Today we’d like to introduce you to Cheeto Ryan.
Hi Cheeto, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Well, I’ve always been interested in art! I was making art as a child; I even had my work featured on the Board of Education when I was younger. I was always intrigued by photography and I asked my mom for a digital camera in 9th grade. Using my camera in every form and fashion, I became interested in photographing the world around me. While going to Overton High School, I photographed a spider eating a caterpillar and I named it “Dinner”. Bringing this to my teachers, it was placed in the Scholastic Art Competition. My photograph won a Scholastic gold key, best in Photography. After winning this award, I was exposed to my first art show in Humboldt, TN. From there, I continued to pursue art seriously. I got put out of Overton High and went to Wooddale High. The art teacher there, Charles Adair (RIP), was well aware of me because I had just won’t that award the year before. He quickly welcomed me into his AP art class. Senior year, I got a scholarship from Memphis College of Art. Being from Memphis, I didn’t know anything in that area except for the zoo. Once attending, I became very eager and ambitious when it came to my art. I focused most of my work on Black culture.
My main focus was to bring “my culture” to this private art school and shove it in the face of people who were down the street from North Memphis. My booming personality blasted through the halls of MCA. I was even used on a billboard on Poplar Ave. I was ambitious at everything and was always looking for another technique to learn. collage, book, and paper making, poetry, and even working in printmaking. Once graduating a sum cum laude, I quickly landed in West Helena, Arkansas working with a nonprofit for 6 months. While there, I interacted with the community, painted murals in the city, led projects in festivals and, even taught art to k-5. After 6 months, I returned to Memphis where I worked for Carpenter Art Garden for seven years. While working there, I led art classes, assisted in murals, and, even chaperoned field trips. The thirst to teach art to kids who look like me became something dear to my heart, especially since my family is from Binghamton. While continuing my art, I found a passion for teaching children. Now I am an art teacher at Coleman Elementary, teaching K-8.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It definitely hasn’t! I have always been aware of what is going on around me but sometimes you have to persevere.
College was not a struggle educationally. I made great grades throughout college however it was a struggle for me to understand the “art world”. I felt like a lot of my symbolism and upbringing weren’t similar to my peers so, it made it hard for a lot of my ideas to connect to others. I would use noodles as a symbol of poverty however, it didn’t correlate with people. I would become so upset with my critiques because nobody was understanding my symbols except for African Americans. Furthermore, when I was in West Helena, AR, it was a struggle to become a teacher. The school district had only three schools and they were desperate for teachers. I went to the board of education to get the job however; I was met with constant back and forth.
I told them I wanted to be a teacher. The first person said, “You have to have a degree.” I told her I did. She went in the back and another woman came out asking “Who’s trying to be a teacher?”. I told her I was, she said “You have to have a degree.” and I stated, “Yes! I do”. She was like well it has to be a four-year degree. After I stated that it was, she went into the back to get another person who proceeded to ask me the same questions. I told the 3rd lady, “Y’all need teachers and I’m a young black man trying to teach art. Why are y’all hassling me?” After I spoke with the superintendent, I was given the job. Only to find out months later, they hired me under the wrong classification and tried to move me to the high school. This would neither be my first nor last time experiencing struggles due to my appearance.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I’m a photographer/mixed media artist. I do a lot from collage to painting however, my specialty is mixed media. I am big on community engagement and experiences. I go to different locations, mostly low-income, and create a relationship with the community. I interact with people from the neighborhood and document my experiences. While documenting my experiences, I collect artifacts (trash) from the areas I’m photographing.
The collected debris and photographs are collaged together to create a manipulated landscape that alters the perception of topography, connection, and blight; while creating visual tension between object and imagery. I also use collected maps to add context to my pieces and symbolize my connection through my experiences of documentation and community. I have also started doing this same method with portraits!
How can people work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
Communication!!!! I am always open to working with others!
Art shows, classes, community engagement events, nonprofit work, etc. I am big on collaborations!!! I’m willing to collaborate with anyone on anything!!!! People can support me by sharing my page @cheetoryan and even purchasing art on my website https://www.cheetoryan.com.
Pricing:
- Prints -$25-$200+ Depending on size
- Framed Collages- $199.99-$900+ Depending on size
- Mixed Media Portraits -$199.99 -$700 Depending on the size
- Commissions -vary based on Medium and Size
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.cheetoryan.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cheetoryan/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cheetoryan/
