Interview
C. Rylie Lundy
Rylie is a 24 year old, self-taught painter from a small town in Central Pennsylvania, USA, who dabbles with oil, watercolor, pen and ink. She has one solo show under her belt - a showcase in 2016 of seven Brothers Grimm paintings.
Rylie is a member of the Art Alliance of Central Pennsylvania, which offers classes and art shows to the community. To date, Rylie has participated in the Member's Show 2020, The Figurative Show 2021 and the Square Show 2021 - the latter of which is a fundraiser for the alliance.
What is your background and how did you start your journey in the art world?
“My artistic journey started early, with my late grandfather, Anthony Sichenzia. He taught me how to draw a stick figure and things took off from there. Even after he passed, my Grandma Moe helped me with my drawing. I was too young to remember the early bits, but she was a jack of all trades, in the truest sense of the word, and she always supported my interests.
Both my grandmothers helped nurture an appreciation for art in me. My other grandmother, Jean Gottas, dealt in photography and watercolor painting. Grandma Jean had 12 grandchildren. Let me tell you, she tried to get all of us to paint and would bring us watercolors to use when the families would all go out to eat at a restaurant.
Between my grandparents and my parents (mom used to draw in high school herself), there has always been an abundance of support and encouragement.
I've always drawn, but it took me a while to get into painting. It wasn't until my senior year in high school that I took up painting seriously. I did a series of seven paintings, for my independent study course, based on fairy tales from the Brothers Grimm. These paintings were out on display at a local café, where friends and family came to see them.
Since graduating, I have done a handful of commissions, entered a few local art shows and most notably, participated in a weekly drawing session where the artists get to work from a live model. The live model sessions have been a great opportunity to meet other local artists and to come up with ideas for future works.
In the spring, I'll be moving to a new state and I'm excited to scout out the art scene there and start networking with other artists.”
What inspires you most?
“Music. Emotions. Perfectly posed/lighted figure studies. Coordinated color palettes.
Something that never fails to inspire me to create is learning about symbolism and how other artists have incorporated these themes into their artwork without stating the theme outright.
When I see art that catches my attention, be it on a skateboard or a canvas, I get the urge to see if I can make something equally eye-catching - mostly to prove to myself that I can. Here is a perfect example of what I mean: recently a friend and I went out Christmas shopping and one of the stores we visited was a local skate shop. It never would have occurred to me to use a skate deck as a canvas but here I am playing with ideas for a potential project.
Take your pick - if the subject is interesting, or the light hits a point just right, or even if it's just a verbal idea, inspiration comes at the oddest and sometimes most inconvenient times.”
What themes do you pursue? Is there an underlying message in your work?
“Rarely is there an underlying theme or message to my work, the exception being when I feel like playing with symbolism. On the rare occasion that this is the case, I research the symbols I'm including and find subtle ways to paint them in. The message would be piece specific.”
How would you describe your work?
Does 'not everyone's cuppa tea' count as a description? I'm only half kidding, mind you.
My work is ever changing and my style usually differs between paintings, depending on what I feel like creating for the moment.
Which artists influence you most?
“Caravaggio, however unintentional it may be.
I've tried to stay away from having other artist's influence my work, especially with the copyright infringement, sue-happy climate that the world is currently in. I admire other artist's work on Instagram, sure. There is too much talent on that platform to not admire them, but when it comes to creating, I try to keep to myself - there is less drama that way.”
“Colorful, well thought out, risqué and eye-catching are all words I would use to describe my work. I like using rich, deep colors to emphasize the extreme lighting contrast that I use to take my reference photos; often this makes the work stand out in a room and draws the eyes to it.”
What is your creative process like?
“Chances are, when I'm ready to paint something new, I've already been thinking out the idea for some time and have sketched out a few concepts. I've been known to break out a camera and start staging objects from around the house and playing with the lighting until I have usable references for a painting. Other times, ideas can form listening to a song that vibes with whatever emotion I've been feeling lately, and I'll sketch those out. When I haven't painted in a few months, I start with miniature canvas' to curb potential waste, if the idea doesn't go my way.
Oftentimes, my paintings would get put off because I would be too tired from work. Due to this, I've become accustomed to jumping right into a painting and putting in what I can for the moment. The sheer amount of times I've had to go back and remix colors for a painting, because I'd let them dry out between sessions is laughable. My process is a chaotic one that gets derailed if my head isn't in the right frame of mind.”
What is an artist’s role in society and how do you see that evolving?
“Personally, I think that artist's are simultaneously the fixers and the rebels of society. We come up with ideas out of left field - these ideas help either fix an established problem or make the problem exponentially worse.
This concept is not something that I see changing any time soon. Artist's have always broken the mold, and there will always be people left uncomfortable because of this.”
Instagram: @lundytheartist
