FEBRUARY IS BLACK History Month and this year we’re celebrating with a series of spotlights on three black female artists making contributions to their communities in unique ways. Each Tuesday during the month, we’ll be featuring one of these artists in our In The Studio series, sharing their perspective, and showing you a fun way to support their work.
Each of the three artists in our series is part of a special collaboration with Pressed Juicery, each designing a limited edition label for one of their best-selling juices. Throughout the month, proceeds from all three juices will go to support each artist’s work in making a meaningful impact in their communities….
Meet Perryn Ryan, a Brooklyn artist guided by an inspiring sense of ‘spirituality and desire to connect more with myself and others.’ Ryan’s work has a flowing and holistic feel we love and was recently featured in Jenna Lyons’ HBO special, Stylish. Now gracing the bottles of one our favorite juices ever (Pressed’s Roots 3), we caught up with Perryn asked her to share more about the journey that led her to her current perspective and way of life…
Name: Perryn Ryan
My work in 3 words: Feminine, minimalist, and thoughtful. Check it out
My favorite current project is… Working on a small collection of new hand-drawn and painted female figure studies.
Beverage that keeps me going: Coffee, tea, water or juice. And I love mineral water. I can’t get enough of it, but ginger tea comes in as a close second!
Latest inspirations: I’m always inspired by the female figure. Currently, I am seeking inspiration in other forms of creative output…taking pottery classes, learning how to hand embroider, and exploring ways to incorporate this into my current work.
To get the creative juices flowing I… like to go for walks, go to the museum, watch some of my favorite childhood movies like The Little Mermaid, and listen to music!
Daily necessity in the studio: My sketchbook, it’s where I work out all of my creative ideas and before turning them into workable illustrations and paintings.
Soundtrack in the studio is usually… Currently, I’m rotating between listening to Billie Eilish on repeat and re-listening to episodes of the Creative Rebels podcast!
Other artists inspiring me right now: There are honestly too many to name. I’m inspired by the spiritual symbolism in Hilma af Klint’s work, Matisse’s use of color, the whimsy of Christoph Niemann’s Sunday sketches, the way Dana Scruggs captures movement in her photographs — just to name a few. There are so many artists that inspire me, I could go on for an eternity!
I was first inspired to become an artist when… I was in 3rd grade. It’s my earliest memory of creating art. I was 7 or 8 years old, completely obsessed with fashion, and my mom had just bought me a monthly subscription to Harper’s Bazaar and a Barbie stencil set. I spent all of my time drawing the models and the clothes.
When I’m not in the studio I am usually… doing yoga, going for photo walks around my neighborhood, watching tiny house videos on Youtube, at my fave nail art studio updating my nail design with new colorful designs, or just relaxing any way that I can!
Favorite objects/tools in the studio: My iPad, my Kafka script liner paint brush, Arches hotpress watercolor paper, Golden open acrylic paints, my sketchbook, and Staedtler pencils. You can drop me off on a deserted island with these things 6 things, and I’ve got everything I need to survive!
Favorite art museum: My favorite museum in NYC is The Whitney, but my fave museum of all time is the Centre Pompidou in Paris.
I’m currently reading: I’m more of an audiobook listener, because it makes me feel like story time! I’m currently listening to The Little Prince for the 100th time.
