Inside Frank Wick’s Norman studio.
“The bottom line is, we make our own hell,” he continued. “I think what I do is try to reflect on that struggle and reconstruct it in a sort of fictive sense. I think I am making props or something you might find in a movie or play.” Wick had his first experience with art at six years old, when he enrolled in a summer photography class for kids at Southern Illinois University. “A very low frequency works without you really knowing it,” he said. “I like the idea that things exist in the universe that we can’t measure.” The sculptures that comprise It’s All Wrong But It’s Alright are meant to be stand-alone pieces that work together to reflect the project’s intention. Wick, since proposing his project to OVAC, has reevaluated and reworked some of the pieces with the help of curator Shannon Fitzgerald. “As it stands, I have been working on a completely different body of work than that proposed for the show,” Wick said. “I am not turning my back on the work; I am enjoying the process of making some other work. The pieces I am doing now may find their way into the final exhibit.” Wick doesn’t offer too much detail about his work, which utilizes beer cans, a BMX bicycle, a shotgun, some spray paint and mirrors as their media. “One is a kind of post-apocalyptic piece with a BMX, shotgun and dance floor,” he said. “Another is a proposal for a monument on the moon. Thirdly, there is a sort of odd little piece that is site-specific. It is kind of a joke about work and the need to not work. “I am thinking of a new piece that fits in with the moon piece and the BMX (piece),” Wick said. “It is sort of a meteorite but from a more beautiful place. It is inspired by science fiction and horror posters, as well as haute couture. I guess if you sprayed Lady Gaga over a Halloween mask and wrapped that around a large piece of popcorn, you would get the idea. It is something I really like and I am not sure why. Again, that wasn’t proposed but I would like to consider it for the show.” Wick shies away from the word “inspired” when explaining what caused him to create these pieces. “I don’t know if I would use the term ‘inspired,’” he said. “It sort of has some real optimistic tones to it that may not really translate into my work… I just feel like, at the heart of mankind, there is a definite struggle. This struggle is usually of our own making and not something foisted on us by anything else.
“The cut-off age was 9, but I was really big for my age and wanted to take the class,” Wick said. “We printed black-and-white images on wood and learned some basics. I remember trying to make money photographing dogs for all of the neighbors. I lost money on that venture. This should have been a lesson, but I was really excited.” After that, Wick delved into drawing and sculpture and later earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Iowa and two master’s degrees, in design and sculpture, from UI and the University of Miami, respectively. He said his work, while exploring the theme of failure, is also an investigation into the future. Wick said he loves “speculating about what may come.” “We will keep having BP oil rig disasters and massive socio-economic problems that can’t be cured by science,” he said. “But we seem to feel — and this is where hubris comes in — we can take care of and manage things that aren’t meant to be managed. We have sort of overstepped our bounds. Even saying that makes me sound like a radical. But basically, we keep convincing ourselves that we have the answers or can get them.” Wick has worked closely with Fitzgerald in developing his Art 365 project. “I feel like — and again, I am being presumptuous — I am not getting guidance as much as I am getting access to someone very experienced and someone with whom I can talk,” Wick said of his relationship with the project’s curator. “I think, at nearly 40 years old, I don’t need guidance as much as someone to run ideas past and someone with a strong background in the arts. “She suggested I speak with a couple people in the area who are also in the arts. I have asked one to come by the studio. I wouldn’t have done that had she not mentioned it. I think making a network in the arts is critical.” n Holly Wall has been covering the arts in Tulsa for three years. She writes weekly arts columns for Urban Tulsa Weekly and monthly for the Tulsa Performing Arts Center’s Intermission magazine.
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