A hair for the arts: Part one
Local comedian Graham Clark isn’t afraid to get his beard dirty

By Angela Espinoza, Arts Editor

none of my many intrepid ~
(estes. stumbled upon some

comedy gold. Hidden behind a
marsh of golden tufts emerged a comedian
by the name of Graham Clark. While
Graham co-hosts Stop Podcasting Yourself,
a weekly Vancouver-based podcast, he’s
also found a higher calling for beards
everywhere. Graham ventured down to
speak with us about what it’s like to paint
with his beard, and how it’s all for a good.
cause.
What is a Graham Clark?
Graham Clark: According to the Internet,
a Graham Clark is a very popular rugby
player in the UK. He is also.a very well
respected Shakespearean actor, and a world-
class jazz violinist. So yeah, those are three
of the great Graham Clarks.
How did you discover beard painting?
GC: I discovered [beard painting]
because of a suggestion from two friends,
Charlie Demers and Ivan Decker. They
were making fun of my beard because it
had gotten crazy; it looked like a hedge,
‘and ‘they said like, “Oh, you should do a
painting, like how an elephant paints with
its trunk.” So I tried it, just because it
sounded like that might actually look kind
of cool — just [to] hang up on my wall and
say I did that. Then I mentioned it on [Stop
Podcasting Yourself] and it rolled out from
there, and I was like, “If I can sell this,
I'll give the money to my friend” — she

was trying to raise money for her cancer
treatment outside of the country.

She had sent out a group email to all
her friends [asking if we had] any ideas
of ways to raise money [and to let her]
know. So I said, “Yeah, I’ll give you all
the money that I make from selling these
beard paintings.” The reaction was really
good, some people just pitched in money,
they didn’t even ask for a painting, which
was great. [We] raised a lot of money for
her, and her friends all came together and
did silent auctions and all this stuff and she
was able to get the treatment, so it felt really
good to do that. So I just kept doing [beard
paintings] and I hope to keep doing it, and I
hope that there’s a growing interest in it so
I can keep giving the money to people who
need it.
Can you describe the process of beard

“painting?

GC: Yeah, it’s really hard on the neck, and
the lower back, because you’re hunched ©
over the whole time, since [your] face has
to be right next to the canvas. I tie up my
beard with a hair elastic so it’s more brush-
like, and then I manipulate it with my hand.
Usually I do a sketch beforehand so I know
what I’m going for, but you can’t control a
beard like a brush; it goes left, it goes right,
you just have to go with what happens.
Who is your beard role model?
GC: Like whose beard do I look up to? Oh
that’s a good question, I haven’t been asked
that yet. You know what, there was this
guy-I think it was in Esquire—he was like a

longshoreman. They did a spread of average
working guys in upscale clothes, and this
guy had like an Atlantis beard! It went all
the way down to his belly, and it twisted
around and it was grey, it was amazing. It
looked like something out of Dr. Seuss, you
know? So when I saw that longshoreman
[from] New Jersey or something, it was
like, I think that guy has the greatest beard.
What did you have in store for your
gallery show at the Olio Festival (Sept.
22)?

GC: Well, the idea of this particular show
was that the pieces for sale, if you were the
‘purchaser, you would get to decide where
the money goes. So if you liked the SPCA,
and you [wanted your] money to go [there],
I would donate it to the SPCA and you
would get a painting. So yeah, that’s the
theme behind the show, that everyone gets
to pick [the charitable] destination of their
purchase.

Do you have any other beard-tastic
events coming up? ;

GC: After [the gallery show] I’m gonna
work on a series [of] prints, and sell a
limited run of those for charity—all the
money from beard painting will always

go to charity. Then I’m gonna work with

a couple of artists I know in Seattle.

They make paintings that they cover ina
certain type of plastic, and then they put
suction cups on the backs so you hang [the
paintings] inside your shower. So I’m gonna
work with them probably on a limited set.
And on [Wednesday October 5] at Paul

 

Anthony’s Talent Time, I’ll be doing my

_ first-ever live beard painting. I guess I’ll

start at the beginning of the show and by
the end we’ll have a finished beard painting.
Then I don’t know what I’m gonna do with
it, maybe Ill sell it online, or maybe I'll see
if I can just sell it at the show. I think maybe
that’s what Ill do; I’ll auction that one off
at the show.

For more information about Graham Clark’s
Beard Paintings, go to www.beardpaintings.
com to keep in the beard know! Be sure

to check out Graham’s live beard painting
next Wednesday October 5 at the Biltmore
Cabaret ($8 at the door). And don’t forget to
pick up next week’s issue of the Other Press
for part two of our interview with Graham,
where he’ll discuss more about Stop
Podcasting Yourself, and of course, beards!

_

Graham Clark

 

Crawling with ambition
_Fantastical bugs at the Amelia Douglas Gallery’s current exhibit

By Julia Siedlanowska, Arts Reviewer

lhe Greenlinks 2011: Insects exhibit
is about much more than pretty
; colours. The Douglas College

Institute of Urban Ecology, in collaboration
with artists Tiko Kerr and Ivan Droujinin,

have created a multi-dimensional art exhibit

highlighting insects. Displayed at the
Amelia Douglas Art Gallery, the exhibit
features over forty paintings and an insect
display, uniting artist rendition and reality
to shake up our perception of the organisms
we often swat away.

“This exhibit is part of a series of
Greenlinks gallery exhibits that we have
done more or less annually for many years.
The idea is to highlight some of the work
that IVE does and exhibit complementary
visual art alongside our display,” says
Director of the Institute of Urban Ecology,
Robert McGregor. Artist Tiko Kerr, an avid
gardener with an undergraduate degree in
biology, has both a scientific and creative
perspective on the subject. “I’m attempting
to demystify beneficial insecticides and
portray them as a lively and accessible way

 

for the public to discover there are better
options for pest control rather than going
the chemical route,” says Kerr. Biological
control through predatory and parasitic
insects may be the ecologically responsible
route, but it is predominantly used in
“protected culture” (for example, vegetable
and floriculture greenhouses). “The efficacy
of biological control in field crops is not

as consistent but, in general, agricultural
producers are interested in strategies to

reduce pesticide use,” says McGregor.
“Organic growers may use more biocontrol
products as, for them, pesticides are not an
option.”

Ivan Droujinin’s contribution to the
project features a series of masterfully
executed watercolour paintings. “I did my
own research for every insect online. As
the pictures were all different, some I used ©
to paint the head of the bug, from others
I painted the legs and body,” explains
Droujinin. “Insects displayed in museums
would not be useful to me, as the bugs I
paint have to be shown alive.”

While Droujinin’s depictions are more
realistic, Kerr’s pastel pieces capture the
insects in beautiful tonal qualities. “The
textural exoskeleton of the creatures really
has piqued my interest; they’re shiny, jewel-
coloured, delicate and absolutely gorgeous
creatures. So I decided upon the medium
of chalk pastel that invigorates texture
and luminosity. And the powerful colour
on black makes every stroke dramatic and
vital.”

The bug specimens on display have
been collected by staff, faculty, and students

at Douglas College over the past 20-30
years. “The most striking specimens are of
large beetles collected by a past employee
in Tropical Asia,” says McGregor. “TUE
is currently conducting a research project
with funding from the Natural Sciences and
Engineering Research Council of Canada on
biological control of aphids in BC vegetable
greenhouses. Our display gives information
on JUE’s current activities and explanatory
posters are on display for each of the
organisms in Tiko’s drawings.”

“It is remarkable, after studying insects
for over 25 years, to see art devoted to
my study organisms,” says McGregor. It
is remarkable for us to see the specimens
and their grand depictions side by side.
Greenlinks 2011: Insects provides a
wonderful opportunity to take a moment
to examine and appreciate the small beings
that land on our windowsills, and keep our
crops pesticide-free.

Where: Amelia Douglas Gallery (fourth
floor, New West campus)
When: September 15 - October 28