Tysons Artist able6's Seven Stunning Images of An Emerging City
I was sitting on a warm Sunday afternoon in the shadow of the Capital One Tower next to Wegmans when I was approached by a man with a mask. “What’s up, I’m able6.” This was the strangest meeting I had ever had with another individual. You see, the day prior I was just given a time and a place and told, “I’ll find you.” And so I went. “May I buy you a coffee he said?” I nodded.
And so for the next three hours I would walk and talk with this strange, at times humorous, and pensive man. I came to know about able6 when stories were published about his work. For reference: Artist Creates Bag Inspired By Falls Church Farmers Market and Artist Creates Tote Bag Designs Inspired By Arlington County Fair. I was intrigued when I read able6's story and was inspired to meet him as I also found my calling for writing late in life. Just as he found his calling to art late in life after he suffered a heart attack.
Able6 explained that he had lived in Tysons 15 years and never saw someone portray the city in art. So that “needed to be remedied” he said. There were plenty of photographers Rassi Borneo and John Lee taking lots of great photos. “But where was the art?” So able6 took it upon himself to wander (as he put it) around Tysons and find interesting spots to take mental images of the city. He would later spend an hour or two at his computer digitally painting what he took in that day.
So “That’s your process I asked?” “Yup, that’s pretty much it.” able6 replied. “I just walk, take it all in and then sit by my computer and start to paint.”
“You ever heard of the Akashic Record?” able6 asked. I already knew things were about to get a bit woo woo. “No” I replied.
able6 explained that it was the notion that all information that has ever been know or will ever be know is out there in the universe. One just has to vibrate a the right frequency in order to know it.
“Think about it, how is something new ever discovered? Tesla, Einstein, Picasso, all the great ones said that most things just came to them in a vision. We have the same old brains, how do we get to know something new. It’s not simply connecting the dots. Imagination is more important than intelligence. If you can imagine it then you can know it.” -able6
able6 went on to explain some of his process further. He said he wakes up everyday between 3 am — 4 am because that’s when he can be the most productive. He has two glasses of warm water with lemon and then goes to work. “Sometimes I can bust out three images in an hour.”
He said this is when he can tap into the Akashic Record. This is when he vibrates at a certain frequency where the art just comes to him. He went very deep and was really specific about the process discussing meditation techniques and certain ways of breathing, but I’m not going to get into it here because it’s a little woo woo for me.
“So what do you hope happens of all of this I asked?” Able6 explained that he believes in Wu Wei, the Chinese philosophy of not forcing things. He said that he puts art out into the universe for the sake of the art.
“People need to see beautiful things. In this phase of life. Time, health, and beauty are really all we have. We need to spend these resources well.”
Able6 went on to explain that he will reach out to the newly formed Tysons Community Alliance to see if they would like to partner with him to get his art around Tysons, perhaps in the form of postcards with a “Visit Tysons” theme to it.
Able6 went on to explain that “Meghan Trossen and Mike Caplin” did something great with the old Tysons Partnership. They had a couple of public art projects and he was a fan of one artist in particular Le Naturel who did a mural by the old Tysons Biergarten. Check out able6’s Biergarten tote bag here. I picked one up today!
“Now with Josh and Drew and Katie Cristol at the helm. I hope they do something great with art. I mean it doesn’t necessarily have to be my art. Just do more art stuff. We have some public art. Now let’s put art in homes and businesses. Let’s have postcards. Let’s do tote bags! Let’s do 7 large canvasses and rotate them at businesses all over Tysons. Lets auction off a canvas and donate the proceeds to 2nd story Tysons. Let’s do a fundraiser. Let’s do a giveaway. Let’s promote Tysons to Tysonians. We don’t have the sense of people saying they belong to this city yet. People say they are Mcleanites, Viennians (I may have just made that up). People need to feel that they are Tysonians. Art does that. The possibilities are endless.”
And then after three hours of walking and talking able6 got a text and abruptly ended our meeting. He started walking in another direction and just said “I will send you the jpg’s, thanks for this I had a lot of fun. Let’s do it again sometime.”
You can find all of able6’s Tysons art prints at his etsy shop. At able6.com you’ll find all his tote bags. A few of his pieces will be featured in Falls Church Arts upcoming show Luminous.
able6 gave me this interview on one condition. He said to post this at the bottom of the article: This Thanksgiving please consider purchasing one of his Turkey tote bags filling it up with groceries and giving it to someone in need. I leave you with that.
Hopefully I will get a text from the elusive Tysons artist and bring you more of his art in the future.
Check out able6’s efforts to help Ukraine.
