Join Tamara for an interview with Faran Riley – local artist, geology enthusiast, fine jewelry connoisseur, and aspiring surfer. A Savannah native, she was one of the first classes to go through Savannah Arts Academy. After living in both Boston and NYC, she returned to town in 2020 and now works out of Sulfur Studios, exhibiting her drawings, paintings, and rock collections.
Faran begins her paintings with abstract imagery in Sumi ink (and sometimes acrylic paint), then “carves the image out,” adding backlighting and moments of realism and surrealism using colored pencils. Her fantastical landscapes are inspired by a combination of her Night Walks around Savannah, and time spent at her family home in coastal Maine.
Check out Faran’s work and follow her here:
https://www.instagram.com/faranriley/
https://www.faranriley.com/
Topics in their chat include:
Working on performance art and installation while attending the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, including a diner in her studio made of cardboard, operating 24 hours a day; the emotional turmoil of her college critiques and review boards; her post-college years living in NYC and working as a studio assistant to Yunhee Min; Faran’s thoughts about the contemporary versions of the Old Masters artists who subcontracted parts of their painting work to assistants; her interest in gemstones and diamonds, stemming from working for years in a high-end jewelry boutique; getting back into art by taking drawing classes at the 1898 NYC institution, The National Arts Club; how she moved back home to Savannah at the start of Covid; using materials to experiment with markmaking in order to depict textures in her landscapes; the well-loved NYC art model Madeline; Savannah’s new gallery space Ology Gallery near Bonaventure Cemetery; her current pieces merging the foliage and landscape of Savannah with her family’s home in Maine; and her final words about Savannah feeling like such a supportive community because there are enough artist opportunities to go around without us competing.
Tune in and get all the details!
- 3:00pm 05 Summer Nights by Eric Jones Trio on Azubuike (self-released)
- 3:00pm Summer Nights EDIT by on Single
