Here at Slowdown Studio we love collaborating with emerging and established artists from across the globe. We recently had the opportunity to chat with Ryan Bradley, the artist behind the new Gallop Art Print. Ryan is an English artist whose paintings are rooted in the landscapes around him which are quiet and unhurried. He’s drawn to the stillness of vast open spaces and the nostalgia they carry.
Who do you think is the most exciting emerging creative in your city? (can be music, art, anything)
Not necessarily emerging but someone who’s been a staple of Coventry’s local skateboarding scene for two decades and an infinitely talented artist in the filming, editing and video game industry is Ade Cottrell. The reason why I couple him with this question in the sense of emerging is because he deserves far more recognition and widespread appreciation for his talents than he currently has. A good example of his work is his YouTube channel and website ‘The Terrible Company’ where you can
see evidence of his talents, namely his skills with creative direction and editing capabilities to translate as such.
Another creative from my local city is photographer Garry Jones who has shown other local creatives that success within the industry, or success in any kind of arts is very much possible regardless of where you’re from, and shows this through his photographic work of music, skateboarding and portraiture where he continues to be on the rise.
Where are your favourite places to go in your city?
Over the last 15+ years I’ve had a lot of experience going to the space around the Herbert Art Gallery in Coventry because it’s somewhere I’ve been a regular since my childhood through my love and experience for skateboarding. I feel that it’s very well
known that spaces in and around art galleries have always been exceedingly accepting and the Herbert Art Gallery is an example of this through their openness to skateboarders using their space. It’s always been a source for my own creativity for
the picturesque space that it is but also because it’s essentially a magnet for other likeminded expansive individuals and collectives.
Another one of my favourite local spaces is the woodland area that’s located just around the corner from where I live, it’s also somewhere that I’ve frequented since my childhood and brings back nostalgic feelings of past experiences. That’s also
something that I intentionally try to portray in my paintings and is something that is represented when starting new pieces which can hopefully bring up similar feelings and memories for the viewer.
What advice would you give to a younger version of yourself when you were starting out in art?
The advice I would give to myself is to absolutely embrace art much more much earlier on than I already did and to instead allow my art to completely flourish as it’s beginning to do for me now. I think that all of our paths are carved by the immediate choices we make when it comes to skills and talents, and if I were to have any regrets then an example of my advice would be to have made it a chosen subject when I had the option to way back in High School. Back then, at least in the UK, we had the option to choose certain specific subjects over others that were within the same principles, and the choice I had to make was either art or music, and I chose music instead, mainly because I was then able to be with friends.
Although I love music looking back it was definitely the wrong choice for me, so I would tell my past self to demand more of my own visual creativity and to embrace creating art properly rather than just treating it as an occasional hobby, regardless of the fact I loved to create art and had a potential blooming talent back then. Another reason for this, which my advice would be relevant for too, is to embrace it regardless of how low of a level you think you are or how terrible you feel your earliest work may be regardless of your age. If you enjoy something, do it, and if you have a hobby or passion for something then this will be shown in your work through your fulfilment of it and the time that you spend crafting your skill as a result of your love for it.
What are you listening to in your studio at the moment?
Right now I’m listening to a lot of jazz and hip hop, also easy listening type of stuff with some lounge music sprinkled in there!
• Fall in Love - Slum Village
• Brave - Joy Crooked
• Suzanne - Mark Ronson & RAYE
• Electric Relaxation - A Tribe Called Quest
• Find a Way - A Tribe Called Quest
• Sea Bird - Alessi Brothers
• Shades of Jade - Lyrics Born
• Adina Howard - Freak Like Me
• Y’all Gonna Miss Me - Snoop Dogg
• Under Your Spell - Desire
• Nothing Even Matters - Lauryn Hill
• What You Won’t Do for Love - Bobby Caldwell
• After Hours - Sonny Stitt
• Sights In The City - Guru
• A Horse with No Name - America
Gallop Art Print by Ryan Bradley
What inspired your design for this latest print design?
I’ve always enjoyed the calming nature of the natural landscape and the complete diversity from around the world that it can bring with visuals that are almost worlds apart. I intentionally add specific subjects or focal points to my paintings as a way to further translate the vastness of these same landscapes while using them to add different emotions that the viewer can interpret. I also enjoy including these subjects because I can craft a natural narrative through human and animal moments, to bring a visual relationship between life and the environment. I think that horses are majestic animals and I think likewise about the wavy plains and distant mountains in the colourful warmth of the dusky evenings that they can wildly roam within.
What's your favorite way to slow down?
My favourite way to slow down is to sit down and paint, it brings out a feeling of complete tranquillity in me while also being productive through that creativity that I love. I’m also a skateboarder, and while it can be seen as an intense activity it’s actually quite the opposite by removing you from the pressures and business of life while also providing a level of satisfaction in the midst of society’s chaos.
What's the most memorable book you've read in the last few years?
As an artist and photographer the most memorable books for me have been photo books of documentary photography. The most memorable ones I’ve looked upon in the last few years and part of my own collection would be:
- America - Zoey Strauss
- Houston Rap - Peter Beste
- Instead of Eros Avenged - Mark Gonzalez
- Minutes to Midnight - Trent Parke
- Photofile - Bruce Gilden
- Architecture of Density Hong Kong - Michael Wolfe
- Aftermath - World Trade Centre - Joel Meyerowitz
What has been the happiest/most rewarding moment of your art career?
The happiest and most rewarding part of my art career has absolutely been the moment when I first began to sell my paintings and realising that I was capable of doing exactly that. It’s an extremely rewarding experience to understand that people can and do enjoy what I’ve created and continue to create, as well as to realise that these eyes and interests are from people from all around the world, all because of my art and the use of social media. It honestly brings me so much inspiration. Also, being a part of this Slowdown print call out and being blessed with the opportunity to work with the company in such a way is absolutely right up there!
How does living in your city influence your work? Is there anything about your city that has defined how or what you create?
Going back to skateboarding and the Herbert art space, as well as Coventry/Leamington Spa as a whole, it has tremendously influenced my work. Although Leamington Spa is my local town, the city I relevantly speak of, Coventry, is located just 8 miles
north and essentially a second home. Travelling into that city for my own purposes when I was a kid sky rocketed inspiration in me because there was a sense of ‘going into the big city’ and because it gave the feeling of potential and excitement from such a young age. Coming from a small town as Leamington Spa I always had the excitement and motivation to explore and grow towards something bigger, and to explore the infinite possibilities of larger places, with creativity being my figurative and literal escape.
But more specifically, Coventry is a city known to be of resilience, mainly because of how it was completely flattened during WW2 which reset the city and forced the location to truly start again with being built back up. I think there may be a sense of poetic narrative in there with being an artist and trying to make something of myself in this industry to any kind of any level when it’s a notoriously difficult direction.
What are you most excited/looking forward to this year?
Hopefully travelling, painting, creating more, and seeing where my art can take me! Definitely summer too! I’m not a fan of the cold months whatsoever and I’m happy that we’re on the cusp of coming out of that season here in the UK now!
Instagram: @ryanbradleyoriginal
