We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Rilie Tané Zumbrennen. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Rilie Tané below.
Rilie Tané, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.
Growing up, I never knew what my dream job would be. When I graduated high school, I still did not know what I wanted to do. I knew I would at least enjoy cosmetology school, so I tried that. While attending, I met my husband and we started to make some bad choices together. I ended up quitting school and we moved to Colorado to get sober and figure out our life together. Growing up, I always drew and painted but it was just a hobby. We did a lot of hiking in Colorado and I really started painting more landscapes. I would do small commissions here and there. Three years later, I became pregnant with our daughter. She helped me to see the beauty in life and completely changed our life. We moved back to Montana where I got a full-time office job and decided to go back to school to be a teacher. I planned to be a classroom teacher. During this time, I began experimenting with wood burning and was hired for small indoor murals. After graduating, I was hired right away as a kindergarten through eighth grade art teacher. I wasn’t so sure that I would be good at teaching others how to be creative. I honestly think they taught me more than I taught them. The positivity we had in my classroom helped me to grow as an artist myself. I began doing more art walks, shows, and doing more commission pieces. I had always applied for calls and contests, but never had won any. You never know if you don’t try! In 2020 I applied for a mural “Call for Art”. Months went by and I quit thinking about it, until November of 2020; I received a call saying I was chosen. This gave me the confidence I needed to believe that art could be a full-time career for me. My daughter is the reason that I never stopped believing in myself and continue to live my life doing what I love.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
I am a pyrography and mural artist living in Billings, Montana. I have always loved spending time in the mountains and doing anything outdoors. This shows in my art, as I love to wood burn and paint animals and Montana landscapes. During the warm time of year, I paint outdoor murals. In the cold months, I paint indoor murals and create fine art wood burnings. I love getting to have a balance of both murals and wood burning. I also burn on western hats and fedoras year round. I enjoy traveling to paint murals too. I continue to take commission orders for my wood burning, but have become more directed at certain projects as my business is growing. I have discovered that it is very important for me to take time for myself to create my own ideas as well. I will be showing my hats and wood burnings on February 2, 2024 in The Grand Building in downtown Billings, Montana for the Billings Art Walk. This is the building that I painted my large buffalo mural on that started my career!
I am excited to be returning to the Legends West Art Show for my second year. It takes place during the Charlie Russel art week in Great Falls, Montana on March 13-17, 2024.
To keep updated on my next shows, follow me on Instagram and Facebook!
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
There are many important skills that I have found most impactful on my journey as an artist. The one I have found most important is resilience. You always have to be looking forward and never give up on your goals. You also must be open-minded. Accepting criticism and being positive so that it can help you improve as a person is very important. The last skill that has been most impactful for me is having an eagerness to learn. Every project I do, I give it my all. I research more than is necessary. For example, when wood burning a new animal, I put a lot of time into researching the animal (its habitat and anatomy). When I do a mural, it is always so exciting to learn about a new machine or technique. Or about a different community when traveling.
Do you think it’s better to go all in on our strengths or to try to be more well-rounded by investing effort on improving areas you aren’t as strong in?
I think it is important to be open-minded and invest efforts both in areas that you are strong in and where you are weak. As an artist, I have always loved to paint with acrylics. As I started to paint more murals, I saw the benefit of spray paint or using a sprayer. It makes painting on rough or uneven surfaces much easier, as well as improves shading ability. I was very uncomfortable using spray paint in the beginning, but I began to use it more often and I am now comfortable using both brush and spray paint. I know that I have a long way to go and will continue practicing. I also took a risk when I tried wood burning for the first time. That has progressed into using many different power tools and even etching into glass. I never focus on one medium or I get bored. They are all helpful in different ways to create the specific vision I have!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://rilie-tane-art.square.site/
- Instagram: Rilie_tane_art
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100071279296201&mibextid=2JQ9oc
Image Credits
Matt Ehnes Photography Chelsea Culp
