The artist himself is quiet and unassuming but has a keen eye for composition and has the skills to back it up. Much of the inspiration for Chris’ artwork derives from his respect and reverance for living things.
“I’m part of a movement to bring about change in our society, and globally, in the way that humans and non-humans...coexist. So we can share this planet with not only ourselves but those that truly and naturally belong here.
“If we can’t share this planet with those who naturally live here then we don’t belong here.”
He has with him a stack of posters, reading “Minutes of Entertainment, Lifetime of Misery” which features a tormented circus elephant shackled in a filthy concrete stall. He and his fiance Brendda LaFleshe are involved with local animal-rights groups such as Peace for Animals and Nature, Compassion for Animals.
Hogue shows me a painting titled “The Agony of Animals” and explains some of the connections to his artwork.“Animals must be included in our circle of compassion. Other species are equal to us in feeling, and it really angers me when they are not treated with respect. I choose colors – dark red, black and dark blue – representing my rage and sadness. When I started painting it I didn’t have any imagery in my mind – I searched for it in the piece as I painted. I made subconcious choices and subconciously I’m looking at myself and for myself in the painting. I’m only expressing myself – I will only find myself in there.”
“It ended with a person with their arms out. They have surrendered, they have to accept the way it is. After I finished painting I felt calm and none of those negative feelings remained. In a way the colors extracted my emotions.”
The painting is abstract and I have difficulty finding the figure, until quite suddenly it pops off of the canvas. I begin to appreciate the subtle complexity of the piece as more details begin to emerge – animal faces, trees, bodies. Chris suddenly becomes distracted, lost in the painting. With his hands he traces out some of the linework on the left side of the piece.
“If I take away some of the lines I can open up some of the other colors. If I take away some of the crowding on the left side I can open up the whole picture.”
Now aware of my gaze, he turns to me with a sheepish grin, “I want to create something beautiful. I paid $60 for this canvas and I don’t want it to go to waste.”
Hogue’s works will be showing at the Sky Dragon Center during August. An opening reception for the show will be held on August 13th during the James St N. Art Crawl. All are welcome to attend.
