Hammers and Fish
Patrick was born in the rural blue-collar community of Kinderhook, New York to Lynn and ‘Mad Jack’ Haemmerlein. His early years were spent stealthily hunting the clever brook trout and hard fighting small mouth bass that inhabited the creeks and tributaries surrounding the Hudson River. While Patrick enjoyed drawing dinosaurs and turkeys, the town offered only one real career option for its locals: construction.
It Starts with a Party
Straight out of high school, Patrick took a roofing job. He worked hard, but his mind was restless. Frustration mounting, he gravitated to the party. Surprisingly, the party is where everything changed for Patrick, time and time again.
It was at a party that a friend told him about a nearby school that offered an art program. Patrick immediately transferred and got his first MAC, a 1-gigabyte behemoth, but a fine machine in 1994. He partied straight through school and returned to Kinderhook.
A Construction Worker at Art School
The first six months of that year were a barrage of wonderful debauchery. While drinking on a back porch late one night, an old friend told Patrick about Savannah College of Art & Design. He immediately went home, applied online and was on the road in August for the three most wonderful years of his life.
He studied Graphic Design and Motion Graphics while enjoying the charming, historic city. Surprisingly, it was here in Savannah that Patrick first saw the work of Shepard Fairey and other street artists that would later become dramatic influences.
Westward
Upon graduation, Patrick was offered a lucrative advertising job in Atlanta. Unsure if it was right for him, he sat on the offer. By the time he accepted, it was too late. With nowhere to go, he loaded up the car and explored the country for several months. ” I saw the world for the first time. It opened my eyes.”
When he got to California, he fell in love with Ocean Beach. He got a job as a bouncer at Canes and the party was on again. During the next eight rocking months, Patrick’s frustration returned. He put together a print portfolio and headed to LA.
The City Made Me Do it
Right away, Patrick got a job at a celebrity photo agency, and was given access to a camera with unlimited film and processing. To the lonely newcomer, Los Angeles became a whole new world. Since then, Patrick has amassed a collection of over 15,000 original photographs of street level abstractions, homeless people, candid scenes, architecture and more. These are the foundation of all of his work.
Under the Influence
Though Los Angeles played a dominant role in the formation of Patrick’s art, influence came from several sources, one of them in Brooklyn. Jamila Tazewell had attended SCAD with Patrick and he considers her the first true artist he has known. “She’d tape something to the wall and it was art… She had that magic touch.” Before he was showing his designs around town, he was sending them to her. His first experiments with collage began, because, as he puts it, “She made collage cool.”
In 2003, the war in Iraq began. “I knew this was a disaster right from the get go.” At the same time, he says,” If it wasn’t for the war, my art wouldn’t be half of what it is today… It made me so mad, I had to work!”
The Kick Ass Art Show
In 2004, Patrick landed his first group show… in a pornography warehouse! While he enjoyed drinks and nude dancing girls, he racked up seven hundred dollars in sales and met Nathan Cartwright. Nathan invited him to show at a new gallery opening the following month. In April, Patrick began showing at the Hive and has shown there ever since. Another party had brought a major turning point to Patrick’s life.
Addiction
Today, Patrick is one of the most prolific artists I know, showing regularly across LA and finding his place within the commercial art market. Like an addict, he awakens with thoughts of art, and goes to sleep at night the same way. As he puts it, “I can’t even sit around and enjoy a movie anymore… I have to be working.” That’s ok, because the work keeps selling. “I think I’ll be selling art the rest of my life. I don’t see any reason not to.”
A recent elevation to residency status at the Hive has given him the chance to mount an installation every month and allowed him to spend more time around other artists. “It’s made me realize I’m not crazy… After seven years of doing this, I can finally call myself an artist.”