Interview with Psychedelic and Surreal Artist Becca Ray
By KBR
Meeting artists who want to join our art community has been one of the most beautiful experiences being a part of Contagion. When I first saw Becca Ray, from Tuscaloosa, AL, wanted to join Contagion Media, I immediately became obsessed with her gorgeous aesthetic.
Becca Ray (formerly Tindol) describes herself as a “surreal” and “visionary” artist. Art By Becca Ray takes you to a place out of this world, and I am grateful to have had the opportunity to discover this incredible artist. Becca has been selling her unique art as prints, stickers, and jewelry on contagionmedia.net and at Contagion Media’s pop up art shops for just a couple months and she has quickly become one of our most popular artists.
“Into the Forest” By Becca Ray
How would you describe your unique style?
My style includes a lot of bright colors, and aspects of nature and fantasy. My style would probably best fit under the terms psychedelic, surrealism, fantasy, and visionary. You can recognize my art through the presence of space, trees, rainbows, and birds. They inspire and comfort me.
What is your favorite color other than rainbow?
I would have to go with indigo, I believe this color gives off the energy of higher realms and mystical experiences. It is a spiritual color to me, while calming but also evoking curiosity and amazement.
What is the hardest part of living as a professional artist?
The hardest part of being an artist for me is the process of trying to make a living from it and staying relevant in the online art scene. Like many artists I am introverted and would much rather spend my time painting in solitude rather than promoting my artwork and posting on multiple social media accounts. I do enjoy connecting with other artists and the fans of my artwork but I find the constant posting, commenting and replying required to keep an active page to be quite draining. I have to set boundaries and limits of when i will respond or post in order to not get burnt-out and keep my interactions authentic.
Moonlight Metamorphasis By Becca Ray
What is your favorite artsy place where you live in Tuscaloosa?
My favorite artsy place would have to be Kentuck, it is an arts community which hosts monthly art nights which I have participated in multiple times, as well as a huge yearly arts festival. They also have in-house studios for artists whom I have become friendly with. It focuses mostly on folk-art but also promotes and sells multiple kinds of art in its store. Its a great place to go to meet other artists or lovers of art!
Are there any visual artists who inspire you? What inspires you about them?
Yes, my favorite artist and biggest inspiration is Alex Grey. His art includes many of the themes I find so important for art to convey, such as the infinite nature of the soul and the highs and lows of the human experience. I first discovered Alex Grey as a teenager when I saw his artwork in a Tool album. I fell in love with his use of detail and the subject and messaged behind his artwork. His Art commune Chapel of Sacred Mirrors is very inspirational to me and I hope to visit there and learn from him and other visionary masters one day.
Art by Becca Ray
Tell us about your most recent creative breakthrough
This would have to be when I started challenging myself to work on larger canvases and learn how to combine different scenes and ideas into one large, elaborate painting. I find it difficult to paint one specific scene and instead opt to have multiple in one painting and challenge myself to connect them in a way that flows effortlessly. I achieved this in "Ethereal Worlds" and hope to do so even more in future projects.
Give us insight into the production of your last project, “Ethereal Worlds
The last big project I finished was a painting on a 2x2 foot canvas titled "Ethereal Worlds". It took about 6 weeks to finish and was the biggest painting I have completed so far. The highlight of this project was proving to myself that I can paint on a much larger scale than I am used to.
This painting is a physical reproduction of a vision I experienced a couple months ago. The symbolic meaning of this painting is open to interpretation as all art is, its main purpose is to evoke thought and a feeling of peace and wonder. Often I receive visions and am left to interpret the meaning as I work on painting them. Painting is always a learning experience for me. I will do my best to explain the symbolism as I see it through words, although I am a painter and not a writer and greatly prefer abstract representation of ideas. Through this painting I aim to express that through the journey of the soul we take many paths, often these paths can be dark and stormy and filled with pain, or other times we experience the warm glow of joy, love and contentment. This is a fact of life in this plane of existence, dualism surrounds us and our experiences. This duality is apparent in all of nature, through life and death, dark and light, the sun and the moon, it is how nature balances itself. One thing that remains constant is the infinite light of the soul, which contains the source or infinite energy of the universe, represented by the galaxy. No matter the ups and downs in our journeys, and no matter how much pain or trauma we experience, we can turn inward and find infinite peace by connecting to the life energy within us. This loving energy is in everything and everyone, and connects us all. I hope this painting brings you closer to yourself and the eternal nature of your soul. In doing this, I have discovered that large paintings are my absolute favorite, and I am now working on a 2x3 foot canvas as a way to challenge myself.
“Ethereal Worlds” - 2 x 2’ - By Becca Ray
Do you have reoccurring themes or messages in any of your work?
The main messages in my artwork relates to duality and how that correlates to the human experience, nature, and the rest of the Universe. I use nature as symbols to portray emotional experiences such as trauma, sadness, depression, loss, and hopelessness as well as happiness, hope, love and connection. I like to present that these experiences are so important for a soul's growth.
I also aim to express that everyone and everything is intrinsically connected, and we are never truly alone. If one turns within they will discover their precious and infinite nature parallels the Universe itself. One of my favorite symbols are trees, which I use to represent the spirit body. I also love rainbows and birds, which represent joy, hope, and spirit guides.
What is your dream art collaboration?
My dream collaboration would be to collaborate at a Music and Arts Festival with visionary artists that have a similar vision and mission as I do.
Do you have any tips for aspiring artists?
I enjoy in person shows and art events but in my area there are very few or they are quite expensive to participate in. I still try my best to participate in as many as possible, I have had success in emailing event coordinators asking if the have a reduced rate for vendors who are also students, which has helped me participate in events that were thought to be out of my price range.
Art by Becca Ray
What is a goal for you five years from now as an artist? 10?
In 5 years I hope to be preparing or just starting my journey of focusing on art full-time and leaving the general workforce. I hope to be moving to Asheville, North Carolina, an artsy and beautiful city and become immersed in the art scene there. I hope to have improved my technique and skill and become focused on larger works primarily, around 4-5 feet in length or width.
In 10 years I truly hope to be very successful and have partnered with larger eco-friendly companies and have my artwork featured on bags, pillows, blankets, stationary, clothing and more! I would love to be well known and travel to many large music festivals around the US and the world in order to live paint and connect with other artists on collaborations. I hope to fully support my family with my artwork by then so my now-fiance can leave the workforce and help me travel to art events.
Why art?
Art is the one thing that has helped me overcome childhood trauma and unravel the things in my life which have hindered my growth. Through art I have learned so much about myself and the true nature of the world around me. Ever since my first visions I knew that I had to express them somehow, for myself and for the other people who would connect with them. It is my purpose and my passion — the one thing that gets me excited, motivated and hopeful for the future. Art has awoken something beautiful and bright within me, and I must let it shine and share it with the world.
