We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Klaire Lockheart a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Klaire, thanks for joining us today. Let’s jump to the end – what do you want to be remembered for?
I hope that people in the future will see my paintings in museums, have a chuckle, and then enjoy experiencing my artwork. I currently spend a lot of my time picking fights with old dead guys, which is why I purposefully paint with oils in a style reminiscent of 19th century European art. It would be hilarious for my figure paintings to one day be displayed alongside canvases by Jean-Léon Gérôme, Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, and other men who illustrated nude lounging women. Representational figure painting fell out of favor around the same time women were finally permitted into art academies, which is why most classical paintings were generated by men who depicted undressed feminine bodies. The combination of old-timey patriarchal paintings alongside my feminist artwork in a museum would be absurd, and I bet that it would exasperate a poor grad student or two as they write their art history theses. Perhaps in a few hundred years, curators and historians will write, “Klaire Lockheart thought that women (including but not limited to: cis women, trans women, non-binary, two-spirit, and gender fluid people) were people, and she was ahead of her time.”
Klaire, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I paint dudes in man caves. I devote an embarrassingly large amount of my life to creating over-the-top oil on canvas compositions of bros posing like historic odalisques, and I call them “brodalisques.” I do this work to challenge traditional gender roles while incorporating my sense of humor. I painstakingly depict masculine men in languid poses historically reserved for flaccid odalisques and writhing Venuses because I want viewers to notice the ridiculous ways women are traditionally represented in the art world. My hope is that after seeing my artwork and having a laugh, viewers will then be able to notice the lack of representation of women and people of other marginalized genders.
I completed my first brodalisque painting in 2019, and shortly afterwards I was elated to be awarded the Elizabeth Greenshields Foundation grant to further develop this series of recumbent men. These subversive paintings have since been displayed in various solo and group exhibitions including the Dahl Arts Center in South Dakota, the Norfolk Arts Center in Nebraska, the Sioux City Art Center in Iowa, and Rosalux Gallery in Minnesota. Because I’m based in rural South Dakota, I’m grateful to be a recipient of the Rural Regenerator Fellowship from Springboard for the Arts.
Have you ever had to pivot?
I have to confess that it took me three years to complete my first two paintings of dudes relaxing in man caves. It took me so long to finish that pair of brodalisque paintings because I was also working as a full-time art teacher in a K-12 school district, which required me to commute a total of 150 miles every single day. I was a public school educator for about a decade before I chose to walk away from that career because I knew I could make a more meaningful impact in my community by creating and exhibiting artwork instead of supervising over a 120 screaming kindergartners on the frozen windswept plains of South Dakota during daily recess. I began painting full-time in 2020, just in time to coincide with the global pandemic. Every challenge was exaggerated that year, but it was a breeze compared to dealing with educational administrators who believed art class was simply indoor playtime with glitter.
Since I began painting full-time, my artwork has improved dramatically. Not only do I have the time to focus so I can create meticulous figure paintings of dudes in macho environments, but I can conduct the research necessary to make my artwork meaningful. Because I’m now able to work as an artist, my exhibition record is becoming unruly. Since 2020, I’ve had seven solo shows along with six duo exhibitions. My artwork has also been included in about 30 group shows, and it has been added to the permanent collections of the Ramsey County Historical Society, the South Dakota State Art Collection, and the Gal’s Guide Library.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
As an artist, I get to dedicate my career to uplifting misfits, nerds, and glorious weirdos. Artists have the power to communicate through their work, foster empathy, and connect with their communities. I specifically strive to share the message that women are people, but I include my sense of humor within my artwork to make it approachable for those who are apprehensive about feminism. I love sharing my artwork in traditional galleries, but I also enjoy connecting with friends through social media. It’s a lot of fun to interact with other creative people, whether they are artists or not. It’s incredibly rewarding to hear people tell stories about how they connect to my paintings or how my work has inspired them.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.klairelockheart.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/klairelockheart/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KlaireALockheart
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/klairelockheart/
- Other: https://www.patreon.com/klairelockheart
Image Credits
Aaron C Packard