“Word Study #2”

“Word Study #2”

© 2002 Brian Hutzell

5-5/16 x 35-1/2 x ¾ inches

milk paint on wood

I always hated art titled “Untitled.” To me it just seemed lazy. So I decided to make fun of it with a piece of art consisting solely of the word “untitled,” but then giving the piece a real title. Later, I named a whole series of digital art “Untitled.” I suppose because I’m no good at classical art, I gravitate toward art that is conceptual, simple, humorous, or just plain silly.

“All I Really Wanted Was a Job, Not a LifestyleAll I Really Wanted Was a Job, Not a Lifestyle”

“All I Really Wanted Was a Job, Not a LifestyleAll I Really Wanted Was a Job, Not a Lifestyle”
© 2002 Brian Hutzell
3-3/8 x 9 x 3/4 inches
milk paint on wood

A big title for a very small painting. Another super simple work, but this is one I rather like. Most of my art isn’t too impressive, but it was never meant to be. The whole thing began as therapy. After working in the IT field for a big pharmaceutical company near Chicago, I needed to do something completely different. I’ve always been a doodler, but never considered myself an artist. It was a lot of fun making my various things in Cambridge, though. For the past several years, all my visual art has been computer-based, which is also enjoyable, but I miss the tactile experience of mixing up the milk paint, making footprints, handling the brushes, prepping the wood, etc.

“From The Bus”

“From The Bus”
© 2002 Brian Hutzell
3-3/8 x 10-3/8 x 3/4 inches
milk paint on wood

In a way, this is the sequel to a song I wrote back in the 1980s called “On The Bus.” That was one from my Medford years, probably my most productive period. I cranked out a lot of songs and recordings in those days. Since then, my life has taken many turns, some good and some not so good. And now I’m 50, and about to make some more major changes. It’s up to me to make them good.

"Farm Country"

“Farm Country”
© 2002 Brian Hutzell
13 x 10 x 1 inches
milk paint on wood

Though I was born in Tennessee, I grew up in Iowa, and that’s where I currently live, so I’m no stranger to farm country. Having said that, I must admit I know nothing at all about farming. I was raised in Des Moines, which is the Big City in Iowa. I didn’t hear the term “cow tipping” until I left for college, and other students would tease me about it. To this day, I’m not sure whether cow tipping is a real thing or just a rural myth.

"Contrazz"

“Contrazz”
© 2002 Brian Hutzell
11-5/8 x 15-3/8 x 1 inches
milk paint on wood

Like “Calculus,” this one takes its title from an imagined but never executed musical idea I had as a kid. Not following through with ideas has too often been my mode of operation. I’m trying to change that now by forming the habit of finishing what I start. There are some bits of unfinished business from the past that are probably destined to remain so, but there are other dangling ends that I can still tie up. One of those is my Masters Degree. Toward that end, I’m registered to take both the GRE and the GMAT in the coming months. Then I will head back to school yet again to finally earn that overdue piece of paper.