Painting beyond the pose, with Aleksander Betko
When Aleksander Betko met up with musician Rick Snell a few years ago, his former college roommate was still making a steady go of it the local bluegrass scene. Betko “hadn’t painted for several years,” working instead in corporate advertising, and “it was eating away at me,” he said. Snell’s response? “Just do it.”
So Betko returned to painting and now, this fall, he is one of 10 finalists in the GO Brooklyn Open Studio Project contest. The contest’s winner(s) will be featured in a group exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum starting on December 1.
Asked how it feels to be recognized for his work by so many people – many of whom he doesn’t actually know but welcomed into his Carroll Gardens apartment for three days this September – Betko is humble, but enthusiastic.
“Along the way, I learned how to sharpen pencils, stretch my own canvas, mix my own palate… my hand is in it, like a mechanic has his tools,” he said.
Betko considers himself a realist painter who paints out of a fascination with life, distilling what is important. “There is nothing that is new, original, but as mortals, the thing we have is our own originality and innate reaction to what surrounds us,” he said. “It takes years [and] it takes an ability to tell your own stories.”