3-minute-interview with Gail Vollrath
By: Alan Suderman
June 28, 2009
Gail Vollrath is a painter whose “Hydrant” series is a collection of abstract paintings of fire hydrants that represent people she met on a dating Web sites. Her work can be seen at gvollrath.com.
So tell me about the “Hydrant” series.
The “Hydrant” series came out of my experience out of Internet dating — being thrust into the dating world again … basically the situation and experiences I’ve had through meeting people through that medium.
Why hydrants? Most of my work will be abstract, but once in a while certain images will pop up. A lot of these objects are common objects. At the time I started Internet dating, I had started also noticing hydrants everywhere … and they started popping up in my paintings. I just started adopting that image to represent the people that I met on the Internet dating sites.
Would you actually go out on dates with the people? The “Hydrant” series was basically a by-product of my experience. I don’t set out to date so I can come up with food for these artworks. That wasn’t my intention. It was my way of processing my experiences and the people I met and the different characters you meet along the way.
What’s the market for abstract art in D.C. right now? I’m not really sure about the overall market for abstract art, but when I show, I do really well in sales.
How’d you get started at being an artist?
I’ve done art since I was a child. When I was younger, it wasn’t my parents’ wish that I become an artist, so I got derailed. … Later on, actually, in life, I realized when I had an opportunity to really start a career that art is basically the one thing that’s remained true to my character and true to me, and the one thing I was passionate about.
