Artist Interview: Cindy Davis

October 22, 2011

It’s been awhile since I’ve done an artist interview so I thought it was about time for another. In the past, I’ve interviewed artists Amy Komar, Miriam Badyrka, and Chris Ambrose and now I’d like to introduce Cindy Davis. As you know, I love whimsical, colorful art and that is what Cindy specializes in. I love her new flower series but I’ll let her explain more about that. Below is some of Cindy’s art and her interview. Enjoy!

What is your name and where do you come from?
Cindy Davis, originally from Memphis, Tennessee. Have lived all over the South, but now reside in Mountain Home, Arkansas.

What is the first thing you remember creating artistically?
a small daisy on a piece of notebook paper

What drives you to come up with ideas for your work, what are your sources of inspiration?
Usually I work my ideas out on canvas, and let the design come as it will. I don’t sketch much, always feel a little guilty about that. Sketching just doesn’t work for me, and it makes my hand cramp up! My inspiration comes in the studio while painting. I work best if I can relax and let the ideas come out while I play with color.

What are you painting right now?
I am working on a series of paintings called “Possibility Flowers”. They involve simple, bright shapes. Crazy bright, actually. The idea is to continue to paint them in different ways to see what is “possible”.

Where Has your artistic journey taken you so far?
I have shown, sold, and exhibited in some funky places over the years.

My little paintings have hung in coffee shops in small, sleepy southern towns that sell watermelons off the back of trucks and BBQ on the street.

I displayed at Junior League bazaars that were so southern they served up huge bowls of warm, buttered pecans – as a vegetable.

I have painted at a farmer’s market where a big, fat city councilman in a cheap suit and a gold tooth bought a painting of mine for cash and then proceed to make a speech to the crowd about supporting the little people. And yes, he really did say “little people” while looking at me.

I’ve been lucky to have a few upscale solo shows now and then in nice galleries with wine and cheese.

I repainted one entirely because affluent lady’s Feng Shui consultant didn’t like the name of the first one. We couldn’t rename it, the consultant insisted that it must be repainted. I said OK, and it turned out to be a lot of fun.

I tried to paint someone’s dog once. After much aggravation and a few hissy fits in my studio, I returned to tell her I just couldn’t do it. She would have to find another to paint the dog, it just wasn’t my thing. I don’t accept too many commissions anymore. They stress me out.

It’s all fun in it’s own way. I like people and find them interesting. Exhibiting is always an adventure for me. I am fortunate I don’t have much of a fear for making a fool of myself artistically. I really don’t so much about that. It’s too late to pull back now anyway so I might as well keep going. Paint your heart out, then bear your soul to the world. That’s the artist’s life.

What’s the view outside (or inside) from where you paint?
Right now I see my neighbor’s back yard. Studio views throughout the years have included a grain elevator, a pond, south Georgia pine trees, and four white walls.

How do you title your pieces and is a title important to you?
Titles aren’t very important to me. Usually by the time I finish a piece the title has revealed itself to me, so I slap it right on.

What other artists inspire you?
I have always favored post-impressionists Paul Gauguin and Paul Cezanne. Lately, I have been into pop artist Romero Britto and of course I have followed Peter Max for years.