Honeycomb Cafe's March artist takes 'boatload' of inspiration living on coast

Inspiration can be a fleeting moment of butterflies in the tummy, something beautiful and stirring but with intangible and subconscious impact. Or inspiration can plow right into you, leaving a perceptible mark that can be referenced at will. The work of local artist Mickey Timms has been inspired in the latter fashion.

Upstate natives Timms and his wife, Eris, have been residents of Mount Pleasant for 14 years. Prior to that, they lived in Savannah for over a decade, and their daughter, Kacey – who recently graduated from The University of South Carolina – was born near Georgia’s historic harbor. It was during this time in Savannah that Timms’ really began to listen to his artistic calling. He worked for the Olympic Committee as Venue Logistics Manager for the 1995 Nations Bank Regatta and 1996 Olympic Yachting Event and, later, as Sales and Finance Manager at a local boat dealer.

“So always on the coast, on the boat, or on the beach,” observes Timms, “where there's plenty to inspire.”

Today, the part-time painter is busy as an Industrial Engineer with Fruit of the Loom at the Palmetto Distribution Center in Summerville, but maintains a small studio at home to paint the muses he commits to memory. Timms joined the Art Guild of Daniel Island in late 2015, and even has select pieces on display at Vail Travel. The rest of the island, and its visitors, can better acquaint themselves with the art of Mickey Timms during his month-long show beginning March 1 at the Honeycomb Café on Seven Farms Drive. And we better acquainted ourselves with Timms here:

Jennifer Johnston: Are you formally trained in art? If not, how did you develop your gift?
Mickey Timms: No formal art training, mostly trial and error until I find what works for the piece I am working on. Started out drawing, studied engineering graphics, switched to oils, then to acrylics. When I see something I must paint, I can't get it off my mind until it's done. This presents new challenges all the time, things I've never done before.

JJ: What type of color do you work with today, and on what do you prefer to paint? Have you worked in other mediums?
MT: Currently working mostly with acrylics on canvas, but I still love to draw.

JJ: You are admittedly taken by the natural landscape of the Lowcountry, but what draws your eye to particular icons?
MT: Having always been near the water, and having lived in Savannah and now Charleston, one cannot help but to want to share the blessings we have afforded to us. I take photographs and save for future reference when I am ready to work. Friends send photos all the time telling me “this one” is “me.”

JJ: What is your ideal backdrop for working - indoor vs. outdoor, stillness vs. activity, quiet vs. noise/music?
MT: Most of my works are done indoors. Having a full-time job, I miss some prime painting opportunities, so when I can, I snap a photo. Sullivan's Island is a favorite spot. The “Oysters and Beer” still life came about after roasting oysters and seeing the beer crate in the garage. So I composed the still life with things that are around me, including Eris' oyster knife that's in the painting.

JJ: Do you have to see something with your own two eyes to be inspired or engaged enough to paint it, or can you work from memory or imagination?
MT: I've painted so many beach, lighthouse, and boat scenes that I can do those from memory.

JJ: How long does one piece typically occupy you, start to finish? Are you one to have multiple works going at a time?
MT: Some larger, more detailed works such as “Venice!” have taken twenty hours, but I usually complete most pieces in a few hours. If I am doing small 8x10 or so, I'll work on several at a time.

JJ: Who is your favorite artist, and which piece of yours would you imagine they might say is their favorite?
MT: My favorite artist was Norman Rockwell; I always wanted to draw like him. I think he would like some of my older drawings such as one from a Jimmy Buffett album cover, “Songs You Know By Heart,” with Buffett in a hammock, playing guitar with parrots sitting around.

JJ: Can you give us a sneak-peek as to what will be on display at the Honeycomb Café in March, and will the pieces be available for sale?
MT: Pieces displayed and for sale at Honeycomb will include the two mentioned earlier, “Venice!” and “Oysters and Beer,” along with coastal scenes from Savannah and Charleston, parrots, a sea turtle, and a mahi-mahi.

Preview more art by Mickey Timms at Fine Art Studio Online, FASO, at mickeytimmscoastalart.com.

Daniel Island Publishing

225 Seven Farms Drive
Unit 108
Daniel Island, SC 29492 

Office Number: 843-856-1999
Fax Number: 843-856-8555

 

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