Artist Isak Dove packs power behind whimsical paintings of creatures and botanicals

Artist and musician Isak Dove paints whimsical creatures, powerful feminine figures, and colorful botanicals, but that doesn’t mean that everyone who takes in her work experiences solely joyful emotions.

“I also have people that see [a] painting [and say], ‘Whoa, that’s scary,’” the multidisciplinary creative told me. “I had someone once walk by and be like, ‘Wow, you must have a lot of anger in you.’ That’s a first, and I’d never heard that one before or since. Obviously art, you interpret it based on what you’re feeling, a little bit.”

Dove’s latest exhibition, “Femmes and Fauna of Forsyth Park” at Alexander’s Bistro, 1201 Bull St., is chimerical, a carnival of oddities and empowerment. And like some of her more thoughtful art lovers have observed, it’s deeper than it seems.

As we sat in the café and talked, surrounded by her work, my position at the table had me frequently looking at the piece “I Have the Same Religion as That Tree.” The painting depicts a human-faced bat flying through trees illuminated by moonlight, a rosary clutched in it’s claws. It’s cute.

But it’s not only cute. The character’s face has a smile, but it almost seems forced or courteous rather than inviting. The juxtaposition of a rosary and a sort of pagan-feeling creature is unsettling after extended observation. Plus the thing is looking at the viewer, and I’m not entirely comfortable with that.

It’s a line that Dove walks without conscious thought, but one that elevates her work from simply nice to look at to something worth pondering.

“I’m grateful that I’m okay with emotions, because I’ve had a lot of them,” she said.

April in Paris

Dove has become a fixture in the Savannah art scene, thanks in large part to her longterm commitment to selling her work in Forsyth Park. These days there are nearly a hundred artists hawking their wares along the main boulevard the runs through the park’s center, but when she first got going, she was one of 10-15 creatives there consistently, and that’s helped her develop connections with locals and tourists alike.

But for the untrained full-time artist, Forsyth Park is just the latest stop on a life filled with taking chances and having them work out.

When Dove was 16, she had the chance to go to Paris, but had to pay her own way, so she and a friend did an art show. Called “April in Paris,” a reference to both the song and the fact the they were literally going to Paris for the month of April, the pair ended up making over $1,300 each, more than enough for the plane ticket (and the six pairs of shoes the artist said she picked up while in France).

A few years later, while in London, she wanted to stay longer than her trip was originally scheduled, so she hand drew a bunch of t-shirts and set up at the famous Camden Town Market, allowing her to extend her trip for an additional seven months. And when she first moved to Savannah in 2010, she got involved in Art Port Savannah, an artist collective on DeSoto Row that included folks such as José Ray and Maggie Hayes.

She also did shows at several now-defunct locations, like Anahata Healing Arts, which is adjacent to where Gallery 2424 now calls home, and The Foundery, which occupied the space that Shuk took over.

Then in January 2021, after working for years as a nanny, Dove finally took the plunge and went full time as an artist, setting up at Forsyth Park for the first time.

“I remember the day someone asked what I did and I said I was a nanny, instead of I’m an artist,” she recalled. “I was like, ‘Oof, that hurts.’ I always used to say I’m an artist, but I do this or that to pay bills.”

She wanted to give two weeks notice, but her boss convinced her to stay until the end of 2020. When she finally did quit, she had enough money to last a month, and hoped to squeeze out maybe a month or two more by selling a few pieces of art. She’s been a full-time artist ever since.

“When I quit, something in me knew,” Dove related. “I was joking with all my friends that I retired.”

'I’m not lucky'

The work at Alexander’s Bistro is a combination of pieces some have already seen, and new paintings made specifically with the space in mind. It’s also ever-changing, because the owners have allowed customers who purchase pieces to take them home right away, giving Dove the opportunity to bring in new additions as needed. Between the opening reception and our meeting I noticed that some pieces had already been swapped out.

Traditionalists might balk at such a method of showcasing art, but personally, my feelings on what’s best for artists and their exhibitions has changed over the years. As noted, in the hour-plus that Dove and I spoke, I must have looked at “I Have the Same Religion as That Tree” 50 times, basically every time I happened to look over her left shoulder. Rare, indeed, is it for someone to spend so much time looking at an art piece in a white cube art gallery.

Dove is also successful, and makes art full-time, so it’s hard to argue with the results. In fact, artists like her, who grind, looking for every opportunity to put themselves out there, “art world” be damned, are amongst the few that are actually making it in this town. And it’s not because they got discovered by some big time art dealer.

“Everyone says I’m so lucky,” she chuckled. “I don’t think these people know what I’m doing. I’m not lucky, I’m crazy. My to-do list for the business is endless.”

“I do have faith, but it’s a faith in very real work and constant dedication,” she went on to say. “And it’s still very precarious. But I know that I have to paint.”

Dove has been through a lot, some of which she revealed to me during our conversation, but much of it felt private and not meant for publication. Even without knowing the specific challenges she’s had to overcome, however, it comes through in the work as a little something else behind the cute, whimsical images she presents.

“The thing I’m most grateful for is that I love doing art so much,” she said near the end of our conversation. “It keeps me [sane] through the hard times in life. I can paint my feelings out, and create new beauty when there isn’t any.”

“It’s just a magical, mysterious life,” she continued. “I’m here for it.”

Isak Dove’s “Femmes and Fauna of Forsyth Park” at Alexander’s Bistro runs through the end of May. Find Dove on Instagram @isak_dove.

Those interested in showing in the space may reach out to Phil Rothman at (706) 401-1425 or email prothman@att.net. 

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Alexander's Bistro on Bull Street displays rotating works of Savannah artists