A "modest living" through art

When explaining why Cape's newest art collective took the name Modest Living Artists, Jake Wells, a member of the group, emphasized the word living. He joked half-heartedly at the all-too-common tragic plight of free-thinkers and creative types.

"If you're an artist," Wells said, "you're probably going to become famous after you die."

It would be out of character for the affable, down-to-earth, intensely likable Wells and company to get bent out of shape over that, though. They're less interested in garnering widespread notoriety and more interested in doing what their group's name suggests -- earning a modest living as artists. James Thurman, who also is a group member, laughs that a modest living would be great right about now.

"We're all just like, barely getting by," Thurman said. "I've been to the point where I'd sell artwork to take girls out on dates, or even to buy gas for my car."

Modest Living Artists' six-member roster includes Rachel Martin, Hannah Hart, Utahna Hancock, Becky Winkler, James Thurman and Jake Wells. I spoke with Martin, Thurman and Wells as they geared up for the group's second show, which will take place the first Friday in November. They mentioned that while they've known each other for years through classes and the local arts scene, their decision to assemble as a creative collective was a recent one.

Martin, who combines paint and fabric to create alluringly rich, textural pieces, recounted how the idea came on the heels of another event.

"It happened after we'd been part of an art show put together by Craig Thomas, another local artist," Martin said. She explained that while it's difficult for a single artist to do several shows in a year, filling a gallery is definitely doable for a team of talents working together.

"If you're working with a group and you've got to put five pieces together every three months, you can handle that," she said.

Another plus is that while their ideas are expressed through vastly different styles, no one's work looks out of place in the show.

"It's similar enough that it doesn't look off the wall," Martin said.

It also doesn't hurt that they get along with each other. They're all friends, although they've managed to develop a professional relationship that enables them provide honest feedback on each other's work -- one of the most indispensable relationships artists can have. They give each other support, constructive criticism and a fresh pair of eyes for their projects.

"We check up on each other," Thurman said.

And for them, having someone to "check up" on you is sometimes the most important thing. Theirs is typically solitary work, and it's easy to see how it could be lonely.

Not to mention that these folks have lives. They work day jobs. All are either attending Southeast as undergrads or trying to get into grad schools elsewhere. A couple of them have kids. Far from the sort of artist who packs up some brushes and jaunts off to an idyllic commune for months at a time, these six create amidst a ceaseless barrage of distractions. Those distractions come from a reality to which they are firmly connected.

Other than having fostered an almost profound sense of modesty, the fortunate result is artwork that is accessible, tactile and real. The members of Modest Living Artists produce boldly honest, skillfully crafted reflections of their world, which, anyone attending their show will agree, looks strikingly similar to -- although more elegantly rendered than -- ours.

The art show will take place on Friday, Nov. 4 in the Riverview Room above Buckner Brewing Co. in downtown Cape Girardeau. For more information contact Buckner at 334-4677.