Franke is a “mostly” self-taught artist whose work can be seen online at http://www.studio8e9.com and at Charlene’s Gallery Ten in Gills Rock and Pangaea Gallery outside Juddville. He is also represented by http://www.mysoiree.net, an online gallery.

The Peninsula Pulse has partnered with the Hardy Gallery to present the series, “An Artist, an Influence.” For more information about the Hardy, please call 920.854.2210, email [email protected], or visit http://www.thehardy.org.