The nonconformist path to becoming a full-time artist paid off

By Joey Garcia

An out-of-towner would be forgiven for staring at Gale Hart, certain they recognized her from a band photo or mosh pit. At 69, she rocks a punk aesthetic that contrasts sharply with Sacramento’s mostly normcore sensibilities. But Hart is an artist, one who is often called the city’s godmother of contemporary art. She works across mediums—hand drawn books, monumental paintings on canvas, highly polished sculptures in stainless steel, and meticulous graphite drawings. Entirely self-taught, Hart credits Sacramento, and her own stubbornness, for thrusting her successfully into the art career she once only imagined possible.

Hart’s family moved to Sacramento when she was five. She remembers making painted wood peace signs near the end of the Vietnam War and selling them at her middle school for lunch money. School administrators shut down her little enterprise and suspended her, which stoked her interest in what’s now known as maker culture. But the art world wasn’t yet her world. Hart’s initial trip to the Crocker Art Museum when she was 28 was her first visit to any museum. That year she also visited an art gallery in downtown Sacramento, another first.

Hart later saw an opportunity to invest her political views into the marketplace with her own shows, including “Why Not Eat Your Pet?” and “Smile,” exhibitions that invited people to think more deeply about animal welfare and social media. Hart’s knack for experimenting with materials and using her art to make incisive and witty social commentary cemented her reputation over her nearly forty year career. On Saturday, May 17, Verge Center for the Arts, is hosting a fete to celebrate Hart’s formidable influence on the Sacramento art scene. We sat down to chat with Hart about her work and vision. This interview has been edited for space and clarity.

Garcia: How does it feel to be recognized and celebrated by your city? 

Hart: It warms my heart, really. Over the years, I’ve given support to artists, institutions, and the community through countless art exhibitions, public art installations, and the four different exhibition spaces I opened in various studios to show the work of other artists. I feel like I’ve gotten back all of that support in equal measure and that gives me a lot of satisfaction. 

Garcia: Is there a particular art project you’re most proud of creating?

Hart: I’m pretty fond of BFF, the bronze sculptures I made that sit in front of the Elk Grove Animal Shelter. It’s two animals greeting one another, one with open arms, and the other shyly. It’s kind of my re-creation of the emotions animals and people might feel when adopting each other.

Garcia:What’s your superpower? Or is there a superpower you wish you had? 

Hart: The superpower I wish for is the ability to not break any bones while riding a skateboard. The superpower I do have is endless energy to create art. And I can still do eight pull-ups.

Garcia: If you could choose one song to play every time you enter a room, what would it be? 

 Hart: Born this Way by Lady Gaga.

Garcia: What do you think about when you’re alone? 

Hart: The next thing I want to make. I like being in my head. Even if I never made another thing, my thoughts about what I could make would keep me happy. I don’t need to actually make anything to feel creative and inspired.

Garcia: Why Sacramento? Ever regret staying here? It’s not really an “art” city.

Hart: I don’t know if regret is the right description of how I feel. I’ve missed out on so much by being here, but I wouldn’t go as far as to say I wish I made a different choice. I like downtown Sacramento. It’s my place for riding bikes, scooters, skateboards. LA would be my second choice, but I know so many terrific people in Sacramento that I can’t imagine not living here.

Sacramento may not be an art destination, but there are talented artists here and it’s an area where we can practice our discipline in an affordable manner.

Garcia: Something people would be surprised to learn about you?

Hart: From the time I was five years old, there was not a weird ass building around us that I didn’t fixate on or want to live in. My grandfather’s auto mechanic shop was in a Quonset hut and I wanted to live in it so bad! I was always asking if I can put a bed in it. At ten, I convinced my mom to let me live in our unfinished garage.

Garcia: You live in a very cool converted warehouse. Where do you think that impulse for unconventional spaces comes from?

Hart: Harkens back to the Lady Gaga song: I was born this way. You can’t help being who you are. I’ve always been fascinated with buildings.

 Garcia: Three words to describe you now that would surprise the pre-artist you. 

Hart: Healthy. Well-off. Secure.

Garcia: Advice for other creatives who don’t want to go to art school.

Hart: Know what you want to achieve with your artwork. My goal was to support myself totally through my art. Partly because I could not assimilate into the work world. I either couldn’t tolerate the job or couldn’t make it last. I told myself that every job had to feed my art, not just financially, but with other perks, like being employed by a photography lab or a frame shop. So my dedication to my career goal was very intense. I could not have been profitable as an artist if I had not diversified by making things that were somewhat on trend, like furniture or art that’s affordable for collectors. I have not 100 percent made the art I wanted to make. I’ve made changes with aesthetics, made some concessions to earn a living with my art, but it’s all definitely me. I don’t feel like I’ve sold my soul at all, but if I didn’t have to feed myself by selling art, the work would be different for sure. I will tell you not having a degree has affected opportunities but I’ve still managed to get a lot of respect as an artist despite not having a degree. But hey, I like being a little scrappy. It suits me.

Garcia: Years ago, you invited me to contribute an essay to Why Not Eat Your Pet, a beautiful art book you created.

Hart: It was a collection of art work, quotes, and essays from people who cherish animals. About that title—hypocrisy and injustice fuel my ideas and I often make an entire body of work around those themes. That book was shown in four separate exhibitions.

Garcia: What would you do if you weren’t an artist?

Hart: Something I can obsess over. I like that feeling. I also like digging in the dirt and finding things, so maybe an archaeologist. But I hated being a part of the establishment. My nonconformist attitude cinched my destiny to become an artist.

Dinner on the Verge Celebrating Gale Hart, Saturday, May 16, 6-9pm, Tickets at vergecontemporary.com

Joey Garcia wrote the Ask Joey advice column for SNR for 25 years. Find her at: joeygarcia.com