Jeff Felker
Year born, location, education?
I was born in the spring 1980. I currently reside in Sacramento California. I have a Masters of Arts in English Literature, a BA in English and a minor in art studio. Although my formal education was not centered in the arts, I found that the visual aspect of literature was very informative in relation to painting.
How long have u been living there?
All my life, I haven’t lived anywhere else long enough to count.
Where do you get your inspiration?
I think it starts with people in general. Considering my background in literature, I’m very interested in the narratives of people I meet. I’d say half of my models are people that I don’t know very well, so that aspect of the unknowable creates possibilities. In many of those instances I’ve been able to form relationships with people I wouldn’t otherwise have and I think that adds a deeper layer to the process. At times, I’ll reflect deeper into my educational background and I’ll paint a series kind of like a written composition. I’ll consider literary theory and attempt to synthesize that in a visual composition.
What's your favourite color?
My favorite color outside of painting is green. In painting I think I tend to get more into teal and red. I currently like more muted colors and browns.
When are you the most productive?
I have a full time job at a local college and I also teach part-time so I rarely find time to paint when the sun is still up. Mostly, late at night while netflixing tv/movies or listening to music. I need to have something going on in the background.
Where is your favourite vacation-spot?
I love NYC, I’ve been there more times than I can count. I love architecture and the city can often be very refreshing and inspirational, which is often counter to the harsh realties. Their pizza can be inspirational. Mendocino Coast is also another favorite.
What kind of music do you like?
This is such a general question, so I’ll answer with my last five purchases by band name: Metric, Arctic Monkeys, Refused, Circa Survive, and the Zooey Deschanel Christmas Album.
Any exhibitions planned?
Currently showing at Modern Eden Gallery in San Francisco. I curated this show, Wayward Fairy Tales, with Glenn Arthur. We put together a solid line up (Leilani Bustamante, Jason Levesque, Aunia Kahn, Ahren Hertel, Chelsea Greene and Kelly Castillo) and had a fantastic opening night. I’ll be participating in another show with the gallery this summer. Art for the show can be seen here: http://moderneden.myshopify.com/collections/wayward-fairy-tales
What is your favourite material to work on?
Currently, I have been doing a lot of experimenting with various types of wood, but I’m drawn more to canvas. I haven’t found anything that has superseded a solidly put together canvas.
What are your tools? (special pens, colors etc)
My process starts off with photographing models or landscape etc. and Photoshop. My paints are mostly low toxicity water permeable oils: Winsor Newton, Duo, Gambline etc. For certain pigments I use Utrecht standard oils. I have an assortment of brushes mostly in the 6-0000 ranges.
