San Fran Voice

*”Soul”, multi-media work by artist Clint Imboden*

Clint Imboden began his art career in the area of photography but his artistic inclinations started much earlier. Both of his parents were avid collectors of different items and so he learned early on about the creative value of different materials. As his career grew, he began to move away from strict photography and towards incorporating found objects into his art to create more multi-media pieces.  In this interview, he shares the history of his art, the way it coincides with his other career in the mental health field and the advice he has for emerging artists.

What can you tell us about the basics of your artwork?

I am attracted to objects; the artifacts of people’s daily living, the things that are discarded, overlooked or taken for granted. For me, objects are broken down into two groups: objects that I am collecting to finish a particular project and objects that simply call out to me. When I go out to flea markets or junk stores I have a mental list of what I am looking for in terms of things that fall into the first category. But I also leave myself open to the things from the second category; I don’t always know why they call out to me but I always listen to that.

I grew up in a house full of stuff; both of my parents are collectors. My father had his tightly defined areas of interest while my mother was more eclectic in what interested her. She has always been a voracious collector. I see my art as having elements from both my parents. There is a degree of being obsessed with meticulous details and focused on finding exactly what I need for a specific piece, but at the same time I am open to seeing new objects, without a clear idea of why I am attracted to them or how they will fit in to my work. It is because of this that I then explore and try to understand … and in so doing I feel I understand a little more about myself. The process of art making is as important to me as the final piece. I think that is why I work in series of images or grouping of objects. A single image or element does not have the depth by itself to convey what I want to say. I have always been attracted to multiples, always attracted to quantity of objects when I am hunting through flea markets. 

My art career began with photography, using the camera as a tool to connect what I saw in my mind to what I wanted to see on paper. As I grew as an artist, I became more open to (and comfortable with) incorporating found images, objects, and text in my art. I integrated these elements slowly into more of my work, producing work that looked more and more like mixed media installations and less like photography.  The photographed image has become part of a much larger palette when working on subjects with my art.

Can you describe how your art and your career in mental health have intersected?

I have always enjoyed solving problems. This desire has led to two diverse careers; one in mental health and the other in art. Early in my art career I made a conscious effort to separate my art from my mental health career. But as I matured as an artist, I have come to accept, understand and explore the impact that my background in mental health plays in the subject matter and the type of art I make. How I see as an artist has been shaped to a large degree by my education and experiences in the field of psychology.

A final important element taken from my background in psychology is the belief that viewing art is equivalent to therapy. The viewer is as equal a partner in the viewing of my art as if they had been a client of mine. Through my use of materials, I challenge the viewer to commit the time and energy it takes to read or decipher an element to under-tand the full meaning of a piece.

What projects are you working on now?

I have started working with casting in polyester resin; I really like the material and am working on a couple of different pieces in it. I’m also working on larger scale mixed media installations. And I continue to explore the local flea markets for ideas and materials.

Do you have any current / upcoming shows?

I have a solo exhibition up right now at Liquid Space (www.liquidspaces.com) at One Union in SF; the opening is June 29 and the show is going through July 20..I will also have an installation made out of chest x-rays in a group show that opens August 3rd at K Gallery at Rhythmix Cultural Works in Alameda  (www.rhythmix.org/kgallery).

What art goals do you have for yourself? 

A couple of big goals that are always in the front of my mind are being in the Whitney Biennial and finding a gallery in LA and NY.

Do you have a favorite gallery in San Francisco?

In the city, it would be Mark Wolf Contemporary. He is very supportive of good local work and is willing to push the envelope. In the East Bay, there are a lot: Lobot, Gallery of Urban Art, the whole Oakland Art Murmur. I think Oakland is finally getting its act together enough to be taken seriously for where to go to see new local and interesting art. To find the best art you have to dig a little, be willing to go off the beaten track and maybe even head to the East Bay

I used to feel I had to come into he city or go to Berkeley to find good food and an interesting evening; now I stay much closer to home. I live in Alameda and in the last couple of years there have been some really good restaurants opening here: Pappo,  Ching Hua, and Speisekammer (where I co-organize an artist happy hour the third Thursday of every month).

What advice do you have for emerging artists?

D the art you want to do for yourself. Do not do art because you think it will sell or you think other people will like it. Spend the time and energy to get it out into the world; no one is going to walk up to you on the street and offer you a show.