Watching an artist in the act of creation is a pleasure. Listening to an artist speak about their process is a treasure. I was blessed with both one blustery Saturday when Sean Roach graciously agreed to do a painting demo at the Louisa Gould Gallery in Vineyard Haven.
Roach is no stranger to others watching him at work. He has been a television host and actor, as well as a scenic and fine artist. As the founder, artistic director, and host of TBD Improv, a brilliantly funny improv comedy company on the Vineyard, he is comfortable in the spotlight.
Roach sat before a small easel with a light shining down on his painting and another on a large oyster shell propped up just to the left.
You might initially wonder, ‘An oyster shell?’ It’s just white, right?’ Well, Roach’s keen eyes pick up all the subtle sweeps, nooks, and streaks of color. His is a layered process. Roach initially blocked out sections in taupe, creamy coffee brown, and blues. Only then did he layer beige and light brown-inflected creams on top to create an intricately rippled surface. Roach also included warm pinks underneath, so the inanimate object pulsates with life. It sits suspended like a jewel in space against a rich, dark brownish-black background.
Roach shared thoughts about his selection of subject matter: “Making a small study gives me the opportunity to clear my mind and focus solely on the process of being a painter. And being a painter, for me, is being a person who studies light.” Choosing something with a simple color is appealing. “The act of sitting closely with the subject pushes me to find subtle shifts in light, and seemingly pull the colors out of nowhere. You can see the entire rainbow in the bleached white oyster shell. I’m trying to put a microscope on the profound beauty seen in the most benign thing. When you look really closely, you can see so many subtleties in the light that it forces me to remember that everything we experience is part of a vastly complex universe. That reminder is grounding, especially in a culture where everything is so focused on superficialities.”
Looking around the gallery, Roach’s stunning giant seascapes of roiling waves abound. He paints with startling clarity. His colors virtually sing, animating the aquatic scenes. The subject has captured his attention for the past two years. Each painting has its distinct character. Speaking about “Mint Jelly,” Roach says, “When I look at the ocean, I see delicious food and the flavors in the color. This one could also be cookies and cream.” And sure enough, the mixture of mint-green waves with light green foam floating on top does recall the cold dessert. The undulating emerald waves, which break inches from us, fill the foreground. The violet tones of the sky signal a passing storm, creating a mood that echoes the turbulent water.
Gould says of patrons drawn to Roach’s art, “We’re on an island; we’re surrounded by water. He captures the essence of the wave and its expansiveness. We know it’s here, but it’s universal. The pieces, too, are timeless.”
Among the nautical works is “Shenandoah Sailors.” Roach captured the scene during a family trip on the sailing ship. The crew’s bodies echo the row of lines as they haul in the jib. The splashing water behind, the wind in the sail, and the figures’ poses animate and draw you into the scene.
Roach recalls that his mother said he was enamored of museums and drawing as young as 5 or 6. “It wasn’t until middle school, when I started drawing pictures of teachers and fellow students in a comical light, like the teacher doing inappropriate things, and getting a big reaction from my classmates, that I realized, Hey, this is kind of cool.” He was painting by the time he was in his early teens.
However, Roach was bitten by the acting bug when he hit college. “I started to realize that I was a storyteller. Every time I saw a play, I was enamored by what those people were doing. After two years of being a freelance artist and having no entrepreneurial skills, I packed up my studio and walked into a theater one day, and said, ‘How can I get into one of your plays?’” He started taking classes, and auditioning to try to get into every play he possibly could. To make ends meet, Roach became a scenic artist, creating props and painting sets. When he became a children’s television show host, he could return to fine art painting.
He has been an artist full-time since 2001. Moving to the Vineyard 16 years later, Roach roams the Island with his camera, watercolors, and drawing materials in hand. Once in the studio, he tends to work on one piece at a time, painting from about 9 am to 3 pm, when he picks up the kids, and then after 8 pm for a few more hours. He spends time constructing all his frames as well. The stage lights still call, though, with TBD Improv in full swing year-round.
For Roach, the two artistic expressions are related. “As a performer, I was always improvising. Apparently, that’s what my calling is. I seem to thrive in that chaos. As a visual artist, it’s similar. It’s not ‘paint by numbers.’ I don’t know what the next part of the painting will be until I’ve done the part that came just before that. If I put down a color, that will inform what the next color will be. I don’t have the grand scheme of the painting, just the general idea. The painting never turns out how I thought it would, because of the large part of improvisation that goes into it. I’m very much a shoot-from-the-hip person. It’s a delightful way to go through life.”
Sean Roach is represented by the Louisa Gould Gallery at 54 Main St., Vineyard Haven, louisagould.com/gallery. For more information about Sean Roach and his images, visit seanroacharts.com. To learn more about TBD Improv, visit tbdimprov.com.
