Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Ben Quesnel. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Ben, thanks for joining us today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

Undelivered is one of the first pieces I made that led me to thinking about my practice differently. I began planning events around the artwork I made and collaborated with people outside of my immediate circle; I was networking with other creatives, businesses, and people who wanted to support a new idea.

The project materialized when a friend of mine discovered two abandoned mail trucks in the woods of his property in northern Connecticut. He invited me over one day and we rummaged through the old broken down trucks that had sunk twelve inches into the ground. We opened the doors to find a crumbling interior, some clothes left behind, and nests from animals that once occupied the space. Underneath it all we found a box of mail dating back to 1982— pieces of undelivered messages that never made it to their final destination.

I took an interest in these trucks and the expeditions they took. The trucks once served as a means for people to connect with one another, but now remain inoperable. They were left abandoned with pieces of mail that never reached their destination. Discovering these stranded pieces of mail is how my idea for Undelivered began. I wondered how many important messages never make it to their recipient? I not only considered the unexpected occurrences disrupting the line of transportation, but I also thought about the messages that are never sent. How often have we wanted to say something to someone but did not? These lines of inquiry led to one of my first art pieces that I consider to be a total work of art containing elements of social practice.

With the support of the Clementina Arts Foundation, I was given a studio where I set up the shell of the mail truck as an interactive space for visitors to discover elements of sound, video, and also have the opportunity to create their own letters and pieces of mail art to remain within the installation. Overtime the physical piece became the centerpiece within a much greater space. It became a way for me to create a place for sharing ideas and artwork with one another. I started to host poetry nights, author readings, and art making activities inspired by ‘mail art’. The truck became secondary to the social interactions that took place around the physical art piece.

Ben, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I am an artist, educator, father, and husband; Those roles intertwine, overlap, and fuel each other as I navigate my day-to-day life. They all seem separate, but the more I reflect on myself and my work, I recognize that they always play off of each other. It is important for me to do the best I can within each of these ‘subcategories’ of self, which ultimately become my whole. Early in my art career, I found that there was a lot of push back towards artists who also maintain a role outside of the art practice as if it takes away or distracts one from being in the studio. A certain guilt came with saying that I dedicate time to something or someone else. However, after 15 years of teaching art, maintaining an active studio practice, and becoming a father I realized how much energy and inspiration these simultaneous roles have had on my art practice. It has expanded my understanding of what I want my practice to be and has taken me into different areas of social engagement and creative output. Activating community, providing a space to share with others, and encouraging people to learn from one another has been important factors in the way that I approach art, teaching, and even parenting.
The projects that I have been most proud of throughout my art career are not the pieces I have made to hang on walls, but rather the atmospheres and interactions that occur within the walls of a space that I help organize in a collaborative manner. I would not call myself a social practice artist, but there are definitely characteristics of that which appear in my work.
Sour Milk (created with Christine Stiver and Longo Realty), Undelivered (Made at the Clementina Arts foundation Residency Program), and ART06870 (organized with Michael Manning and Christain Salvati) are a few of the collaborative projects that I have worked on that went beyond the canvas and provided a platform for others to share their work, interact, and engage. Although I enjoy making art for patrons and exhibitions, the pieces that I celebrate the most have expanded my practice beyond a singular brand or defined role.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.

I believe that it is sometimes hard for people in a non-creative field to understand that some of the most rewarding things do not come in the form of monetary compensation, awards, or lines on the CV, but rather the experiences and outlets we are able to share with others. However, this can be a double edge sword. I also feel that artists are often taken advantage of with the expectation that our art should be given and shared without the appropriate compensation. Yes, we often enjoy what we do, but we have worked hard to get to the point we are at: Countless hours in our studios navigating our practice, educational degrees paired with student loans, skills and knowledge acquired through dedication. I want art to be accessible to everyone! I also believe artists should be appropriately compensated for their time, talent, and knowledge. We often have to rely on patrons, sponsorships, and public programming initiatives that seek to make this happen, and we are grateful to all of those who help us bring art to others. At times it seems like it is near impossible to see ambitious projects come to fruition, but I have also learned that sometimes one just needs to look outside of their circle and invite others in for support. I have collaborated with numerous people and businesses outside of the “art world,” which has led to some of my most successful projects and experiences.
I am probably over simplifying this, but the worst someone can say is “no.” Therefore, I encourage artists to reach out to others and invite them in. It is a chance to allow ourselves as artists to expand our networks and fill a space with different ideas and resources. It allows us to extend our reach and join forces, build support systems, and work together towards a common goal. Art can be an individual mission and/or a collaborative one. I like to balance out my practice with both. For those who are not in a creative field, I encourage you to take a risk, reach out to an artist to help embark on a creative idea or take a chance and say “yes” to an artist’s proposal. Some of those most rewarding experiences can come from creating something new, and sharing that experience with others.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

I was recently invited to give a presentation at the School of Visual Art’s MFA Art Practice program, which concluded with a slide that read, “Everyone’s journey will be different, and the journey never ends.” I have to remind myself of that, because I think we often have specific goals or ideas that are attached to our profession and motivations. However, sometimes the goals are disrupted, take a detour, or change based on new situations and understandings. I think it is important that we recognize that our role as artists can be fluid and our desired destinations might not always look how we think they will when we arrive. I worked hard and passionately to get somewhere I thought I wanted to be, and with time I realized that it really wasn’t what I thought it was. I took what I considered to be a traditional path in fine art, and saw faults and flaws in that direction and decided that I wanted to shift my focus. I now spend less time creating by myself in the studio, and spend more time planning and creating art experiences with others.
I reached a moment in my career where I made a choice that took me into a new direction. I took an unexpected turn outside of the original journey that I mapped out for myself to realize that a new path might be more rewarding. It has allowed me to invite more people into my journey, and it allowed me the opportunity to be invited into other artists’ journeys as well.
For the past year and a half I have been working with Michael Manning and Christain Salvati to create an art space called Art06870. We describe it as a place that brings together artists, collectors, and benefactors with exhibitions, events, and collaborations to create an expansive vibrant community built on the belief that art is more than a commodity and is vital to the way it makes us feel and the message it conveys about us and our community. We have put a lot of love into this project, which has taken us somewhat away from our individualized studio practices. We remind ourselves that this might not look like the artwork we were creating before, but it is still very much part of our art practice now.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.benquesnelart.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/benqart/

Image Credits
Leka, @leka.Wv (took photograph labeled: LEKA_ART06870)