Sloane Bibb
mixed media
Part painting, part assemblage, part cultural tableau, Sloane’s work is a pastiche of wood, metal, paper, canvas, even found objects, tar, and wax. Simple motifs, including nature and the female form, stand in measured contrast to the quirky compositions, pointed imagery and high-low mix of materials. The result is a wide-ranging and ambitious imagery that captures the rich, black wink of Sloane’s skewed world view.
Sloane transforms found objects and retro print ephemera into imaginative works with great visual appeal. Heavily influenced by advertising and graphic design, an industry in which he has worked professionally for over a decade, Bibb’s art evolved from combining paint, paper and beeswax on canvas, to more tactile pieces that add metal and found objects to wood supports create greater dimension. The artist has a main theme in mind when he begins a piece, but as he sorts through his inventory of old magazines, catalogs, and scrap materials, the story evolves. Whether the resulting work references a bird, a guitar, a layer cake, or the torso of a young woman, there is always an emphasis on contrasting media and a touch of lighthearted humor.
Sloane Bibb is a native Alabamian and currently resides in his hometown of Decatur, Alabama. Sloane, once a creative director, has now stepped off the cliff and painting full time. Sloane started his college education at Auburn University in industrial design, but switched to fine arts to pursue a degree in graphic design.
I have worked in the advertising/design industry for about 12 years, so my artwork is heavily influenced by the industry. On occasion, I try to incorporate textural elements from my artwork into my designs, but the majority of my design work is much different. Painting and assemblage has become my outlet…no client revisions!
I began doing this particular style on canvas, using mainly paint, old paper and beeswax. However, the glue made the canvases torque and bend, so I moved to wood. With the wood canvases, I was able to incorporate metal and found objects, and with these elements my work increasingly became more 3D.
As you can see, the heart and soul of my work is texture. And most…well, all of my techniques for creating these textures have been conceived through “happy” mistakes. I layer the paintings beginning with paper, then paint. I usually sand the paint, so that bits of the paper show through. I then add a layer of beeswax that is sanded/scraped back as well. Then, I add my secret ingredient–tar.
As far as the imagery/theme goes, I know what the main element will be when I start, but as I flip through old magazines and catalogs the story grows and usually changes. I try to put things together that don’t go together or are just comical together.
