{JASON FREIBURGER ANSWERS OUR QUESTIONS}
What medium(s) do you work in? and why is this your preferred medium?
I primarily work in wood, but non-traditional art materials always seem to work there way into the mix.
Who or what inspires you?
Who ( just to name a few, in no order)
-Richard Deacon
-Henry Moore
-H.R. Giger
-Andy Goldworthy
-North West coast native art ( Haida )
-All the amazingly talented people I have got to work with over the years ( you know who you are)
What
- Most recently, my works have begun exploring the connections between the built form (architecture, settlement patterns, etc) and nature.
-Architectural design
-Materials ( from new sustainable products, industrial building materials, to old found objects)
-Nature ( plant life/ insects/ aquatic life/ bones)
-Technology
-every days objects
-industrial machinery
-music is a strong influence on me also
Any wisdom you’d like to share about living as an artist?
Well lets face it, making a living in the creative arts is no easy task. There are very few of us that can do “our work” full-time, so what has worked for me is to have a day job that inspires or educates my own work. For example if you are a painter, work at a paint store or an Art supply store or as an assistant in a paint shop that paints boats or cars...you get the idea. Learn as much as possible about any aspect of that job that relates to you ... hell it’s better that flipping burgers, not something I wanted to do with my last name.
Also, Watching “reality TV” is wasting your own reality.
get off your ass and do it.
Is there anything in your art that you are afraid people might discover?
Can you describe what your best learning experience as an artist has been and how you grew from it?
I have heard from other artists that it’s hard for them to let go of they’re work, that’s never been a problem for me. As I’m finishing one I’m more interested in what to try next.
It’s also that my day job as a prop builder, I build things that I never get to use or somethings ever see on-set. When it’s done it’s gone.
As an artist how do you deal with criticism what do you think can be gained from being open to critique?
Open critiquing is great way to learn and to grow as an artist, there will be good and bad reviews so you do have to be thick skinned or at least hard of hearing. Remember it’s just they’re option, some other critic may think it’s great or it’s terrible, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. This is most of the time easier said than done, do your work for you first and for-most when it works the buyers will fallow.
Artists have to be creators, technicians and entrepreneurs .... What wisdom have you learned about the “business” of art that would help young developing artists to have more success in this area.
For the young developing artists out there PAY ATTENTION TO ALL YOUR CLASSES. I got into art for many reasons but mostly because I wasn’t that good at much else and didn’t what too. I resonantly took a public speaking class to try concur my fear of it, which was something I thought I would never have to do as an artist. There is a lot of chemistry in the arts, just ask a potter. Business that’s another big one, if you think your going to go to your studio and do what you do and produce amazing works and not have to go out and sell it, well if a tree falls in the forest....
Language/ Creative writing, it’s never ending, well look at what I’m doing now... then there are grants/ show proposals/ Bio/ CV...
Do you think it’s possible to develop artistic talent or do you feel that it is innate? Why do you think this way?
I think we are all “creative”, it’s more of being willing to let yourself explore that side of things. And I think people are more “creative” than they give themselves credit for.
For some it’s music/ painting/ creative writing/ landscaping/ interior design/ science....
wikipedia> Creativity is the ability to generate innovative ideas and manifest them from thought into reality. The process involves original thinking and then producing.
What work have you done that you are the most proud of and why?
Whatever I just finished. It’s the journey that’s most important.
Jason Freiburger is a Canadian artist and sculptor who lives and works in Hamilton, Ontario.
Working primarily as a wood turner, Jason combines the art of wood turning with the intrigue of non-traditional art materials. Jason's work has been featured at Arts on King, Toronto; the Carnegie Gallery, Dundas; Circle Arts, Tobermory and AllSorts Gallery, Hamilton . His work is celebrated in numerous private collections throughout Canada and the United States, including the Hamilton International Airport.
