Turning a passion into a viable and very satisfying career

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[00:00] SPEAKER_01: Welcome to Canada's Entrepreneur, where we talk to the entrepreneurs who are making it happen
[00:05] SPEAKER_01: across Canada and deliver the news, trends, knowledge and opinions from entrepreneurs and business
[00:13] SPEAKER_02: influences across the country. Hello, why Mario Tarniguchi managing editor of candidates
[00:20] SPEAKER_02: are entrepreneur. Joining me today is Paul Van Ginkel on Calgary's podcast, Paul is based in
[00:27] SPEAKER_02: Calgary and is an artist thanks for joining us, Paul. Thanks Mario, it's a pleasure to be here.
[00:34] SPEAKER_02: Okay, well let's talk just a little bit about your career now. How did you get into all this?
[00:44] SPEAKER_02: Did you, were you a drawer or a sketcher as a little boy? Yeah, absolutely. It's one of these
[00:51] SPEAKER_00: things that we all experience when we're in high school. It's like, what are we going to do with the
[00:56] SPEAKER_00: rest of our life? Yeah, we're such a young age, we have to make such huge decisions, but back in
[01:04] SPEAKER_00: high school I went through the same thing and well, I really liked this art thing. I'm a pretty good
[01:11] SPEAKER_00: artist relatively speaking, back in high school, I loved my class and so on, so it was only in
[01:19] SPEAKER_00: grade 12 where I found out about the Alberta College of Art and grade 12 for me was in 1978
[01:25] SPEAKER_00: and so I hadn't really known about that college so I applied and the rest as he says history.
[01:33] SPEAKER_00: But you know, you know, like a lot of kids, Mario, I mean I did a lot of sketches and you know,
[01:39] SPEAKER_00: I've really enjoyed it. I still have a lot of those sketches with me today which have become more
[01:43] SPEAKER_00: valuable over time. So yeah, I, you know, and when I went to art school, I mean I, you know,
[01:50] SPEAKER_00: I was an average art student but I was really into it. You know, I loved it and I really had a lot
[01:56] SPEAKER_00: of enjoyment and I saw lots of promise in future. Can you talk, just going back, you know, when
[02:05] SPEAKER_02: you were young, like what did you like to draw? Like, what were your favorite topics, I guess?
[02:13] SPEAKER_00: You know, George Charles Schultz has peanuts, you know, that peanuts, you know,
[02:18] SPEAKER_00: Snoopy and Charlie Brown and so on. That was a big hit for me. You know, that combined with
[02:23] SPEAKER_00: superhero comics, Frank Frazzetta, who was a superhero artist back in the day. He was a big
[02:31] SPEAKER_00: inspiration for me. So I, you know, like a lot of artists back then and still, you know, I copied all
[02:37] SPEAKER_00: those images and and learned from that. You know, things I created were like, you know, actually
[02:42] SPEAKER_00: wore sea since so on. You had tanks and army and helicopters. So that interested me as well.
[02:48] SPEAKER_00: But it was many that and then that was the first subjects that I explored and then I got into
[02:53] SPEAKER_00: Western. I got into, you know, Cobboy's and Indians, even as a young boy, as a young 10-year-old boy.
[02:59] SPEAKER_00: So those subjects really inspired me and again, I love, I love the fact that I have a stack of those
[03:04] SPEAKER_00: drawings. Interesting too, Mario, because one thing I tell parents to this day is, you know, if you're
[03:12] SPEAKER_00: a child, there's a lot of drawings and paintings and so on. You know, they will sign the drawings
[03:17] SPEAKER_00: usually because that's part of the creation of the piece, but they won't date them. So on the back
[03:22] SPEAKER_00: of those drawings, put a date on them because, you know, today with the drawings I have as a kid,
[03:28] SPEAKER_00: I'm kind of wondering if I was eight years old or if I was 11 years old. So as a professional,
[03:33] SPEAKER_00: you know, that timeline means more to me. Yeah, let's go back in time. Now,
[03:40] SPEAKER_02: full transparency here. Paul and I used to work together at the Calgary Herald.
[03:48] SPEAKER_02: Tell us a little bit about what you did at the Herald, Paul, and then what, you know,
[03:56] SPEAKER_02: what sparked, I guess, you're leaving there and venturing off into doing this.
[04:03] SPEAKER_00: Yes, absolutely. You know, getting back to Art Colour, to Alberta College of Art,
[04:09] SPEAKER_00: you know, the first year every student has to take like general studies to find out what major
[04:15] SPEAKER_00: area they want to go into. You know, that may have changed, that form may have changed slightly.
[04:20] SPEAKER_00: Now it's a university, the Alberta University of the Arts, but back when I was there, that's what
[04:26] SPEAKER_00: we did. And so then most students back when I went to school there, wanted to get into visual
[04:32] SPEAKER_00: communications, which is like commercial art, primarily because you can get a job afterwards.
[04:36] SPEAKER_00: On my grades, we're not high enough. And so I didn't get in. So I considered dropping out,
[04:44] SPEAKER_00: and I, you know, did a lot of soul searching, spoke to a lot of family friends, especially
[04:48] SPEAKER_00: the counselors at A-CAD. And one counselor in particular encouraged me to stay in school.
[04:55] SPEAKER_00: In my second year, take painting, printmaking, and so on, and then try to get into my major area
[05:02] SPEAKER_00: of visual communications as a direct entry in my third year. So I was successful doing that.
[05:08] SPEAKER_00: And so then I completed four years, and I was going into my fifth year, and I was always ambitious,
[05:14] SPEAKER_00: back then, and even still. And I saw an ad in the Calgary Herald looking for an editorial illustrator.
[05:21] SPEAKER_00: And so I applied, and I was offered that job. So I dropped out of art school in my fifth year,
[05:27] SPEAKER_00: in 1983, to take that job with the Calgary Herald. And it wasn't just a job. It was a great job.
[05:35] SPEAKER_00: And frankly, it was a relatively good, paint job. But the main thing is I would be illustrating.
[05:40] SPEAKER_00: So I would be painting. And so I took that job and loved it. So I was there. You know, I didn't
[05:47] SPEAKER_00: think there was going to be like a really long time because my end goal ambition was to be a fine art
[05:53] SPEAKER_00: painter. So worked for the Herald from September 1983, and we resigned effective January 1st, 1990,
[06:03] SPEAKER_00: to be a full-time fine art painter. But I loved working at the Herald. I mean, as you know,
[06:08] SPEAKER_00: directly, Maryl, I mean, you know, just the energy, the collaboration, the thrill of being published,
[06:14] SPEAKER_00: in those six plus years that I was at the Herald, there were over a thousand of my pieces
[06:20] SPEAKER_00: published. And I get like every morning, every next morning, when they were posted, I clipped them out.
[06:26] SPEAKER_00: I had a stack of papers. I've since threw them out because they yellowed in and they got old.
[06:32] SPEAKER_00: But it was always a thrill and it was an honor. And as you recall back in those days,
[06:38] SPEAKER_00: you know, the Calgary Olympics was on as well in 1988. So that was another, you know, challenge and
[06:44] SPEAKER_00: thrill to be part of that. And even though I was an illustrator, that was my specialty,
[06:50] SPEAKER_00: informational graphics and charts and so on was a big part of it as well. So part of the
[06:54] SPEAKER_00: motivation, frankly, to resign, not just to pursue my dream of being a painter, was because it was,
[07:02] SPEAKER_00: you know, fewer and fewer illustration assignments and more and more computer graphics and so on.
[07:07] SPEAKER_00: Oh, that's interesting. And now, you know, I rather have a paintbrush on my hand that I'm mouse.
[07:11] SPEAKER_00: So that wasn't so much, you know, discouraging because I knew that the writing was on the wall.
[07:16] SPEAKER_00: But it was time to leave when I did and I never look back.
[07:21] SPEAKER_02: Now, when you left, did you not go to school in the States?
[07:25] SPEAKER_00: Yes. While I was actually at the Harold, I did earn a master of fine arts degree
[07:34] SPEAKER_00: from Syracuse University through an independent degree program.
[07:39] SPEAKER_00: Okay. And so what that entailed is that there were three times, three summers that I went to
[07:44] SPEAKER_00: Syracuse University for three weeks and worked there. But there were assignments that one could do
[07:49] SPEAKER_00: at home, of which I did. There were also trips that we took to New York, like as a class,
[07:55] SPEAKER_00: to New York, Boston, Dallas, places like that to continue our studies. So it's an official
[08:03] SPEAKER_00: master of fine arts, but it was done through an independent study degree program. And
[08:08] SPEAKER_00: credit to the Harold, of course, I had to pitch that to the Harold and they agreed for me to pursue
[08:14] SPEAKER_02: that. So I'm very grateful to them. Okay. So today, you're obviously a very well-known, very
[08:21] SPEAKER_02: successful artist. Go back in time, back to when you first started. So that's 30 plus years ago now.
[08:31] SPEAKER_02: Was it scary to embark on a career full-time as an artist?
[08:38] SPEAKER_00: Oh, absolutely. Because back when I was working for the Harold, again, it was a good job,
[08:41] SPEAKER_00: it was a good pain job. And I was married at the time to my first wife. And she was in law school.
[08:50] SPEAKER_00: And she thought it was crazy. And it was reckless to reside because we needed the money and so on.
[08:55] SPEAKER_00: But I convinced Susan that this was my passion. She knew it was hard working and ambitious.
[09:02] SPEAKER_00: You know, I had a couple of leads and I did commercial freelance assignments while I worked for the
[09:08] SPEAKER_00: Harold as well. So I had a bit of a track record in the sense. So I had some leads. But the biggest
[09:13] SPEAKER_00: thing is I just had the fire in my belly, the burning desire that I just had to do this. And I
[09:25] SPEAKER_00: still is scary. It's good to have that motivation to go to work every day and do the best you can
[09:33] SPEAKER_00: beat. So I'm happy to report. My first year as a freelancer, I made more than I made as my last
[09:40] SPEAKER_00: year working for the Calcutta Harold. So it was off to a good start. And it's one of those things,
[09:45] SPEAKER_00: Merrill, that I just knew I had to do. When is the best timing? Who knows when the best timing is?
[09:50] SPEAKER_00: The best timing is when you feel it's right. And you're not reckless, but you go after it.
[09:56] SPEAKER_02: That's important. Now let's talk a little bit about the subject material. The first of all,
[10:02] SPEAKER_02: you know, I think you do a lot of different things now. But I think you're, I guess you're
[10:12] SPEAKER_02: claiming the fame for lack of better wording is, you know, the whole cowboys and western and
[10:20] SPEAKER_02: indigenous side of things. Yeah. What was it and still is to this day about those that topic,
[10:31] SPEAKER_00: that you just love the paint? Yeah, I could certainly talk on three more podcasts about that.
[10:38] SPEAKER_00: Great question, Merrill, because it's obviously instrumental in my career. Very quickly,
[10:45] SPEAKER_00: it goes way back to when I was born in Winnipeg. And our family took a family vacation in 1970
[10:52] SPEAKER_00: to the Great Calcutta Stampede. I was a young impressionable boy, young man. And we saw the
[11:00] SPEAKER_00: Calcutta Stampede. So that moment, I was like hooked on cowboys and Indians. As I noted,
[11:05] SPEAKER_00: I was drawing them anyways prior to our Calcutta Stampede trip. So I was hooked on cowboys and
[11:10] SPEAKER_00: Indians. And that's how we refer to it back then. Yeah. And so fast forward when it was time to
[11:15] SPEAKER_00: choose a subject as a professional, I had done Western paintings and stuff leading up to this moment.
[11:23] SPEAKER_00: But it was like a no-brainer. So I love the subject living in Calgary in a great Calcutta Stampede.
[11:30] SPEAKER_00: There's lots of exposure and emphasis on Western life and cowboys and Indians, frankly.
[11:36] SPEAKER_00: Now it's First Nations, of course, and that's a proper way of referring to them and in just
[11:41] SPEAKER_00: our in-geness community. But it was that. And so there was, in addition to that being my passion,
[11:49] SPEAKER_00: there's a great market currently for that type of imagery. But it's a whole lifestyle in history,
[11:56] SPEAKER_00: in my real life. And with cowboys, I just love, from the aesthetic, I just love the rugged nature of
[12:03] SPEAKER_00: them, like real men and real women and horses and incorporating our land and animals into their
[12:13] SPEAKER_00: whole lifestyle, the way they look again. I wanted some of that. I wanted that to rub off on B2,
[12:22] SPEAKER_00: similarly to our First Nations. They're beautiful regalia, the history of the First Nations in
[12:30] SPEAKER_00: the world and our country in particular. All those elements and just the way they are and
[12:36] SPEAKER_00: they're quiet confidence and their humility and their sense of community, like all those wonderful
[12:45] SPEAKER_00: areas is something that I'm really drawn to. And as a direct result, I've got to know
[12:52] SPEAKER_00: over the years, a lot of cowboys and First Nations in those communities. And I've been privileged to
[12:57] SPEAKER_00: be a part of that community in a real personal way for a long time. Yeah, now you mentioned a
[13:03] SPEAKER_02: stampede. Every year stampede does its posters. How many of those have you done?
[13:12] SPEAKER_00: Just one, Maryl, because every artist just does one. Or just one, okay. Yeah, yeah, you know,
[13:17] SPEAKER_00: so and that's up to the current stampede president. So there's a new stampede president every two
[13:24] SPEAKER_00: years. And they could essentially do whatever they want. Back when I did the poster in 2007, George
[13:30] SPEAKER_00: Berkman was the president. One of the things he wanted to do in his two-year tenure is dramatically
[13:36] SPEAKER_00: changed the look of the stampede poster. So the stampede poster has been around since the start of
[13:40] SPEAKER_00: stampede in 1912. Up to this point, it was always up to 2006. It was always a commercial
[13:48] SPEAKER_00: illustration done by an advertising agency with a central image, border treatment,
[13:56] SPEAKER_00: what else you can see and do it's stampede, which has been a great model. But George wanted to
[14:00] SPEAKER_00: change all that. He just wanted a simple fine art painting. So of course, I knew George at the
[14:05] SPEAKER_00: time. I remember the day, you know, he called me into his office. We chatted about it. And I
[14:10] SPEAKER_00: pitched a couple of ideas, including just a simple iconic timeless scene of a cowboy with his
[14:16] SPEAKER_00: horse, drinking a copical coffee. Could have happened a hundred years ago. We'll probably
[14:21] SPEAKER_00: happen again a hundred years from now. He loved the idea. And so that became the 2007 stampede poster.
[14:28] SPEAKER_00: And it was a painting that I did called loyal friends. So that was the only one I did. So, you know,
[14:34] SPEAKER_00: going forward, the subsequent, I think, three stampede presidents kept that same model
[14:43] SPEAKER_00: of doing a fine art painting. And that painting also was auction off at the annual Calgary stampede
[14:48] SPEAKER_00: auction as well. That was something that George started. But, you know, for the last, I believe,
[14:53] SPEAKER_00: six years, it's now been a student competition, which has been really great. I've been a
[14:58] SPEAKER_00: adjudicator as well. So it's a great opportunity for a student to get that assignment because you get
[15:04] SPEAKER_00: global exposure. You know, the stampede poster is the single biggest advertising feature
[15:09] SPEAKER_00: for the stampede. 25,000 posters that distributed worldwide. You can walk into a cafe and Athens
[15:16] SPEAKER_00: Greece and you might see a stampede poster. So it's a real thrill for the students to have that
[15:21] SPEAKER_02: assignment now. Yeah. Now, let's talk about the other type of stuff you do. Beyond the western
[15:27] SPEAKER_02: and stuff. What is it that you, first of all, what is it that you like to paint beyond that? And
[15:40] SPEAKER_02: what do you see the future that you see expanding into other areas? Yeah, definitely. You know,
[15:47] SPEAKER_00: we all want to be inspired going to work. And if one can control their destiny or their work or
[15:54] SPEAKER_00: their type of stuff they do, an artist certainly can. And that's what I try to do, Maryl. Being
[15:58] SPEAKER_00: I, first and foremost, I paint for myself. I want to learn. I want to grow. That's never stopped.
[16:04] SPEAKER_00: Every painting I start, start, I'm nervous and I have insecurities, you know, because my
[16:11] SPEAKER_00: bar is now pretty high that I've set. But, you know, once I get painting, then the rhythm starts
[16:16] SPEAKER_00: and so on. But in the spirit of wanting to grow, even though again, as you pointed out,
[16:21] SPEAKER_00: if I'm known for anything is my western work and I'm grateful for that. Yes, I do a lot of
[16:25] SPEAKER_00: other things. I do a lot of dance themes, you know, from ballet to belly dance to burlesque,
[16:31] SPEAKER_00: but especially flamenco. And I do, you know, the First Nation stuff, even though I fall
[16:37] SPEAKER_00: under the umbrella of Western, perhaps First Nations travel, you know, I travel extensively on my
[16:42] SPEAKER_00: own and with my family. And it always has a result of travels, especially Italy, especially Venice.
[16:48] SPEAKER_00: I do a series of paintings. And one of the many interesting things about that too, Merrill,
[16:53] SPEAKER_00: in addition to, you know, learning more things about me as an artist, it opens up new markets for me.
[16:59] SPEAKER_00: You know, even though I have some collectors who like to collect from all my series, I'm grateful
[17:03] SPEAKER_00: for that, obviously. People buy my dance paintings, you know, will never buy my western paintings.
[17:09] SPEAKER_00: So it opens up that as well. You know, kind of on that note as well. You know, sure, I'm, I,
[17:16] SPEAKER_00: I think I'm a decent painter and I'm proud of that. But I'm most proud of the fact that I've been
[17:22] SPEAKER_00: doing this for over for 42 years now full time because I focus on the business side, you know,
[17:28] SPEAKER_00: and that's a real art form in itself. And it's a challenge and it's fluid. It's always changing.
[17:34] SPEAKER_00: You know, every single day almost and you got to keep current, you got to keep trying things.
[17:39] SPEAKER_00: So that's, you know, so that's, that's a big, it's all very well nice to create a product,
[17:44] SPEAKER_02: but how do you package it, market and sell it? It's fun. I'm glad you brought that up because I
[17:50] SPEAKER_02: do recall the conversation we had many, many years ago on and you did mention that to me that
[17:57] SPEAKER_02: you basically have two jobs, right? On the one hand, you're the artist and the other hand,
[18:03] SPEAKER_02: you're the businessman. So how do you like, like in a day, like how do you kind of put those two
[18:12] SPEAKER_00: together? Yeah, it's a wonderful, for me, it's a wonderful challenge. And first and foremost,
[18:22] SPEAKER_00: with that and life in general, one needs to be optimistic and positive because that's, and you
[18:29] SPEAKER_00: know, we have the power to choose or attitude and how we approach things and I'm always positive.
[18:35] SPEAKER_00: I'm not naive and I'm realistic, I'm pragmatic, but I'm always positive because being self-employed,
[18:41] SPEAKER_00: you know, it's a great unknown and it could be scary. Nothing could happen, but only it had
[18:47] SPEAKER_00: everything can happen. So I hedge on that all the time and just be patient and so on. So when I go
[18:53] SPEAKER_00: into work, even though I'm self-employed, I'm extremely disciplined, I keep a tight ship,
[18:59] SPEAKER_00: I'm my own boss and I don't let myself off the hook. I take as much vacation as the next guy,
[19:05] SPEAKER_00: I work as hard as the next guy that works hard. So when I go in the morning, I'm wearing one hat,
[19:10] SPEAKER_00: I'm accessing, you know, my left brain, you know, the business side and so on, doing all the
[19:15] SPEAKER_00: business stuff in the morning with the intent to clear my mind, put on the other hat, the right
[19:21] SPEAKER_00: brain and get to the easel. So that's always my focus is I try to paint every day. I mean, I would,
[19:28] SPEAKER_00: if I didn't have other business things to do, but I address the business things because they're
[19:32] SPEAKER_00: important and they clear my head so I can just paint. So I have the same system all the time.
[19:38] SPEAKER_00: Sometimes I get to the easel at 10 o'clock in the morning, sometimes at 1 o'clock, but I always try
[19:43] SPEAKER_00: to paint every day and because I've been doing for such a long time, I've also created close to
[19:49] SPEAKER_00: 2,200 paintings. My style is very loose and quick and painterly, even though it's representational
[19:56] SPEAKER_00: with a lot of detail, I can get a lot done in four hours of painting, absolutely. I can get a lot done.
[20:02] SPEAKER_00: And so with that too, because it's so I paint standing up because generally I paint large paintings,
[20:09] SPEAKER_00: it's kind of a little physically draining in a sense. So painting four hours a day, that's enough.
[20:15] SPEAKER_00: You know, some of my colleagues paint 10, 12 hours a day. I don't know how they can do it,
[20:19] SPEAKER_00: but I've been doing this for such a long time. You know, I shut it off at 5 o'clock and I'm done.
[20:25] SPEAKER_02: Interesting. Yeah. So what was the most expensive one you've sold?
[20:37] SPEAKER_00: $65,000. For a single painting. It was a commission from Chief Crowfoot from the Sixth
[20:46] SPEAKER_00: Sack of Nation. Yeah, with that, Maryl, I mean, since you asked, I've been friend of the Chief
[20:53] SPEAKER_00: many years ago and he's an impressive man who gets things done. He finally signed six
[21:01] SPEAKER_00: sack of fine through his guidance and leadership. The Sixth Sack of Nation signed the 1912,
[21:08] SPEAKER_00: 1915 land reclamation agreement with the federal government a few years ago for $1.3 billion.
[21:15] SPEAKER_00: And to acknowledge that significant milestone, he commissioned four large paintings for me,
[21:22] SPEAKER_00: two for the nation and two for himself personally. So the one that I just referenced was a 10
[21:27] SPEAKER_00: foot by six foot painting of 18 different individuals who are in the T.P. at Blackfoot Crossing
[21:37] SPEAKER_00: when they signed the agreement with Trudeau and the Chief and so on. So it was like a portrait
[21:41] SPEAKER_00: of these 18 people during that significant occasion. So that was the one. And mobile
[21:49] SPEAKER_02: commission itself was encompassed four paintings. And what was that called that one painting?
[21:55] SPEAKER_00: I'm pausing because when I do assignments like that for Chief Crowfoot, of which I've done many,
[22:02] SPEAKER_00: I get him to title them and he titles them in Blackfoot.
[22:06] SPEAKER_00: Okay, yeah, and I do a translation in English, but respectfully, I don't know the title off the
[22:12] SPEAKER_00: top I had, but I gave him the opportunity to title it. Okay, wonderful. And what was the one that
[22:23] SPEAKER_02: took you the longest amount of time to do and how long with that? Yeah, another great question,
[22:29] SPEAKER_00: of course, as a really sidebar, I only work on one painting at one time. Oh, okay. Yeah,
[22:35] SPEAKER_00: only because every painting has its own style and language and feel and so on. So I don't jump
[22:41] SPEAKER_00: around. The set said painting on my easel gets my full attention from start to finish. And
[22:47] SPEAKER_00: you know, when I started, whenever I started painting the day, I kind of look at the time. When I stop,
[22:53] SPEAKER_00: I record how much time I spend on that given day and I kind of write it on the side of the canvas.
[22:58] SPEAKER_00: And so when the painting is done, I add it all up and I have exactly how many hours I spent on
[23:04] SPEAKER_00: that painting and I put that into my, my ledgers and I've been doing that since I started, you know,
[23:09] SPEAKER_00: over 40 years ago. So I know exactly how much time every painting takes and over time that has
[23:15] SPEAKER_00: always served me well. So all that said, the painting I just addressed for Chief Crowfoot,
[23:21] SPEAKER_00: that took the most time, but that has changed that there's a new, there's a new painting I did
[23:27] SPEAKER_00: last year, another commission that surpassed that in time. I did a commission for Smith-Buildhats
[23:35] SPEAKER_00: of the Chakwegan driver, Troy Dorchester, and it was 10 feet by five feet. A ton of detail,
[23:44] SPEAKER_00: it was Troy coming around the band racing at the Caligastanpead with the grandstand in the background.
[23:51] SPEAKER_00: Okay. And in that grandstand, Maryl, of course, you know, as you know, full well, they usually sold out.
[23:58] SPEAKER_00: But I had to paint, I painted 706 people in that grandstand and I know that for certain because I
[24:05] SPEAKER_00: counted all the heads. So that, so that, you know, combined with the detail of Troy and so on,
[24:12] SPEAKER_00: that took the most time and that took, I should know this, took about 106 hours, you know,
[24:19] SPEAKER_00: over the course of three weeks or so, paint that one. You know, as a, as a related kind of fun
[24:23] SPEAKER_00: sidebar, if you will, I've done a lot of large herd paintings, horse herd paintings. Yeah.
[24:29] SPEAKER_00: And when I do that, I count the horses because I find that's interesting. You know, I did one last
[24:34] SPEAKER_00: year and I titled it 40 hats and 232 horses because there were 232 horses in that painting and 40
[24:42] SPEAKER_00: cobweights with hats. So with the painting I just referenced about Troy Dorchester, I thought,
[24:47] SPEAKER_00: with this time, I'm going to count all the faces in the crowd and the 706 faces. So that was fun.
[24:53] SPEAKER_02: Wow. Yeah. I'm just curious. When you're, when you are painting,
[25:01] SPEAKER_02: like, can you describe that moment? Like, what's it like for you? Like, like, could, could things
[25:08] SPEAKER_02: crash around you and you, you wouldn't notice anything going on because you're so focused, like,
[25:13] SPEAKER_00: maybe describe that part. Yeah. It, you know, if I could be so bored, I suspect
[25:20] SPEAKER_00: that most of not all artists experiences and artists in all disciplines, you know, from painters,
[25:27] SPEAKER_00: to writers, to musicians, to performers. In a sense, it's hard to describe, but as you can tell,
[25:33] SPEAKER_00: I like talking so I could probably articulate. It's a real out of body experience. And in my
[25:39] SPEAKER_00: particular case, I always listened to music when I paint. So always. And, you know, as I referenced
[25:46] SPEAKER_00: earlier, you know, once all my admit stuff and business stuff is done, I put in my, my air pods
[25:53] SPEAKER_00: and choose, I choose the music to directly influence the painting I'm working on.
[25:58] SPEAKER_00: If it's going to be like really like a very aggressive abstract kind of stallion painting or
[26:04] SPEAKER_00: something, I might put on rap music like M&M or something. If I'm doing a very detailed portrait,
[26:11] SPEAKER_00: I might put on flute music from Carlos Nakai or something. So I'm really quite, you know,
[26:17] SPEAKER_00: music, I'll go on a limb and say, you know, music is even more important to me than visual art.
[26:22] SPEAKER_00: You know, so I use it in the context of my work, but also just in life in general, of course. You
[26:27] SPEAKER_00: know, I love music as I know you do. So, so I put the music in, I get locked in, I set up, you
[26:33] SPEAKER_00: know, it takes me about 20 minutes to set up all my, my paints and my palette and get already.
[26:37] SPEAKER_00: And I kind of set myself up for success, if you will. I got a great studio, great light,
[26:42] SPEAKER_00: all that stuff is in play and then just get into it. And honestly, it's the excitement,
[26:49] SPEAKER_00: the exhilaration, you know, I'm not an athlete and I don't do those other things, but I can only
[26:54] SPEAKER_00: manage it like that. It's like, you know, a swimmer or a sprinter at the starting blocks.
[26:59] SPEAKER_00: And once a gun goes off, you're just, you're drenelingly, it's just like letting you lose, like
[27:04] SPEAKER_00: it's a chuckwag and race. And that's how I feel about painting because I love it so much. Even to
[27:16] SPEAKER_00: this day, I drive to the studio and I have butterflies in my stomach just anticipating painting,
[27:22] SPEAKER_00: you know, it just, you just get lost in it, you know, I hope all of us have those opportunities
[27:28] SPEAKER_00: or outlets or or moments when you get lost in some, I mean, whether it's reading or playing a
[27:34] SPEAKER_00: sport or doing something creative, that's how painting is for me, just completely lost in it. And,
[27:39] SPEAKER_00: you know, and, you know, maybe because you and I have been friends and, and you know, close
[27:44] SPEAKER_00: friends and business associates to an extent, you know, maybe you even noticed that when you send
[27:49] SPEAKER_00: me something I electronically, I reply right away, that's because I keep on, I don't want to think
[27:56] SPEAKER_00: about anything else. I don't want to think about having to text you down the road, Maryl. I do
[28:01] SPEAKER_00: it right away, like if I'm painting and then just to keep my head clear and keep the focus on,
[28:05] SPEAKER_02: on the painting I'm working on. Well, thanks so much Paul for joining us today. It was a pleasure
[28:11] SPEAKER_00: having you. Yeah, I really appreciate this opportunity, Maryl. And I'll see you in person
[28:17] SPEAKER_02: probably soon. Maybe that's Bruce Meadows Masters. Oh, before we leave, how can people get a hold of you?
[28:26] SPEAKER_00: Yeah, thank you. Of course, I'm on all social media platforms. I don't answer the phone when I'm
[28:33] SPEAKER_00: painting. But the best source for my work is my website, Paul van Genkult.com. And I say that because
[28:40] SPEAKER_00: you can get a really if you so choose, you can get a deep deep dive into my history, my archives,
[28:47] SPEAKER_00: my current and work, you know, this podcast will end up being on my website as well. So Paul van Genkult.com,
[28:54] SPEAKER_00: there you can find my phone number, my email address and everything you need.
[28:59] SPEAKER_02: Okay, wonderful. Thanks Paul. Thanks, Mario. Appreciate it. Okay, that was Paul van Genkult,
[29:04] SPEAKER_02: an artist based in Calgary. I'm Mario Toneguzzi, managing editor of Canada's Entrepreneur. Thanks for
[29:10] SPEAKER_02: joining us today.