Toronto-based artist and long-time DART subscriber Gary Taxali has an exhibition opening this Saturday in New York. In his second solo show at the Jonathan LeVine Gallery, Unforget Me, Gary’s blend of images and media inspired by vintage advertising and animation art and design will again offer his unique and idiosyncratic view of the human condition.

Gary works with multiple mediums and utilizes a variety of found materials like old book covers and torn, age-worn, scribbled-on pages, and describes the exhibition as exploring “themes of love, separation, isolation, unease, excitement, revelations and absolute joy through the overarching theme of paradoxes. In these works, my characters try to make sense of their situations and the dualities therein. Many of the works contain opposite reactions, both in concept and execution. I’ve also employed the use of non-existent words. An effective way for me to convey all of this is through humor, both light and dark, mocking the flaws of the human condition yet serving as a sweet reminder that nothing should ever be taken absolutely seriously—I try to unforget that every day.”

So I contacted Gary for an exclusive Q&A for DART. Here is what he wrote:

Q: Do you remember you first encounter with comics—and when the draw of art-making took over your plans?

A: My love of comics began at an early age with MAD Magazine. In particular, the work of Bill Elder. I never was a fan of superhero comics but loved Nancy, Archie and Daffy Duck. Even with these comics, I favoured the quiet beauty of the still panel to the collective sequential series. Therefore, I was never a comic fan in the bigger sense. 

My art plans took a big leap after high school when I enrolled full time at the Ontario College of Art. It is there I fell in love with illustration and learned all about it. It was a great time and helped me build a foundation for which to learn how to say things visually.

How did you get involved with vintage ephemera as a springboard for your art?

Some years ago, I discovered a box in my parents’ basement filled with old family textbooks from India. These books, including the inside pages, were beautifully aged by time. I began to make random drawings on these surfaces and became immediately attracted to working in this manner. Because of the unique beauty of these pages, it forced me to work in a reductive way by simply adding a mark to what I considered to be an already “finished” piece of art. This led me to explore further by forcing the drawings with permanent media and abandoning pencils. The idea of staying committed to the mark making instills a great deal of spontaneity in my work. I love having this degree of lack of control because it makes every piece a brand new surprise.

Do you have some regular spots for picking up vintage materials to use for backgrounds? What is the best example you picked up, cheap, at a flea market, or free, in a trashcan?

Nothing I do is regular when it comes to materials. I scour flea markets and antique stores but I also travel a lot. I was in Hong Kong in December and acquired some beautiful old books, for example. The year prior I was in Sri Lanka and the Philippines and acquired equally beautiful paper and books.  The world is a treasure trove of accidental art supplies.

Hand-lettering is a big component in you art. When and why did you first take up calligraphy? And what are some of the classic models you have drawn from?

I have never studied formal calligraphy but I have studied typography. It is a minor obsession of mine and an integral aspect of my work. However, the type I create in my work is mostly hand drawn and for the most part, random. That said, I also have created my own font, “Chumply” which appears in my work quite often. For me, the type is just as important as the hand drawn original characters I create. They need each other.

Certain ordinarily inanimate objects, such as the peanut, have become recurring characters in your art. When/why did this guy occupy your mind and why did you think he should come alive?

A peanut, yes, but sometimes he morphs into a gourd, as well as other similar type geometric shapes. All my work has a menu of recurring characters that transform into different forms and shapes. The occupation never happened in my mind, to be clear. It goes much deeper than that because I think art comes from your essence, not the thinking mind. The mind likes to take credit and serves an important function in formulating the logistics of how to realize drawings and paintings, of course. I don’t think any of my characters should come “alive” because they are fantasy-based tangible creations of emotional metaphors. I imagine it’s the same for every artist and his work. A self-portrait, if you will.

Anxiety is a huge subject in your art [Nervous Pete, etc.]. Does portraying characters as nervous as Pete calm you down? Have you ever felt as unsettled as this character, and if so, how do you get out of it?

That’s a very interesting observation. The truth is that I don’t need to calm down because I meditate daily. Sure, there is a cathartic aspect to the process of making art but for me, it’s never a cry for help. I am able to detach from the stories I tell and just because they’re a direct result of my moods and ideas, it doesn’t mean they are “me.” The “self portrait” aspect of the work ends in the process of making the work, nothing more.  Therefore, I don’t need to live anxiety in order to draw it. In fact, by not living what I am saying in my work makes me have a bigger perspective of the whole thing and for that reason, a better visual storyteller. No artist is his work once it's finished. 

What makes you happy – always?

Every single breath I take is happiness. The entire beauty of living lives in every inhalation and exhalation.  Everything else is gravy. And we live in a world of a lot of gravy. I’m not trying to be Pollyannaish (that’s just not my style - not in my work nor my personality) but anyone who doesn’t appreciate how amazing it is to be alive isn’t looking carefully. Turn your mind off and look. Really look. Nothing is better than this moment nor will it ever be. 

Gary Taxali: Unforget Me, opens Saturday, February 22, 6-8 pm at Jonathan LeVine Gallery. 529 West 20th Street and 557C West 23rd Street, New York, NY 10011. For further information, email: info@jonathanlevinegallery.com or call: 212.243.3822.

Gary Taxali was born in Chandigarh, India and raised in Toronto, Canada. Taxali graduated from Ontario College of Art and Design University (OCAD). Taxali is an award winning illustrator and his fine artwork has been exhibited in galleries in the United States and Europe as well as museums such as the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York and the Contemporary Art Museum in Rome. In 2011, two books of his work were released: Mono Taxali, published by 279 Editions, and I Love You, OK?, published by teNeues. In 2012, The Royal Canadian Mint released a special edition of six 25¢ coins which feature Taxali’s artwork and typography. Prior DART features here, here, here and here.