Clinton Rost's solo show "Spy House" opens Jan. 15 at Gallery 360. Patch caught up with him as he put the finishing touches on some of the oil paintings that will appear there until Feb. 28, 2011.

The works are set in the Uptown coffeeshop of the same name and portray the interesting sense of being alone in a public place—the milieu of the modern urban cafe. The thick brushstrokes and depiction of light are handled beautifully by Rost, who is also a local web developer. He took a few minutes out of his busy schedule to answer some questions about the origins of this show.

Southwest Minneapolis Patch: What led you to painting people in public places and namely coffee shops? It seems you have been doing that for at least a few years.

Clinton Rost: I was spending a great deal of time in coffee shops, sketching and observing. I liked the atmosphere of the spaces, the smells, the noises and the presence of others. I used to drink a lot of coffee. I'd always brought my sketchbook with me as those around me were fantastic models, rarely moving much and of varied ages. I used to create backgrounds for the people as I would sketch them; what brought them to this place, where were they were going.

Near the end of my time at art school (Minneapolis College of Art and Design), I needed a topic to paint that I understood and could intrinsically relate to. I chose the cafe and I've been painting these spaces since then.

Southwest Minneapolis Patch: Do you still spend a lot of time in coffee shops? Do you do the paintings from memory?

Clinton Rost: I spend a fair amount of time in them, though I mostly spend that time as a subject of one of my paintings. I use the cafe, like many do, as social office space, working as a freelance web developer and absorbing the ambiance. I used to spend a lot of time sketching and even painting in coffee shops, but I mostly work from photographs at this point. I was commenting to a fellow painter just the other day that my paintings now look like my photographs, but my photographs now look like my paintings. Each influence the other.

Southwest Minneapolis Patch: Where did you get your training/art education?

Clinton Rost: I attended the Minneapolis College of Art and Design. It was a fantastic program with amazing, passionate instructors. They set the groundwork for me to find what I love in painting.

Southwest Minneapolis Patch: Do you work in any other mediums—sculpture, photography, etc.?

Clinton Rost: Primarily painting and drawing, I'm open to other mediums, but there's only so much time in the day.

Southwest Minneapolis Patch: Anything else we should know about Clinton Rost before we stop by your show on Saturday, Jan. 15?

Clinton Rost: I don't drink coffee anymore because I didn't like how it made me feel. I still drink plenty of tea thought. I'm an avid runner, and yoga practitioner. I'm actually in school learning to be a yoga instructor.

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What: Spy House - paintings by Clinton Rost

Where: Gallery 360 - 3011 W. 50th St. (near Xerxes Ave. S), 612-925-2400

Opening: Saturday, Jan. 15, 2011, 7-10 p.m.

Run of Show: Jan. 15 - Feb. 28, 2011