by Roxanne Phillips, MFA
Printmaker and Master Printer, Pele Prints
I don’t know if I think of myself as a creative. To be creative one needs to be innovative. When I was at Wash U (1976-1980) I was exposed to kids who had had a lot more experiences in the arts that I had. I was a country bumpkin by comparison – ignorant of so many things. What they were doing in painting, sculpture, and graphic design seemed superhuman. Of course that was not really the case. They just had more reference, better reference, and higher skill-sets behind the work. Someone once said that we don’t really innovate but rather we recombine what has already been done. Perhaps art is a casserole and the innovation comes from how we mix it all up. I can make a casserole. Maybe that is creative.
R: Describe your artistic process/technique.
L: The way I make paintings is to start with a limited plan and then let things happen. I look for things that I’ve never seen before or that I think will live within the broad world with some relevance. No relevance…what’s the point? It’s the editing process that dictates whether something hits the wall or not. I drive my painting only to a point. I let the work itself have a hand in the final result. There are certain images and visuals that excite me. I try to avoid cliché or kitsch but if it happens and it works I go with it. I see the making of a painting as having two aspects – the subject and the mechanics. I’m enamored with how paint moves on the surface. I use brushes of course, but also try my hand with sandpaper, serrated knives, sticks, and whatever may give me an interesting mark. The mark making describes not only the subject of the painting but it also lends credence to the hand of the painter. My hands are all over my work in some way or another. Someone once asked me why I paint. Well, that’s easy…I just can’t wait to see what might happen.
R: What was the biggest opposing force that you encountered on your creative journey?
L: Honestly, I think my biggest stumbling block throughout the years has always been my lack of confidence in myself. My family influences were all education and science. Art – real art - was a foreign language to me for a long time. As artists we all have our insecurities. I’m no different. I’m 65 now and it’s only been in the last few years that I have felt like I am truly coming into my own. Balancing confidence with serious introspection can really mess with the old noggin. The key to a perspective on this thing we do is to know the craft, know the history, and know what is being done in the contemporary world. Then one can understand self. If my present self could send a note back to young me I would tell him to dig deeper and quit noodling around. Art is a noble profession and worthy of the intellectual pursuit.
R: Describe the different studio practice, set up, and tools that you use when working in the field, doing Plein Air events, compared to working in your studio.
L: Under normal conditions my year is divided between plein air painting events in the Spring, Summer, and Fall, and studio work in the Winter. This year, of course, is a bit different. I have a separate kit of tools that I take when out in the field, however, my methods are pretty much the same no matter where I set up. Plein air by nature requires quick work and that immediacy carries over to how I handle figure work indoors. Painting is painting. The one thing I do look for is consistency in how I approach any subject or environment. I’ll sometimes change things up - try different media, try different tools – but when all is said and done folks will look at the pile of paintings and know it came from my hand.
The lockdown has afforded me serious time in studio. I first dealt with some much needed cleaning. It didn’t last but it was an honest attempt. I’m impatient with daily chores so my space is a bit chaotic much of the time; frames, panels, tools, and assorted detritus about. But, it works for me. I’m fortunate to have my workspace close to home. A couple of years ago I took my garage space (26'x14' with 9' ceiling) as a studio. I insulated it all and installed a man-door and window where the overhead door had been. Lights and some much-needed storage finished it off. As time goes on I find my actual working space to be getting smaller and smaller. Too many paintings waiting for new homes. I choose to ignore the encroachment for now and just keep on painting.
R: What are you currently working on?
L: I should be out painting en plein air but I have very much enjoyed the figure work of late. Models are not available right now so I am relying on photos and memory to pull stuff together. It’s not the best but it is what it is. The memory thing is interesting to me. I like challenging myself to see what I know…and what gaps exist. The more you know… the more you know. I like the approach that one should paint both what he sees and what he knows. A balance. More anatomy study is on the schedule.
Beyond this I will be out in the field soon. Summer is upon us! Landscape abounds. I’m still learning new things each day and I’m anxious to see if I can apply it to something new.
Printmaker and Master Printer, Pele Prints
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| Lon Brauer. "September of 64." 2019. Oil, plein air, 24”x20”. $1,850. |
Roxanne Phillips: When was the first time that you remember realizing that you are a creative person?
Lon Brauer: As far back as I can remember I have wanted to make things. I started with crayons like everyone else and it went on from there. Playdoh, stamps, glue and glitter – all stuff to play around with. I went to a very small Lutheran school that had combined classes in three rooms with only three teachers for all eight grades. By the time I got to second grade I had heard it all the previous year. Second grade was a breeze. With free time on my hands I was given access to sheets of paper and crayons to occupy my time and cut down on the mischief. I drew a lot in 1962. One summer I found clay – well, mud actually – that turned into heads of all sorts and sizes. I had mud heads on all the fence posts in the neighborhood. It was creepy, but somehow very satisfying. As a kid I was drawn to biology, not for the mechanics but rather for the shapes and forms that make up organic objects. Frogs, frogs, and more frogs. That fascination with how muscle and bone go together in space is still with me. I love those forms.
Lon Brauer: As far back as I can remember I have wanted to make things. I started with crayons like everyone else and it went on from there. Playdoh, stamps, glue and glitter – all stuff to play around with. I went to a very small Lutheran school that had combined classes in three rooms with only three teachers for all eight grades. By the time I got to second grade I had heard it all the previous year. Second grade was a breeze. With free time on my hands I was given access to sheets of paper and crayons to occupy my time and cut down on the mischief. I drew a lot in 1962. One summer I found clay – well, mud actually – that turned into heads of all sorts and sizes. I had mud heads on all the fence posts in the neighborhood. It was creepy, but somehow very satisfying. As a kid I was drawn to biology, not for the mechanics but rather for the shapes and forms that make up organic objects. Frogs, frogs, and more frogs. That fascination with how muscle and bone go together in space is still with me. I love those forms.
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| Artist Lon Brauer. |
I don’t know if I think of myself as a creative. To be creative one needs to be innovative. When I was at Wash U (1976-1980) I was exposed to kids who had had a lot more experiences in the arts that I had. I was a country bumpkin by comparison – ignorant of so many things. What they were doing in painting, sculpture, and graphic design seemed superhuman. Of course that was not really the case. They just had more reference, better reference, and higher skill-sets behind the work. Someone once said that we don’t really innovate but rather we recombine what has already been done. Perhaps art is a casserole and the innovation comes from how we mix it all up. I can make a casserole. Maybe that is creative.
 |
| Lon Brauer. “Queen's Chair.” 2019. Oil, plein air, 24”x20”. $1,850. |
R: Describe your artistic process/technique.
L: The way I make paintings is to start with a limited plan and then let things happen. I look for things that I’ve never seen before or that I think will live within the broad world with some relevance. No relevance…what’s the point? It’s the editing process that dictates whether something hits the wall or not. I drive my painting only to a point. I let the work itself have a hand in the final result. There are certain images and visuals that excite me. I try to avoid cliché or kitsch but if it happens and it works I go with it. I see the making of a painting as having two aspects – the subject and the mechanics. I’m enamored with how paint moves on the surface. I use brushes of course, but also try my hand with sandpaper, serrated knives, sticks, and whatever may give me an interesting mark. The mark making describes not only the subject of the painting but it also lends credence to the hand of the painter. My hands are all over my work in some way or another. Someone once asked me why I paint. Well, that’s easy…I just can’t wait to see what might happen.
 |
| Lon Brauer. “Monuments.” 2019. Oil, plein air, 20”x16”. $1,650. |
R: What was the biggest opposing force that you encountered on your creative journey?
L: Honestly, I think my biggest stumbling block throughout the years has always been my lack of confidence in myself. My family influences were all education and science. Art – real art - was a foreign language to me for a long time. As artists we all have our insecurities. I’m no different. I’m 65 now and it’s only been in the last few years that I have felt like I am truly coming into my own. Balancing confidence with serious introspection can really mess with the old noggin. The key to a perspective on this thing we do is to know the craft, know the history, and know what is being done in the contemporary world. Then one can understand self. If my present self could send a note back to young me I would tell him to dig deeper and quit noodling around. Art is a noble profession and worthy of the intellectual pursuit.
 |
| Lon Brauer’s studio. |
R: Describe the different studio practice, set up, and tools that you use when working in the field, doing Plein Air events, compared to working in your studio.
L: Under normal conditions my year is divided between plein air painting events in the Spring, Summer, and Fall, and studio work in the Winter. This year, of course, is a bit different. I have a separate kit of tools that I take when out in the field, however, my methods are pretty much the same no matter where I set up. Plein air by nature requires quick work and that immediacy carries over to how I handle figure work indoors. Painting is painting. The one thing I do look for is consistency in how I approach any subject or environment. I’ll sometimes change things up - try different media, try different tools – but when all is said and done folks will look at the pile of paintings and know it came from my hand.
The lockdown has afforded me serious time in studio. I first dealt with some much needed cleaning. It didn’t last but it was an honest attempt. I’m impatient with daily chores so my space is a bit chaotic much of the time; frames, panels, tools, and assorted detritus about. But, it works for me. I’m fortunate to have my workspace close to home. A couple of years ago I took my garage space (26'x14' with 9' ceiling) as a studio. I insulated it all and installed a man-door and window where the overhead door had been. Lights and some much-needed storage finished it off. As time goes on I find my actual working space to be getting smaller and smaller. Too many paintings waiting for new homes. I choose to ignore the encroachment for now and just keep on painting.
 |
| Lon Brauer. “Veranda." 2020. Oil, 30”x24”. $2,450. |
R: What are you currently working on?
L: I should be out painting en plein air but I have very much enjoyed the figure work of late. Models are not available right now so I am relying on photos and memory to pull stuff together. It’s not the best but it is what it is. The memory thing is interesting to me. I like challenging myself to see what I know…and what gaps exist. The more you know… the more you know. I like the approach that one should paint both what he sees and what he knows. A balance. More anatomy study is on the schedule.
Beyond this I will be out in the field soon. Summer is upon us! Landscape abounds. I’m still learning new things each day and I’m anxious to see if I can apply it to something new.
____________________________
Granite City, IL-based artist Lon Brauer holds a BFA from Washington University in St. Louis, where he studied with artists Arthur Osver, Barry Schactman, William Kohn, and Ed Boccia; and MFA from Fontbonne University, St. Louis, MO, where he studied with artists Tim Liddy and Victor Wang. Lon upheld a lengthy career as a studio photographer where clients included advertising and manufacturing before returning to painting. Brauer’s Award-winning works have been exhibited in solo and group gallery shows and plein air painting events in the U.S. and abroad.
____________________________
Roxanne Phillips is an artist and art educator based in St. Louis since 2001. She earned a MFA in Printmaking & Drawing from Washington University in St. Louis and BFA in Painting & Drawing from University of North Texas. She has worked with Art Saint Louis since 2017 as Administrative Assistant and Installer and since 2018 as Master Printer for Pele Prints. She also works as adjunct art instructor at Washington University in St. Louis. Her works have been featured in numerous exhibitions throughout the St. Louis region including at Art Saint Louis, Crossroads Art Studio & Gallery, and St. Louis Artists’ Guild. Her work is currently available at Union Studio in St. Louis. She has served as exhibit Juror for several regional exhibits & art fairs. Roxanne is past Board member of St. Louis Women’s Caucus for Art.
Granite City, IL-based artist Lon Brauer holds a BFA from Washington University in St. Louis, where he studied with artists Arthur Osver, Barry Schactman, William Kohn, and Ed Boccia; and MFA from Fontbonne University, St. Louis, MO, where he studied with artists Tim Liddy and Victor Wang. Lon upheld a lengthy career as a studio photographer where clients included advertising and manufacturing before returning to painting. Brauer’s Award-winning works have been exhibited in solo and group gallery shows and plein air painting events in the U.S. and abroad.
____________________________
Roxanne Phillips is an artist and art educator based in St. Louis since 2001. She earned a MFA in Printmaking & Drawing from Washington University in St. Louis and BFA in Painting & Drawing from University of North Texas. She has worked with Art Saint Louis since 2017 as Administrative Assistant and Installer and since 2018 as Master Printer for Pele Prints. She also works as adjunct art instructor at Washington University in St. Louis. Her works have been featured in numerous exhibitions throughout the St. Louis region including at Art Saint Louis, Crossroads Art Studio & Gallery, and St. Louis Artists’ Guild. Her work is currently available at Union Studio in St. Louis. She has served as exhibit Juror for several regional exhibits & art fairs. Roxanne is past Board member of St. Louis Women’s Caucus for Art.
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