Thank you to all who joined us for a fun afternoon conversation with Annie Rob & Sarah J. Schwartz! Sarah and Annie shared their inspirations, how they source their pieces, and what exciting projects are next for them. For those who were unable to attend, here is what you missed!
*Transcribed from our live talk.
Q: Where did you get the idea to start working with frames, found objects, other paintings, and such?
Annie:
It started quite organically. I was living in London at the time, and I had just sold a creative agency that I co-ran, so I had a lot of time on my hands. I'd always collected paintings and weird vintage things and objects, and I just started painting things around for our home. Friends would come over, love them, and ask me to make them pieces. That's how it started. I suddenly realized that, actually, this is quite a good idea. And that was about 8 years ago.
Sarah:
I think I started during the pandemic. I didn't start off my painting again with the repurposing. I was just still experimenting. But then, when I was on a family trip to the Getty Museum, and I was with my now husband, I just got so inspired by all of the extremely ornate frames that they had in some of their exhibitions, and I just thought I wanted to do something that was a modernized interpretation of it. I just got so inspired that I was like, all right, I need to start thrifting immediately, and then, the rest is history.
Q: Where do you get your frames & pieces?
Sarah:
So I scour everywhere. I go to Goodwill, Poshmark, Facebook Marketplace. Sometimes my husband will come with me because some places are a little bit sketchy.
Annie:
I'm always looking for things. I do a lot of estate sales, thrifty, flea markets. Whenever I travel anywhere, I'm always looking for things, much to my husband's dismay. Finding the pieces is a huge part for me. The pieces have to be right. I am looking for something quite specific. Something that's vintage was once loved and hung on someone's wall, but has lost its way and needs to be repaired. It needs to be brought back to life. It's a nice part of the story, but now I also have people who find pieces for me.
Q: Where Did you find this Horse?
Annie:
That was at this random little shop in Echo Park that was like a junk shop. And he was just leaning outside. It is a carousel horse. I was just on the phone, l was like oh, my god, that would be amazing. I could cut it in half and wall mount it! That's just how my brain works.
I see discarded objects as treasure, like that life ring. That was from a prop house, which was insane. It had old props that they used in movies, and they were selling everything off.
Q: What are your favorite mediums to work with?
Sarah:
I use mostly acrylics, but I also use found objects because I like that mixed media incorporation. I know that a lot of artists don't really like acrylic because it dries quickly, but I really like it because I can keep layering on top. When I do the raw canvas, that is a totally different process. It is still acrylic, but I need it to dry really slowly. I have to be really patient with them.
annie:
I mainly work with enamel paint, sign writers' paint. It is really thick, and glossy, and opaque. It sits really nicely on the background paintings. It's kind of what you see with old vintage signage, so it lends itself nicely to the work. But I also use acrylics and oils, because I often have to do repairs to the vintage pieces since they have been discarded. I have to figure out what the original piece is painted with and then working with them to make them good again before adding on.
Q: When you find your frames, or when you find your piece, how do you know what phrase you are going to put on it or Where you are going to go with your frames?
ANNIE:
Some of the pieces, when I find them, I know exactly what they are going to say. It is obvious to me. Then some of them, not so much. Some of them hang in my studio until it works its way out. They are all quite humorous. It's about having a piece of artwork that is fun and makes you smile everyday and is a talking point. I am constantly making lists and thinking of things. If you read through my notes app, you'd think I am insane. It is nonsense.
Sarah:
I used to study architecture and design. So it is kind of like the frame lends itself to helping me understand how I want to work with it. If it is more of an ornate frame, I already have different ways I want to complement it or juxtapose against it. If it is a more simple or contemporary frame, then I have different styles I want to work with in that way. The frame typically is the guide, and what I like about it is that I get to look at the piece as a whole. I don't have to think about how the frame will affect the piece at the end.
Q: Why frames?
Sarah:
I get to look at the piece as a whole to start. Which I love. I love the 3-dimensionality that it creates, so when I am doing the artwork within it, it feels like conceptually different layers, physically with the frame, and then the layers of the paint. There is something about that that I continuously come back to. It's so rich.
Q: I always find it interesting to hear how artists spend their time in the studio. How is your studio time?
annie:
Studio time is some of my favorite time. Because there is so much business, marketing, social media, and following up you have to do, so when you actually get the time to create and paint, that's the best bit for me. When I am in my studio painting, it is often quite late at night when the kids are asleep. That is my happy place. I listen to audiobooks and podcasts and just lose myself in it. That's the best bit.
Sarah:
I wish I could paint at night. As soon as the sun goes down, my brain just shuts off. I need the sunlight.
So Apple is my 9-5pm, my art is my 5-9pm and mostly weekends. So I am just constantly trying to figure out what I can do before my workday starts, after my workday ends, and then what is my plan for the weekend. I enjoy it because there are so many differences between the two. I do my Apple design work on the computer all day, and then with painting and drawing, I get back to my hands and feeling something.
ANNIE:
Working for myself, it is good, so I can be there for the kids when they need me. And then I can work in the evenings or work around them. It is chaos. And also a lot of my work has profanity. I have two little boys. It is a fine line when they have friends come over, and if I need to put away some stuff. I'm probably messing them up for life. One of them is really into art, so who knows.
Q: CAn you share with us about Nobody wants this & Something very bad is going to happen with netflix?
annie:
That was like really surreal. With Nobody Wants This, the set designer reached out to me before they started filming season 1. She found my work and gave me the premise and who was attached to it. She asked if I would be okay with them buying a few prints and using them on set, and I was like, "Yeah, absolutely!" They hung in their apartment. In season 2, they are on screen much more. It is really surreal watching the show.
For Something Very Bad is Going to Happen, I was asked by a client who does Netflix events to paint a veil. I had to paint those words onto a lace veil. When you actually try to paint on lace, it's impossible because it is porous. The whole time I was doing it, I was thinking "something very bad is going to happen." I did varnish on the back to fill the holes. The third veil, I nailed it. That was super fun!
Q: What are you guys excited for next?
Sarah:
I am going to be doing one piece in every room of a hotel, new construction, in Nashville. It is going to be my frames, 11x14, 340 of them. The curator found me through Instagram and reached out to me. There is going to be a pattern of 4 pieces. It is a hybrid of the original and a print. The interior is going to be a print, and then I am going to paint on top of the frames. Going to be a lot of weekends! I get the frame and print together, and then I paint on top of each. They gave me the interior design of the rooms, and then I chose the colors based on that. Lots of jewel tones! Rich moodier colors.
annie:
I am creating a collection that I really want to show at Round Top in Texas. It is this antique and design event that takes place in Spring & Fall. Full of interior designers, buyers, influencers. So I really want to show there this fall. And then I am doing a project with the Jonas Brothers that will be really fun. And then I am doing a little range of card designs for a London based card company. Make my work really accessible. I think it will be really fun. We are both busy!