We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Andee Rudloff a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Andee, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.

I literally climb walls and hang off tall buildings to create colorful murals rooted in community, so you could say I take a risk every single time I work. Yet, I feel the biggest risk was committing fully to my career as an artist and muralist. I always thought I needed to have curator of this space or educator of that space with my name so people would trust me and feel confident in hiring me. I’ve learned over the years, the other titles are helpful but not necessary. The main thing any artist or muralist needs to do is work hard. Through the work, you gain a better understanding of the process, materials and most importantly yourself.

Andee, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

About the Artist Andrea D. Rudloff (Andee) is a consultant, educator and professional artist working primarily in Kentucky and Tennessee. Andee Rudloff has more than 30 years of experience as a consultant, art administrator, curator and professional artist including murals and exhibitions in Tennessee,Kentucky; Magdeburg, Germany; New York, N.Y.;Taipei, Taiwan; and other national and international exchanges. Her goal is to engage the community through creative opportunities and she does so frequently through murals, exhibitions, greenway planning and interactive opportunities. Currently, Andee Rudloff works as an artist-in-residence with Arts for All Kentucky, Gifted Studies at WKU, and numerous private businesses and organizations.. She is on the board of trustees for the Tanne Foundation based in Boston, MA, which provides support to individual artists in need. Rudloff served three terms on the Kentucky Arts Council Board and was appointed by three Kentucky Governors beginning in 2011.

Andee Rudloff served as the guest curator for SKyPAC, Scholastic Art & Writing, and the National Corvette Museum’s first art exhibition titled Car Part Art. She was a featured artist with the South Cumberland Community Fund this past fall and ArtPrize 8 in Grand Rapids, MI, and served as a Kentucky AIR for Timeslips with MacArthur Fellowship recipient Anne Basting based in Milwaukie, WI. She successfully designed and launched all education, engagement, internship and visual art programming for the Southern Kentucky Performing Arts Center (SKyPAC). In 2013, the Kentucky Art Education Association named Rudloff Museum Educator of the Year. She served as the community relations manager, educator and curator at the Frist Center for the Visual Arts in Nashville, TN. Rudloff was the curator of the Nashville International Airport’s Arts at the Airport Foundation designing new spaces and organizing exhibitions and performances during a multi-million dollar renovation.She has served as the curator for Curb Records’ Johnny Cash Collection, facilitator of the At Home Project with Judy Chicago at WKU, as well other curatorial and teaching positions. She was awarded Best Community Art Energizer by the Nashville Scene. She has served as a consultant on a variety of public art and community art projects. Andee Rudloff has been a featured community art presenter at the National Art Education Association annual conference, TeachMeet, Ambition Fest and as well as artist-in-residence at several public and private schools. She received the 2010 ADAM Award for Outstanding Achievement and Support for Kids on the Block in Middle Tennessee.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

When I was 25 years old and about 24 feet up on a scissor lift, I had a guy in a suit yell up to me to come down.. I did not know what he wanted but was thinking he’s probably not sure of what I was doing, and wanted to know if I had a permit and/or permission to be up there painting. So I came down. When I got to the ground, he let me know he liked the brick better (than what I was painting on it). Now, in this moment, I could’ve been upset or angry or discouraged. Instead, I thought to myself, he’s never seen anything like this before… So in essence, I felt very encouraged to keep doing what I’m doing.. This same man has since apologized to me, but I just let him know that his words that day empowered me and made me stronger in my creative convictions. It also made me realize that I was going to need to engage and educate people throughout my career..

I still have people who really love what I do and others who really don’t love it… I even have people who go out of their way to say untrue and unkind things, but all of it just makes me stronger…I thank my mommy for my resilience… I wouldn’t do what I do without her influence.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

I not only paint murals, but I engage people in the process. Whether it’s discovering what our big question is, writing down words that relate to the question, developing doodles and icons based on our words, and then, taking all of the ideas and doodling them together into one powerful design…I truly feel in most projects it is about we, not just me. I like to ignite creative confidence in others.

Contact Info:

• Website: Chicnhair.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Chicnhair
• Facebook: https://www.Facebook.com/ArtistAndeeRudloff
• Twitter: https://www.Twitter.com/andeerudloff

Image Credits
Mural Photos by Stacey Irvin Personal photo Nina Covington Some images shot by me