In Conversation
Dusty Ray
Interview by Jordi A. Bello Tabbi
Visuals by Dusty Ray
Your images are always full of pathos and violence. What’s your relationship with violence in art? Do you feel a catharsis while painting?
I don’t always try to portray violence in my work, nor do I see most of my work as inherently violent. I am trying to portray beauty in a different way, the bold colors in our guts and the subtle beauty in light reflecting off of wet surfaces. The violence people see in my work isn’t always reflective of actual violence, just my own idea of beauty, maybe that’s because I am desensitized, or we are all desensitized. My animal paintings lean more towards a deliberate portrayal of human violence against nature, though that’s not always my explicit intent. I certainly feel a sort of catharsis when painting, a sort of release that I can’t get any other way than from painting. Lately I have tried to work more slowly and mindfully, so even getting myself to sit down and actually do the act of painting is a catharsis in itself, the funny way depression gives you these little victories.
You are, may I say, obsessed with animal figures. Is there something in animal anatomy that particularly lights your creativity?
I have always been obsessed with animal anatomy, particularly the legs, teeth, and eyes. the way we are versions of them, the parts we share and the ones we don’t. Our symbiosis and our exploitation. They inspire me and comfort me and my portrayal of them is always rooted in reverence
How your life and your art are similar, and how they are not? Do you feel a connection between your images and yourself?
Art is my entire life, it is my profession and obsession, it is my enemy and my family. I feel a deep connection to most of my work, there is no way to separate the art form the artist and anyone who says otherwise is full of shit. There are deeply personal traumas I represent in my work and those are the pieces I feel the deepest connection with, but I also paint things I find funny or simple. I like to think I inject my sense of humor into some of my work and hope it shows, but it might not. Every painting is a little piece of me and some are easier pieces to shed than others.
How your life and your art are similar, and how they are not? Do you feel a connection between your images and yourself?
Art is my entire life, it is my profession and obsession, it is my enemy and my family. I feel a deep connection to most of my work, there is no way to separate the art form the artist and anyone who says otherwise is full of shit. There are deeply personal traumas I represent in my work and those are the pieces I feel the deepest connection with, but I also paint things I find funny or simple. I like to think I inject my sense of humor into some of my work and hope it shows, but it might not. Every painting is a little piece of me and some are easier pieces to shed than others.
You work in a digital environment, but with traditional painting methods.
Do you think that material components are part of the creative process?
Certain materials are important to me, but I think you can be creative and produce heavy work within any medium. I don’t strictly work with traditional materials, I love making digital collages and recently have begun using parts of many different paintings and incorporating them into large digital edits. It’s a way of seeing my work in a new light and gives me inspiration for my traditional work. Traditional will always be my favorite though, I have tried digital painting and it’s not really for me, I am extremely tactile and need to feel the texture and paint. I appreciate digital art but mostly when it knows it is digital and flourishes in its own medium without trying to imitate traditional. Moving as a mostly traditional artist in a digital space can be interesting, since most of my audience will never actually see a physical piece, only a digital version on their phone. I try to play with this disconnect, working very small, trying to confuse the eye as to how large my work actually is or if it even exists at all.
Do you have any exibition planned or you find social and digital showcase is working well for you?
I do shows occasionally, but I tend to shy away from galleries as I see most of them as inherently exploitative. Most galleries shy away from me as well, my work doesnt fit their spaces or their aesthetic and can cause adverse reactions for their audience. Showcasing my work online is the reason I am able to do this as a living.
I have curated my own audience and can show my new work whenever I want. I have no deadlines or limits, and can interact directly with people who appreciate my work. I have alway taken a strictly DIY approach to my work and existence as an artist so it’s really important to me that I am able to have direct interaction without a gallery. I hand-pack, ship, and print all of my own prints, package and ship every painting I sell, and am in charge of basically every ‘bureaucratic’ aspect of my art. Showing digitally is incredibly freeing and constricting all at once since you have to be on top of all social media etc, but I wouldn’t want to do it any other way.
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