We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Ryan Tesluk a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Ryan, thanks for joining us today. Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?
I learned the craft of being an artist through the BFA program at Dominican University Of California. I received tuition in various traditional and digital mediums amid the campus’s luscious gardens and panoramas of Mt. Tamalpais. While working hard and not giving up were the most essential skills I learned, I also discovered that luck plays the most significant role in one’s success. I was thus fortunate to have been taught by local Bay Area Artists such as Foad Satterfield and Robin McCloskey, who liked me and were most supportive of my endeavors.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I am a daring sociopolitical artist who paints on magazine pages and other paper types. I also have an incredible studio space at the FM Collective in Oakland. However, my journey as an artist is most unorthodox. Throughout my formative years, I enjoyed drawing detailed fictional maps to find solace in my frustration of feeling stuck in my rural hometown. It wasn’t until I was 22 that I chose to pursue an artistic career. Through the help of my family and Milt Bullard, a Modesto-based art tutor, I found an excellent BFA program at Dominican University of California. There, I gained a well-rounded education in both traditional and digital mediums. After graduating in 2018, I transitioned from illustration to painting.
The biggest challenge of my artistic career so far was the first few years after college. Like many graduates, adjusting to the real world was challenging after spending most of my life in school. I overcame this, however, by following a piece of advice from one of my professors. Steven Polacco, whom I had as an instructor for graphic design classes, told me not to dwell on the future and make art. While that time was difficult, I found that producing paintings on a prolific scale steered me in the right direction.
We’d love to hear your thoughts on NFTs. (Note: this is for education/entertainment purposes only, readers should not construe this as advice)
I believe that NFTs are a fad that is littered with fraudulent elements. While they may benefit a few notable artists such as Beeple, purchasing a blockchain containing a work of art is a waste of money since one can quickly obtain such creations for free.
What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?
My mission as an artist is to show viewers the inconvenient truths of our world sprinkled with colorful humor. While being blunt may cause immediate pain to individuals, I believe processing said traumas sooner rather than later is healthier than delaying the inevitable.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://ryanteslukart.com/index.html
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ryanimatingtheworld/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ryanteslukart
- Online Store: https://ryanteslukart.bigcartel.com/
- TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ryanimatingtheworld?lang=en