Art Direction/Another Side: A Portfolio of Paintings

ART ТЯА DIRECTION ИОІТЭЭЯІD ANOTHER SIDEЯЭНТОИА

The role of a magazine art director, Gary Bennett has found, seems to be a mystery to many people. Even after seven years at Arizona Highways, with more than thirty design awards to his credit, he still has difficulty explaining his job to the uninitiated. Briefly put, the art director is responsible for developing a coherent, attractive visual presentation that interprets and advances the issue's editorial objectives. As the final link in a monthly team effort, he reviews the material provided by the rest of the staff-edited article manuscripts and photographic selectionsand addresses such matters as supplemental illustrations, sizes and shapes of images, sizes and styles of type, the number of pages appropriate to each story, and a sequence that will provide pacing and variety. From all these considerations emerges the visual impact of the publication. Points out Bennett: "Each issue represents a new challenge to capture the reader's interest." Magazine design, however, is only one aspect of Gary Bennett's professional life. He is also a talented and successful painter. "The discipline and systematic thought process necessary to achieve an objective are very similar in either role," he says. But whereas the art director deals almost daily with production deadlines and must often move swiftly, the artist cannot rush the evolution of a painting. "The preparation can take months. I photograph and sketch and study the subjects I want to portray. Once I finally start painting, I'm drawing on my own experience, technical ability, and emotional energy to create something I hope will be recognized as art." Bennett's work is represented in numerous private and institutional collections, including those of The Arizona Bank, Old Tucson, the United States Army, the U.S. Postal Service, G. Heileman Brewing Company, and the Phoenix Jaycees. The paintings reproduced here and on the following pages were completed over the last five years. They were painted on watercolor board in gouache (pronounced gwash), a waterbase paint with both opaque and transparent qualities, depending on the degree of thinning. Because of this versatility, and because it is very responsive to the brush, gouache is an excellent medium for capturing the subtleties of color and varieties of light typical of Arizona. We are pleased to present a sampling of our art director's other side.

ANOTHER SIDEBЭНТОИА

(LEFT) Cattle ranching and the cowboy mystique-both factors in Arizona tradition and folkloreset the atmosphere of "Tom Taking Charge," 14 by 22 inches. (BELOW) "Arizona Originals," 29 by 12 inches, a character study softened with a touch of humor. The unconventionally costumed old men were contestants at a blackpowder target shoot at Bill Williams Rendezvous Days in Williams, Arizona.

ANOTHER SIDE 3ОИА

"When you paint as I do, in a traditional realistic style, you can't fake it. Lots of research is required to understand every aspect of what it is you're seeing-before you touch brush to canvas. I interpret what I see and what I feel about it."

(BELOW) A "loosening up" sketch, one of many made before tackling the major composition-or, in this case, a series: "contemporary documentation" paintings depicting Hopi dances.

(RIGHT) "Waiting for the Dance," 81/2 by 15½ inches. (BELOW) "Omau" (Rain Clouds), 14 by 28 inches. Fathers of the children provide the music and chants for the performance on Second Mesa.

ANOTHER SIDE ОИА

(OPPOSITE PAGE) "Warm-up Ride," 20 by 16 inches. Behind the scenes at rodeo time, the contestants, like athletes in other sports, prepare for a particular event by "psyching themselves up" and anticipating whatever challenges await them in the arena. Arizona annually serves as stage center for several major rodeos and numerous local events.

(ABOVE) "Takin' It Easy," 18 by 24 inches. A longtime devotee of the rodeo sport, Bennett has an eye for the human contenders and the beasts as well. "The animals may seem berserk in the ring," he says, "but their violence quickly subsides as soon as their job is finished."

(LEFT) "Here He Comes," 15½ by 11½ inches, documents a moment of urgent personal communication in a tough situation - a rodeo ring with a huge maddened animal coming at you.

Gary Bennett is a painter and graphic designer who has displayed his art professionally since 1973 and has served as art director of Arizona Highways since 1979. Born in Winslow, Arizona, in 1948, he is the descendant of three generations of Arizonans. He holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Northern Arizona University and an M.F.A. from the University of Arizona. He now lives in Phoenix with his wife, Madeline, and their two children. His paintings and graphic designs have been reproduced in Graphics Today, Communication Arts, Photo, American Way, and Print Magazine as well as Arizona Highways.