The Crossroads of Creativity and Urban Life
Organized by The Bridge Arts Foundation, the "Urban Pulse" Open Call Exhibition is now on view at The Scholart Selection Gallery in San Gabriel, California, running through February 22, 2025.
As part of the exhibition, The Bridge Arts Foundation’s Art Director, Tia Xu, sat down with several participating artists to discuss their creative process and artistic vision. In this interview, we are delighted to feature a conversation with artist Marc Chicoine.
—— Q&A ——
Tia Xu: Could you please share your background and what inspired you to pursue a career in art?
Photo courtesy of the artist.
Marc Chicoine: My foray into visual art was roundabout. I started painting at an early age but didn’t dedicate myself seriously to the practice until my early 20s. I was primarily focused on freestyle dance, which I started at a young age in the Bay Area. After attending undergrad in Chicago, I continued to pursue House Dance at its point of origin, NYC. I was inspired by and continue to practice this dance form alongside Capoeira. While in the big apple I pursued visual design to pay the bills, and danced in the ‘after hours’. A number of my movement teachers saw my visual work and encouraged me to continue growing, including House Dance mentors Cebo, Sekou, and James ‘Cricket’ Colter. I’d never taken myself seriously as ‘an artist’ until they expressed I had potential. After 4 years I pursued an MFA at the Pratt Institute. I see dance, sculpture, and painting as all embodied processes that bridge technical structure with improvisation, in order to express.
Tia Xu: What does "Urban Pulse" mean to you, and how does your artwork explore this theme? Can you tell us the story behind your artwork from the exhibition?
Marc Chicoine, The Road Ahead, 2024, Acrylic, Oil Pastel, Resin, Markers, 48 x 36 in, photo courtesy of the artist.
Marc Chicoine: To me, Urban Pulse is a convergence of forces found only through the energy of an area of many walks of life. It’s the convergence of bodies, ideologies, and the cross pollination of creative potential. This entanglement is what ultimately creates the novel combinations that move culture forward. The Road Ahead attempts to capture this highly volatile energy and use it to depict a portrait in a neo-cubist form. The environment is just as dynamic as the figure, and at times it proves difficult to differentiate between the two. Surviving the urban sprawl and finding your door, or way, feels similar to the wondrous chaos depicted.
Tia Xu: What materials and techniques do you prefer to use in your art, and could you explain your choices?
Marc Chicoine: I enjoy using traditional oils, as well as very ‘crude’ mediums like tempera paint sticks for preschoolers. I find different ranges of creativity through them, from impulsive and improvisational, which lends itself to the more immediate modes, as well as more disciplined and craft based. This range allows me to explore both even within the context of one piece. I also enjoy exploring new mediums that can bend what is considered painting, sculpture, or world building. Resin has proved incredibly versatile for this exploration because it allows me to separate layers like an oil painting but magnifies the distance between layers to far greater effect.
Tia Xu: Are there any artists or art movements that have had a significant influence on your work? If so, why?
Photo courtesy of the artist.
Marc Chicoine: I’m greatly inspired by the works of De Chirico as well as Toulous Lautrec. I like De Chirico because his focus on the ‘metaphysical’ inspires much of my work, and one of my favorite places to reside is the sweet spot between the real and the surreal. I believe his works, especially those presented in a sudo religious context, lend themselves to this liminal space. Toulouse Lautrec I’ve always loved for the rhythms and dynamism in his paintings. I also enjoy his background; how he chose to deviate from the conventional subject matter in Paris in order to capture the essence of the forgotten people. He suffered in life due to medical constraints but was one who chose humor. He used to hand out business cards that said something along the lines of : ‘ Toulouse Lautrec, worst painter alive’.
Tia Xu: What emotions or ideas do you hope viewers will take away from experiencing your artwork?
Marc Chicoine: I hope that they see that chaos in an environment is a catalyst for growth, even in its most confusing state. This is ever more relevant in this time period as the world fluctuates around us, environmentally, socially, politically, unfortunately often at the expense of others.
The Bridge Arts Foundation's "Urban Pulse" Open Call Exhibition Installation View, Photo: ©The Bridge Arts Foundation / Luna Hao
ABOUT OPEN CALL EXHIBITION PROGRAM
The Bridge Arts Foundation's "Urban Pulse" Open Call Exhibition Installation View, Photo: ©The Bridge Arts Foundation / Luna Hao
Bridge Arts Foundation's Open Call Exhibition Program is committed to supporting emerging artists by providing them with opportunities to showcase their work. "Urban Pulse" features 16 outstanding artists selected from over 100 submissions through a rigorous jury process involving art professionals. This exhibition runs from January 20th to February 22nd, 2025, at The Scholart Selection Gallery, offering a dynamic exploration of the energy, complexity, and human connections within urban spaces.
ABOUT ARTIST
Marc Chicoine
Marc Chicoine is a visual artist and dancer born in the Bay Area of California. He received his BA from Chicago-based Northwestern University in Cognitive Science and Communication. He then moved to NYC in order to pursue freestyle dance and further develop his creative ambitions. After designing within the education technology sector, Marc returned to school and received his MFA from the Pratt Institute. He recently relocated his studio practice to Raleigh, North Carolina, and actively moves between Raleigh and NYC.
Marc's paintings and sculptures focus on bodily narrative, physical objects, and their relationship, in order to craft metaphor. These orchestrated forces merge and occasionally clash with one another to express universal and personal truths. Marc has exhibited across the United States. Showings include the Pratt Institute, Rhode Island Watercolor Society, Art League RI, Viridian Artists :), D'art Gallery Denver, Ashton Gallery San Diego, and Attleboro Arts Museum, amongst others. In free time, Marc enjoys sharing on the dance floor. He is a longtime practitioner of House dance and Capoeira. Marc believes that his movement practice is integral to his visual work, creatively, rhythmically, and gesturally. Both systems of expression bridge technical prowess with improvisation.