A lot has changed since we last spoke with Michelle Dahl. She completed 100 portraits and is showing art all over California! Let’s see what she has to say!
What was the major takeaway from completing 100 portraits, what would you different?
Oh man. Honestly, my major takeaway is I don’t give myself nearly enough credit. I gave myself one year to create 100 Portraits; I figured 3.65 days per painting or about 2 paintings per week should be a good challenge to keep me working but not unachievable. Not long after I started, my dad got really sick and needed full-time care for 4 months. Then I had major spine surgery that left me bedridden for 3 months. Somehow was still able to refine my process and complete 100 paintings, plus about a dozen commissions and side projects. My first painting, Robin Williams, took weeks to paint; my last five paintings averaged 3-4 hours. It all blows my mind a little.
What would I do differently? Get a bit more specific in the nitty-gritty planning and kept all of the canvas the same size and material. The majority are 9×12 inches canvas or panel, with ten 11×14, eight 8×10 stretched canvas, two 16×20, and one 18×24 on linen. More specificity at the onset would have streamlined supplies and framing, not to mention description and inventory. I really wish I would have paid more attention to whom I was painting as well. I made an effort not to paint just young white females that are so prevalent in the art world. The night I hung the show it occurred to me I hadn’t included anyone of Asian or Indian descent, which irks me at the oversight. We all have our bias and our blind spots. I am annoyed and thankful that this series showed me one of mine.
What are you working on?
Right now, I’m evaluating my place in the greater art community. On the little picture side, I have larger projects I have a very personal need to create. These would push my technical skill and also align my goals of where I would like my art to be seen and viewed. I love a local-based group show, but my personal career goal is to see my art in museums. This means juggling the commissions and smaller works with time and attention to create a less commercial product. I’m talking large, multifigure narratives. While I think this kind of work would elevate my oeuvre, I run the risk of alienating my collector base. Everyone seems to like a good nude, but they don’t usually hang Venus in the family room.
On the big picture side, I am exploring ways to support and build my community. I dipped my toe into teaching these last six months. I have no interest in teaching at a university, or full-time for that matter, but I think a small, grassroots workshop is a really powerful way to give back. I really hate that patronizing view that “Fine Art” skills are only available to rich kids. I am also really tired of ugly trash being promoted as fine art because it comes with a long, confusing dissertation. “You are just too stupid to understand my art” is not a valid metric to success. I am anti-gatekeeping. I don’t think you need to go to major universities to learn classic, fundamental skills. Hell, I know you don’t have to go to a 4-year university to do it – because I tried, it didn’t. So I am using what little tools and tidbits I have picked up along the way, and listening to what people seem to be missing, and I am putting together workshops based on what I think is needed. At the moment, I teach a 3 hour oil painting workshop every 1st Monday of the month at my studio The Art Studios in Sacramento. We meet 6pm to 9pm and I focus on the drawing fundamentals in order to paint. I freaking love oil paint, but it also has this implication of superiority that is BS. I would argue water color is the hardest to master, yet watercolor is more accessible and has cheaper materials. So I am teaching with oil paint so artists can try a new practice without the pay wall of expensive materials. I don’t have a prerequisite, but you will struggle to paint (in any medium) if you don’t have some amount of drawing skills. I also wanted to create a space where artists who need a refresher can come and get caught up. I have had a really positive response, and I am very excited to see where this leads in the future.
How do you feel the education system teaches art? Do you feel it’s valued?
I think our Arts education system is at a state of crisis. Art is not only loosely defined in this day & age, but funding has been cut drastically and continually over the last 20 years. Let’s say two artists go to college: one to become an abstract expressionist, the other to be a highly technical figurative artist. There is one accredited path for both these students at university. I’ve spoken quite openly about my experiences not meeting my needs or expectations; and I have been lucky in my access through high school and junior college. I’ve spoken to artists from both teacher and student perspectives and, well…its rough out there.
Art is widely subjective, so there is no standardized test for creativity. In order for schools to gain accreditation they must submit trackable proof of disseminated knowledge. This means heavy emphasis on what can be tested for: names, dates, historical periods, and theoretical processes. All great bits of information for the artist’s toolbox; but this doesn’t teach creating art or how to make art as a career. Accredited universities can safely train art historians and art teachers with this practice; but art students are flocking the schools to learn how to make art (and at the very least refine their art). School should be where novice learn to become masters.
Now here is the grind; teachers cannot correct students. Art is subjective and individual, right, so how can a teacher say that a student’s creation isn’t what the student intended. Teachers’ hands are tied, and many universities still push for some Arts within General Education requirements, so those first 2-3 years of fundamental classes are flooded with baby-Chads and -Karens who don’t give a shit about drawing/dance/sculpture/music. In my own experience, too much class time was wasted on interrupting lectures, superfluous questions, and pirating critique time to explain why their lack of discipline should be acceptable homework. For example, one particular student failed to complete their assignment (which he announced to his peers), submitted a sketch done months before, then used 30 minutes of the class’s 45-minute critique time trying to BS his way around the teachers’ valid concerns about the piece not following her instruction. For the 3-4 serious art students in the room, this can be devastating. They may or may not even receive open critique, which is crucial to early skill training. In another situation, a teacher may see a student struggling, but be unable to redirect or give unsolicited critiques. This is not just in deference to the student’s feelings; in some universities, correcting a student’s drawing may land the teacher hot water with the administration! Imagine taking algebra and your professor cannot tell you whether you have added correctly or not?
There are many other options for Arts education. Some artists still take on apprentices, but that is very limited to your network and financial ability to pay or attend. Atelier are a great solution; think of these as a kind of tech-school which takes on multiple students in an apprentice-type model. The problem is that they are not always accredited, which makes this less appealing to parents and also holds more financial risks to students (no FAFSA here). I would highly suggest anyone interested in learning art to check out Art Renewal Center (artrenewal.org). They maintain a listing of atelier and universities which uphold a strong technical art education.
So, yes, I think the education system is failing in the arts. I don’t think it’s the fault of teachers, and usually not the students. I think the major issue is that we have made factories instead of institutions; and you don’t get quality out of mass production. It’s very complicated but there are choices out there.
Are students taught how to appreciate art?
That’s a hard one to answer. I think the reason why GE requirements include rudimentary art classes was initially to teach students of all walks of life to appreciate art. I don’t know if it succeeds. Forcing people into situations does not make them more likely to enjoy or appreciate them. If you force 100,000 students a year into an art class that they feel is a waste of time and money, how do you think they will feel about the art world in general afterwards?
There is absolutely a propensity towards theory; the who and why of the art world. There is a real push towards post-modernism as the superior practice because it is the most recent historical period that can be reviewed and taught. Depending on the teacher, there is even a very strong push of personal preference being taught as cannon; something I find reprehensible in the education system. The push to understand and appreciate the how, the technical skill, is still there, hiding in the shadows and quietly participating when necessary. But there’s no way to teach – and thereby test – artappreciation, or the value of art in society. Most people see art as décor. We live in a cheap – disposable world, with ever-growing “art producers” like Ikea, Amazon, and Walmart. People want quick and cheap; and too many artists are suckered into competing with Amazon prices. The way to change this is to recognize art and creativity as a valuable skill, process over product. I don’t know if we can do that in a mass-produced, consumerism world.
What do you feel are the obstacles that art in education faces?
Funding, inherent value, and available skills. We touched on this a little before with the art education system. Art skills are much like labor skills; many master technicians are aging out of their trades and out of teaching. Unfortunately, many master craftsmen are dying and their rare and unique skills are passing with them. The fear I have is seeing some of the most beautiful crafts and techniques go extinct within my lifetime.
How would you suggest that we overcome them?
Each one, teach one. I am amused that after 39 years of antisocial and introvert lifestyle (which I am still both), that I have such an obsessive focus on community. But I heard this statement “each one teach one” not too long ago and it struck a cord. Build your community, share your wealth of knowledge and listen for to others share theirs. We all have something we are great at; build on that and share it. There’s this analogy that are all climbing the proverbial mountain, and the most important thing when you get to the top is to reach your arm down and help the next person up. Art is not in competition. Knowledge & skill are not competition. We, society, need your art, your skills, your knowledge. My biggest supporters are other artists, and I love and support any other artist that is out there putting in the work. That’s our super power, is that we can learn from other people’s experiences, but only when its shared.
What are you doing to help relieve this problem?
Well, ultimately, I hope interviews like this can get the conversation started or reach someone who is struggling in the art field. There is this toxic mentality that real artists are flakes, druggies, or insane and that cant be further from the truth. Art, in its many forms, is a trade; successful artists know their craft, business, and provide a service to the community. I wonder sometimes if this romanticized idea of the starving artist, the renegade rockstar, the tragic ballerina, is what creates such lack-luster education system. Perhaps the media outlets have sold such a convincing story to the American people that artists only ever get lucky, and there are no skills required to have a viable career in the creative fields. Hopefully, enough people get sick of this gaslighting and toxic belief, and perhaps enough grassroots events happen to undermine the status-quo and renew a demand for skill-based training. Until then, I am sharing what I know to whoever wants to listen and whomever is brave enough to learn, and fail, and improve. Besides my once-a-month workshop, I am also looking into the logistics of offering video tutorials, one-on-one training, and 3-day intensive workshops.
What’s next? 5 years down the line?
I have some shows coming up the first quarter 2023. January 22nd is the art reception at The Medium Tattoo & Art Gallery; I have 40 of my 100 Portraits series on display and available for sale. Every 2nd Saturday I share my work and open the studio at The Art Studios where I am a resident artist. And finally, March should be another group show with You Are Here showcased at Old Soul in Sacramento.
I am also partnering with other creative entrepreneurs in Sacramento to organize a workshop specific to the business side of an art career. Business management is another of those much-needed skills that is not discussed in art education systems. My goal with this is to offer simple steps towards starting a sustainable business. I want a newbie-hobbyist to walk in with no real plan in mind, then to leave with a goal and an outline specifying how to turn their art practice into a viable business model. I am still organizing venue details, but this will be available to the public in 2023.
In my personal practice, hopefully, I will have more refined classes and workshops available to the public soon. I would like to see my art on display with museums, and to have my work collected internationally. In 5 years, I could see owning my own studio, and perhaps partnering with other like-minded artists to build a small atelier as well. People can keep in touch by signing up for my Newsletter at michelledahlart.com and following me on Instagram (@michelledahlart). I will share progress on my work and class offerings as they become available. You can also schedule a studio tour if you would like to come in and talk to me directly or view my work in person.
Connect with Michelle Dahl here:
See our previous interview here: Michelle Dahl – Getting to Know Her – Moosic Entertainment
Michelle Dahl Bio:
I am an American artist born in Abu Dhabi, UAE, and raised in California, USA. I currently work in Sacramento, CA. As a child of working-class parents, I had no real access to art in my early development, which sparked a passion for acquiring the techniques of the Old Masters. My professional artistic life began in middle school when I sold Bob Ross reproductions to teachers and parents out of my 7th grade classroom. I went on to pursue artistic training in college until life and financial responsibility forced me to quit. I worked for a number of years as a hobby artist until I became disabled at 28 years old. I returned to college to complete an Associate’s degree in Studio Arts (2019), but felt there was a lack of structured, skill-based training. I chose to continue higher learning through self-guided study instead of university. I work primarily in oils, with obvious influence from 19th century Realism with an Impressionistic flare. My work has been internationally recognized, awarded in juried competitions, and currently hang in private collections across the United States.
I work primarily in oils; currently my focus is on the contemplation of humanity through expressive personality within portraits and figures. I use an indirect painting technique which includes a drawing, grisaille (or dead layer), multiple color layers, and glazing to complete my paintings. I will occasionally explore paintings in a direct, or alla prima process, where I paint wet-into-wet during a single setting. My “100 Portraits” series for 2022 primarily employs the alla prima approach. I use professional grade oil paint and grounds, which are applied on smooth, fine-grain linen canvas or wood panels. 
