ANN ARBOR – Steve Gilzow loves Ann Arbor through and through. A former elementary school teacher who is now a painter, Gilzow has done 28 covers for the Ann Arbor Observer since 2004 and could not be more appreciative of the publication's kindness toward his work over the years. On top of being an exceptional artist, Gilzow is kind beyond words and graciously invited me into his home for an interview that actually came about because of the photo above of Gilzow and Literati Bookstore owners Mike and Hilary Gustafson.
"December is always a special time at the bookstore. I was so grateful that Steve created this beautiful work of art, and that this painting was featured as the December cover of the Ann Arbor Observer," Mike Gustafson said via email.
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"So many people around the community told us how happy they were to see the bookstore represented in such a wonderful way. It is very special to us."
Hilary Gustafson echoed her husband's sentiment, saying that they were both "delighted and surprised to see the painting" and that having Gilzow honor them with his art was "something truly special."
That photo inspired me to want to talk to Gilzow about his work and about exactly how this particular cover came to be.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
You were an elementary school teacher, correct?
Yes.
Have you always been a painter as well? Did being a teacher in any way transition into being a painter?
Only that I drew during all of those years. So drawing was always a part of things. While I was teaching, I did some drawings for the Ecology Center of Ann Arbor that were turned into Christmas cards. I also did drawings for the Huron River Watershed Council, which were used in a publication that they did on groundwater and runoff. But these were all pen-and-ink drawings and I knew that, as I got close to retirement, I would like to do a cover for the Observer, and I knew that the cover would have to be in color. The first five or six that I did for them were in colored pencil, which was a very easily controlled transition out of black ink. It’s not paint. It’s just laying down that one stroke you’re making with your hand and it’s not spreading out or anything. That was my tiptoeing into color, was colored pencil.
("Before A Fall" - Steve Gilzow)
How did that eventually evolve into painting? Were you self-taught?
I took some watercolor classes in Saline with two important people. One was Taylor Jacobsen and, later, Keith McGuire. Honestly, during that time I got so frustrated with watercolor because it’s so hard to control. Even though I had excellent instruction, I did not attempt to do an Observer cover until it had been a few years of doing watercolor. And then, in 2010, was when I began trying oils. I’ve taken a lot of different workshops with excellent people. So I definitely had some instruction. Another key person was Elaine Wilson, who taught at the University of Michigan and at Washtenaw Community College. I did two semesters of using acrylic paint, but the skills learned transferred very directly to oil painting.
How did that all lead into doing as many covers as you have for the Ann Arbor Observer?
John Hilton is the editor and Patricia Garcia is the publisher. They have been enormously kind and welcoming to me right from the beginning, which was when I was still teaching. I just showed them some of the pen-and-ink stuff I had done, which happened to be for local people -- the Watershed Council and so forth -- and I showed them some reference photos for an idea I had to do a color piece. They said, “If you can pull it off, we’ll probably use it.” There’s a real advantage to showing them what you’re thinking of doing, because they won’t use an image that too closely echoes one that has occurred within at least five years. They had liked the idea I had, which was the fountain in between the Michigan League and Hill Auditorium, but to show it in wintertime with snow around it, rather than with water gushing out of it. I worked on doing the color pencil work for that and it took me a very long time.
They did not know me; I was a cold call. I just came in with pen-and-ink drawings and a photograph of the basic composition that I wanted to go forward and create.
("Blowing Leaves" - Steve Gilzow)
Do they come to you with ideas for covers or do you come to them? Do they have their covers planned out in advance?
I don’t begin work on a cover for them unless I’m 99.9 percent sure that they’re going to use it. The only reason they would not use it is if I do a poor job of execution. The idea, generally, is a reference photo. They and I both know what this is likely to look like. If it’s something I’m doing for them, I make sure ahead of time that they’re going to like it.
To the second part of your question, they do plan out basically the calendar year in advance. They create something that they call “the lineup,” which is the 12 covers they’re going to use during the year. I like to get into them before one calendar year has ended and the next one has begun and give them multiple ideas to choose from. They won’t use any more than three from a given artist in a year.
There have only been two occasions out of the 28 where John and Patricia asked me to create a particular image. But, generally, I have an idea that I pitch to them and, actually, as the years have gone on, my friends now keep an eye out for what they think would be a good Observer cover. People I know will give me ideas that I’ll sometimes pass along. For me, it’s just been twice that I did something that John and Patricia wanted.
How did the Literati cover come about? I love that bookstore and it is one of my favorite places to visit in Ann Arbor. I’d love to hear the story behind it.
I also love the bookstore and I had done a written piece for the Observer about how their sign came to be -- the one with the individual letters for Literati that look like typewriter keys hanging down. I had that level of connection to the appearance of the exterior and also, having met Mike and Hilary, the owners, there was already a heart connection to the place. Then, last winter, I think in December, we had a pretty bountiful snowfall, and Mike had a few pictures of the place in the snow on a newsletter that they sent out. I just love the way it looked in the snow. I went down and got some of my own pictures and I pitched the idea to John and Patricia and they liked it.
The painting was a combination of a couple of elements from a photograph of Mike’s, and then other photos that I had taken on my own trips there. One of the key things that I got from Mike’s picture was that he had a daytime photo where that little family group was actually on the left side of the building. They were disappearing down the sidewalk headed south and I moved them front and center. It’s a father with two children. You can’t see the daughter very well, but I wanted them looking like they’re just about to enter the store after doing some window shopping.
What I was aiming for with the painting was a sense of a cozy refuge. You’ve got this snowfall, which I did not want to look like a menacing snowfall, but I wanted it to look heavy. I wanted the bookstore to look like it was this warm, cozy place to come in out of a heavy snow.
(The December 2017 Cover of the Ann Arbor Observer - Steve Gilzow)
Do find yourself visiting Literati when you’re in Ann Arbor?
I like to go in there to browse, and I’ve bought enough books there to be one of their frequent buyers. Most of them have been children’s books for the grandchildren. In terms of me personally possessing books anymore, I’m at an age and stage in life where, when I can, I use the library. There are not that many books that I want to own for my own purposes but I’m very motivated to buy them for the kids.
What are some of the things that inspire you in your painting?
Painting while traveling is something I love to do, but when I’m traveling with others, it’s harder. The oil painting equipment is pretty bulky and takes up space, so when traveling, I keep it smaller; it’s more watercolor. So there’s that, but then there’s also just going close to home to do images, and I do paint a lot from photographs.
("On Her Wavelength" - Steve Gilzow)
What is your perfect day in Ann Arbor? What makes you love the city, in other words?
There’s so much. I would begin a little bit outside of town at the Botanical Gardens and the Arboretum, a couple of outdoor ways of being in town. I love the Michigan Theater, Hill Auditorium and the libraries. I really appreciate our Ann Arbor library system. It’s magnificent. Increasingly, there are tremendous places to eat. I call Main Street “the food court.” Going to The Ark is another favorite. Getting over by Kerrytown, Treasure Mart and going the Farmer’s Market and going to the Food Co-op.
Is there anything else about you and your work that you want people to know?
I just want to emphasize what an important and good publication the Ann Arbor Observer is. It’s print; it’s ink-and-paper, but I think it tends to stay on people’s coffee tables for the month. The reason I thought of them in 2004 was because I knew they still bought original artwork to use on their cover each month. I just really appreciate that about them. As human beings, they’ve just been wonderful for me. I really think the Observer has always filled a really positive and important place in the city.
Beyond that, the only other thing I would mention is that I’ve met so many wonderful people doing these covers. There are a lot of stories connected to them. (For instance,) I’ve gotten to know Mike and Hilary better with this Literati cover. I already knew them, but now it’s a little bit more. When I had a cover last year of Vogel’s with the collie of theirs in the window, I got to know the people in there better. There have just been a number of people that I’ve met in the course of doing those 28 covers.
It also changes my experience going around town. I’ll come to an intersection and remember spending days painting a detail of the Glazier Building at the corner of Main and Huron, and Grizzly Peak last year. You just get very intimately familiar with these images that you’re painting. It takes days and days to make them. Then, when you travel around town, you’re connected to those places in a way that’s just different than if you only saw them out of your car window. I’ve just met some really great people doing it and I’m very grateful to the Observer for taking a chance with me.