Art on the Air

Art(s) on the Air with Jason Bible

Join Tamara for an interview with Jason Bible, an Americana and rock singer-songwriter and instrumentalist who was born in Fort Worth, Texas. He began performing and recording music in the 90s - singing and playing guitar and harmonica.

He left Texas and moved to Savannah in 2001 (due to a "banking issue"), and immediately began playing multiple shows a night, focusing on bars on River Street, and eventually out on the islands. In 2005 he formed the band The Train Wrecks, who are still going strong today.

Nowadays you can catch Jason playing solo, with The Train Wrecks, *and*, recently, out playing Nirvana covers with his teenage son Jack.

 

Check out Jason's music and follow him here for concert and album news:

https://www.instagram.com/jasonbiblemusic/

https://open.spotify.com/artist/1UXKMDrq24J2TJIJi4DJAN 

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-7NvBK95xe8bPrdmvtW_IA

 

Topics in their chat include:

How Jason started learning guitar and harmonica in HS, through private lessons focusing on early Dylan songs; playing solo both in indie coffee shops and in various Barnes & Nobles in Denton, TX during the heydey of the coffeehouse era; his recent gig opening for BB King's daughter and Stevie Ray Vaughan's nephew at Tybee Post Theatre; what does he mean by "leave sawdust on the stage?;" how his longtime band The Trainwrecks started, playing 3 gigs a night running around out on Tybee and Wilmington Island; how he and a co-writer have written 2 books, with a corresponding song per chapter, named for principles/tenets of Buddhism (contact Jason for these books); how difficult it is to find left-handed guitars and Jason's recommendations for where to buy them; the "Quarantine Concerts" Jason played during the pandemic; Jason's recent musical endeavor with his drummer son Jack, performing Nirvana covers around town for the past year, and the challenge of reenacting Kurt Cobain's screams; his karaoke song is "Roadhouse Blues;" and his upcoming projects: keep an eye on his IG about a new record and book coming out hopefully fall 2025, and about all of his upcoming gigs.

 

Tune in and get all the details!

Art(s) on the Air - Two-year anniversary chat w/ Tamara, Rob, and David

It's the 2-year anniversary of Rob Hessler handing the podcast over to Tamara Garvey (after having done it for 5 years)!

To celebrate, Tamara, Rob, and David Laughlin - who also did the show for a few year with Rob - met up for a looooong wild chat about Savannah's creative scene and the art(s) of interviewing and writing about it. 

(One thing we all agree on is the excitement of getting feedback from people who are listening to/reading our interviews HINT HINT!)  

 

Do you want even more of our unhinged thoughts? Check out each of our social media here:

https://www.instagram.com/tamgarv/
https://www.instagram.com/work_by_rob_hessler/ 
https://www.instagram.com/thedavidlaughlin/ 

 

Topics in our chat include:

Rob insulted his way into a regular writing gig at the Savannah Morning News; the in-and-outs of the current publishing cycle of the SMN; how the nature of the 1-on-1 interview is much easier for (introverted) creatives to talk about their work than at public Artist Talks; how creating each interview episode is an art project in itself; how rewarding it is to interview a burgeoning artist and give them a little boost; particular interviews that have stood out to each of us; the time David recorded a car crash during one of his interviews; the fact that Savannah has been a cultural mecca for years and we are wondering if it has/is peaking (a la Key West), because of housing prices; we each answer a few of David's "studio questions," including a great piece of advice we've each received; Rob talks about a recent article he wrote that has drawn some heat; choosing interview subjects and the necessity of being inspired by each other; "art decorates space and music decorates time;" the shared experience of trying to protect our time and our creative labor when society tries to get these things for free.  

Bonus article David found that related to our talk about Savannah!

Tune in and get all the details!

Art(s) on the Air with Adriana Iris Boatwright

Join Tamara for an interview with Adriana Iris Boatwright, a creative photographer and writer with a focus in social media. She was born and raised in Puerto Rico, and came to Georgia in 1994 by way of NYC and Germany. 

Her clients include: Coca Cola, Savannah Morning News, H&M, Bath and Body Works, Ghost Coast Distillery, Paramount Pictures, Do Savannah, and more.

Adriana is also an editor for La Voz Latina (a Spanish online magazine for SMN), *and* one of about 4 founding members of SOY X SOY, a space for Latino and Native American artists and creatives to meet, collaborate, and exhibit their work.

* Get ready for Art Rumble - A @soy_x_soy event!
8 artists will go head to head to win it all. What they draw is up to you! So make sure you attend to participate.
July 13 | 5-9 pm | Starland Yard *

Check out Adriana's work and the SOY X SOY group here:

https://www.instagram.com/adrianairis/ 
https://adrianairis.com/ 
https://www.instagram.com/soy_x_soy/ 

Topics in their chat include:

How Adriana was involved in Starland becoming an artsy district from its early days, throwing theme parties at the Wormhole; how her creative career came about through her blog about her baby daughter - she wrote a post about her brother's death and it went viral, and she suddenly got photography offers from various publications, including Savannah Morning News, where she still works; she transitioned out of blogging about her daughter as she got a bit older, to writing and photographing for SMN, particularly when they first launched "Do Savannah;" she shot the covers for years, including covers with the first gay couple and the first drag queen; how much she loved doing photo shoots with bands and collaborating about their location and their visuals; the pressure that comes from having a large Instagram following and a lot of people keeping an eye on you; the fact that Savannah has about 300 professional photographers (!); the importance to her of still going out to do personal and conceptual photo shoots for fun; having to transition from film photography to digital, including teaching herself Photoshop; being a sort of "purist" who doesn't rapid-fire during a shoot; doing food photography for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and SMN; she tells a wild story about the time an alligator suddenly walked through City Market, until being rehomed by Animal Control; shooting the yearly Lowcountry Pow Wow at Hardeeville, the only one in the area; upcoming Conde Nast Traveler in England of our local coffee shop Agatha's (!); and the upcoming SOY X SOY Art Battle.

 

Tune in and get all the details!

Art(s) on the Air with Will Penny

Join Tamara for an interview with Will Penny, who grew up in Ontario and first moved to Savannah about 20 years ago, to get his BFA in Painting from SCAD. After graduation he moved away, later returning for his MFA in Painting, and has been in town ever since. 

* Special note that on Weds 5/22 and Thurs 5/23, he will participate in a two-day event at Ships of the Sea Maritime Museum: a light and sound festival entitled “Celestial Seafarers,” featuring Will and 6+ other local artists.
Info and tickets here:
https://www.shipsofthesea.org/celestial-seafarers

Will is a multi-disciplinary artist whose practice incorporates an assortment of media ranging from painting, video, sculpture, programming, and projection. His work aims to combine traditional art making tools with new technologies, to create space to explore themes such as embodiment, presence, fantasy, and the sublime.

Check out Will's work and follow him here:

https://www.willpenny.com/
https://www.instagram.com/willpennyart/ 

Topics in their chat include:

During his BFA Will focused on refining his skills at painting realism, but when he returned for grad school he focused more on exploring concepts, and took elective classes in motion media design and visual effects; his interest in nostalgia (ex. the history of hockey masks) and working through his childhood of the 80s and 90s, both the good memories and the more traumatic ones; working through your memories, with all of the associated emotional attachments; how he came to be represented by Laney Contemporary; the whole emerging element of how archival work that incorporates technology or media is, whether it might degrade over time, and whether a museum or artist should maintain it; how his past series of 3D printed pieces were exploring the "sublime experience" of nature (but ended up too expensive to continue to produce); lessons he learned from his Big Mouth Billy Bass AI project, both from the summer heat outside of Green Truck and indoors at the recent ArtFields Festival; and his upcoming two-day event at Ships of the Sea Maritime Museum: a light and sound festival entitled “Celestial Seafarers,” featuring Will and 6+ other local artists. 

Tune in and get all the details!

Art(s) on the Air with Autumn Gary

Join Tamara and David for an interview with Autumn Gary, a largely self-taught American/First Nations painter, sculptor, and art instructor from Portland, Oregon. Her practice revolves around therapeutic art outreach, public art, and intertribal collaboration with indigenous/native arts communities.

Mark your calendar: Autumn and Alexis Javier (of Sulfur Studios) will have a joint exhibition at the #art912 space in the Jepson Center from July 19 until next February 9, with an Artist Talk & Reception on July 18! 

Check out Autumn's work and follow her here:

https://www.instagram.com/autumn.gary.art/
https://www.telfair.org/exhibitions/of-one-mind/ 

Topics in their chat include:

Growing up in an artistic and inclusive environment; making pilgrimages to the Kahnawake Mohawk Territory in Quebec; learning the Mohawk language and discovering how many words and feelings are untranslatable between it and English; having moved to Savannah in 2008, largely as the result of a dream; her sculpture project at the Savannah Center for the Blind and Low Vision, which was a collaboration with the blind users of the center; the center's Training Sidewalk, which recreates the various topographies of a city, so blind people can practice getting around; what she and AJ are planning for their collaborative sculpture and immersive Jepson Center exhibition coming up in a few months; the unstructured way she teaches at the Telfair's art summer camps; the awesome surfing metaphor we came up with toward the end of the show; and dancing with seniors. 

Tune in and get all the details!

 

* And some cool podcast news: Feedspot has highlighted Art on the Air as one of the Top 3 Georgia Art Podcasts on the web. Hooray! 

https://blog.feedspot.com/georgia_art_podcasts/

Art(s) on the Air with Phoebe Plank

Join Tamara for an interview with Phoebe Plank, who is just a few months from finishing her MFA in Fibers at SCAD. Her path to making art in the first place began when she studied abroad in Paris during her undergrad program, and had her eyes opened to a more unconventional way of life by the older woman who housed her. After graduating, she moved from Vermont to San Francisco, eventually making a bunch of artsy friends and attending the Burning Man festival, and from there she decided to move to Savannah and pursue her art. 

Phoebe says: "With what might be considered waste, or overlooked foraged materials, I assemble and create useful art objects and experiences. To address an overwhelming degree of alienation in our time, I aim to make work that is useful, even if in quiet sensory ways."

 

Check out Phoebe's work and follow her here: 

https://www.instagram.com/phoebe_plank/
https://phoebeplankart.squarespace.com/

 

Topics in their chat include:

Phoebe coining the name "stickwork" for her recent series of pieces, alluding to a magical, whimsical, wand-like vibe; playing around with hanging her stickwork on the wall with one point of contact, as a metaphor for how one exists/balances in the world, vs. hanging it from the ceiling and allowing it to sway around; what is "wet lab" felting and how do horses come into it?!; how is a jacquard loom like a player piano?; how "Dobby" refers to both a Harry Potter character and a person in the weaving process; weaving weeds in Lacoste; Phoebe's "pocket Rumi" book and how she pairs a poem with each of her pressed flower pieces; the amazing Rumi poem about cooked chickpeas that sticks in her memory; and her goal to live in France and pursue her art, post-MFA.

Tune in and get all the details!

Art(s) on the Air with The Maxines

Join Tamara and David for an interview with The Maxines, "a badass all chick rock band in Savannah, GA - grunge w/ a kiss of metal."

They're led by AJ Grey on vocals, with Emma Smith on bass, and twins Coco and Maddie Oke on drums and guitar. You might remember them from our musical episode back around Thanksgiving - if not, go have a listen!

The Maxines released their debut album "Skin Tight" - named after the first song they ever wrote - back on October 1. 

Their next show will be Feb 24 at El Rocko! 

Listen to The Maxines and follow them here: 

https://www.instagram.com/themaxinesband/
https://themaxinesband.bandcamp.com/album/skin-tight

 

Topics in their chat include:

Their great experience recording their recent and first album, Skin Tight, with Scary of Black Tusk; their new bassist Emma, who replaced Veronica Garcia-Melendez (a previous interviewee on the show!); the addition of an instrument called a "donkey jaw;" how the band formed through word-of-mouth of various female musicians around Savannah, and all of the shared songs they wanted to cover; AJ's physicality during their performances and her philosophy on preparing ahead of time for that; Madonna's lifelong influence; working through the stage fright of their first performance; the complicated bass solo in their song "Letter to a Pill" and how Emma faces it; the success of their first show - an open mic in late 2021 at the Wormhole; their collaborative process of songwriting; going on their recent first tour, lasting 2 weeks, with Savannah band Neckromance; how Coco and Maddie have taught themselves screenprinting to produce all of the band's merch; the excitement of getting CDs made (they still have some available!); their brand-new band manager!; the success of the album release party / music fest they threw in October; new experimental sounds they look forward to trying, such as megaphones; and how metal singers take care of their voices, both in general and especially on tour. 

Tune in and get all the details!

Art(s) on the Air with Matt Eckstine

Join Tamara for an interview with full-time musician Matt Eckstine, whose songs we featured on a recent special musical episode. Within this episode you'll also hear a few snippets of his music, both solo and with past band The Accomplices. 

Matt was voted Best Local Americana/Folk/Roots Band/Artist in Connect Savannah's "Best of 2022" awards. Harnessing a wide range of influences from Tom Petty and Jack Johnson to Steve Earle and James Taylor, he released a debut solo album in 2017, and then in 2020 he created a home studio, resulting in his album "Lil' Blue."

Matt sings and plays guitar regularly in Savannah, Bluffton, and Hilton Head. He plans to work on a brand-new album after the New Year, so keep an ear out! 

Listen to Matt's music and follow his show schedule here: 

https://www.instagram.com/matteckstinemusic/
https://www.matteckstinemusic.com/ 

 

Topics in their chat include:

His recent show at the Lucas Theatre with the Savannah Philharmonic, and in a Traveling Wilburys tribute show at Victory North; how he taught himself guitar in high school; moving to Bluffton and then Savannah from Ohio; his years in the band The Accomplices, including an anecdote from touring life that would make a heartwarming Christmas movie!; and how he balances his time between performing live and creating/recording/editing new music. 

Tune in and get all the details!

Art(s) on the Air plays Matt Eckstine and The Maxines

Happy holiday season! We're celebrating with a special show of music by some of Savannah's beloved local musicians.

First, Matt Eckstine, voted Best Local Americana/Folk/Roots Band/Artist in Connect Savannah's "Best of 2022" awards. Harnessing a wide range of influences from Tom Petty and Jack Johnson to Steve Earle and James Taylor, Matt released his debut solo album in 2017. In 2020, the mandatory quarantine provided him with an opportunity to move to a home studio, resulting in "Lil' Blue," 8 brand new tracks that vary in sound and feel but are grounded in their influence. We're playing 9 of his songs, most of which are from that album, plus a few older ones.  

https://www.instagram.com/matteckstinemusic/
https://www.matteckstinemusic.com/ 

Then after our station break, switching the vibe up! We're playing music by The Maxines, an all-female rock band led by AJ Grey on vocals, with Emma Smith on bass, and twins Coco and Maddie Oke on drums and guitar. With angsty, swoon-worthy guitar riffs and moody vocals paired with powerful performances, their mesh of grunge rock and metal speaks for itself. Listen here to 6 songs from their debut album "Skin Tight" - named after the first song they ever wrote - just released on October 1 of this year. 

https://www.instagram.com/themaxinesband/
https://themaxinesband.bandcamp.com/album/skin-tight

Stay tuned for future weeks of the show, because we will be featuring an interview with each of these bands, as separate episodes, as well!  

Art(s) on the Air with Axelle Kieffer

Join Tamara for an interview with Axelle Kieffer, painter and handcut collage artist. She was raised in a tiny French town on the German border, then moved to Strasbourg for college, and eventually came to Savannah at age 35 and has been here ever since. 

She currently has a show up at Sulfur Studios - Paper Cuts, An International Collage Exchange - which runs through this Saturday, Oct 21. She's collaborated on over 200 collages since 2019, mostly through the postal service with other artists from around the world, and this exhibition is displaying many of those pieces.

Also this year, she's been published in MA LANGUE SUR TON CŒUR (MY TONGUE ON YOUR HEART), a collective book published by Joie Panique that brings together texts and images about love, by 70 artists from all over the world. 

Check out Axelle's work and follow her here:

https://www.instagram.com/axellekieffer/
https://axellekiefferart.com/ 

Topics in their chat include:

How Axelle defines the difference between surrealism and Dada; how for her first years in Savannah she created oil paintings of skulls, skeletons, etc, and she realized that her childhood was spent amongst medieval churches that had chandeliers and other decorations made from bones, which had made its way into her subconscious so thoroughly that she didn't even think of it as macabre; how she started thrift store shopping and found lots of old medical books, and the colors and shapes inspired her to begin taking them apart to create paper collages; her thoughts on using a scalpel to cut paper for a collage vs. tearing it to create an interesting, textured edge; and her involvement in "Collective Concern" - an upcoming show that will be traveling around the U.S. for the next 4 years. 

Tune in and get all the details!