Q&A With Mark Bradford

One day in 2000, Mark Bradford was working in his mother’s beauty shop, above. He was perming a client’s hair when he dropped a box of end papers (small sheets of paper used to perm hair). Bradford, who hadn’t had much success as an artist yet, worked at the shop to support himself. Looking down at the scattered, translucent end papers, he was fascinated by how they looked when layered on the floor.

“At that time, I didn’t have money, and end papers were cheap, so I decided to make it work!” Bradford recalls. He soon began experimenting with end papers, as well as with other found materials, including signs, billboards, comic books, and movie posters. These materials “have memory” and bring layers of meaning to his work.

Mark Bradford: I think young people are always creative. You’re learning who you are and what you want to do, and that takes imagination and experimentation. It doesn’t have to be with a pen or a paintbrush, but just wearing a fun hat or mismatched socks can be a creative form of expression, and I did that kind of stuff all the time when I was younger.

MB: Right before I went to art school, which was pretty late! I didn’t study art until I was in my 30s. When we’re young, we put a lot of pressure on ourselves, but there’s a lot of time ahead to figure it out.

MB: What inspires me are the hardworking people I see in Los Angeles who run their own small businesses or work with their hands, the people who have to find a way to provide and get creative with how they do that.

MB: I work on a lot of things at once. I’ll have 10 paintings I’m working on at the same time, trying to keep everything in the air. It’s kind of like working in the beauty shop. While one person’s getting their hair dyed, another person’s perm is setting, and you’ve got to be able to keep everything moving without losing focus. 

MB: All of my paintings use paper. Paper is just pigment that’s attached to a material, and when you get paper wet, it starts to work a lot like paint. I always say that I use what’s in front of me. I use comic books because I grew up reading them, for example. It’s important to understand that there’s no right way to make art, and you don’t have to stick to what you find in the art supply store. 

MB: A lot of my ideas ultimately come down to being about access and visibility for people often left out or forgotten by the mainstream. The materials I choose are everyday materials for a lot of people, and they bring those ideas into the museums or galleries where I exhibit.

MB: So many challenges! People look at you and talk to you different when you look like me. I had to push hard to get the attention I thought I deserved. I knew my worth and knew that if I told people long enough, they’d understand. Sure enough, they did. It’s important to remember when you have a challenge that there’s always someone who’s come before you. Another person has gone through something similar and made it out OK, and so can you. 

MB: It was hard, but I can’t complain. I was lucky to be able to continue working and to stay healthy. I started working by myself a lot more. My assistants worked from home for a long time, so I didn’t have anyone to help me. I started working on smaller paintings so I could carry them around on my own. [See Bradford’s 2020 work titled Q3, completed during quarantine, above.]

MB: The most important thing is to just show up. Don’t get intimidated by the road ahead, just focus on working on your art every day. Nobody else is going to come around and make you practice your art. Be persistent but patient with yourself.

Extended interview with Scholastic Art and Mark Bradford