Demented Decoupage: BoxBoy Paul Alan Bierman at Eastern Market

Coming to Eastern Market is an adventure. You never know what you might find. And often one must pose the question (hopefully not to the artist, exhibitor, farmer, or merchant who's selling the art work, object, fruit, or vegetable etc), "what is that?"

In creative expression, I cut my teeth on the Jazz age, i.e. the Harlem Renaissance, and later was introduced to the European Renaissance, impressionism, fauvism, postmodernism, abstract expressionism, and more ism's then one can shake a stick at. On the whole, this art was not humorous. In fact, I was first introduced to "humor in art" at Eastern Market. I was somewhat appalled at the time (a deadly serious feminist and ex-academic in my early 20's, I wanted to taken seriously and I made "art jewelry. Forgive me; I was a pill) .

Humor in art, during the artistic renaissance at Eastern Market, was epitomized by the work-- from the nose up--of Jonathan Blum. In the early 1990's when I started, and years before and after. Mr. Blum had the largest following of any artist at Eastern Market. The folk loved his work. Why? because it was familiar--Sesame Street(i.e. Bert and Ernie), took them back to childhood, and it was funny. Blum's mono prints simply made folk happy. Not to mention that Jonathan had a schtick--he knew and knows how to work a crowd. Does any one remember his 'battling Rabbi puppets' and his dog, a cocker spaniel, the most endearing and pathetic-looking animal ever seen around the market? Her name was Eleanor; once she ate my peanut butter/chocolate chip cookie, right after I had taken the first bite! I tried to kick her. Beast!

The next Market artist of the 1990's artistic renaissance to tickle the funny bone was painter Daniel Kessler, with his "folk art styled" paintings of dogs and cats with very expressive facial features and large popply eyes. The double-entendre of one of his paintings, "FAT CAT" was irresistable to the D.C. political crowd. Kessler kept folk smirking and smiling for years. There are others, later at Eastern Market, who have created a niche for themselves with satire in their work--consider for example the political wit found in the fine drawings and watercolor paintings of Joseph Harrison Snyder.

Thus, we have art at Eastern Market that is funny, humorous, satirical, wacky, whimsical and...just plain WRONG! How does one define "wron"g? Richard Pryor could tell you; so could George Carlin. But then you would have to dig 'em up'. Plus they would use certain words (in Carlin's case, five; and Pryor would start with the N word and...)

that would cause folk to say "pardon my French." WRONG: is humor that is noire, words, images, and actions that are so funny they make you "wanna slap yo' mamma". WRONG- is low down, gut bucket, belly laughing, dirty, cutting, mean, not for the tea party nor country club set and funny as hell.

(image used in the creation of "BOXBOY"-boxes and an original BOXBOY best selling box)

What is so funny? Can you believe... No, she/he didn't, ooh! "I'm gonna tell!" This is just "so wrong", I love it!"

You want humor in art, at Eastern Market, that is funny, that will make you smile, that is satirical, wacky, and at times just plain WRONG? check out Demented Decoupage. Eastern Market's own BoxBoy: Paul Alan Bierman.

(a portrait: Paul Bierman)

Mr. Bierman like many "great American artists" comes from the south. He was born in 1958 in Nashville, Tennessee. He grew up in a town of less than six thousand people called Covington, Tennessee. He lived on a dead end street. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, with a focus on communication and advertising. His first career, like many at Eastern Market(for example painter Mary Belcher, photographer Steven L. Miller and founder, manager The Flea Market at Eastern Market and antique dealer Tom Rall) was in journalism. His first job was as a sports and features writer for The Covington Leader 1980-1983. Later, he left Tennessee for Phoenix, Arizona where he wrote for the trade publication : U-Haul International for seven years.

Mr. Bierman was a bit of a gypsy for a period of time, moving to San Diego, California , in 1988, where he worked in an antique store. There, he says that he was a "dogsboy," doing a bit of everything and learning about antiques. Later, 1991-1995, he moved back to Tennessee and opened a gift shop, selling cloisonne jewelry, rosewood furniture, Chinese reverse paintings, Chinese four- and six-paneled screens and Chinese blue and white porcelain. However, clients for these items were not plentiful in East Tennessee. In the spring of 1999, a friend offered him a job at an antique store on King Street in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia, and he moved to the Washington metropolitan area.

He calls the years between 1995-1999 his unproductive period, "years of waste," a stagnant period, and unfulfilling.

On Decoupage:

However, he started decoupaging in 1993. He recalls a Guatemalan chest that he had and just decided to decoupage. In conversation with Mr. Bierman I asked him how

he got started decoupaging? Had he studied art before? He said, "it just came to me to do it. I had a

bunch of art magazines. I cut out a bunch of funky pictures and applied them haphazardly and it turned out good."

(Paul Alan Bierman: BoxBoy at his stand at The Flea Market at Eastern Market)

The same friend who had hired him to work part time at his antique store in Old Town told him about Eastern Market. He came to visit the market during the best time of year for a future exhibitor (winter) in February of 1999. He recalls his first visit to the market with feeling, "it was not fun. It was twenty-five degrees and the wind was howling." Sounds like a beautiful winter day to be set up outside for ten hours to me! He started coming to the Market in May of that same year and has been there ever since.

Paul Bierman's business BoxBoy a demented decoupage, is know for small and

medium sized decoupaged boxes and l'objects d'art.

( an assortment of BoxBoy boxes)

.

(BoxBoy: Paul Bierman works on a "demented box")

I asked Paul for his definition of decoupage. He replied, "to me it's just color with a flowing purpose. It has to tie in somehow, it has to flow and it has to merge. It can't be haphazard, to me it can't be." At one level from a technical perspective he stated, "it really is just paper, glue and varnish, that is all it is."

In closely examining his more elaborate pieces--for example, decoupaged heads, chests, etc.--one is amazed by the seamless joining of paper as well as the attention to detail of the images and colors. The viewer is left sensing that there is a

meaning or message hidden in the imagery that is used in the work. In further reflection Paul revealed that he, "had been drawing pictures, I guess since I can remember,

I use to draw pictures of the two thieves in Jesus's crucifixion."

(detail of decoupaged head top and back view)

(small decoupaged chest)

Paul Bierman loves what he does. In conversation he told me, "I knew decoupage was what I was meant to do. From the beginning, the experiments, it was just second nature to do it. I don't know where it goes it is just inert. I just knew. I wish I could explain it." Decoupage, as a technical process, from the outside looking in, appears tedious, without a defined end point. Yet, Mr. Bierman is clear, "I know when its finished. I know when it is done. I just know."

I asked Paul where he got his images, If he made them himself or...? I also asked about the use of the computer in the making of his work. In response he told me that his images are drawn largerly from the internet. In fact he wrote, "I don't know what I did before I got a co

mputer five years ago...Initially, I used old National Geographics and a few art magazines for images. Newspapers and calenders also provided a wealth of images." As for the technical dexterity to mix images on the computer, he admits to being old fashioned, preferring to cut and paste by

hand. "I do decoupage the old fashioned way...I cut and I paste and I glue and I varnish etc., etc., etc. Part of the satisfaction when doing collages is piecing the whole thing together like a puzzle or a patchwork quilt. You have a general idea in your mind, you go with it one piece at a time and you build upon your foundation layer by layer by layer. It is very frustrating, extremely time consuming and more than maddening. It causes curse words to fly out of my mouth. But when it's done right, it's akin to a holy experience."

Paul and technology are not fast friends. He loves doing custom boxes for folk and states that on the computer, "I can do what I need to do but not much else."

And as far as computer manipulated decoupage, he gets a touch controversial, writing, "computer generated art is nice, but to me it can be somewhat impersonal and robotic...not that there is anything wrong with that."

Lastly, I wanted to know about the humor in his work. I asked him what causes /happens when he sees an image he likes. He replied, "I laugh and usually out loud when it's something outrageous. The light bulb idea goes off in my head and I silently proclaim. "Aha... now THAT'S a BoxBoy if I ever saw one." Paul Bierman is very aware that some of his images are "wrong", and he would like them to be even more so. He wro

te, "there are so many politically incorrect images I would love to use, but don't. We are getting too sterile, and so mundane that it makes me sick to my stomach, and that affects everything...including art."

A visitation: Paul Alan Bierman at Work:

Starting last year with abstract expressionist painter Shelia Crider(former Eastern Market artist), I have visited artists and others at Eastern Market in their work spaces. In the artist's studios, workspaces, basements, or attics, one notes first the silent solitude in which they create. I am t

here to witness. There is a rhythm to their movements. It is orchestrated to be con

tinuous and efficient. There is intense concentration, and there is this sense of peace. These are the acts of creation not seen. They are inherent to the work being done. Can you feel them as you walk through the market, a gallery, a museum or a festival?

In Mr. Bierman studio, like in many other artists studios there was music that augmented his process. As he worked he moved and in that movement there was timing, rhythm and this... this... grace. The day after my visit I emailed him to ask him about music. I asked him about the music that we had listen to the day before-about how music and working come together for him. Paul has over one thousand CDs. He wrote, "yesterday we were treated to G.F. Handel's baroque opera, "Ariodante". Handel is my absolute favorite composer and my goal is to own every opera/oratorio he composed." In terms

of the effect of music on him personally and artistically he wrote, "I can't imagine life/work without music. Music is my personal hallucinogen..., My mind races with a bombardment of memories while working...good, bad, nostalgic, fantasical." Mr. Bierman has two passion in life art and music. He wrote, "I adore music of all types and I am truly blessed to be able to satisfy my two passions in life simultaneouly...art and music...what a perfect world for BoxBoy as I lose myself in almost tranmeditational bliss while at work."

(a visitation Paul Bierman at peace with art and music in his studio)

(Paul's studio with music collection as the background)

On Life at Eastern Market:

Paul Bierman speaks with a lilting soft candence of fried green tomatoes and southern comfort that can mute his sharp wit, and cutting humor. In our conversations many times Paul has puncuated a "remark" with a flash of smile that says' "oops, did I just say that". He loves coming to the Market to sell his work, but more than that, his friends are there. On Eastern Market he said simply, "I love it, the people there are family. It is the only social network I have. The people who are around are the best people in the world, Sola Ope, Tom Rall, Anjum Hasnain, John DeFabbio, Ron Manigan." Like many Eastern Market exhibitors he is a collector of Art, from where Eastern Market of course. It struck me, that his living spaces are just chalked full of Art. In his collection of art are well know present and former market artists, for example, photographers Daniele Piasecki, John DeFabbio, Avner Ofer and Troy Plair. Paul has prints and paintings by Mark Cottman, Tsolmon Damba, Rolando Perdigon, Kazem Shirazi and Sergio Olivos. He has pottery by Paul Gruner.

(Paul in his living space surround by art work from artists at the Market)

I asked him about selling to the public at the market. He ,like many, is not at ease with that particular "art form". He told me, "I have to play salesperson. I don't do people well at all so to do what I do is a challenge for me personally. But I love it." Lastly I asked Paul about the name of his business: Box Boy, a Demented Decoupage. I wanted to know where or what caused him to come up with it. He said, on BoxBoy, "maybe it came to me before I went to sleep one night." and on Demented Decoupage, he replied, "I love to play word games. So I knew I wanted decoupage and another word that began with a 'd' ,and I thought 'demented', and that worked." Several times in conversation, Mr. Bierman stated in regards to the Flea Market at Eastern Market, "I love going there on Sundays. I love the people."

Witnessing,

Sonda Tamarr Allen

Turtle's Webb

It was and is artists like Paul Bierman, with his humorous, irreverant joie de vivre, that make a place. Artists transform, change, enliven, challenge and raise the standard of life. We make a place. We give it a name. A reputation. We give it pieces of ourselves, our lives, and we make it home.