Meghan Noe, an EAC Intern, writes about Dean Habegger's Exhibition Material Matters: Uncommon Approaches to Mixed Media, displayed in our Second Floor Gallery from July 6 - June 28, 2024:
On display from July 6-28 in the EAC’s second floor gallery, Dean Habegger’s Material Matters: Uncommon Approaches to Mixed Media invites EAC guests to embark on a vibrant journey into color and mixed media. Habegger’s pieces are rich with personal symbolism and iconography, blending painting, drawing, mixed media collage, assemblage, and dried organic materials into a tapestry of artistic evolution. Embracing non-linear methods, Habegger allows each artwork to traverse different periods, revisiting and refining his pieces until they reach a unique state of completion.
We caught up with Dean to delve deeper into his exhibition at the EAC this month, and here’s what he had to say:
In your Artist Statement, you mentioned being influenced by “sources outside the world of art” and “always staying connected to your personal history.” Could you elaborate on how your background and artistic education shape your current artistic practice? Do you find these influences steady, or do they evolve over time?
In college while my studies in painting progressed, I had a couple of professors who would often talk about staying connected to our own history as a way of making our work personal and unique. So, I have made an effort to think about and analyze how my small town upbringing has informed my art. Along with learning to revere hard work, three things continue to have an influence: being raised in a conservative Christian family and church; having a few relatives who created art; and well made quilts and other crafts.
I had one teacher in college who was very astute in encouraging not only developing technically and learning from art history but also looking to other aspects of life and culture besides the art world. The biggest influence on my work became jobs I had - particularly scenic painting and picture framing.
To the viewer, mixed-media pieces are beautiful and perfectly completed creations but it is difficult to imagine how they came to life and contain all the elements they do. Could you share your process for starting these pieces and how you determine which materials to incorporate?
In college I wanted to go beyond just stretching a canvas and painting. So I created large constructed pieces combining paint with materials such as cardboard, wood/plywood, wall paneling, canvas, burlap, window screen and fragments of salvaged items from old opera sets.
The process is at its core, spontaneous. I take a panel/surface and a variety of found materials along with paint and/or drawing media and start adding and subtracting various elements until I like what develops.
At the EAC, we see artists of all ages dedicated to their craft every day. What advice do you have for aspiring artists, particularly those interested in pursuing a career in teaching or creating art?
In a practical sense, the best advice I got early on was to "just keep your hands busy." Ideas always happen by just physically working.
To sustain a career, the main thing is to decide if art is a general interest or your life's work. If it's your life's work, you need to make a commitment to being a responsible caretaker of the aspects of your artistic life which you determine are the most important.
As you progress through the art life you will definitely face rejection and difficulties. It's important to stay curious and open to ideas and opportunities.