Mark_Budgell
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Design can be as important as technology when it comes to personal computers. This is the third of a four part interview series with the artists who created exclusive wallpaper designs for HP. Their art was recently unveiled alongside a redesigned HP notebook portfolio that includes the HP Envy, Pavilion and Mini lines. Their stories are as intriguing as the incredible wallpaper designs they created. Download them – the wallpaper that is – free from Facebook.
Amy Ruppel is a full-time artist, illustrator and surface designer working out of her new sunny studio in Portland, Oregon. She creates art for a long list of notable galleries and shops all over the U.S. and abroad.” My favorite quote from the interview – “If someone really wants a painting of mine, I want them to have it regardless of cost.”
MB: You said in your biography that you want your art to be "accessible to everyone." I love that. Why is it so important to you?
AR: I decided long ago that I would save larger works for galleries and shows and sell smaller, more affordable pieces on my website. If someone really wants a painting of mine, I want them to have it regardless of cost. If that person is a student who can only make 25 dollar payments, then will I gladly allow them to. It all comes down to simply wanting to make people happy, and happiness shouldn’t break the bank.
MB: I noticed from your blog that you recently designed a tattoo. How was that experience? What's it like knowing someone is wearing your art that way?
AR: Well, I never actually design the tattoos, people just go ahead and get them, then send me the after photo. It's more like, "Look! I put your bird on my arm!" It's really flattering to know someone has put your work on themselves, permanently. It's one of the highest forms of appreciation. I don't even have a tattoo of my own artwork. Actually, I'm one of the few Portland artists who have no tattoos at all.
MB: You've used everything from vintage paper and wood to Converse shoes and Burton snowboards as your canvas. Does the creative process change depending on the medium?
AR: It does. I generally reserve my more personal work for art shows, and I try to make my commercial work – the stuff I do for companies like Converse, Burton and others – something that will be accepted and enjoyed by the masses. I enjoy switching between mediums like wax, paper, paint and vector graphics, depending on the project. Sometimes the Art Director that I’m working with may request a specific medium. I find that each one lends itself towards a certain look and feel, and I decide which medium I’ll work with as soon as I start a project. Then it all builds from there.
MB: What would you say your greatest influences are? Is there a particular genre of art that you draw inspiration from?
AR: I am a huge fan of Mid Century modern illustrations, design, ceramics and furniture. I mainly like the stuff that is Scandinavian or Finnish in nature. Pottery with designs by Stig Lindberg on it is a great example. There’s also a store in Portland called lookmodern with a lot of this type of furniture. That art and paintings from the German Expressionist movement taught me about simplicity, color and composition. I also tend to be very interested in drawings that I find on products, or things like ceramics and textiles and old Blatz beer trays. I recently bought an old tin fuel can because it had an illustration of a family camping and cooking fish by a stream with a Smokey the Bear-like character dressed as a Ranger watching them with a smile. It's a really goofy but beautifully drawn tin. That kind of stuff kills me, and I have to have it. So now my studio sometimes has the faint scent of gasoline.
MB: You're very active online with your blog, twitter channel and so on. Do you ever draw inspiration from your digital life? Maybe websites you visit? Or is it primarily for sharing and discussing your work?
AR: Actually, I get a lot of misery from friends because I don't post to my blog or Twitter account very often. I post most of my work related news on Facebook. As a rule, I draw inspiration from everything, and the Internet is no exception. I have a lot of Facebook friends who are also artists and illustrators, and it's a great way to keep up with what they're doing and to discover work from artists that are new to me. The world seems smaller and more accessible and easier to fit in to now. All the blogs out there, showing so many wonderful works…it's overwhelming and I love it.
MB: How did you feel when HP approached you to develop a wallpaper design? Was it something you'd done before?
AR: I have done wallpapers before, but not for a specific line of notebooks computers. I was excited and I wanted to create something that would be soothing and serene for the user. I decided the best way to create that feeling was to combine wax paintings with digital drawings, which was a new technique for me.
MB: Did you conduct any research on the "state" of wallpaper art? Or did you have any pre-conceived notions about it?
AR: I tried not to look at any other wallpaper. I wanted my wallpaper to be uninfluenced by anything other than what I had in mind to create. I knew the images would be reaching a very large audience. The world is a very unstable place right now, and I wanted to convey a sort of tranquil scene that the user’s eyes could rest upon and find peace in. The animals in these scenes have a quiet majesty to them and sit well and strong in their landscapes. Hopefully that comes across, and the user feels the same way, if just for a moment.
MB: What's next for you?
AR: Well, I have a few big commercial projects lined up, but I can never talk about them until they actually unveil. I have cut back the number of art shows I’ll be in, for my own sanity and because my house and yard were getting out of control from neglect. So the ones I that I am participating in, I’ll be putting much more heart and soul into them. And sometimes humor. Every day is different for me. I never know when the phone is going to ring, or when the next email will appear in my inbox with a new opportunity. I love what I do, and wouldn't trade it for the world.
MB: Thanks for your time Amy!
If you liked this, check out the interviews with Alex Eben Meyer, Laura Barnard and Julie West.
