The daily digest of Twin Cities culture | Secrets of the City

Chris Mars doesn't talk much about his days as a rock star anymore.  The former drummer of the Replacements has waded through the waters and re-emerged as one of the most powerful surrealist artists today.  But trying to get Mars on the record about his work is just as hard as getting him to reminisce about his life as an alt rocker.  One reason is because he has so many projects going on at one time: he's his own publisher, releasing his new book, Tolerance, that's due out this month; exhibitions at Billy Shire Fine Arts; and still making music on the side.  But Mars is reluctant to give interviews - perhaps because of the power of words. He's watched how they've been used when applied to his mentally ill brother, and uses his artwork to de-politicize social stigmas.  Mars' work could be considered frightening or monstrous at face value, but it could be because you might already know the monsters.  According to Mars, they're all around you.

Robyne Robinson:  Does mental illness foster creativity in some artists?

Chris Mars: I can't speak for what might foster creativity in another artist, whether they may be mentally ill or not.  But as for myself, I know that when I am depressed, there is a noticeable change for me in that my work suffers - emotionally, and formally as well.  I tend to do my best work when I am happy and focused.

Robyne Robinson: Is it possible to really visually capture the demons that hinder or drive a person?

Chris Mars:  Only by degrees of imagination.  One can empathize and imagine oneself in another's shoes whether that person be a family member, or perhaps some one more distant, such as one who might be effect physically and emotionally by having their family and country blown apart by war. I grew up with my brother Joe, who was diagnosed with schizophrenia when we were both young.  I see and talk with him regularly, and can only imagine the anguish and alienation he has suffered and still suffers.  He tells me his thoughts, and I try to comfort him.  So, while I can't actually be him, I can try to imagine through our exchanges his plight, and hence try to honor him.

Robyne Robinson:  Can a "sane" person interpret or channel a schizophrenic's battle if they're from the same family?  For example, the Crumb family...

Chris Mars: "Sane" (in quotes) is a good way to put it.  Are any of us completely sane?  Some of us appear to be happier than others, and there hopefully is a want to help those of us who are having a rougher go of it.  In the Crumb documentary, there were some family dynamics that were familiar to me.  Myself, as a sibling of a schizophrenic, naturally I spent a lot of time around Joe.  I witnessed Joe's ups and downs for years, and this continues today.  If there is love and closeness, a sibling becomes in tune with another sibling - whether this sibling is "sane" or not.  Perhaps this is a sort of channeling, another expression of a bond.