Luke Buchanan: Life is Rich and Full

June, 03, 2010 , by David

Top: Cup-a-Joe, Above: Invitation

This winter Luke Buchanan told me that he was enjoying searching for the reasons why he makes his work. We had talked at length before about the paintings, and on the eve of his 31st birthday, I mentioned that my mom, a painter, had said that artists often don’t have a lot to say before they reach 30. Buchanan thought on this and now says “it’s not about age so much, but that I have been showing for 10 years.”

Buchanan’s work was consistently beautiful stuff, imagery of the bygone days of the industrial south juxtaposed with the preservation of the architecture of our agricultural heritage. The work often told a history of the structures as archetype. Paintings like this speak to me deep down. A North Carolina native, I would project my experience of this place on the work. In two shows opening this week, Buchanan shifts that story to his own, the young artists blossoms with an emotional honesty well beyond anything we have seen from him before. Suddenly Buchanan’s layered work has taken on an intimacy and personal reflection that is easily understood by other Raleigh locals.

Rebus describes the evolution of the work in this statement:

Instead of focusing on the collective but unknown stories (the “spiritual residue and shared memories” as Buchanan calls it) of a building or urban landscape, the artist has chosen places of importance in his life, concentrating on the intersection of personal memory and place for this new body of work in Life is Rich and Full. Having discovered boxes filled with “old school papers, flyers, letters, phone numbers, photos, drawings and notes,” the material informed this new direction, instructing a narrative built between the paintings and locations. Treating these artifacts much like the nuts and bolts attached to past paintings, these paper-based materials also served as time-based reminders, calling to attention songs associated with the place. Because they are tied to distinct moments, the locations (like the Hillsborough street Cup-a-Joe, Wiley Elementary, and Lassiter Mill) connect to his life’s past soundtracks, albums like The Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds, Thin Lizzy’s Johnny Fox, and Leonard Cohen’s Songs of Love and Hate, to name a few. Coincidentally, the artist names making mixed tapes (and their covers) his second passion.

I talked with Luke about some of what I was seeing in the work he had some interesting things to say.

Do you think this show represents a major change for you?

I think it is a big turning point. I am using more stuff that’s mine. It’s more personal. Rather than it being about everyone’s experience it’s about mine. Also the drawings, I have always done them but never shown anybody them. I have put them online but haven’t had a show.

The drawings are more technical like drafting, sort of cartoons. The paintings are richer and more serious.

What do you think you are learning about yourself?

Aesthetically - I have realized things I thought looked good- things that I have saved. I realized I can rely on my aesthetic. I can concentrate on the important elements & let the rest just be. Gesture can have meaning without obessesing over some foliage. That could be a metaphor for my life.

If you were to move how do you think that would effect the work?

I have thought about that. The smaller paintings at Rebus. A lot are paintings in the past I meant to do. [parapharasing.. I was tempted to bring in paintings of NYC, of Paris. But I kept it in Raleigh] I wanted to focus on the town and things that have happened in Raleigh. These are my favorite places. I don’t want to move, instead I have been focusing on moving my friends back here. I have talked alot with Ashley [Christensen, of Poole’s] about moving all the things we want from other places to Raleigh, rather than moving.

Tonight Thursday, June 3, with a reception from 6-10 p.m at Rebus Works. Tomorrow on June 4th at Stitch a reception from 6 -10 p.m for Buchanan’s drawings.

drawing at Stitch