If you’ve lived long enough, you’ve probably seen a Mark Ryden painting without even realizing it. His distinct style ushered a new genre of painting in the ’90s, commonly referred to as “Pop Surrealism.”
But if his paintings are unique, his Instagram page is otherworldly – a cabinet of curiosities that is well worth following. “Inspiration is the most valuable commodity for an artist; it is for me anyway,” he admitted in an interview with Interview Magazine. “I can’t move forward in any way if I don’t feel a strong spark of excitement or creativity.”
“Sometimes it is very difficult to get things flowing,” he admitted. “It’s important to be in a peaceful state of mind, and then I invite the spirits to come into the studio. I don’t stare into a blank canvas or paper. I look through my various collections of books, toys, statues, photographs, and other things, and something will trigger an idea. My studio is packed full of things that inspire me.”
Talking about his first paintings, Ryden added: “I don’t specifically remember the very first piece of art I created, but I remember many of the earliest things I would make as a child. I liked painting, very early on, even more than drawing. I used poster paint on posterboard. I would copy images that I liked from magazines and books and combine them to make a ‘collage’ kind of painting. In some ways, this is similar to how I work today.”
We can’t recommend enough you add him to your Instagram feed.
