Art is boundless and limitless, and no one represents those core values in creativity better than local Banff artist Mark Carroll.
Banff Ave. Brewing was the place to be for local art lovers in the valley Sunday night (July 27) where Carroll presented Escaping the Frame; an exhibition where he shared with the community his latest hand-painted skateboard decks and canvases.
The event also featured local artists Nikki Goodwin, Stephanie Robicheau and Penny Lane Metham, and to make the exhibition even more local-centric, art pieces were raffled off to raise funds for local community fixture Crazylarry, who was injured cycling between Banff and Canmore on June 25.
Locals have known for years the talent and detail Carroll puts into his artwork, and for being able to show his lifelong love and commitment to the subculture of skateboarding by using skate decks as his canvases.
Carroll’s art for this exhibition paid homage to well-known pop culture, ranging from famous movies and music to comics and writing.
“I sold three off the bat; Frank Sinatra, the Johnny Cash and the Hunter S. Thompson,” Carroll said on sales of some of his portrait skate decks.
“I see myself as a 40-year-old guy who refuses to grow up. When somebody uses the word ‘classic’ when they refer to a movie, we think of classics as Gone with the Wind and Citizen Kane for the definition of classic. But quite often when people of our generation use the word classic, you can figure their age within a couple of years. I consider a movie like E.T. a classic, Gremlins, classic,” Carroll explained on the personal connection he has to the subject matter he tackles.
“I have an amazing memory attached to E.T. I remember shielding my face watching E.T. in ’82, ’83. I was nine and I put my hands over my face because I didn’t want my mom to see me cry. My mother and father passed away a few years ago and it’s been a sentimental thing,” Carroll shared on the connections people pick up along the way with a pop culture event.
“When I paint E.T., what people see is a pop-art icon, ‘oh cute, E.T.,’ but for me what it carries is a nice, little warm memory that nobody else sees – kind of like my little secret.”
Carroll says as an artist he’s always looking for challenges, whether through techniques relating to colour, lighting or composition.
“Someone will say, ‘you never paint portraits,’ and I’ll say, ‘OK, bring it on,’ because it scares me and it intimidates me and challenging your own little comfort zone is fun,” Carroll said. “I was a rebellious teenager and a skateboarder my entire life and now as a 40 year old, there’s this idea that if you tell a kid, ‘no,’ it makes them want it even more – I’ve never outgrown that.”
Carroll says he never wants his work to be stagnant and never wants to get caught up in repetition.
“I don’t like any limits, I don’t like limiting anyone,” Carroll said.
Being a local artist in a art-centric community filled with youth who are drawn towards his work, Carroll was asked what advice he would give to someone interested in painting.
“One of my favourite books of all time is Richard Bach’s Illusions, with a favourite quote, ‘argue for your limitations and they’ll be yours.’
“This is such a typical story of so many people over the years,” Carroll said towards the quote. “I argued away why I should do this full time, why I should take it seriously ... you’re never going to stop the younger generation from making the mistakes you made, even if you’re condescending and telling kids, ‘you got to do it this way.’
“They have to go make their own mistakes ... don’t waste to much time arguing for your limitations, go get it – it takes audacity.”
