LET'S GET TO KNOW ARTISTS
SILAS THOMPSON & CALEB MEYER
Silas Thompson "Sheep in Shade" | Oil on Canvas 22 x 28"
Caleb Meyer "Breaking Light" | Oil on Canvas 30 x 48"
Q: What scenes and/or elements from a landscape have been really catching your eye and inspiring you lately?
Silas: Lately I have been intrigued by landscapes that possess nature at its extremities. Landscapes that are either stunning for their complexity or their simplicity, between day and night. And deserts. I like the desert but I'm not exactly sure how to express what it is that draws me to them just yet. Mystery!
Caleb: I've been drawn to skies for quite a while now. Trying to capture something so fleeting is fun and challenging.
Silas Thompson "Beneath the Moon" | Oil on Canvas 48 x 60"
Caleb Meyer "A Place of Peace" | Oil on Canvas 48 x 48"
Q: When you go to into your studio or the field to work, is there a routine or ritual you like to stick to? If so, what does that look like for you?
Silas: Yes and no. I try not to be married to a routine but I'm human so it is a great tendency to find rituals whether you want to or not. I think that is a good thing. Certain music for certain times of day. Certain podcasts for certain days. Certain snacks for every ten minutes.
Caleb: I usually try to be in the studio by around 9am. Typically I decide on the size I would like to paint then I start looking through all my photos. Often I have a particular subject in mind but not always. Once I decide on a reference it usually takes five to ten minutes to edit the photo. Once there I start drawing on the canvas with a pencil. When I have the drawing finished I jump straight into thick paint on the white canvas. I try to work quickly so that you can feel the energy in the process. I also try to finish in one day so that I don't have to deal with drying paint and weird textures.
Silas Thompson "The Return" | Oil on Canvas 45 x 90"
Caleb Meyer "Light on the Water" | Oil on Canvas 24 x 48"
Q: If you had to describe each other's work in 3 words, what would they be?
Silas: Pulchritudinous, ennoble, and toothsome.
Caleb: Depth, Rad, Life
Silas Thompson "An Unknown Dance" | Oil on Canvas 48 x 24"
Caleb Meyer "Hope for Tomorrow" | Oil on Canvas 80 x 40"
Q: We always hear how titling a work can either be easy of difficult for artists. Can you tell us about your process for titling your work?
Silas: My goal in titling works is to lend to storytelling. Like foreshadowing something I would like evoked in the viewer. Titles often are derivations of great one liners from the book I am reading with my children at the time or variants of lines from poems or even sometimes just the latin words for the objects in the painting.
Caleb: Yes, it's really not that fun for me. I usually try to draw inspiration from the subject with hopes of finding the sweet spot between slightly poetic and ridiculously cheesy.
Silas Thompson "Desert in my Eyes" | Oil on Canvas 36 x 60"
Caleb Meyer "Passenger" | Oil on Canvas 40 x 80"
Q: What current or past artists really inspire you and why?
Silas: Besides Caleb Meyer? I think the greatest American Artist to ever live was N. C. Wyeth. Some of my other favorites are Nicolai Timkov, Len Chmiel, Valentine Serov, and Akseli Gallen-Kallela. These artists inspire me especially for their abilities to weave an absolute tale with paint and pen.
Caleb: I really enjoy studying and just appreciating other artists work. One of my recent favs is Len Chmiel. He creates paintings that are very natural in the rendering and color, but the often dynamic compostions can almost abstract the subject.
Silas Thompson "The Bend" | Oil on Canvas 11 x 14"
Caleb Meyer "Cloud Flight" | Oil on Canvas 20 x 24"
Q: Do you listen to music while you work? If so, what's been on your playlist lately?
Silas: I have a playlist called My Dog's Barstool and I couldn't even begin to try to describe a cohesive genre or theme to the songs that play when you throw that on shuffle. It can give real and irreversible whiplash.
Caleb: In the past I would only listen to music. I'm not sure what shifted maybe it's a left brain right brain thing, but the past four or five years I have really enjoyed listening to podcast while painting. I like podcast that tend to have a variety of guests and seem to have interesting conversations. A few that I enjoy are Lex Friedman, Joe Rogan, Theo Von and Andrew Huberman. I also like listening to news and political stuff but that can be a little depressing.
Silas Thompson "Cliffs" | Oil on Canvas 10 x 10"
Caleb Meyer "Sky Flow" | Oil on Canvas 12 x 12"
Q: How does travel influence your work? Is there a location that you haven't painted yet that would be a dream destination?
Silas: In a really original move I would love to go to Europe and do some painting there. I hear there are some pretty places there. Particularly Scotland, Norway, and Switzerland.
Caleb: I've taken two trips to NYC, and some of my favorite paintings I've ever done have been from those trips. We also went to Italy, the photos from that trip are super cool but I haven't painted many of them, maybe it's because it's so disconected from where we actually live and might feel a little out of place. I think it might be cool to go somewhere tropical but not touristy and do some plein aire.
Silas Thompson "The Edge of it All" | Oil on Canvas 30 x 48"
Caleb Meyer "Building Light" | Oil on Canvas 48 x 48"
Q: Is there a specific piece from "Edge of it All that's your favorite and why?
Silas: "By the Old Highway" is a smaller piece that is a bit of a departure from my typical show pieces. It's simple, captures a place, and tells a story. That is the kind of stuff that I would love to paint more of.
Caleb: The Tall 80x40 of the lake and the campfire "Hope for Tomorrow" really stands out to me. It was fun to paint and came together quite naturally. More importantly I think it creates a sense of place and emotion, which is something I really strive for in my work.
Silas Thompson "By the Old Highway" | Oil on Canvas 12 x 24"
Caleb Meyer "Rural Collection Study" | Oil on Canvas 12 x 24"
Q: If you had a band together, what would your band name be?
Silas: There is only one option. Impasto Syndrome.
Caleb: Cutie Pie and the Bald Guy
Silas Thompson "Autumn Focus" | Oil on Canvas 48 x 48"
Caleb Meyer "Carried Away" | Oil on Canvas 48 x 48"
To check out Silas Thompson and Caleb Meyer's show Edge of it All online, visit the show page on our website here.
If you're local to Santa Fe or in town visiting our beautiful city, we'd love to see you at our opening reception on Friday, October 11th, from 5 - 7:00pm. Located at 203 Canyon Road, Santa Fe, NM 87501.