Abby Portner

Last updated
Abby Portner
Born
Abigail Portner

August 13, 1980
Nationality American
Education Parsons The New School for Design
Known for Drawing, album art, music video, music
Notable work Sung Tongs artwork, Down There artwork, In the Flowers video, Lucky 1 video
Website Abby Portner Blogspot
Drawlings
Origin Baltimore, Maryland
Instruments Sampler, keyboards, drums
Years active2006 – present
Labels Paw Tracks
Website Drawlings MySpace

Abigail Portner is an American visual artist, designer, music video director and musician in the bands Rings and Hex Message, and solo under the name Drawlings. [1] She lives and works in Los Angeles, California.

Contents

Visual art

Abby Portner's work is closely connected to her friends and especially to her brother David Portner's band Animal Collective. She started to make tour posters when they were still in High School together in Baltimore, Maryland. She later moved to New York City to attend Parsons School for Design, but continued to make record covers and still designs shirts, tour posters and merchandise for the band. [2] For Animal Collective's album Merriweather Post Pavilion , she contributed a music video for the song In the Flowers. In the summer of 2010 she built a live set for two Animal Collective shows in Prospect Park in New York City that contained large scale paintings and sculptures of jellyfish, tiki men, moving sharks and shooting water. The work was handmade by Portner in small parts with the help of friends in a working space in Bushwick, New York City, and put together on stage. [3]

Besides drawing for Animal Collective, Portner worked on a wide range of visual art projects, including tattoo designing and cartoons. In the end of 2008 she designed skateboards for the Ohio-based brand Alien Workshop. [2] In mid-2010 Portner worked as a guest artist for the animated series The Velvet Mouse Show. [4]

In early 2010, The Fader magazine featured Portner in the 65th issue with some artwork and a portrait. In addition, an interview and a slideshow with the artist's work was posted on the magazine's website. [5]

According to herself, the inspiration for her imagery comes from sources like old photos of her childhood, children's magazines and Disney World. She points out the motif of play and playfulness as the main theme of her work. Accordingly, recurrent themes in her drawings are animals, masked children, Christmas and Halloween. In addition to this "childlike" approach Portner adds a dark, melancholic and often eerie undertone to her figures:

It's like how I can't draw a child without it looking scary. I can't make a song that doesn't sound like a haunted house. Whether it's a song or a drawing, it's coming from the same place inside. [3]

In 2014, she directed music video for "If You Were Still Around" song by John Cale. [6] [7]

Music

Portner joined Nina Mehta and Kate Rosko of the New York-based band First Nation in June 2006 as a drummer, shortly after Melissa Livaudis of Telepathe left the band. With Mehta and Rosko she started to write new material as well as playing shows around New York City and at the Midi Festival in France in August 2006. [2] After changing the band's name to Rings, they eventually recorded the album, Black Habit in March 2008 at Rove Studios in Kentucky, along with Kristin Anna Valtysdottir who produced the record. [8] As the drummer of Rings and Among Natives, another musical project of hers, Portner was one of 77 drummers participating in the art project 77 Boadrum in Summer 2007. A year later, she was also part of the follow-up 88 Boadrum. In the meantime, Portner had also joined the four-piece jam band Hex Message.

In the summer of 2008 Portner started her solo music project Drawlings:

I kind of started it to relate my art to my music more and also express other things in my music that come out only when you are working solo. I guess it's more personal. I kinda had a weird year so I wanted to make Drawlings to express some of that. Even the name is personal. That is how I say "drawing", with an "L" and I have done it since I was little and it's never changed. [2]

Since then, she played solo shows mostly in New York City and Los Angeles and opened for artists like Animal Collective, Deakin, Kría Brekkan, Foot Village and Angel Deradoorian, with her fellow Rings members joining her sometimes on stage. [3] In May 2011, Portner played at All Tomorrow's Parties curated by Animal Collective in Minehead, England, along with Big Boi, Beach House, Atlas Sound, Gang Gang Dance and Paw Tracks bands such as Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti and Black Dice.

The only Drawlings release so far is the solo song "Wolfie's Christmas" on a 7-inch named "Be Good to Earth This Season" released on Paw Tracks in the end of 2008. In an interview in 2010, Portner announced that she plans on recording a Drawlings album in the following winter with her brother David Portner to release it on Paw Tracks in early 2011: "[...] I have a name for the record and the album art already realized. I just need to get the songs down." [3]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Cale</span> Welsh composer, singer-songwriter and record producer

John Davies Cale is a Welsh musician, composer, and record producer who was a founding member of the American rock band the Velvet Underground. Over his six-decade career, Cale has worked in various styles across rock, drone, classical, avant-garde and electronic music.

<i>Sung Tongs</i> 2004 studio album by Animal Collective

Sung Tongs is the fifth studio album by American experimental pop band Animal Collective, released on May 3, 2004 by FatCat Records. The album, newly exploring freak folk, received high critical reception upon its release and was featured in best-of lists at the end of 2004 and the decade of the 2000s. Only two of the band's four members play on the album, Avey Tare and Panda Bear, a first since Spirit They're Gone, Spirit They've Vanished (2000), which was originally credited to the duo and only later retroactively classified as part of the band's discography.

<i>Spirit Theyre Gone, Spirit Theyve Vanished</i> 2000 studio album by Avey Tare and Panda Bear (Animal Collective)

Spirit They're Gone, Spirit They've Vanished is the first collaborative studio album by Avey Tare and Panda Bear, released in August 2000. It was later retroactively classified as the debut album by Portner and Lennox's group Animal Collective. The album was first released as a CD on the band's own Animal label with only 2000 copies produced.

<i>Campfire Songs</i> (Animal Collective album) 2003 studio album by Campfire Songs

Campfire Songs is the debut and only album by the American band Campfire Songs, released in March 2003. A collaborative work between Dave Portner, Noah Lennox, and Josh Dibb, it was later retroactively classified as the third studio album by their band Animal Collective.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Avey Tare</span> American musician (born 1979)

David Michael Portner, also known by his moniker Avey Tare, is a musician and songwriter who co-founded the American experimental pop band Animal Collective. He has released four solo albums, as well as three collaborative albums with Panda Bear which were later retroactively classified under Animal Collective's discography.

Paw Tracks was an independent record label based in Washington, D.C.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black Dice</span> American experimental music duo

Black Dice is an American experimental noise music band based in Brooklyn, New York and consisting of brothers Bjorn and Eric Copeland along with Aaron Warren. Formed in 1997, the group was initially inspired by hardcore and noise rock, but subsequently shifted toward the extensive use of signal processing, effects units, and electronic instrumentation. They released their debut album Beaches & Canyons in 2002. They have recorded for labels such as DFA, Fat Cat, and Animal Collective's Paw Tracks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kristín Anna Valtýsdóttir</span> Icelandic vocalist

Kristín Anna Valtýsdóttir, also known as Kría Brekkan, is an Icelandic vocalist and classically trained multi-instrumentalist. She is best known as a former frontwoman of múm, and later on for collaborating with former husband David Portner as Avey Tare & Kría Brekkan.

<i>Young Prayer</i> 2004 studio album by Panda Bear

Young Prayer is the second solo album by American experimental pop musician Panda Bear, released on September 28, 2004. It follows his debut solo album Panda Bear (1999). It is his first since co-founding Animal Collective.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Panda Bear (musician)</span> American musician (born 1978)

Noah Benjamin Lennox, also known by his moniker Panda Bear, is an American musician, singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and co-founding member of the band Animal Collective. In addition to his work with that group, Lennox has released six solo LPs since 1999, with his 2007 album Person Pitch inspiring the chillwave genre and numerous other acts. His subsequent albums Tomboy (2011) and Panda Bear Meets the Grim Reaper (2015) both reached the Billboard 200.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">(Drawing) Rings Around the World</span> Single by Super Furry Animals

"(Drawing) Rings Around the World" is a song by Super Furry Animals and was the second single taken from the band's fifth album, Rings Around the World. The track reached number 28 on the UK Singles Chart on release in October 2001. Singer Gruff Rhys has described the song as being about "rings of communication around the world. All the rings of pollution".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deakin (musician)</span> American musician

Joshua Caleb Dibb, also known by his moniker Deakin, is an American musician who co-founded the experimental pop band Animal Collective. He is the most infrequent member of the collective appearing on only seven of the group's twelve studio albums. In 2016, he made his solo debut with the album Sleep Cycle. He also occasionally works as a carpenter during musical down time.

Rusty Santos is a record producer and musician based in Los Angeles. He is known for producing, recording, mixing and/or mastering records like Animal Collective’s Sung Tongs and the reissue of Danse Manatee, Panda Bear’s Person Pitch, Born Ruffians’ Red, Yellow & Blue, Owen Pallett's Heartland & In Conflict, DJ Rashad's Welcome to the Chi, Dawn of Midi's "Dysnomia", and many more.

<i>Down There</i> (album) 2010 studio album by Avey Tare

Down There is the debut solo album by Animal Collective member Avey Tare, released worldwide on October 25, 2010, on Paw Tracks. The album was recorded in June with Animal Collective bandmate Josh Dibb at the Good House, an old church in upstate New York. "Lucky 1" was officially released for download as the first single on October 5, 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Animal Collective</span> American experimental pop band

Animal Collective is an American experimental pop band formed in Baltimore, Maryland. Its members consist of Avey Tare, Panda Bear, Geologist, and Deakin. The band's work is characterized by an eclectic exploration of styles, including psychedelia, freak folk, noise, and electronica, with the use of elements such as loops, drones, sampling, vocal harmonies, and sound collage. AllMusic's Fred Thomas suggests that the group "defined the face of independent experimental rock during the 2000s and 2010s."

<i>Centipede Hz</i> 2012 studio album by Animal Collective

Centipede Hz is the ninth studio album by American experimental pop group Animal Collective, released on September 4, 2012 on Domino Records. The album marks the return of band member Deakin, who sat out of the recording and touring of the band's previous album, Merriweather Post Pavilion (2009). On the US Billboard 200, it peaked at No. 16.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Caroline Polachek</span> American singer (born 1985)

Caroline Elizabeth Polachek is an American singer, producer, and songwriter. Raised in Connecticut, Polachek co-founded the indie pop band Chairlift while studying at the University of Colorado. The duo emerged from the late-2000s Brooklyn music scene with the sleeper hit "Bruises".

<i>Painting With</i> 2016 studio album by Animal Collective

Painting With is the tenth studio album by American experimental pop band Animal Collective, released on February 19, 2016. The album is a follow-up to Centipede Hz (2012), and features contributions from John Cale and Colin Stetson. It peaked at No. 46 on the Billboard 200. Three singles were issued: "FloriDada" (2015), "Lying in the Grass", and "Golden Gal". A companion EP, The Painters, was released the following year.

<i>Cows on Hourglass Pond</i> 2019 studio album by Avey Tare

Cows on Hourglass Pond is the third solo studio album by American musician Avey Tare. It was released on March 22, 2019 by Domino Recording Company. The album follows 2017's Eucalyptus and was supported by a tour. Its announcement was accompanied by the release of the video for "Saturdays (Again)", directed by Avey Tare's sister, Abby Portner.

<i>Mercy</i> (John Cale album) 2023 studio album by John Cale

Mercy is the seventeenth studio album by Welsh musician and composer John Cale. It was released on 20 January 2023 by Double Six Records, making it Cale's first album of new songs in over a decade. It features collaborations with Tony Allen, Laurel Halo, Weyes Blood, Tei Shi, Animal Collective's Avey Tare and Panda Bear, Dev Hynes, Sylvan Esso, Actress, and Fat White Family. It was inspired by current events such as Donald Trump's presidency, Brexit, COVID-19, climate change, civil rights, and right-wing extremism.

References

  1. ↑ The Fader Magazine #65, page 87
  2. 1 2 3 4 Abby Portner on Drawlings, Rings, and making art for Animal Collective Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine . BBQChickenRobot.com, December 21, 2008
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Artist Advocacy // Abigail Portner". Archived from the original on 2011-05-24. Retrieved 2011-03-04. Abigail Portner. Artist Advocacy Network, 2010
  4. ↑ The Velvet Mouse Show. Post on Abby Portner's Blog, September 20, 2010
  5. ↑ Slideshow: Abigail Portner's Insider/Outsider Art. The Fader, January 19, 2010
  6. ↑ Gordon, Jeremy (27 October 2014). "John Cale Pays Tribute to Lou Reed With New 'If You Were Still Around' Video". Pitchfork Media . Retrieved 27 October 2014.
  7. ↑ Hogan, Marc (27 October 2014). "John Cale Honors Lou Reed with 'If You Were Still Around' Video". Wondering Sound. Archived from the original on 2014-10-27. Retrieved 27 October 2014.
  8. ↑ First Nation / Rings. Paw Tracks Artist Info
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.