A Cast of Colorful Characters

A Conversation With Kristen Sullivan, aka Holly The Terrible, Expressing Emotions Through Vivid Personalities

Rooted in the comics, cartoons and video games she grew up with in Florida, Kristen Sullivan’s paintings tell stories, even when many consist of only a solitary, often female, character.

Her caricatures possess a magnetic pull, each seemingly infused with a backstory that one can’t help but try to piece together. Using a rich and diverse palette of acrylics on canvas (for the most part), Holly The Terrible—Sullivan’s nom de artiste—magically renders a cast of colorful characters who speak through oversized, evocative eyes, subtle facial expressions and occasionally quirky doings. Her creations, though very often whimsical and playful, possess a strong emotive quality, depicting worlds that are simultaneously fun and somber, colorful and troubled.

Inspired by artists ranging from Frida Kahlo to Tara McPherson, this 26-year-old, now Portland-based artist has developed her own style over time, hinting at influences and combining genres, through a mix of formal training and trial-and-error experimentation. Driven by a vigorous creative spirit, Holly draws from the well of her own emotions to form the personalities of her characters and the worlds in which they live. And despite disparaging professors and other possible deterrents along the way, she has remained resolute in pursuing a career as an artist—a decision she made in high school.

Holly maintains a strong online presence, including an Etsy shop, and she has exhibited her work in galleries and at shows in Tampa and Portland. Her catalog, for a painter with less than decade of experience, is quite vast and impressive. She recently took time to discuss her artistic beginnings, her process, the origins and evolution of her style, her sources of inspiration and much more with The Madness of Art.

MOA: How long have you been painting? When did you first realize you were an artist—or that you had the creative bug?

HOLLY: Hmm…I think I was always of the artistic variety. I was always doodling or working on projects growing up. My mom was a landscape painter for many years, so art was definitely in the house. In middle school and high school I used to draw pictures of “the ladies” for boys to buy for five bucks. My last few years of high school I started to focus more on painting with acrylics because they are easier to blend than colored pencils. So I’ve been painting for around eight years now.

MOA: How much formal training have you had? How much has that instruction and education, compared to things you’ve discovered and learned on your own, influenced your development as an artist?

HOLLY: I’ve taken art classes at both the community college and university levels. I was going for my BFA in Fine Arts, but I dropped out when I realized there wasn’t much else I’d be learning. A few of my professors told me I wasn’t a very good artist/painter and that I was wasting my time going for an art degree. I agreed on the last part. So after I left school I continued to teach myself painting through trial and error.

MOA: Do you make your living exclusively from selling your art? What are the rewards and difficulties of life as a professional artist?

Art Appreciation

HOLLY: No, I don’t make enough to pay all of my expenses, but that’s OK with me. The biggest reward is finding other people who acknowledge and appreciate what I’ve created. One of the most difficult aspects is doing commission work and not feeling like you have absolute artistic freedom, but you have to get over that in order to pay the bills.

MOA: Do you prefer to paint in a particular place or setting? Do you keep a rigid schedule, or do you paint whenever inspiration strikes? Are you more inclined to work on your paintings during the day or at night?

HOLLY: I prefer to paint in my small art studio that’s really just a section of my bedroom in my apartment. It’s surprisingly cozy and not far from the fridge. Though at times I wish I could go bigger with my work. So one day, when I have enough funds, maybe I will rent out an art studio space. I wish I kept to a rigid schedule! I get distracted easily. Sometimes I will be working on a commission then all of a sudden I start a painting for myself instead. I can work on my paintings during the day or at night. Though now I find that since I live in an apartment in Portland it is much quieter to paint at night.

MOA: Do you listen to music when you’re painting?

HOLLY: I either listen to music or have online streaming flicks playing in the background (I have found that Mystery Science Theater 3000 is grand, for it feels like you aren’t in a room by yourself). The music I generally paint to is stuff like Andrew Bird, Laura Veirs, David Bowie, Ladytron, M83, The Faint (when I don’t want something too dreamy), My Bloody Valentine, The Cure, The Smiths, and tons of other New Wave bands. Though, oddly, lately I have been wanting to hear more banjo playing.

MOA: Describe the genesis of your paintings: How do you come up with ideas? Do you ever struggle to come up with a new idea? What sparks your creative fire?

HOLLY: Nope, I don’t struggle with ideas. Usually ideas for future paintings come while I’m working on a current piece. I do sometimes struggle with how to effectively reproduce on canvas what my ideas are inside of my head. My emotions spark my creative fire. They play a huge role in what my characters will look like and what will accompany their personalities.

MOA: Once you have an idea, what’s next? Describe your process.

HOLLY: Sometimes I will start by drawing out an idea in my sketchbook, but most of the time I just like to start preparing a surface and get the underpainting started. From there I build up layers until I feel it’s finished (and the paint well blended), and then I go back over my lines and make them crisp and bold. I tend to love the look of illustration in comic books and graphic novels, so that’s the reason I outline my subject matter.

MOA: How long does it take to complete one of your paintings? Do some come easier than others? How do you deal with and overcome any creative blocks?

HOLLY: Depends on the size/detail and how badly I want something completed. I have one big painting, “Eve Vs. Eve” (30 inches by 40 inches), that I finished within four days because I wanted to enter it into a juried art show that same week. The painting “Grandmother” took me about a month to finish, and it’s only 16 inches by 20 inches.

Creative blocks? What are those? I wish I had some type of mechanism to make me NOT think about all the creative things I could be getting done instead of sleeping or eating three proper meals a day. Maybe I should try to make a rigid schedule for adequate sleep and meal times.

MOA: Your paintings are likely classified as lowbrow (though I prefer, after hearing it from a Bay Area gallery curator, the term newbrow). How would you describe your style? How did you discover your style? How has it evolved over time?

Artistic Freedom

HOLLY: Hmm…maybe Neo-Folk. I heard that once and liked it. Though it seems quite hard to categorize many artists like myself. Especially, if we aren’t sure what we want to be labeled as or if we even want to be labeled. Who knows, maybe one day I may change my subject matter or medium. I don’t like to feel constrained by my past. You never know what avenues life will take you down.

Most of my style comes from the comics, cartoons and video games I grew up with. It’s stayed mostly the same, but I have altered certain features such as noses and the figure’s shapeliness. More recent work has even been leaning away from painting my women as too thin and tall. Maybe I am becoming more comfortable with my looks as I get older and would rather not always paint a certain type of ideal beauty.

MOA: Do you create any kind of storyline for your characters before or as you are painting them? What do you hope people get from your art?

HOLLY: Yeah, I do start with a character outline and add more details to their personality as I work. Sometimes they could become more playful or dangerous depending on my moods. It makes me happy when people feel a connection with the work and are willing to hang it in their homes.

MOA: You seem to paint mostly with acrylics, though some of your work is a result of mixed-media, and you use both canvas and wood of various sizes. Discuss the reasons for these choices.

HOLLY: Most of my mixed-media work is just me having fun. It’s not intended to be for sale or displayed in a gallery. It helps break up the monotony of the other paintings I’m working on. Most of my paintings are acrylic on canvas, but I enjoy painting on different surfaces, like wood because it’s a really fun smooth surface to work on.

MOA: What other ways, besides painting, does your creativity manifest itself?

HOLLY: When I prepare a meal I like it to be quite colorful and pleasing to the eye, so I will put forth effort on presentation. Everything I do is really about the presentation, whether I’m cooking, hanging paintings and art on my walls, organizing my studio space; it all has to be a certain way. I believe that the “C” in OCD stands for “creativity” rather than “compulsive.”

MOA: Who are your favorite artists? Do any particular painters, writers, musicians, filmmakers inspire and/or influence you and your work? How so?

HOLLY: I admire so many talented artists and am constantly finding new ones that inspire. Some that I would have to mention are Tara McPherson, Frida Kahlo, Alice Neel, Margaret Kilgallen, and Daniel Clowes. These artists have created such strong, honest imagery of women. Since the new year began, I have been trying to work on a new series of my own version of leading ladies.

MOA: I think a lot of artists question, at some point, whether his or her work is any good. How critical are you of your own work, and do you have an immediate sense of the quality of the piece you’re painting? How do you combat any self-doubt?

HOLLY: Oh boy, I can be quite critical of my own work! But I think it helps drive me to become better at painting. I think if I didn’t have that quality then I would still be painting hands all wrong. Besides, isn’t it sorta natural to have some self-doubt from time to time? Well, I hope it is because I don’t want to pay for therapy.

MOA: How has the Internet—especially sites such as Etsy—changed the possibilities for independent artists like yourself, not only to earn a living but also in terms of exposure?

HOLLY: Etsy, and other sites like it, help artists like me cut out gallery commission fees, which can be quite steep. I totally love the concept of people buying directly from the artist. I get to package the art work myself and write thank you cards and then ship it off to its new home. Gives me a chance to say a proper goodbye to my paintings.

MOA: What advice do you have for aspiring artists?

HOLLY: Find what you enjoy working on. Don’t let anyone else tell you what you should be creating as an artist. Eventually you will find the right audience for your art.

MOA: What do you love most about being an artist? Any frustrations?

HOLLY: I love coming up with all these interesting characters, and it’s very cool that I am able to paint them. I am very thankful for that ability. Frustrations come and go, and one is not having a proper art studio space. I am limited in how big I can go with my paintings. There is also a big fear at times of getting paint on the carpet of my apartment which I rent.

MOA: What does art mean to you?

HOLLY: I don’t think about it much in that way. It’s what I do, what I love, and that’s really it.

HOLLY THE TERRIBLE ON THE WEB
Official Site
Etsy
MySpace