Tag: jim salvati

Jim Salvati: Disney Fine Artist, Film Concept Artist, Art Professor, Chill Surfer

Jim Salvati is doing the artist thing the right way. 

I’ve been thinking a lot about the artists I know during this pandemic. Of course I’m thinking of artists of all kinds, including actors, musicians, and filmmakers, many of whom haven’t worked regularly in what is now over a year. There are also visual artists who have continued to create images, sometimes for art galleries, sometimes in work as illustrators or concept artists. Regardless of the artistic expression, the pandemic has surely had an influence, if not on their income, on the way they create, or find a way to continue in the face of such unprecedented times,  or what they are doing to find ways to continue to express themselves. 

Of all the artists I know, one I knew would internalize what’s been happening and express it in art, as well as stay centered and forward-moving, is Jim Salvati. The man is, paradoxically, both really chill and really intense at the same time. Here’s a guy who has been a working illustrator, movie concept artist, fine artist, and art professor for over 30 years. Deadlines are a part of his daily life, so it seems reasonable to imagine he’d be pretty stressed out. 

But no. 

Raised in the beach culture of Southern California, Jim has always found a balance of his own art and the water has helped him to keep centered. When the surf’s up, he works from the crack of dawn to 2pm and then goes surfing. When there’s no surfing, he can work 12 hour days until the project is done. Either way works, because both art and nature feed his soul. 

As an artist, Jim is a storyteller, and has always been drawn to intense, or complicated subjects. He seeks to find both the darkness and joy in them. He tells his students at the Art Center College of Design to get their passion out in their work, and to express their own experiences through the work as well. It makes sense then, that what he has seen and experienced in the pandemic is reflected in his art. He is quoted as saying, ““The different emotions, gestures, moods, environments, and style of people in my life and those that I cross paths with, all become part of my storytelling.” Here is a piece he did as a commission of Eddie Van Halen during the pandemic, which is part of the Jim Salvati art series of musicians:

Eddie Van Halen by Jim Salvati

I love that he looks like he’s praying, but the deity is music and his own craft as a guitarist. The image is both chill and intense, right? 

This expression of intensity and getting to the depth and the meat of his subjects is nothing new. Even as a Disney fine artist, he finds the emotion and simple truth at the heart of the image. Here is a Lilo and Stitch original titled “A Part of the Family”, where he captures what it means to be family in one moment.

For fans of Salvati and Lilo and Stitch, this piece is available, by the way! Click for more info!
I don’t know anyone else who would create an image like this one…
“An Evil Task” by Jim Salvati

There are lots of other examples from his work with Disney that have the same intensity. His paintings are layered and thick with paint. believing an uneven surface adds to the emotion of the story.  Even in limited editions, those layers translate visually.

Brave Merida by Jim Salvati
The Warmth of Love by Jim Salvati
We’re Simply Meant to Be by Jim Salvati

You can see all Jim Salvati’s available art by clicking HERE.

I asked Jim to answer a few questions about his life as artist during the pandemic, what music inspires him, and other things that offer a glimpse into the brain and art process of Jim Salvati. Here are his fascinating answers!

Leslie Combemale: What does art mean to you, and what about being an artist fulfills you as a person?

Jim Salvati: Art means pretty much everything to me. I was raised in a art family, and very influenced by my uncles to get into this industry. It is a very rewarding career to see your work on the big screen, magazines, posters and on collectors’ walls. A very rewarding career. It’s difficult for sure to make every painting, whether digital or analog, perfect every time. It’s the pressure and the looming deadlines. You could say I am 100 % addicted to art and it’s pretty much on my mind 24/7, day and night..when I need sleep.

LC: One of the things I most love about working with you is commissions are always even better than I could imagine. What about doing commissions inspires you as an artist, and can you name a recent one that you really enjoyed? 

Jim: Commissions are very exciting, and very scary at the same time, and always challenging, because there’s pressure to make it perfect. I’m always hoping the client is just as happy. Recent 2021 commission is the new book Moby Dick. It’s a huge project that has not been printed at this level since 1930..the “Rockwell Kent Edition”. 15 Paintings and inkings. It’s a legacy project. This one is for the history books.

LC: What are your favorite Disney and your favorite non-Disney pieces you’ve done lately and why?

Jim: Recently doing some Disney concept work that is not produced yet. I took a break to deal with some family stuff. My incredibly cool Dad and I had a intentional break away from art that was very much needed, because I have never been unemployed, and have never taken a break, ever.

I am now getting back to Disney work, all new and not yet seen. Being a perfectionist, I will send in the Disney work when I think it’s ready and perfect, to keep the tradition of always sending in my best work to them.

LC: Do films and tv shows impact your artistry? if so, what are a few that have impacted you lately or continue to inspire you and why?

Jim: I consider myself a film and music nerd. My taste in film is very eclectic. It’s all over the place. I love films and soundtracks so much. All films inspire me. It’s such a great art form. Films are almost impossible to make. It’s such a difficult industry . There are so many moving parts, that it is amazing some films even get made. I also watch the ‘Making of’ documentaries. Just watch Heart of Darkness and you will see the ‘Making Of Apocalypse Now‘. It was impossible to complete, and almost killed Martin Sheen and Francis Ford Coppola. Even student films are tough to complete.  I have recently been into small independent  films. The most recent film I loved is NY fine artist Julian Schnabel’s film about Vincent Va Gogh, Eternity’s Gate. I loved Jojo Rabbit for the filmmaking, story telling, and the Bowie soundtrack. Julian Schnabel is the business model I follow: art and filmmaking.

LC: What is the most valuable way you’ve found to find joy as you’ve moved through the pandemic? 

Jim: I consider myself a music nerd as well. My taste in music is very eclectic and extremely all over the place. I listen to it all, and I’m looking for new music all the time. Can’t list 5! My brain is spinning even thinking about that! David Bowie is my go-to. I also go through phases from art jobs that influence my listening, like a project I started  that had me revisiting The Doors and even watching the film Doors live at the Hollywood Bowl from 1968. It is astonishing to watch, because the band members are trying to keep up with Jim Morrison! It’s a great concert, but if you watch closely, it’s stressful because of Jim’s unpredictability.  I do love his lyrics. I am always a bigger fan of written lyrics.

LC: What is the most valuable way you’ve found to find joy as you’ve moved through the pandemic? 

Jim: That’s easy. I engulfed my life in producing art that took on a ton of work…then took a break to concentrate on family and fitness, which benefits mental health. I worked out by riding, hiking, and of course  surfing, and doing anything to move. About one year ago I was at a concert with thousands of young people, shoulder to shoulder, and one of the best concerts I have ever been to… I mentioned my eclectic taste…this concert, which was exactly one year ago, was electronic music by Dj Destructo, with actor Idris Elba, who started his career as a DJ, then became a great actor, but Idris still does concerts. It was one of the best concerts I’ve ever attended. No one sat down the whole time. It really reminded me that the electronic music industry is totally influenced by Kraftwerk! I really love it live music and miss concerts so much. That is what I miss most, then travel. I survived the one year shut down and it makes me feel so fortunate…especially since I sold more paintings lately then before the pandemic! The break was good for me and now back neck deep in art. The Disney work is coming soon!

LC: How has the pandemic impacted your creativity or painting?

Jim: The pandemic and my intentional break in not doing art for awhile has made me more creative and fresh. I am working on a film now that is so incredible. It’s fresh, new, and a never-seen-before concept. It’s rewarding and so creative to be part of something new. Disney will be with me forever. I  needed a break to re-boot and get a fresh new direction. Disney has been in my life and career since I started. I have never been without my Disney family.

The pandemic is wearing on me for sure, so I’m trying my best to give back to people in need, and to the students who are so 100% engaged and committed in their education..I want to give them my best.

Here, in honor of Jim Salvati’s love of surfing, is this blog’s Covid Comfort Cartoon, from 1972’s Snoopy Come Home:

Cerphe’s Up Book Signing with Cerphe and Rock and Roll Art at ArtInsights!

Screen Shot 2017-01-15 at 5.12.07 PM

We are so excited to host famed long-time DJ and radio broadcaster Cerphe Colwell of Music Planet Radio at ArtInsights! He’ll be signing copies of his book Cerphe’s Up, about his 45 years as a rock and roll insider in and around the DC area.

In preparation of his coming to the gallery, we put together some great originals and limited editions from our collection to display, including great pieces of David Bowie, Kate Bush, Ringo Starr, and the Beatles, by artists Tennessee Loveless, Jim Salvati, and Alex Ross.

If you are a music fan you should definitely come meet Cerphe 2-4 pm on January 28th, when he will be at ArtInsights in Reston Town Center…(on a day when parking is free;)  

His stories are legendary, as is his kind, mellow demeanor.  Cerphe’s Up features great interviews with Tom Waits, Stevie Nicks, George Harrison, The Rolling Stones, and more.  Currently playing great tunes at the successful internet radio station Music Planet Radio, he has worked for WAVA, DC101, and WJFK, and is the one who brought an unknown Bruce Springsteen to the attention of DC music lovers. He has the awards to prove it!  It’s also co-authored by Stephen Moore, who has co-authored three other successful books about awesome famous people, including Washington treasure Helen H

Cerphe’s Up has nothing but 5 star reviews, and it has become a bestseller. You can buy it at our event and have him sign it to you directly, or signed to the favorite rock and roll historian, musician, or music fan in your family and friends. JUST IN TIME FOR VALENTINE’S DAY!

cerphe's up book cerphe colwell

We’ll also have the art of romance, as we do right around Valentine’s Day.  It might be early for those guys out there who forget until the day of and wander home with flowers you buy from 7/11, but that just means you will be prepared.  We have The Little Mermaid’s Eric and Ariel, Belle and the Beast, Mickey and Minnie, lots of the other cartoon couples you might enjoy. 

Bittersweet-Embrace-beauty-and-the-beast-art-john-alvin-movie-art-artinsights

Obviously Cerphe’s Up will make a wonderful Valentine’s gift for music-minded loved ones….and speaking of ROCK AND ROLL, so will the awesome art we have on display by Tennessee Loveless of David Bowie, who so loved the world he became the man who fell to earth…;)

Art Outsiders: David Bowie

We hope to see you Saturday the 28th, barring several feet of snow.  We’ll have a blast, and you will have a special opportunity to meet a local legend, surrounded by wonderful art!

Leslie at ArtInsights

Happy New Year from ArtInsights! What’s in store for 2017?

What does 2017 bring for ArtInsights? What can our friends and fans expect? We’re very excited about our plans, and we’d love to tell you a bit about them!

2016, by all accounts, was a pretty iffy year.  We, like the rest of the art world, were challenged by the experiences, losses, and surprises we all faced.  In the US, many artistic people are concerned about the future in a Trump presidency, even as our right-leaning friends suggest there’s nothing to worry about.  We have many wonderful LGBTQ and immigrant clients, so yes, we worry.

With that in mind, we have an amazing new project we will be promoting with Tennessee Loveless.  We can’t talk about it, really, but it is spectacular and very exciting.  It is political in nature.  How does this fit in with a gallery that focuses on animation and film art, you ask?  Well….

We are going to split focus starting in 2017.  It has been in the works for some time now.  As many of you may know, I (Leslie) have been working directly with artists creating and building proprietary projects unique to ArtInsights.  Two examples are The Art Outsiders with Tennessee Loveless, and The Image Projects with Jim Salvati.  Both projects just seem to be getting better and better, and more known, and we couldn’t be happier about that.

Here is our favorite piece so far from the “Musician’s Image”, a collection of music legends created not from any single picture, but from studying many different pictures and extrapolating a unique image from the collection of them.

jimihendrix_jimsalvati_art

Those of you who are artists know how impressive this is.  Very few artists can do this, but Jim Salvati excels at just that.  We have been slowly building our collection of these images and have some great announcements about the collection we’ll be making very soon.  Jim also started the “Sporting Image” with his instant classic representing Arnold Palmer.  We’ll be adding to that soon as well.  All these are part of a greater plan, and are going somewhere we can’t talk about at present, but those who are interested in commissioning their favorite musician or sports figure should contact me soon so they can get in on our plan, because it’s super cool (as are most things in which Jim takes part!) Of course Jim and I have to approve the image as part of our collection, but there are many very famous and wonderful musicians and athletes not yet spoken for…

arnoldpalmer_jimsalvati

Tennessee Loveless continues to get hotter.  Not only does he spend much of his “free time” building his collection of interviews and portraits for his personal project “Drag Landscapes”, he also just gets better with each successive Art Outsider portrait.  That’s not so say the first few aren’t amazing, they still floor me when I see them.  He’s just always changing, always evolving.  The latest pieces are just beautiful, especially Marlene Dietrich and Kate Bush (someone who inspired us both in our youth through to today).

Kate-Bush-Art-Outsider-Tennessee-Loveless-ArtInsights

He just charges forward, and he has more commissions already committed, as well as our new project that will be unveiled all at once, instead of one at a time.  Believe us, they will be more potent that way!  Follow us to see the art as it is released and announced, and of course if you are interested in a commission, let us know as soon as possible, especially as more is happening in his and our world together we can’t even talk about that will significantly influence his fame and, by extension, the prices of his originals!

marlene

(Marlene Dietrich Art Outsiders by Tennessee Loveless: contact us if interested)

As to the splitting of focus, we will still be representing the best of interpretive and original film and animation art, it just won’t be front and center on our site or our brick and mortar store.  Maybe you noticed we changed our name.  We are now “ArtInsights Gallery of Film and Contemporary Art.  We will have a new website that reflects all the new and awesome work we’ll be offering… and it will be a BETTER, SEARCHABLE site!  (HURRAY!) We will also have a dedicated section of our site, and will be happy to build your collections using our 28 years of experience.  We just are finding ourselves more and more committed to contemporary art and the artists who are searching for a place to speak their vision.  We want to help them speak, and find their audience, in any way we can.  We have not only the aforementioned projects,

and are EVER committed to representing and promoting the work of the incomparable and amazing film artist JOHN ALVIN, (who, in 2016, broke all records for the highest price for a piece of film key art with the 396k sale at auction of the E.T. movie poster original!)

but we have new ones in the works we are building in 2017!

We also have a great artist new to ArtInsights we will be promoting in the U.S. who is very successful and popular in his home country of England, Mark Davies.  His work will just blow you away.

goonies-hey-youuu-guys-limited-edition-mark-davies

(The Goonies)

Our show, which we are actively building as we speak, is a passion of mine and continues to excite me.  SO MANY IDEAS! Check out our new limited edition from his last show, all of which have remarques on them.

ET-Mark-Davies-limited-edition-Ill-be-right-here

(E.T.)

If you find his work compelling, contact us soon, because his work is going to go up in price really fast!  Right now, originals are around $6000 to $7000, and he loves nearly any movie you can imagine.  If he doesn’t, i’ll let you know and talk you out of it…you know my favorite movies?  He’s creating art from a number of them.  How synergistic is that for me, a film critic/art gallery owner?  VERY.

Lastly, those who live nearby or come to visit on occasion may have heard Reston Town Center is siting to paid parking as of January of 2017.  We have taken proactive action on behalf of our clients and friends.  We will validate your parking during the week, but also, since parking is free on the weekends, we’ll be open on both Saturday and Sunday, so we suggest coming to visit us then, because we’ll be making ArtInsights so much fun on the weekends you’ll WANT to come by!

We continue to be honored and touched by the support and loyalty of the clients and friends of ArtInsights.  After over 22 years in business, we are so appreciative to those who keep showing up, seeing what’s new, and embracing exciting new art year after year.

We know you could go anywhere.  And yet, you show up again and again, take our advice on new artists, and celebrate inventive, creative art we show you, whatever its origin or subject matter.  That is beyond cool.  It’s why we keep doing what we do.  Happy New Year to you all, and thanks for all your support, from Michael and I.

Best in the new year,

 

Leslie and Michael

ArtInsights Gallery of Film and Contemporary Art

All Their Wicked Ways by Tim Rogerson

Commissioning Original Film Art: Designing A Dream

Did you know you could have art made specially for you by top Disney and Hollywood artists?

ArtInsights has been working with insiders licensed by the studios to create original art for our clients for over 20 years!

What makes this so special and unique is you can have a beautiful original piece of art to display in your home, in your media room, or family room… or a place of honor that reminds the whole family of favorite moments from a new or old classic film or cartoon.  It is truly my favorite thing to do at ArtInsights:  working with art lovers who feel as passionate as I do about the memories they hold dear from movies that may have been seen by millions of people, or by just a few true fans.  We find the perfect artist who may have actually worked on that film, or with that studio, or who is significantly influenced by the movie you celebrate and want represented.  Mixing a scene or scenes you love with the design aesthetic that has made them revered and successful in the world of film art, they construct a wonderful piece of original art JUST FOR YOU.

Even more exciting is the art is often chosen by the studio to be turned into a limited edition, which makes the original art all the more important.

We believe there is a conversation that occurs… a relationship between the artist and the collector…when a work of art is created and passed on to be enjoyed as part of the art that makes the collector’s living space or work environment unique and special.

It is exciting to know you can bring a little bit of Hollywood home, and celebrate the movies you love!  Here are just a few original pieces created with artists through ArtInsights:  (don’t fall too in love with THESE pieces, they were made, just as we can for you, as commissions–you’ll have to decide what would make YOUR heart sing as these pieces did for their collectors…anything you can dream of, our artists can bring into being!)

By Disney artist Tim Rogerson:

Dreaming-in-Color-tim-rogerson

 

Fantasia-tim-rogerson

 

Walts-Palace-tim-rogerson
By famed movie poster artist John Alvin: (creator of movie posters for over 200 movies)

willie-wonka-john-alvin

to-kill-a-mockingbird-john-alvin

wizard-of-oz-john-alvin

terminator-john-alvin

lord-of-the-rings-embrace-john-alvin

Lord-of-the-Rings-john-alvin

Galadriel-john-alvin

elven-archer-john-alvin

Hoth-john-alvin

indiana-jones-john-alvin

my-fair-lady-john-alvin

harry-potter-the-great-hall-john-alvin

casablanca-john-alvin

bullitt-john-alvin

holly-golightly-john-alvin

bladerunner-sepia-john-alvin

bladerunner-john-alvin

ive-seen-things-john-alvin

Bittersweet-Embrace-john-alvin
Tink-Shows-the-Way-john-alvin

By Disney art director Toby Bluth:

Fantasia-toby-bluth Teatime-with-Alice-toby-bluth The-Ugly-Duckling-toby-bluth Tidying-Up-toby-bluth peter-pan-toby-bluth

By movie concept artist Harrison Ellenshaw (concept artist for Star Wars, Tron, and many others)

Lets-Go-Fly-a-Kite-harrison-ellenshaw

Someday-My-Prince-Will-Come-harrison-ellenshaw

by artist Disney, Star Wars, and Warner Brothers artist Mike Kungl:

Beyond-Infinity-mike-kungl

Rabbits-Prefer-Red-Heads-mike-kungl

By Disney visual development artist Lisa Keene:

At-Odds-with-the-Sea-lisa-keene

By movie poster and Disney artist John Rowe:

Beyond-the-Door-john-rowe

The-Flight-to-Fantasy-john-rowe

What-is-a-Pirate-john-rowe

By Warner Brothers and Disney concept artist Jim Salvati:

Maleficient-jim-salvati

This is a very small percentage of the art we have created for our clients.  Up to this moment we have never had the artists we work with not absolutely exceed our and our clients’ expectations.  It’s why the Hollywood studios choose them over and over again even today!

We chose these pieces to show you because nearly all of these were turned into limited editions by the studios.  Most of these artists can be commissioned to create a wide variety of images from live action movies encompassing the entire history of film as well as Disney and other animation studio features.

Contact ArtInsights today to find out how you too can have a one of the best film artists create a one-of-a-kind work of art just for you!