ANN MILLER TITUS
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| Featured in “Art St. Louis XXXVI, The Exhibition” at Art Saint Louis: Ann Miller Titus. “The Things We Carry: Agenda.” 2019. Textile, 23”x17”. $775. Artist’s statement: “This work is part of a current series exploring the things we carry. The central, discharged fabric suggested lists and, being an over-thinker, the many agendas I carry both implicitly and explicitly as I make my way through each day.” |
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| Ann Miller Titus. “The Things We Carry: Pocket Comb.” 2019. Fiber/Textile. $750. |
Roxanne Phillips: What was it that first prompted your career/activity as an artist?
Ann Miller Titus: I had been making wall quilts for several years before moving from Indianapolis, Indiana to Quincy, Illinois. These quilts were my own design but still maintained a traditional grid approach to the design. I had entered two juried and judged quilt shows in Indiana.
Once we were situated in Quincy, I started to frequent the Quincy Art Center which is just a block from my home. Thinking that there was little chance I would be juried in, I entered a quilt into their annual exhibition for local artists. The piece was accepted! It was so validating to see the work hanging in the gallery and properly lighted. It reinforced the “quilts as art” movement that was taking place and inspired me to continue my stitching and exhibiting.
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| Ann Miller Titus. “The Things We Carry: Alimentary.” 2016. Fiber/Textile. $750. |
RP: When did you begin to know what your art is about?
AMT: For many years, the work seemed to be focused on honing the technical skills needed to make these quilts: mastering a variety of ways to stitch and and creating surface design on fabric. Slowly my attention shifted to design and composition.
Currently, my work is oriented around communicating a story or a part of a story. And so knowing what my work is about has evolved through these phases of interest: technique, composition and story.
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| Ann Miller Titus. “The Things We Carry: A Sense of Direction.” 2019. Fiber/Textile. $900. |
RP: Describe your artistic process/technique.
AMT: My process begins by gathering…I accumulate a collection of fabrics. Some are commercially printed, some are vintage, some are hand dyed by other artists, and some are dyed/printed by me.
The process is usually guided by a theme…a current event, an important set of circumstances, a relevant concept that keeps me up at night…these become the footprint for the story I will attempt to convey with the quilt.
And then I begin combining fabrics…. usually first in piles to develop a color scheme, then on a design wall to begin the composition. This takes the longest amount of time. I sometimes fiddle for months before I’m ready to actually sew.
Then comes the stitching…fabric shapes are cut and sewn together most often by hand to create the top layer of the quilt.
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| Ann Miller Titus. “The Things We Carry: Memory.” 2017. Fiber/Textile. $900. |
As I am preparing the quilt top, I have already begun to consider how the piece will be quilted. And once the quilt top is completed, I mark the top for quilting. I do the quilting on a sewing machine.
Throughout each phase of the process, I take photos…photos of piles, photos of what is on the design board and photos of the the quilt top in progress. I will often put these photos into Photoshop and add or subtract elements digitally as it is easier to audition changes by clicking and dragging than by sewing and then ripping out. I despise ripping stitches out.
The final step in the quilting process is the binding. This step finishes the edge of the quilt with a piece of fabric that is sewn once on the machine, then turned to the other side and sewn by hand. This sewing by hand is a ritual for me. I take great pleasure in the weight of the quilt in my lap, in the sound of the needle passing through the layers of fabric and the repetitive nature of the stitching.
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| Ann Miller Titus. “The Things We Carry: Joy and Her Sister Sorrow.” 2017. Fiber/Textile. $900. |
AMT: I am an owner/member of a cooperative gallery in Hannibal, MO, the Alliance Art Gallery. This is my preferred way to exhibit as it is consistent and it reaches a broad audience as Hannibal is a popular tourist town. The gallery also provides a wonderful opportunity to work with the other member artists both creatively and in the management of the business.
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| Ann Miller Titus' Quincy, IL studio. |
RP: What are you currently working on?
AMT: I have found it extremely difficult to work in the middle of this pandemic and in the current social and political climate. I realized recently that my issue is not time or focus. Rather, I’m a bit afraid.
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| Ann Miller Titus' Quincy, IL studio. |
I seem to have developed a “brand” of work. The most common response from people who see a body of my work is that they leave the space feeling better. And I am grateful to be able to provide a sense of calm, beauty and light through the work.
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| Ann Miller Titus' Quincy, IL studio. |
I’m not at all calm these days. I am afraid that if I begin to stitch these days, all the anger and fear and dread that I’m feeling will be represented in the work. While that might be cathartic for me, I really don’t want to put those dark emotions out into the world.
I have kept my hands busy with crochet. The repetition of “yarn over and pull up a loop” have been a helpful balm for me in these times.
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| Quincy, Illinois-based artist Ann Miller Titus. |
Learn more about Ann Miller Titus: www.annmillertitus.comand www.instagram.com/ann.titus
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| Featured in “Art St. Louis XXXVI, The Exhibition” at Art Saint Louis: Bob Rickert. “Freight Depot Number 1.” 2020. Digital Photograph on Paper, 25”x29”. $350. |
About the artist: Bob Rickert has been a photographer since childhood. He has created images throughout the world and has won numerous awards. He has sold images to both individuals and corporations for their collections. Bob's work has been exhibited at Art Saint Louis, St Louis Artists’ Guild, St Louis County Library, Old Orchard Gallery, Gateway Gallery, Chesterfield Arts, Barnes Hospital, Des Peres Hospital, The Vino Gallery, and more.
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| St. Louis area artist Bob Rickert. |
Roxanne Phillips: What is the best thing about St. Louis for your art practice?
Bob Rickert: St. Louis has a huge number of photo opportunities! This allows me to return to a subject several times in different light and weather conditions. Light and weather conditions are important to me to create images that are as interesting as possible.
In addition to a huge number of photo opportunities, St. Louis has a vibrant arts community with Art Saint Louis, the St. Louis Artists' Guild, the International Photography Hall of Fame, and the St. Louis Camera Club, to name a few organizations that are supportive of artists.
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| Bob Rickert. “Palouse Golden Hour Number 3.” 2017. Digital Photograph on Baryta Paper, 30”x26”. $350. |
RP: Describe your path from deciding you want to be an artist to becoming one.
BR: I was graduating from high school and I asked my Dad about going to art school for photography. His advice was to get a business degree first and if I wanted to pursue photography after working for a few years, I could do that later. That was the best advice I could have received. Unfortunately, there was a gap of 25 years when I did not really concentrate on photography. Fortunately, I traveled internationally for work, so I was able to practice photography on my trips.
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| Bob Rickert. “Tree at Crystal Bridges.” 2019. Digital Photograph on Baryta Paper, 26”x30”. $350. |
RP: What is it about your preferred medium that you enjoy the most?
BR: Growing up with a darkroom, I have always enjoyed black and white photography. Black and white photography is not as popular as color photography, so my work is differentiated. Telling a story or creating a composition in black and white requires a different thought process and I enjoy thinking in black and white when I am creating images.
RP: Do you have a studio routine? Most creative time of day to work. Process of thinking or setting up before you begin making?
BR: For me, it is important to work at my photography every day at least for some amount of time and it does not have to be all day. Generally, if I force myself to work for an hour on some photographs, I will find that I have spent 3 or 4 hours after I get going without even looking at the clock. The really great artists I have followed work at their craft every day just like a regular job. If I had to wait to be inspired before I started working, I might not spend much time at all on the work. Forcing myself to work creates inspiration.
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| Bob Rickert. “San Miguel Night Number 2.” 2016. Digital Photograph on Baryta Paper, 30”x26”. $350. |
RP: What advice would you give your younger artist self?
BR: Attempting to become an artist is quite different from trying to financially support yourself as an artist. Creating art without knowing that you need to sell the art is a real joy. I am not sure how well I would do if I had to sell my photographs.
RP: On what are you currently working?
BR: I have been concentrating on projects that might involve six or more images. I am finding that if I think in terms of a group of images (rather than single images) the result can be exciting. Most recently I have been working on groups of images from the Great Sand Dunes National Park in Eastern Colorado. Six prints from the sand dune images were selected for the Art Saint Louis “Honor Awards 2021” exhibit, juried by artist Amy MacLennan.
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| Bob Rickert. “Cathedral Basilica of St Louis Number 2.” 2019. Digital Photograph on Baryta Paper, 30”x26”. $350. |
RP: What motivates you to continue making art?
BR: Creating art is completely opposite to most things I do. Most of what I do involves numbers and the computer. While photography does require a lot of computer work – it is a different kind of computer work.
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| Bob Rickert. “Tree in Fog, Fire Hole Lake Number 3.” 2013. Digital Photograph on Baryta Paper, 30”x26”. $350. |
RP: Has rejection ever affected your creative process? If so, how?
BR: Rejection is part of an artist’s life. If an artist takes rejection personally it is a difficult situation. I know that my work will not be liked by everyone that I show it to. I have had experiences that entries were not accepted in an exhibition only to be accepted in another exhibition a few months later. Hopefully, I have learned from critiques of my work so I can improve my techniques. I know I will never please everyone but I do listen to comments and critiques and try to learn from them!
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| St. Louis area photographic artist Bob Rickert. |
Learn more about Bob Rickert: www.BobRickertPhotography.com
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| Featured in "Art St. Louis XXXVI, The Exhibition": Jay Torres, St. Louis, MO. “Medusa.” 2018. Graphite on Paper, 27”x21”. $700. Artist’s statement: “Medusa" is a part of my previous series, "The Incredible True Story", where I dove deep into different aspects of my life. We all have a story that makes us who we are! Medusa is a glimpse, a reflection and invitation into who I have been in one part of my incredible story.” |
Jacob (Jay) Alvarado Counsell Torres: The inspiration for my choice in subject matter at this point in my career is nature, like with Medusa in this exhibit, as well as the human body in some of my other work. This inspiration grew out of the sort of “realism” drawing style that I love to create. With the time-consuming detail that it takes to reach this “realism,” I get to spend time with the subject matter. I get to sit with it, I get to think about how it moves, how it looks in different light, how it feels, what the purpose of it is; this takes me into a deeper state than just putting graphite on a paper. In my previous works like "Torro," the bull has strong ties with my cultural background and how my people have killed so many of these beautiful animals for fun.
Through all the time that I have spent I have gained a new way of looking at nature. I’ve worked to take the time to see aspects of nature that are beyond just the thing in and of itself so I can experience all of “it” without having to draw everything. This dedicated, slowed appreciation of nature comes back around to bring me so much inspiration from something constantly overlooked like a piece of corn in Maiz (working title), which drives me to recreate its beauty in a drawing. It’s an inspiration cycle!
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| St. Louis-based artist Jacob (Jay) Alvarado Counsell Torres with some of his recent work. |
RP: Describe your artistic process/technique.
JT: In simple terms, the main technique I use is to gradually apply layers of graphite, using techniques like tonal sketching and blending, in specific areas at a time until I reach the desired shade, shape, texture, smoothness, and blending. The process for "Medusa"—my drawing in "Art St. Louis XXXVI"— was more difficult than others because I was striving for it to look semi transparent and delicate in certain areas, while at the same time being fully coalesced to achieve a sense of unison for the viewer. With this goal in mind, slowly and with precision, I applied graphite to very small areas so with the challenge to go over any one area too many times. My neck would hurt after a while because I would be so close to the drawing to be able to put in all the detail I wanted.
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| Jay Torres. “Torro.” 2018. Graphite on Paper. Sold. |
RP: What are you currently working on?
JT: In my personal life, I have been working on my ethnic identity and this has recently affected my work. Since coming to the states in 2004, US culture and politics have actively suppressed and repressed my Mexican pride and background. Through this journey of mine, I’ve delved into different aspects that make me Mexican, and one of the many things I rediscovered is my people’s food. The new piece I am working on, "Maiz" (working title), explores the beauty of the central item that has driven Mexican/LatinX foods and culture for centuries. While at the same time diving into the beauty of Mexicans and LatinX people. All while I try to ask and answer for myself, what are those things that make us who we are?
RP: What is the best thing about St. Louis for your art practice?
JT: There are a lot of aspects of St. Louis that are great for being an artist. The amount of exposure to different types of art in St. Louis is what stands out to me as the best. For example, I’ve had the opportunity to experience and work with both printmaking and mosaics. This exposure to different types of art comes from the rich artistic history in St. Louis, which has expanded my abilities as an artist and continues to help me in my focused medium of choice at this time!
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| Jay Torres. “Till My Last Breath.” 2019. Graphite on Paper, 38”x50”. $2,500. |
RP: Has rejection ever affected your creative process? If so, how?
JT: Yes. I put so much of myself in my art that I get attached to it. My art is a part of my story and who I am. Rejection for any type of artist is so hard.
I have an Instagram page where I post behind-the-scenes, progress pictures and finished products. But fear of rejection has led me to infrequently post my work. With that kind of platform, so many people are able to see my work and judge it instantaneously that I am sometimes afraid to post. I will begin and delete a post 35 times before actually posting anything if I ever get to like a post enough. Rejection will always be a part of creating, but I do my best to not let rejection affect the work that I want to do. When I am able to succeed in focusing on my work, my story, and what drives me, instead of the fear, I find a zone of genius where I freely create.
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| Jay Torres. “My Life.” 2017. Graphite on Paper, 50”x38”. $2,500. |
RP: Describe your dream studio.
JT: At the moment, it would be any studio! My current studio is my dining room table, and my previous studio was the corner of my bed and a storage ottoman that I used to put my pencils in. But my dream studio would be inside a repurposed building with a big open space and a lot of natural light. And for my absolute dream studio, I would want other people to be working there too. As such a communal person, being around lots of people throughout my day brings me life. Having others around me, talking, laughing, eating together, and creating their own art brings me motivation and joy. But I also get too distracted sometimes. So having the right balance of getting my people time and having time to be alone to just put my head down and work would be perfect. The other thing that would make this my dream studio is a good sound system! I absolutely lose myself in my work and get into a flow zone when blasting music.
RP: Do you have a studio routine? Most creative time of day to work? Process of thinking or setting up before you begin making?
JT: I wish it weren’t true, but my most creative time is at night, very late at night. I don't know why, but whether I have been working on art all day or haven’t touched my pencils all day, my ability to draw and to reach a flow zone at night is like no other time.
For my studio routine, I like to set out and organize the pencils I will be using in the HB scale! I also make sure to put them back in order when switching between pencils. I do not know why, I just do!
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| Jay Torres. “Complete.” 2019. Graphite on Paper, 8.5”x5.5”. $150. |
RP: Do you have a sketchbook? What kinds of things do you put in it?
JT: I do have a couple of sketchbooks. One of my favorite things to put in them is smaller/ less detailed work. These smaller pieces help me when I am stuck on a piece or am having issues figuring out my next piece. It is a refreshing way to keep drawing through artistically difficult times! The other thing I put in my sketchbooks are very rough sketches as I am working out a new piece. I will make many of these sketches at a time to configure how the piece should look. They are fun to make! It gives me a chance to think about all the possible compositions and of all the possible ways I can make this thing come to life.
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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. Roxanne is an adjunct art instructor at Washington University in St. Louis and has worked with Art Saint Louis since 2017 as Administrative Assistant and Installer. From 2018-2020 she was Master Printer for Pele Prints. 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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