I'm Phillip Clark, multimedia artist
My professional creative journey began in 1995, when I studied art and design at Dekalb Tech during a year long immersive visual communications course taught by Ray Shead. A few years later I moved to Boston, where I began working at Ciavarra Design in the Boston Design Center. My work lead to several projects that connected me with the local art community. Together with several artists we created By Local, a group that produced numerous (live) art auction events and helped spark the "buy local art" mentality. During my time with By Local I became a talent scout for emerging artists and through these efforts I discovered and became friends with an artist named Chad Mize. Together we created Bluelucy a creative partnership that changed the world.
At the beginning of 2003 Bluelucy moved to St. Pete, FL where we found a community with tons of potential. and we began connecting with every artist and creative we could find and by holding art events in any space that would let us, within a few years it all started coming together.
Then in 2005, I founded The Artillery, an artist collective that aimed to redefine St. Pete's cultural landscape.
Under my leadership, we launched "I Love St. Pete," an annual art event that celebrated local creative talent.
The success of this festival caught the attention of a community group who approached me with a proposal to restore a deteriorating local landmark, The St. Petersburg Shuffleboard Club. I got to work and created "St. Pete Shuffle," a weekly Friday night event that featured art, music, and refreshments. Not only did this endeavor restore life to the club, but it also sparked a resurgence of the sport on a national level.
In 2010, my partner and I opened The Bluelucy Gallery on the 600 block of Central Ave in St. Pete. This pioneering venture showcased over 450 local and national artists in more than 40 curated exhibits. After five successful years, our presence on the block helped revive the area, causing property values to skyrocket, making the rent on our space unaffordable. At this point I realized my work in St. Pete was complete, because my passion lies in creating the spark, building things from the ground up, and I did everything I set out to do there.
After St. Pete I returned home to Atlanta in 2016, where I now live with my husband, Dan, of 12 years, and my beloved Boston Terrier, Hank, who just turned 14. We live in the city of Chamblee and I'm excited to say that it's on the cusp of becoming the hottest creative community in Atlanta. I'm proud to be a part of it's artistic Renaissance and emergence into the spotlight that it deserves.
Today, I continue to push the boundaries of art and design, experimenting with new materials and techniques to create truly innovative pieces. My works range from small format paintings to large format public art installations and murals. I use various mediums, such as acrylic, enamel, collage, ink, resin, and upcycled material to bring my ideas to life.
My art has found its way into private and corporate collections and has been featured in notable spaces, including the Smithsonian Design Museum, RISD Museum, Tampa Museum of Art, and Design Museum Boston.