Interview: Meghan Howland

When I first saw painter Meghan Howland's work I immediately started asking questions. Howland seems to capture a moment in a greater story, through her depiction of austere and distant subjects to the atmospheric quality of her painting style. Her work pulls you in and make you want to know more.
Luckily the artist agreed to do a brief interview with me to give us some insight into who she is and her motives and inspiration behind her work.

Where are you from? 
I was born in Massachusetts, but actually grew up in New Hampshire. It was a very rural, foggy place. Definitely a fun place to explore as a kid/draw a lot inside for want of things to do.


Where are you now?

I live in Portland, Maine. I like the energy here, and the people. It's not so hectic like New York City... its calmer, but everyone is doing things and making things. There's a really awesome art scene here and the music scene is amazing. It's also pretty great living two blocks from the ocean. 

What inspires your work?

Oh, all sorts of things. Most of the paintings are of people or objects that are around me constantly. They are definitely personal artworks that take on a sort of documenting of my life at the time. But I like infusing them with a certain mood in mind. I don't think I set out to announce any sort of direct clear message. I think the important thing about my art to me is it's way of communicating without so many words or explanations. There is a power in that. 

What is your medium of choice and how does it inform your work?

I like oils. They can be so gleaming and clear and thick but also mucky and thin if you want them to be. It's definitely this thrill of adding and taking away and sometimes doing something by accident that is exactly just right sometimes. Its easier for me to let go of overworking/overthinking something because of it's messy qualities. I mean, there are definitely some paintings in my studio that will probably never see the light of day because of this, but they were all part of the process. Maybe I'll pick them up again once the answer hits me, or maybe not. There are some things I've made in a week, others have taken years to be finished.

Your paintings seem to capture a moment in a larger story. Do you create or base your work after some type of narrative?

I guess if that were true it would probably be one of my own life and the people in it. Everything is pretty personal as I said, but I think the things they capture tend to be pretty universal. I do try to tap into that balance.

Could you discuss some of the repeating motifs in your work i.e. Birds, the hidden or obstructed face, etc.?

Well, I definitely wasn't thinking about Hitchcock when I started them... The bird paintings aren't really about birds, per say. They are more about the tension they create alongside the unmoving, unfazed portrait. It's kind of an impossible thing when you think about it, I feel like it's more natural for people to react. I used them at first because they represent things to me personally, a sort of mascot for that time period. I wanted the birds to feel like more of a perplexing embrace to this person, rather than a violent attack. The moments that I choose to paint are really as much about what you show and explain as it is about what you don't show and explain. It ignites imagination... which is far more powerful than being told any one story. It could even take away from said awesome moment.

What do you want your viewers to take away from seeing your paintings?

I think it's just a connecting with people thing. Whether they feel an empathy toward the subject or its mood or if its negative and scary or beautiful, is really for them to decide, not me. For me I am just trying to get something out that feels urgent and important for me to do so.

Do you have any new projects or shows coming up?

I do! I have a show this weekend actually at the Rochester Museum of Fine Art. I'm pretty excited for it. I've started painting some figurative works, one a pretty massive painting in my studio, but that wont be shown until this summer, in both Provincetown and Brooklyn.

Where can we see/purchase your work? 

I keep my website updated for exhibition information etc - www.meghanhowland.com

To inquire about purchasing a work you can contact either myself via email or Bowersock Gallery at 508.487.4994

Or you can come knock on my studio window at 131 Washington and we can geek out about painting together.