Salty Lemons

Steve DeFrank's wood and paper plank works
Brooklyn, NY from my 2011 archive

April 12, 2011

A studio visit with Steve DeFrank

The first time I met the painter, Steve DeFrank was several years ago when I was sitting and waiting for The Swede in a sculpture workshop. Steve came up to me and asked, "Do you have any chocolate?" I was without chocolate and Steve moved on. The question was innocent enough but it caught me off guard, he did not know me. On the way home, I told The Swede the story, and he chuckled, "That's Steve DeFrank."

Fast forward a few years to late March of 2011. The Swede and I went to visit Steve's studio in Brooklyn. We arrived toting red velvet cupcakes topped with raspberries hoping to satisfy Steve's penchant for chocolate. When we arrived, he greeted us in Spanish. My instinct was to reply, "Como estas?" but I stalled, a bit embarrassed that my Spanish was not up to par. (It once was, in high school.) Steve is an avid student of Spanish and that is the thing about him, he does everything with enthusiasm and with openness. He is an artist and an educator. And very funny, an opinion many people share.

His 500 square foot studio is spectacular. It is spacious and filled with natural light from a set of large windows on one end. Scattered throughout the space are works in progress and finished works hung on the walls. Steve is gifted with the ability to be a great conversationalist and an even better listener. He can speak endlessly about any subject. We were able to move from talking about his artistic process, to politics, to Powerpuff Girls, to families, to religion, and to travels.

Steve draws inspiration from Pop Culture; referencing song titles, graffiti found on bathroom walls, cartoons, NPR, and other forms of media. He plays with the idea of faux, with layer upon layer of simulacra. He paints wood grain and carvings upon real wood and on pieces constructed from heavyweight paper made to look like wooden planks. Adding to the playfulness and attention to detail, Steve added to one work, faux planer marks, further challenging the viewer to guess what is real and what is fake.

After being in the studio awhile, the enjoyment, passion, and satisfaction the artist feels became evident to me. I was able to see it in the work. This is not an easy place for an artist to reach. Steve agreed, he spoke about being in a place where he feels he should be and how it feels good to be there. This fall, Steve will have a solo exhibition at the Margaret Thatcher Projects. I am already looking forward to another studio visit and to his show, whichever comes first. We spent the last half hour of our visit saying, "We should go, let you work," but continued to chat. In the end, we did peel ourselves away from Steve and his work, after a four hour visit.

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