CH.89: If you were to categorize or describe the style of your artwork, what would it be and why?
TH: Wabi-sabi. I try very hard to allow the natural form of the wood to be the star attraction. Keep design elements to a minimum
CH.89: Where do you draw your inspiration from?
TH: Nature as a rule. It could be anything from the shape of a mud puddle, to the antennae of an insect. Bends in flower stems or tree branches are other examples. Those are the visual inspirations. However, I have become inspired by the feelings I have within me. There were (and still are) times when I wondered if a person would like my work. Now, I’m trying to trust my intuition and allow my connection to the universe to guide me.
CH.89: Can you talk a little bit about what your creative thought process is like when starting a new project/ piece of artwork?
TH: It starts very broad – as in wanting to make more vases. Then I go about my days thinking about how those can be different and I literally look around me wherever I am. I have always been big on observing people and surroundings. That is where many times I found an answer and it hits me internally.
CH.89: Is there anything in particular that you would want people to take from your artwork?
TH: Slow down and stare. And ask yourself “what do you see”? When I apply this habit to people, I have a greater chance of seeing something beautiful in them I may have otherwise missed because I’m in a hurry.
CH.89: Can you talk a little bit about your lifestyle as an artist and what that is like?
TH: The older I get the less I want in my life (except footwear and jeans) -I’m still working on those. Too many options around me is stressful. Eliminate as much “noise” and allow your creativity to thrive.
CH.89: When starting out an artistic task, do you think it is better to have a particular direction/set plan guiding your way? Or, is it better to act on impulse and go from there?
TH: I need some framework or else I will get off task. In fact, I am spending time this weekend cleaning/purging/organizing up my shop. Currently, when I walk in I am becoming overwhelmed with all of the tools and woods and I immediately think of other things I can do. Then, nothing ever gets completed. Therefore, planning with a realistic timetable is important. I will go as far as to communicate my goals to someone so I feel a sense of accountability
CH.89: What is one major lesson you’ve learned as an artist thus far?
TH: Trust my instincts.
CH.89: Do you regard personal style & taste to be of highest importance?
TH: No. Mental/spiritual/physical wellness.
CH.89: What do you consider to be the hardest thing about being an artist?
TH: Pushing through those times when there seems to be zero inspiration or motivation.
CH.89: What is one thing you love about being an artist?
TH: Allowing me to be my true self. Only if I am following my own instincts.
CH.89: Is there anyone in particular, any artist’s that inspire you in any way?
TH: Alejandro Escovedo (musician). As an artist he’s never made it “big” or became a marquee entertainer. But I’m guessing that was not his goal. He wrote good stories, assembled a great live band and toured. He’s in his 70’s today and still touring like a fiend telling his story. And…along the way he was stricken with Hepatitis-C when for many during his illness it would have meant death. He took time off a few years, came back and became a prolific writer.
CH.89: What do you think of technology in terms of being a useful tool for artists today?
TH: I once believed it would make a positive difference for me on the design/production front. Then I learned that my style of infusing the physics of the universe to influence my work was at jeopardy to the aesthetic. From a communication front, it has been excellent. Getting your voice out there is much easier in many ways.
CH.89: Do you think being an artist allows you to view the world differently from those who don’t follow creative paths?
TH: YES! In a previous life I worked for a commercial branch of a biotech company. Your goals were always around productivity (i.e. maximize sales minimize cost). You adapt over time to focus strictly on sales execution and not about people or surroundings, culture etc. As an artist you not only focus on the contribution your items created to enrich one’s life but the appreciation for the skills we have been given. In college a history professor once said “we celebrate the work of an architect but don’t think twice about how much more of an achievement it is for microscopic elements to make greater things like coral reefs”. That was 25 years ago and it still causes me to pause and wonder
CH.89: Do you enjoy traveling? If so, do you have a favorite city?
TH: Yes. However, I don’t think there is anything more grand than going to the beach on Lake Michigan. Strictly because looking at the water when few people are there and watching the birds fly over is spectacular.
CH.89: Do you have a favorite author or book?
TH: Seven Story Mountain -Thomas Merton
CH.89: Any future goals or plans for your artwork?
TH: Vessels turned of green wood and then allowed to dry into asymmetrical shapes. Nature doing its thing.
CH.89: What does being an artist mean to you?
TH: Honesty- with who I am.
CH.89: What’s the last song you listened to?
TH: A kinks song but I can’t recall the title. The last song I really dug was Grateful Dead – “Fire on the mountain”
CH.89: Any last words on the aesthetic of your artwork?
TH: Jeff Tweedy of Wilco has a line in a song about we are related to the stars. I do believe we are all interconnected. The physicist Neil DeGrasse Tyson said “We are connected: to each other biologically. To the earth chemically. To the rest of the universe atomically.” This I believe to be true. Whatever we make as artist should feel intuitively “right” to us in order to mesh with our surrounding.
CHAPTER89 