Quinn Lumsden on the Self, Hands & Human Nature: A Conversation Over a Beer

Quinn Lumsden is an interdisciplinary artist from Edmonton who classifies painting, drawing, and sculpture as their go-to mediums. Quinn moved to Vancouver in 2018, which is when they began exploring their passion for visual art and philosophy at Simon Fraser University. Due to their open-minded and curious nature, Quinn enjoys engaging with the world in a critical manner and believes that “art and philosophy go hand-in-hand”, which is often reflected in their work. With an upcoming show in the Spring at the Audain Gallery, I (virtually) sit down with Quinn to further dive into their mind and get some insight on their creative practices. 

Kaila Bhullar: What initially drew you to art? 

Quinn Lumsden: I really enjoy making things and using my hands. Hands are useful.

KB: They definitely are. We use our hands for many things. How would you describe the artistic style of what you make with your hands?

QL: These days I’ve been exploring painting more. Because of my interest in more hands-on things, I typically stay away from digital forms and computer based projects, and put more of an emphasis on things like painting and drawing. Since being in lockdown, I’ve been gravitating more towards [fine art]. But Before [when I had studio access] I was really enjoying working with installations and sculpture. I definitely want to explore sculpture more, but painting is typically my go to, since I enjoy it so much. 

KB: Aside from sculpture, are there any mediums that you’re not too familiar with that you’re interested in exploring/experimenting with? 

QL: Well you know how at art galleries sometimes there are installations that are entire rooms that are filled with sounds, and smells, and are very multi-sensory and stimulating, and when you walk in, it almost feels like you’ve entered a different world? I’d like to explore something like that. 

KB: That’s really cool! So kind of like creating an atmosphere?

QL: Yeah, exactly. 

KB: Have you considered doing something like that for your Audain show?

QL: You know, it’s been mentioned to me that in the past students have fought over space, so it might be hard to request to reserve an entire space. 

KB: Are you able to describe what your creative process looks like? 

QL: Usually when I start something - like a painting - I’ll begin by just kind of looking at what’s around me and really take it in and try to pinpoint what exactly grabs my attention. Usually from there it evolves into something more tangible. 

KB: That’s interesting. Have you ever noticed a pattern within the things that grab your attention? Like is it typically more of a colour, or a sound, or more along the lines of an abstract idea? 

QL: Things like feelings, shapes, motion. I’d say gestures a lot of the time. 

KB: I noticed that throughout your works, there always seems to be an indirect (though sometimes more explicit - like in some of your paintings) presence of the self. Is art/art-making a tool that you use to better understand yourself or would you say that you use it more to understand the world that surrounds you? 

QL: I would say both. Maybe primarily a way to understand and express myself, I’m constantly trying to find an effective way to express how my internal world feels, externally - which is an impossible task. 

KB: I feel like it’s human nature to try to define the unknown or impossible. 

QL: Exactly. We often get stuck inside ourselves, so to be able to externalize that is fulfilling to some degree, though can sometimes lead to confusion and harsh self criticism. 

KB: Would you say that because of this art and artists are inherently narcissistic? 

QL: That’s something I think about all the time. I think to make art you have to be, to an extent, a narcissist. All art is self confirming. I don’t think that’s a negative thing, [as I mentioned] we are all stuck inside ourselves, so our art is a reflection of ourselves in some ways. 

KB: Do you prefer presenting concrete ideas in your work or do you like keeping it more abstract and open to subjective interpretation? 

QL: I definitely prefer keeping things open to interpretation, even if I have a specific idea, I don't like to explicitly say it. And even sometimes, I like to fill my art with potential symbolism. For example, in my last couple of paintings I tried to include objects with pre-existing heavy symbolic meaning, like the mirror, which can represent a number of things. I painted myself looking into a mirror with my dog as my reflection, and reflections bring up a lot of ideas for people - narcissism being one of them [for example]. This is not the reason I painted that, I just enjoy the level of subjectivity it allows for each viewer.  

KB: Is the subjectivity within art something that draws you to it? 

QL: I don’t make art as a “blank canvas” for others to project their feelings onto. There are always my own reasons, but I do like including things that people can form their own meaning with and understand in their own way. 

KB: I see, so things that are [generally] universally symbolic/understood?

QL: Yeah. My favourite experiences in crits are when I get to hear people’s opinions and interpretations of my art. The symbols, the ideas, and the messages that they get from it - sometimes people come up with ideas that I haven’t even thought of, and I love that. So I try to make space for that [on a broader scale].     

 

KB: In your words, what is the purpose of art? Why does it matter? 

QL: I’ve been sort of on this kick about the difference - or maybe there is no difference - between more traditional art, like paintings, drawings, sculptures - “physical art” - and more “conceptual art”. I don’t love conceptual art, even though [I acknowledge] there are concepts within all art and it’s inescapable. But I really like experiencing physical spaces and material, so to me, I see art as an exploration of space, colour, shapes, and material, and the visual and physical world that we live in. Not that I am trying to discredit other things, like conceptual and digital art (“things on the computer”). 

KB: I think I see what you mean - I’m picturing the difference between like Renaissance art, which typically appears as though it’s taken years to complete due to its detail and scale, vs. what we know as conceptual art, which is very broad and could be anything from a piece of toilet paper on a plinth to something less [or more] abstract. This makes me consider the influence of academia, art school, and institutions - do you think they have an effect on how we perceive art?

QL: Yes. I sort of feel like art school and academia has led to perhaps an over-conceptualization of art, which has made it become more of a theoretical discipline. But this has also allowed art to be taken more seriously, which is a good thing. So there’s positives and negatives - it becomes a dichotomy. Something that I explore in my art are dichotomies and dualist relationships, and sorts of tension. Ideally, I try to avoid binaries because I find them restrictive, but often they are hard to escape. 

KB: What inspires you as an artist? Does your work have any specific influences? Are there other artists that you look to for inspiration?

QL: Big ideas. Philosophical concepts. Kind of like some of the topics we were just talking about. The big conversations, like “why are we here?” And “what’s the purpose of life?” Unanswerable questions. I love talking about those things. That’s what inspires me. 

KB: So why are we here?

QL: There isn’t a purpose. We’re just here to experience things. So there’s nothing wrong with experiencing anything - even things like an awkward zoom interview. 

KB: On that note, as a final word on art: do you have any advice for young creatives and emerging artists? 

QL: Don’t take yourself too seriously!

Thank you Quinn for offering some really interesting insights on your artistic perspective and the art world in general. We look forward to watching your work progress and seeing what new things you have in store for us in the future. Make sure to keep an eye out for Quinn's work in the upcoming Spring 2021 show at the Audain Gallery!