Meet Ryan Hopper

 

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Ryan Hopper a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, so we’re so thrilled to have Ryan with us today – welcome and maybe we can jump right into it with a question about one of your qualities that we most admire. How did you develop your work ethic? Where do you think you get it from?

My work ethics come from simply observing my friends and family on work ethics. In addition to being informed at an early age to continue striving for more within ourselves utilizing our full potential, talents and what we are offering the world. And strong beliefs within our Díne culture and customs to be resilient within the face of adversity. Basically, looking toward those individuals in my life that inspire me to continue is where it lands for me. Even when I’m hard on myself. They say the artist is their worst critic.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

With my art, brand, teaching and career started at ASU, where I went to school for my BA in Art Education and graduate in 2018. Diving head first into my art teaching program. I took part in being involved with my art education club. Recalling a time when the National Art Education convention that took place within 2017 in New York City. I worked tiredly to pull together the funds to travel there at that time. Thinking that I’ll be joining along with others in the club. However, it ended up being just me. But got the opportunity while there to see one of my professors speak and advocating for more diversity within the art world. At Arizona State University within my program was where I took print making and oil painting classes. The print making classes were in Screenprinting and loved it instantly creating my art and expressing myself in new ways within the medium. Example: around that time I became a vegetarian and did a version of that expressing myself in art with herbivore dinosaur fossils heads and now have available for purchase on my website titled Plant Eaters that can now be shared with the world. It wasn’t until I met my husband where the business side came in and when the pandemic hit in 2020 at that time I was working in Mesa, AZ as a Teaching Artist at a senior day center with people who had Alzheimer’s, Dementia, cognitive delays, and etc. The job was fresh, and everything shifted in an instant to online and that was challenging. Which in speaking with my husband at that moment, he mentioned what about selling your art. Brilliant!! So, we combined forces with him creating a website for my art and managing the business from licensing, and etc. I started working on more in creating prints with Linoleum cuts and we started moving along from there. Even the rabbit in the logo is to represent a Jack rabbit and Arizona. And in creating Hopper Gallery came into existence. Now my art is also in Mesa, AZ at Hope’s Frybread and at our local Tuba City Trading Post with the Arizona four eagle feathers represent my Díne culture with four being a sacred number to us. In addition, with Posey shirt that is named after my late paternal grandmother. Everything I create is created with soul intention and has story. Especially, with the branding of Hopper Gallery. Basically, learn every day from just trying my best and going from there. Better to try and not doing at all. Is best policy for me. And within new works I’ll be showing my painting series titled Rez Dog that are reservation dogs from various reservations that I asked others to send in photos via social media. These paintings will be painted within different scenarios and this also included family dogs as well. I choose to do this all within oil paintings. That will be up at Ike Box coffee shop throughout the month of February 2025 in Salem, OR. Come check it out if you’re in the area.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

Open heart, having hope, and staying true to yourself.

Have an open heart to experience new things in art and not being afraid to mess up and learn. Sometimes these things lead to new things.

Having hope that things will get better and to never give up. Don’t be so hard on yourself. Hard times don’t last forever.

Staying true to who you are as a person and never losing sight of that. You and your story is what’s needed and makes it authentically you. And generally the audience or people can feel that genuineness.

One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?

I love collaborating within my field and communities. Others who would love to collaborate on art pieces together that enjoy my work and we would be a great fit. Would love to show more of my work within the Portland, OR area like galleries, coffee shops, lgbtqia organizations, indigenous art shows, and etc. Also, enjoy networking within my area with showcasing my work, getting to know more individuals. Currently reside in Salem, OR and can reach out to me via email at: [email protected]

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