Interview with ​Cynthia Yatchman

Meet NUNUM's Contributor: Cynthia Yatchman

11/9/2024

NUNUM

Blending Flash Fiction & Art

Interview with Cynthia Yatchman

What was the first book you remember picking and reading yourself?

Dick and Jane :)

What was the last book you read that made you say damn, that was a good book?

The Life of Pi

Which artists have influenced your current artistic direction?

I was lucky enough to grow up in a household that supported and practiced the arts; my mom was an artist. I went to elementary school at a time when art was still a valuable part of the curriculum. While growing up, my refrigerator door was the proverbial art gallery. As an undergrad in college, I took life drawing, and black and white photography while focusing on education. These were the key components in starting my own art practice. However, my first true passion in art was kindled after college when I did a several-year-long ceramic apprenticeship with master potter, J.T. Abernathy, in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Years later I shifted from 3D to 2D, where my passion currently lies and remains. I went back to school to study painting at the University of Washington, where I received a BFA in painting.

Today, my 2D practice is mostly two-pronged-mixed media diptychs and triptychs that contrast color with black and white, often pairing abstract with representational art and a second body of work (especially during these years of the pandemic), which focuses on more representational landscapes and florals, work based on nature.

I will always be enamored with the work of clay artist J.T. Abernathy, a master artist/living legend in Ann Arbor, Michigan. J T is now 100 years old and still making art! His work is housed in 23 museums across the United States and Canada. A world-renowned potter, JT had a massive influence on my ceramics, and his inspiration continues today in my painting and drawing. Even though for the past several decades I have been working as a 2D artist (my art now revolves around drawing, painting, and printmaking), the passion, sensitivity, and devotion that I witnessed in JT and adopted as my own values while working with him, stay with me no matter what medium I work in. He taught me how to think, see, and appreciate art and life.

I received my BFA in painting from the University of Washington and was privileged to study with Mr. Michael Spafford. He said of his work, "Basically, my intelligence as an artist is reactive. I had one idea in 1958, and I've been reacting to that same idea ever since." I believe many of us do this in our art; we keep revisiting some of the same art themes, and those can stretch out over a lifetime. Mr. Spafford taught with a sense of acceptance, which encouraged exploration that has stayed with me both in my art and my teaching.

A third key influence for me was growing up with a mother who was an artist and art instructor. Art was a huge part of her life and, consequently, of mine. Ruth Carol Yatchman worked in all the painting media and clay but became best known for her work as a porcelain painter. She was a huge admirer and prolific painter of flora and fauna. In the "China painting" tradition, Ruth Yatchman worked on fine white porcelain using a series of overglazes fired in multiple layers at relatively low temperatures (1112-1556F). The medium is akin to watercolor but done on very fine porcelain, so there is an added translucency, smoothness, and delicacy to the art. Her immersion in her art and her enthusiasm were contagious. As I advance in my art career, I find myself drawn to florals, one of her favorite subjects.

Is there an artist in your local community that you would recommend people check out?

I love the painting of Peg Murphy, which she shows at Shift Gallery here in Seattle; we went to art school together and have been in an artist's portrait group for years.

What advice would you give someone just starting to send their work to journals?

I have found Submittable to be very helpful; a few sites on Facebook have some excellent resources to use as well.

What do you enjoy most in art -subjects and/ or mediums?

My favorite subjects in my art tend to be nature-based. I recently finished a body of work featuring representational insect prints on top of abstract ink paintings.

Florals have become inviting, especially during COVID-19, when I brought in more bouquets of florals into my loft/studio. I worked as an abstract artist for many years, and today, I often combine abstract with representational work.

I moved on from oil paints many years ago, and now I primarily use alcohol inks, acrylic paints, and latex house paints, sometimes with embellishments of pastels and charcoal. I love the wetness and stringiness I get using latex paint. I use brushes, rags, rollers, and cake-decorating tools to apply paint; I sometimes embed other materials into the paint, like string and pumice. Most of the time, I paint on paper and glue it onto a board. My favorite paper these days is yupo paper, a synthetic, slick, non-absorbent paper that allows for some wonderful surprises. For my prints, I use Safety-Kut, a softer, more pliable version of linoleum; it cuts like butter and is a joy to work with.

Can you talk about your experience as an art instructor? Does it influence your creative work? If so, how?

These days, I teach less, but my most recent classes have been the clay classes. Revisiting my first meaningful art experiences and sharing them with students has been excellent. I most recently created a curriculum for students aged 2-4 and their parents! They work collaboratively in stoneware.

I also enjoy teaching some beginner classes at my local senior center. I have taught courses in pastels, watercolors, colored pencils, etc.—it’s been quite lovely. Many of these students are revisiting art after decades of working, and now that they finally have time to explore more in their retirement, they choose to re-ignite a passion from their youth. I also have accomplished students who have had a lifetime of artmaking and those who are picking up a paintbrush for the first time. It influences my work in that it is so joyful to see such passion in action and bravery in trying new things; their enthusiasm is contagious.

Can you tell me something about the next project you are working on?

I belong to a very small artist group. We have dubbed ourselves the Portrait Collective; we have a long history together, having met in our school at UW in the 90’s. We have met weekly for decades. We sit and daw each other, occasionally venturing out to incorporate in some landscapes. We have shown our work together as a group in the past. During the height of Covid, we stopped meeting in person and instead started doing collaborative art from afar. One of us would start a painting or print or collage on paper and then snail mail it off to the next artist, who would add to it and then again pass it on; this round-robin collaborative art piece would grow until someone declared it finished. I’d love to have us do some collaborative in-person work now and have a show showcasing both in-person and snail mail collaborations.

Cynthia Yatchman is a Seattle-based artist. A former ceramicist, after receiving her B.F.A. in painting (UW). She switched from 3D to 2D and has remained there ever since. She works primarily on paintings, prints, and collages. Her art is housed in numerous public and private collections. She has exhibited on both coasts, including shows at Seattle University, SPU, the Tacoma and Seattle Convention Centers, and the Pacific Science Center.