Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Wayne Kiser. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Wayne thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

Art has always been part of my life, but my journey has taken many detours before I was able to find my artistic path. Growing up, I was influenced by my mother’s paintings and drawings as she had been a comic book colorist in the 30’s and 40’s.

As a child I would draw my own cartoon characters, create versions of abstract art (the nuns at my catholic elementary school weren’t impressed) and eventually designed/built with my father’s help skateboards and surfboards. This desire to pursue art was interrupted when I was introduced at an early age to music.

Music soon became the focus of my life. While earning my college degree in performance, I developed a skill that was in greater demand – that of a music engraver and copyist. This skill enabled me to develop a successful music preparation business in the Los Angeles entertainment industry.

In order to survive the inner pressures created by the music profession I discovered that art provided inner peace and solace. After reflecting on what was important in my life and with the encouragement from a composer friend and mentor, Aurelio de la Vega, I decided to walk away from the music business to pursue an artistic path professionally.

Wayne, 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?

I am a self-taught artist. My studio is located in Los Angeles County on our small ranch in a quiet and peaceful environment. Often the only sounds are the wind and birds, which can be inspiring or annoying depending upon my mood.

My art journey began when I designed and built unique furniture while working in the music industry. I soon discovered the enjoyment of creating small functional wooden art boxes. I entered my work in various art competitions and galleries, selling them to individual collectors.

I then began experimenting with sculptures using exotic woods, “found objects” on our property and various metals. Creating these sculptures provided a new sense of joy because each piece had its own distinctive characteristic. That characteristic could be discovered immediately and would guide the design of the sculpture. But in some cases, it could take weeks or months to envision. Once the sculpture was designed and created, it was (and is) unique and one of a kind.

My artistic journey continued when I began studying the careers of artists Wassily Kandinsky, Paul Klee, and Joan Miró. These artists inspired me to experiment and paint in an abstract expressionism style. I began using paper and canvas with vibrant acrylic paint intermixed with watercolors, colored pencils, oils and India ink.

I soon found myself revisiting contemporary graphic music notation scores by composers like Sylvano Bussotti, Kazimierz Serocki, George Crumb, and Aurelio de la Vega. I merged graphic music notation symbols with my geometric art designs and realized that my artistic journey had come full circle to my music beginnings. I think that the combination of my art and music notation symbols produces paintings with a unique perspective. My goal with this combination is to enable collectors and enthusiasts to be intrigued by those two relationships.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

It seems that much of my life was spent building my resilience.

Perhaps the best example was when I was working in San Diego at the beginning of my music career.
I was married with 2 children, working 10-to-12-hour days for a music publisher, engraving music on vellum with pen and ink. I learned the fine art of music engraving but was paid at a below poverty wage. When the owner could no longer support the wages we needed to live, my wife and I made a crazy decision to move to Los Angeles with $500 in the bank.

Motivated by ambition, perseverance, resilience and lots of luck, I established a successful music preparation company with clients that included individual performers, film and television studios, classical composers and music publishers. A good portion of that resilience meant never taking “no” for an answer or a threat of “you’ll never work in this town again” seriously.

Resilience also factored significantly into my ability to adapt when the music copying tools changed from pen and ink to computers. Being resilient to change was required in order to grow my business and keep it successful.

I’ve carried forward this resilience into my artistic journey as I’ve faced the exciting and wonderful challenges of learning and growing my new career.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

Art has provided me with a meaningful lifestyle that is free from anxiety, pressures and unrealistic deadlines. These were the combined negatives that impacted my daily life for so many years. As I realized that art had no barriers, it opened new opportunities to endless possibilities.

I am so gratefully blessed to be able to continue a journey that lets me grow and expand my artistic talents.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://waynekiserart.com
• Other:
  Saatchi Art : https://www.saatchiart.com › wayne kiserBluesky: @wkarteest.bsky.social

Image Credits

Photography by Kathleen Dobyne