| Issue #34 - November 14, 2008 |
Honoring the Artist: Cuca Romley
by Marion Wolberg Weiss
While Cuca Romley's cover this week reflects a narrow view of Sag Harbor as seen from her gallery, The Winter Tree, the artist herself enjoys a much wider perspective regarding her personal and professional pursuits. Consider, for example, her far-ranging background in art and advertising and her life in Spain, Paris and New York. While the cover also shows Sag Harbor at sunset, there's no doubt that Romley's thirst for life is endless.
Q: When we left off during our last conversation, you were "mother" to several cats in addition to being a real mother to your daughter who will be visiting you this December.
A: Yes, she's coming from San Francisco. We have always gotten together at Christmas for all our lives, no matter where we are living. Sometimes I would send my daughter on the plane when she was younger to visit my mother who lived in Monte Carlo.
Q: Nowadays, children live all over the world, so far away from their parents.
A: You make your children independent; I passed on genetic independence to my daughter. They belong to another generation with no limitations. With the internet and phones, children lose their sense of distance because they can be in touch with their family even if not directly.
Q: That's a good point. How about your cats? They are a family to you, too.
A: Yes. You can compare animals to a human family. The cats I feed from the neighborhood have family problems. The male cat doesn't come anymore to be fed. I think his mother doesn't want him.
Q: Now that winter is coming, what's a typical day like for you?
A: I'm a working maniac. I paint all day, because it's a necessity and because I like it. I do larger canvases, like "Venus," which I'm working on now. Classical mythology is so beautiful. I also have a classical background in art.
Q: Yet your signature paintings are in the naïve style. How does that work?
A: Art is not limited. Most of the time I paint what I know, like local scenes of Sag Harbor, in a naïve style. That doesn't mean it's my dream. I love classical subjects; Greek mythology is timeless.
Q: What do you think about current contemporary art?
A: I was born in the wrong century. We limit art to marketing and fads now. The art in this century will be remembered by technology, science and greed.
Q: You had classical art training so I understand your feelings.
A: I went to the Beaux Arts in Paris to study classical painting, but I went into advertising because I didn't want to be a starving artist in Paris with no water and heat. I had worked in advertising in Spain and Italy, too. When I moved to New York, I also was in the field, doing catalogues for Danskin. But that wasn't what I wanted to do.
Q: So you went from sophisticated art in fashion to naïve painting. What a leap. How did that happen?
A: I liked early American painting so that was one influence. There are no rules in naïve painting; there's more freedom unlike classical and fashion styles. I like challenges.
- Marion Wolberg Weiss
Ms. Romley's work is on view at her Sag Harbor Gallery, The Winter Tree, and in December at New York's Gina Gallery (82nd and Columbus Ave.).
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