Interview
Noah Phyllis Levin
In 1980, Noah completed a master's degree in painting at San Francisco State University. A year later, a San Francisco gallery showed ten of Noah’s paintings. These were of doorways and the corners between walls and floors. In a review, an art critic for the Oakland Tribune noted that the real subject of Noah’s artwork was the space and light filling those interiors.
Noah taught painting at Santa Rosa Junior College from 1981-1982. She later moved to New York, where she sold art to individuals, corporations and special collections.
In 1998, Noah returned to San Francisco and started painting full time. Living near the lakes and ponds of Golden Gate Park inspired a series of paintings about the play of light and shadow on water. To bring more color into her work, Noah added koi fish (Japanese carp). Still intrigued with the possibilities of water, Noah continues exploring swimming pools in gardens and motels.
What is your background and how did you start your journey in the art world?
“I started drawing at 9, while listening to the radio. When I got older, I was too awed by art to think of becoming an artist until I took art classes at a local college. The more I did, the more I needed to do, until art began to dictate how I would live my life. I received a master's degree in painting, then moved to New York from my hometown of San Francisco to pursue a career in art. I needed to earn a living and found work designing textiles for home furnishings. Eventually, I was able to move back to San Francisco and return to painting.”
What inspires you?
“I live near a lake in Golden Gate Park where I can observe reflections and shadows in the water at different times of day. I try to recreate that nocturnal quality I discovered in New York in paintings of lakes and later, swimming pools. Whatever the subject matter of my paintings - from architecture to water - my work is about light and mood.”
“My paintings are a kind of abstract realism that draws on the beauty of color. Someone once said, ‘What all her paintings share is a sense of stillness and mystery. The more time spent with them, the more there is to see.’”
What themes do you pursue? Is there an underlying message in your work?
“My years of looking at art in New York made me appreciate craftsmanship and value compactness. I saw my share of large bombastic work and found myself admiring the smaller gems.”
Which artists influence you most?
“The two artists who influence me the most are Vermeer and Morandi. In 2004, I went to northern Italy where I was able to visit Bologna, Morandi's home town. I wanted to see the landscape that he saw, and I was able to see more of his work at the Morandi Museum.”
What is your creative process like?
“I take photographs of things that catch my eye. The ones that I decide to use, I tape to white index cards and pin to a shelf above my drawing table. I live with the group until one starts to stand out and becomes the subject of my next painting. I don't make a literal copy of the photo, but use it as inspiration. Lately, I have started painting on prepared gessobord that is 12" square. The gessobord is lightweight and requires no preparation. I work at home in a room dedicated to painting.”
What is an artist’s role in society and how do you see that evolving?
“I don't think I can respond to this question. I just don't know. What has happened to me because of the internet is something I could not have imagined. I get hundreds of emails about political issues, and I end up spending a lot of time dealing with them. In this role I am not an artist, although my liberal values are apparent.”
Have you had any noteworthy exhibitions you'd like to share?
“I had a show at the FOG Gallery in San Francisco in October 2018. I stood before a group of visitors, spoke about my work and answered questions.”
Website: www.noahphyllislevin.com
