ARTS
Artist gambles
in marketing art
you get someone to sponsor
you- to get your name out,”
Lais said. He said he found
that he was spending more on
the gallery work than he was
getting back.
By D. Dietrich
Lais said He spends approx
imately 5 hours on a typical
portrait but can easily spend
more time as the detail in
creases.
As Einstein flunked grade
school math, artist Chip Lais
flunked his high school draw
ing class. Now Lais is attemp
ting to make a living with his
unique style of drawing. With
thousands of minute dots,
Lais is able to create subtle
dimensions and shadowing on
the subjects he recreates from
photographs.
i Working in his Molalla
home, Lais only recently
began working on portraits he
said. At a friend’s request, he
¡ventured from the more
natural themes (“I like trees a
work from. Also an amateur
photographer, Lais said he
likes the photography part the
best. After the photogragh is
made, the drawing board is
where he literally “fills in the
dots.”
Lais works part-time in the
print shop at the Clackamas
Community College but
spends much of the rest of his
time working on his art and
trying his hand at marketing
his designs. The market isn’t
always an easy one to make a
name in and Lais is finding
problems in circulating his
work.
Breaking into the art market
I lot”) he usually drew to mak-
I |ing portraits for several
I friends.
. Lais
begins
by
I photographing his subjects
I and picking the best shot to
Art by Chip Lais
is a problem for many beginn
ing artists, and Lais found that
submitting work to galleries
wasn’t the best way to get his
name around. “You can’t
really survive in galleries until
Of The Print
He works for what is a low
hourly charge for the artistic
market, at $12.50 an hour,
time is money. With a second
child due in August, time is
something Lais can’t afford to
waste.
Lais has been supplemen
ting his part-time income with
an assortment of projects for
friends and fellow artists. Sup
plying the illustrations for an
upcoming book of poetry by
Joanne Stevens Sullivan, a stu
dent at the College is one such
project. He has also designed
stationary, t-shirt designs and
company logos.
Artist Chip Lais works part-time in the print shop at the College.
His printing experience adds to a comprehensive knowledge of
art production.
Influence from other artists designs and portraits are a
is important to one’s own homemade drawing table,
style, Lais said. “The essence technical pens and pencils.
Lais recently won a com of art you get studying ¡other And while that’s all he re
petition held for a design he people. You build your own quires for his work right now,
entered as a logo for the style from influences, other Lais hopes someday to work
Garden Show held at the col- wise you’ll stagnate.” Lais into color artwork. Lais is up
liseum. As often is the case, said. Although he didn’t study against a saturated market, as
Lais said the best of the five technique in school, Lais said are most new artists.
designs submitted was not the he has been drawing since he
Although he would like to
winning entry.
was a kid. He credited his in land a job as an in-house artist
Lais hasn’t had much for spirations originating from for a company, now Lais is in
mal education in the art Held, underground comic books, terested in a wide variety of
but believes “the work should namely Robert Crumb who is free-lance jobs. With a strong
speak for itself.” He plans to noted for his ‘Keep on dedication and about half his
return to school next fall and Truckin’ poster, and other paycheck going to art supplies,
take classes at Portland Com “perverted publications”, Lais admits the future is risky.
munity College in advertising, Lais said with a grin.
“I’m a gambler right now,”
art and business. He com
Working at home, the only he said seriously, “I’m gambl
mented on the high quality of _4pols Lais uses for his intricate ing that it will pay off.”
the Graphic Process class that
Kevin Forney teaches at the
College and said that it helped
him learn short cuts used in
commercial art.
Uos
Student art exhibt underway
I By Shelley Ball
I Of The Print
“It’s a pretty diversified
I kind of show,” Les Tipton,
I art instructor said in regards to
I this year’s Student Art Show,
II which will be on display from
I ¡May 23 to June 4 at
I ¡Clackamas Community Col-
I lege.
• On display in the upstairs
I ¡lobby of the Art Center and
I ¡ the Pauling Center Gallery
I i beginning May 23 will be
I metal, wood and clay
I [sculptures, ceramics, jewelry,
I paintings, drawings, basic
I design and commercial art
1 works and other wood and
■ metal projects.
The exhibit is an annual
event for the College’s Art
Department and will feature
works of art from between 50
and 70 College student artists.
In addition to the exhibit
and its opening reception,
which will be from 7-9 p.m.
May 23, the Art Department
will be holding an end-of-the-
year celebration earlier that
day.
“It’s (exhibit) just a nice
thing to show the capability of
the students at the College,”
Upton said. Organized by art
students and their instructors,
the students will be involved in
setting up the exhibit on Tues
Chn«.
day and Wednesday in
preparation for opening night
Thursday.
As for the show itself, Tip
ton said there will be a
“tendency for more abstrac
tion to be involved, (and) the
human figure will be displayed
quite a bit.” Some of this
abstract work will be in the
form of paintings.
There is the possibility some
of the work on display will be
for sale. Tipton said anyone
interested in purchasing any
art work should try to contact
the student artist at the Art
Department at 657-8400, ext.
386.
Clackamas Community College student Sue Souvanna shares
information about her homeland, Laos, during International
Coffee Hour, Tuesday in the small dining room.
Page 5
■ Wednesday, May 22, 1985
SlgS