Artist Profile – Terence Ulrich

At a recent gallery opening, a woman stopped in front of one of Terence Ulrich’s painting. After a brief pause, she commented “not very uplifting, huh?” Overhearing this, Ulrich took the opportunity to share one of his favorite quotes from filmmaker John Walters: “Good art can make people insane”. A part of LA’s “low brow” art scene, his work has a weathered, edgy feel influenced by urban folk art, graffiti and vintage circus art. It’s not uncommon for figures in his paintings to have a deformity or two. “I usually have people doing things, telling a narrative, but often with something off kilter, slightly perverse, and always a little humorous.”

His technique involves multiple layers of color and different kinds of paper (from newspaper to Chinese wrapping paper), often painted separately, then glued downed before laying down an image on top. “I want it to look like they’re aged under newspapers for sixty years,” he says “I’m trying to make something old kind of new again.” Recently his work has evolved, “it’s a bit more subtle and surreal now.”

Originally from Indiana, Terence grew up drawing, “It’s just something I’ve always done, I was the kid who drew comic book covers for everyone in class.” He went on to attend the Art Institute of Chicago, around the time of the Dred Scott flag controversy, “the environment there was very confrontational and in your face”. Upon returning to California, he met his wife while doing a mural project and started showing in local galleries like La Luz de Jesus.

Surfing was his introduction to Ventura and he moved here four years ago. “The LA art scene is really competitive, every man for himself – there’s a real sense of community here in Ventura and a willingness to help each other out.” Besides selling in Portland, Seattle and San Francisco, he has shown at Nathan Larramendy’s Ojai gallery and was selected to participate in the Cultural Affairs Division’s Streetscape Mural Project. He noted that long-time local artists like Michelle Chapin have very enthusiastic and helpful to him, “Ventura audiences have been very receptive to my work and I really appreciate that.”

From the VC Reporter:

The unveiling of Ventura’s Streetscape Mural Project on March 23 drew artists, members of the public and city representatives. The project also inspired comparisons to President Roosevelt’s public works projects.

Bringing to mind Depression-era subsidized public arts programs that installed sculptures and murals in federal buildings, the Public Art Commission’s project began as an open call, welcoming artists of varying experience levels. Proposals poured in from single artists and collaborative groups alike, enabling Buena High School and Cabrillo Middle School, as well as the Ventura County Rainbow Alliance, to take part in the citywide beautification effort.

When private goes public

The murals’ subject matter ran the gamut from landscapes to public awareness. For Mayor Carl Morehouse, who was present at the ceremony, the murals reflect the unique perspectives of over 62 artists who live in the community. For Morehouse, the pieces encourage “civic engagement,” meaning artwork previously relegated to private collections, galleries or personal doodles has now become part of the public landscape.

“It’s a value to every person’s public everyday experience,” Morehouse stated.

To Morehouse, the murals each preserve a moment in time. He characterized the 12 pieces as conversation starters, as well as contributions to smart urban planning. Referring again to New Deal-fostered artwork, the mayor reflected that citizen art is an important part of democracy, one that nurtures a legacy within the city.

With the stated purpose of softening “hard infrastructure,” the Public Art Commission decided to transform several citywide bus stops into art installations while maintaining their functionality. The Commission hopes improving bus stops on an aesthetic level will encourage Ventura residents to reconsider alternative modes of transportation.

The mural message

Photographer Stephen Schafer’s contribution encourages such an interaction with bus commuters, the only passers-by who might be able to “get” the full extent of his message. Schafer’s mural is a stark and eye-catching imitation of an optometrist’s chart, with large block letters of decreasing size spelling out his thoughts on Ventura.

On the other end of the spectrum were murals that eschewed text. Buena High School’s mural was inspired by American music of every imaginable genre and shows a variety of the industry’s movers and shakers: Gene Simmons butts up against Joni Mitchell and Ray Charles; Bob Marley and Jimi Hendrix cast their influence among other legends. As the mural’s statement reflects, music is an all-inclusive art form.

The Rainbow Alliance made use of a simple black-and-white scheme to broadcast their theme, “I Know, Do You?” which refers to an international AIDS (and HIV status) awareness campaign. Using anonymous but emblematic figures of all ages, genders and sexual orientation, the piece becomes a show of solidarity for Ventura County’s population.

Christopher McMakin goes more abstract, with a mural that shows his transposed doodles and the cast of endearingly deranged cartoon characters who inhabit his psyche. Looking at McMakin’s piece, private becomes very public, and the surrounding area seems the better for it.

The mural-making process

Local artist Terence Adam Ulrich reflected on his experience producing a larger-than-life painting that will be seen by thousands. The seasoned painter and illustrator, whose work often appears in the Reporter, labored without knowing where his painting might end up.

He was provided with the necessary materials and found that his production experience was, like his mural, emblematic of Ventura: From receiving the four panels to completion, Ulrich suffered considerable setbacks due to January’s cold snap (he works from a studio in his garage).

Although he is no stranger to working on a large scale, Ulrich found the commission-sanctioned paint — acrylic latex — provided him with a crash course in a new medium.

“They wanted it to last due to the exposure it would be receiving,” explains Ulrich. “It took me about three days to figure out how I could work with this paint. It doesn’t work like usual acrylic. It’s made to sit on top of a surface — really durable, almost like elastic. It’s made to just sit on top of wood and not just sink in. I would paint a layer then let it dry. I painted these little intricate designs, then I painted over that. Then I took my electric sander, sanded the top layer off, the designs came up from underneath.”

Describing the scene shown in his mural, Ulrich said, “We moved up here to surf, and so for me the symbolization of Ventura is the ocean and the hillsides and the islands. That’s what I wanted to show.”

The Streetscape Mural Project is the first of a two-part project for Ventura’s streetscape.

So today we had the official dedication ceremony of the Streetscape Mural Project. The mayor; Carl Morehouse spoke about each of the artists and their pieces. The artists and their friends stuffed themselves on cupcakes, iced tea and cokes. It was a warm day with lots of great art and happy, friendly people. Here I am with a picture of the poster the City made for the occassion.

My family drove a couple of hours to be here and watch the ceremony, which I thought was really cool! Friends from LA and Ventura also showed up, some even took off work to be there! This is my friend John aka Preacher Herb, who performed the marriage ceremony for my wife and I last year!

It was a great day and I want to thank each and every artist involved for their support and kind words!

Hello!

Remember me?

I haven’t posted an entry for a while, the past few weeks have been busy beyond belief. I’ve got lots of news to share but first things first. Ionia and I had a pleasant surprise on the way to the water to surf and walk the dogs today, the bus stop murals were being installed. The guys from the city had finished one and were working on another while we drove by. The location where mine was to be installed was still empty. When we drove back an hour and a half later, the mural was installed and I had a little plaque with the title and my name!

To say that I’m stoked would be an understatement!!!!

So here’s a picture and stuff:

Here’s my plaque:

I think I’m gonna ask the woman on the left to marry me! Wait, I already did!

The Mural for the City of Ventura is complete. I even know where it will be installed. For you locals, you’ll be able to see it near the corner of Main and Ventura Avenue, in front of the Ventura County Museum of Art.

Does this look like a hummingbird?