I had the opportunity to set up a little interview with my friend Ryder who has been rocking the art scene in NY lately. I hope you enjoy some of his thoughts and take a look at his work, which I find dramatic, clever and very interesting.
How long have you been doing art?
– I’ve been drawing and making artwork since I can remember. One of my earliest memories would be of drawing naked woman on the sidewalk in chalk after stealing Playboy magazines. My sister was pretty pissed off about that. I was about 5 years old. I’ve always been making something. I went to two different art schools, one on an illustration scholarship, the other just to figure out what else I could do. And I’m still working on that one. Still trying to see what’s next.
What/who inspires you to create it?
– I find New York very inspiring. Since my first trip here with my old band years ago I found it strangely comforting here. I find a lot of inspiration in the libraries through researching old myths and superstitions about the explanations multiple cultures put behind different things, especially in the natural world. It’s really intriguing how one object can undergo such drastic reasoning of why it exists and how it should be feared or worshipped.
What inspires you in your everyday?
– It almost always changes. But my walk to my studio from my apartment is nice and I’ll listen to music and get very driven. Conversations from the night before. The people I’m surrounded by. Other artists, designers and my fiancé. People may not have to say anything in particular at all, it’s just their energy that can be very telling. The levels of ambition we each have to accomplish something substantial versus being apathetic.
What medium do you consider most exciting or would you LOVE to master?
– I would love to master sculpture. I keep envisioning the paintings I do in three dimensional form and then some form of light splitting them open. I’ve begun work on a few new things and I’m happy with the progress. I like the idea of being able to walk around the entirety of a piece…
what IS art/music to you?
– The same thing it is to you I would imagine: very personal.
find more of ryder’s artwork at www.pantherattack.com.