Not Real Art

On today’s show, Sourdough has a conversation with David Ryan Scott who is a true creative polymath and renaissance man. He has written books, poetry, music and is just a multitalented artist, always busy creating and producing. Recently he has been expanding his skills in woodwork and leather craft, making beautiful hand-made objects such as briefcases, wallets and knives. Like many other creatives, David has a ‘real job’ but lives out his love for art through the many projects he takes on part-time. Together with his dad, he started crafting from a young age, initially to save money, but later realized that certain items were just hard to come by, which was all the motivation he needed to continue making things himself. On the show today David lets us in on some of the details about his work, including the tools he uses, the joy of hand stitching and what this artistic pursuit has meant for him on a personal level. To learn more about his unique craftsmanship, join us for this episode of Not Real Art! For more information about artists, links and resources from this episode, please visit https://notrealart.com/david-ryan-scott/

Key Points From This Episode:

• Using Instagram as a platform for documenting his artistic journey and showcasing his craft.
• Why David decided to get into leatherwork and how it all started with a bushcraft knife.
• David’s process when wanting to learn a new skill and the resources he employs.
• How he grew up with curiosity and craft as values that his father modeled and instilled.
• The joy of using hand tools, hand stitching and slowing down the making of each item.
• How to recognize the difference between a hand stitched and machine stitched product.
• More about the specific items he makes and why wallets are especially tricky.
• The challenge of working with leather and keeping it unscathed and clean throughout.
• Transitioning from intense concentration to a meditative state and losing track of time.
• Sourcing and selecting materials and experimenting with different exotic woods.
• How he incurred his first injury while cutting leather!
• Why he would be reluctant to make a business out of his craft.
• And much more!

Welcome to Not Real Art, Siri’s favorite creative culture podcast! Today’s episode is another holiday edition special, where we dive into everything from family traditions, favorite Christmas time memories, how Sourdough first got his nickname, and more stories about our time at Art Basal. The conversation touches on our different feelings and experiences at Wynwood, Untitled, and SCOPE, and the disconnect that is so apparent between the art fair versus Wynwood crowds. We also share our favorite and most outstanding pieces that we’ve seen throughout all the art events, and some of the incredible galleries taking risks and really killing it on the art scene. Finally, we dig into the concept of corporatization of the art and what it will mean for the future of artists and the art industry as a whole. For all this and an incredible conversation, stay tuned to today’s episode! For more information about artists, links and resources from this episode, please visit https://notrealart.com/2018-art-basel-miami-recap-pt-2/

Key Points From This Episode:

• The Man One Family holiday traditions.
• Understanding how art has become a mainstream trend.
• Recap of the shows we attended at Art Basel Miami.
• Overviewing the art that was within the Art Basal Fair.
• The contrasting feelings between Art Basel, Scope, etc
• Why Wynwood Walls makes us feel generally angry.
• Understanding the concept of “new money art”.
• Pieces that stood out; unique and refreshing.
• Why the ultimate failure of an artist is to stop growing.
• The disconnect between Wynwood and the art fair scene.
• Recognizing all the artist stories that aren’t being told.
• The corporatization of art and what it means for the industry.
• And much more!

Today on the show we’re joined by the highly talented Karen Frost who is a television producer, fellow podcaster and spiritual advisor. Karen is a creative executive at JuVee Productions, Viola Davis and Julius Tennon’s production company that is focused on developing the content of marginalized and emerging writers. In this episode, you will hear all about the podcast Drunken Church Ladies, which she co-hosts with her wife and her personal struggles with breaking out of religious traditions to find her own spiritual path. Karen is passionate about redefining God and what it means to be spiritual, fully committed to creating a society that is wholly inclusive and one that can reconstruct ancient ways that no longer serve the greater good of all. She shares about the obstacles she has had to overcome as a queer person of color, the mental shift she had to make to finally get into the entertainment industry and what the spiritual center, Bodhi, meant to her in the process. Some of the other topics we cover include dry counties, filtering through scripts, the massive advancement of the LGBTQ community, the importance of faith and the conflicting voices around climate change. There is a ton of wisdom to get out of this episode, so be sure to join in on the conversation! For more information about artists, links and resources from this episode, please visit https://notrealart.com/karen-frost-advocating-for-love/

Key Points From This Episode:

• Thoughts on drinking wine while podcasting and Karen's show, Drunken Church Ladies.
• Settling into the podcasting process and Karen's unique segmented structure.
• Breaking out of religious traditions and the lack of spaces to explore spirituality.
• Karen’s mission to redefine God and to reconstruct religious narratives.
• How JuVee Productions helped Karen to find her own voice as a queer person of color.
• Working with Viola Davis and her role at JuVee Productions.
• Learning faith in LA's worst economic period!
• Being introduced to a new way of faith at Bodhi and the essence of what they believe.
• Realizing that she needed to get rid of internal biases to get into the entertainment industry.
• Creating stories that are like both mirrors and windows.
• More about Karen's producer role and how they help artists to develop and refine their ideas.
• Being sent hundreds of scripts and the criteria for them to warrant a second look.
• Recording all new ideas, her creative process and why Karen believes in rigorous outlining.
• Mormons, memberships and, moonshine in dry counties.
• Diversity and unexpected friendships as some of the best things about spiritual centers.
• Thanksgiving at Viola’s house and the incredible authenticity she demonstrated.
• Steering clear of works that perpetuate stereotypes and the kind of narratives to avoid.
• The massive progress there has been made in terms of LGBTQ rights.
• Views on the creation of an inclusive country and letting go of what no longer serves us.
• The importance of patience in the re-birth of the US and why we need antagonists.
• Climate change, capitalism and the impact that a single person can have.
• The diverse mentalities and philosophies in the US and the need for new paradigms.