Yotam Zohar
"Adrift" 2016, oil on canvas, 24" x 24"
How did you get into debt?
Paying for college and associated costs of living, then living in Brooklyn with a child and only one full-time income.
"Burn" 2016, oil on canvas, 24" x 24"
How does your economic reality effect your art?
I like to think my economic reality doesn't affect my artwork as much as my art practice. The constraints of debt mean that I can't afford a studio, assistants, or childcare in order to put in the amount of time the work needs. It means that every day I choose to continue painting, I am taking on greater financial risk by not seeking a career change or getting a day job (which would kill my art career). Without the initial chance to support these aspects of a professional practice by selling work, it feels as if I'm locked in a Catch-22: I need to sell work in order to afford a professional workspace, but without a professional workspace I find it nearly impossible to create work that sells well enough to support a professional workspace.
"Payload" 2016, oil on canvas, 24" x 24"
Would your work look different if you weren't in debt?:
Yes; it would be larger and there would be more of it, which means its overall quality would be higher, because I would be able to afford a studio and childcare.
"The Underground Series", 2012-2016, oil on wooden panels, 27 works 20" x 16" and 2 works 36" x 24" (as of 2016)
www.yotamzohar.com