January 30, 2024 • 56 mins
When the colors of a painter's palette blend with the hues of life's rich tapestry, remarkable stories emerge. Join us as we step into the studio of Ricardo Royg, a maestro of the art world known for his hand-cut paper stencil screen-printing prowess. In a candid heart-to-heart, Ricardo unveils the emotional landscape that accompanies the creation and parting of his artwork, revealing the pieces that he holds too dear to ever let go. He narrates the symbiotic relationship between artists and collectors, likening it to a shared odyssey where every brushstroke marks a mile on an infinite road.
Navigating the intertwined paths of art and enterprise, we discover that organization is the unsung hero behind many a masterpiece. Whether it's a late-night lightning bolt of inspiration or a meticulously planned project, Ricardo and I discuss the importance of capturing those fleeting moments and cultivating them into tangible expressions. This conversation meanders through the gardens of personal passions and professional pursuits, affirming the joy and fulfillment that come from engaging every facet of one's being in their work. The harmony of business acumen and creative instinct plays a symphony that echoes throughout our discussion.
Our journey culminates with a reflection on the compass that guides us – our values. As we hike alongside Ricardo, we uncover the profound impact of authenticity, both in the art we create and the life we lead. We delve into the career-defining choices that have shaped Ricardo's path, from pivotal partnerships to the bold leap into full-time artistry. Through stories laced with personal growth and the pursuit of integrity, we affirm the transformative power of art. Tune in for an exploration that transcends the canvas and inspires the heart of every creator and admirer.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:02):
Okay, Ricardo Royg, are you okay with being recorded
on a podcast?
Speaker 2 (00:07):
Sure, yeah, gotta get out of your comfort zone if you
want to grow.
Speaker 1 (00:12):
So, ricardo Royg, I know you as a very famous
creative person, personality,you are an artist, you are
prolific your art is all overthe place and I want to learn
from you and I want to hearabout your successful journey.
Speaker 2 (00:30):
Oh, thank you so much .
Well, likewise, I'd love tohear about yours, and thanks for
the opportunity to be here onthis hike podcast, you know.
First of a cut.
Speaker 1 (00:40):
It's going to be a fun adventure, especially as we.
Speaker 2 (00:42):
It's a moving.
Speaker 1 (00:43):
Well, hopefully you don't get too out of breath.
This is not a very difficulttrail.
Speaker 2 (00:48):
No, no, this is good.
I needed this, and what abeautiful day for it.
I mean, it is Scorpio season,the colors are bursting, and
getting to meet you for thefirst time here is fantastic.
Speaker 1 (01:02):
Well, you know secretly, the main reason why
I'm taking you on this hike is Iwant you to get so much
inspiration from beauty.
Basically you're backyard thesefall-autumn colors the sights,
the sounds, the smells, yeahRight, it is just so inspiring
and I would love if I could bepart of that inspiration.
Speaker 2 (01:23):
Oh, totally, oh for sure.
Now this is going.
If I didn't have lunch withsome collectors after this, I'd
run right to the studio.
So I'll get the lunch and thengo to the studio.
Speaker 1 (01:35):
So I do want to hear about the world of being an
artist and a creative and thewhole collectors thing, right?
So someone like me who's been acorporate professional and
entrepreneur small business,large business, collectors
aren't really a thing that comesaround, so you know.
Oh yeah, that's an interestingconcept to me and we'll hit this
(01:55):
point.
Then we'll go back to who youreally are, where you came from.
Speaker 2 (01:59):
Well, I guess in your world you would call them like
shareholders, yeah, Shareholders.
Well, think about it.
You're buying into the.
When you have a piece of mywork, you're literally buying a
piece of my art and my journeyand whatever transforms from it.
So in your world, you guys buyinto stocks For me, collectors
(02:24):
buy into my art.
I guess that's, I don't know.
I'm all about terriblemetaphors.
So that's number one.
Where's the clicker?
You know, like gee, like?
There's number one terriblemetaphor, I don't know.
Speaker 1 (02:36):
Well, no, I just have to.
Speaker 2 (02:37):
It's how I make sense of the world is through
relationships and you know, it'sjust how I kind of cope.
Speaker 1 (02:43):
Well, you and I can relate on terrible metaphors,
because I make horriblemetaphors all the time.
I make references to baseballand football.
Speaker 2 (02:51):
Oh, yeah, are you a baseball football guy?
No, me neither, and I do thesame thing.
Oh God, it's universally known.
It's going to be a long hike.
Speaker 1 (02:59):
So when you are selling a piece of your art, do
you feel that it is a piece ofyou?
Speaker 2 (03:05):
It is yeah, for sure.
Speaker 1 (03:07):
Yeah, oh yeah.
Are you emotionally attached toall of that?
Speaker 2 (03:09):
art, everything, all of it, man.
Speaker 1 (03:12):
And what does that feel like when someone buys your
art?
Speaker 2 (03:15):
Oh, it's thrilling, uplifting.
It's so fulfilling to be valuedand to know that through what
you can create, other people geta joy and happiness.
And I could go on and on aboutit, but I don't want you to ask
one question and me talk for twohours, so I'll stop there,
listen this is a conversation,right, I am very inspired by you
(03:37):
, not a speech.
Speaker 1 (03:39):
There are these questions that I've just always
wondered, and now I get to askthem with all our guests, which
is rewarding for me.
But do you ever feel sadnesswhen you sell a piece of your
art, like something of yours isnow gone?
Speaker 2 (03:52):
No, never.
You just don't sell thosepieces.
If something's going to bringyou sadness to let go of it, you
just don't let go of it.
You know there's other works tosell and works to keep, Do you?
Speaker 1 (04:00):
have any pieces that you just won't sell.
Speaker 2 (04:02):
Oh, of course, yeah.
So basically, like I mean,you'll probably ask, like, how I
make my art.
Speaker 1 (04:09):
Oh yeah.
Speaker 2 (04:10):
I'm going there, but the art that I've developed is a
hand cut paper, stencil, screenprint.
So essentially you're cuttingout with an X-Acto knife like a
really sharp scalpel or penknife or blade.
You got to point them in thedirection because I don't know
where we're going.
Speaker 1 (04:27):
Don't worry, I won't.
Speaker 2 (04:29):
Thanks for driving me here by the way, like literally
coming to my driveway andhaving me follow you because
otherwise I will still be tryingto find it.
Speaker 1 (04:38):
I will not let you slip down this mountain, don't
worry.
Well, thanks.
Well, if you do, we've got acouple of people like that.
Speaker 2 (04:43):
Yeah, for sure, who may or may not be here, guys,
but basically, and you have yourlike total, like outdoor car
that's ready to rock and driveover, like you know, trees.
Speaker 1 (04:57):
I can definitely rock and drive All right.
So back to the artwork.
Speaker 2 (05:01):
Yeah, so I hand cut a stencil right which is
essentially a piece of paperwith a bunch of holes out of it,
and all those holes representwhere I want a certain color to
go, you know green, blue,whatever, but it's just one
color right.
And then I cut that stencil andI put it over a screen and then
(05:22):
I push ink through the screenand through the stencil, oh,
like a silk screen.
Essentially Correct, but silkscreening, uses Photoshop, uses
computers, uses photography andburns it into the screen.
I'm literally like a caveman,just cutting everything with a
knife right, so it really is.
That sets separates me.
So I cut everything out with aknife out of paper, I pass the
(05:45):
ink on that and after about 20passes, after you get about 20
passes, you make an addition of20 prints, right, so they're all
unique, one of a kind, and thenyou layer the next color and
the next color and the nextcolor and by the end you may get
16 or 15 good ones, because theothers kind of fell apart in
(06:07):
the process.
But the reason you asked melike, do I ever feel sadness of
letting go of something?
And I wouldn't, because what mywife does is she keeps one or
two of each addition.
So I have like 21 flat files ofmy own work.
I have over 3,000 of originalworks that I've kept Well, my
(06:29):
wife's kept for the kids and forher, and you know what I mean
and so you could sell out of.
You know an addition, but youstill have one or two of them.
Speaker 1 (06:41):
If that makes sense to you.
Speaker 2 (06:43):
So the oil paintings that I've made are truly one of
a kind, and those are in thehouse.
You know, those are hanging onthe walls, like I have in.
Oh, now we're hiking.
Speaker 1 (06:54):
Okay, this is awesome .
This is not a cakewalk, this isawesome.
Let me just fix your mic.
Speaker 2 (06:59):
No, this is great, but but yeah, so, so, anyways,
but that's how I.
That's to avoid that factor oflike you don't let go of
everything because you stillhave one or two.
You know what I mean.
And then, yeah, but that's it.
I don't mass produce anything.
Everything's original.
And then you know, nextgeneration, sure, I'd love for
(07:23):
my kids to you know, capitalizeon having all this original in
the copyright and be able totake the art to that next level.
Speaker 1 (07:31):
But we'll make sure you put that in your will.
Yeah, no, I'm creating thewhole trust and everything.
Speaker 2 (07:35):
Yeah, right now it's just original, because that's
the, that's the special part oflife, right, the rarity, and you
got to keep to that.
That's right so anyways, sothat's my answer.
Speaker 1 (07:48):
So you have these like it's in the process, right.
Speaker 2 (07:50):
Like you know, like within the process, you don't
add that and I don't know, sorry, so you have these 3000 pieces
of art that essentially are anextension of you.
Speaker 1 (08:03):
Is that the right way ?
Speaker 2 (08:03):
Oh, for sure, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1 (08:05):
And you feel like each one of these are your baby.
Speaker 2 (08:08):
That's just what I have for myself, if that makes
sense to you.
Speaker 1 (08:11):
You have more than that, wow.
So how long have you beencreating art?
Speaker 2 (08:14):
20, so they're each.
So I just expect to that, likethey're an addition, right.
So there's 20 of.
It's kind of hard to do, Iguess on a hike I'm a visual guy
to like draw your picture Iguess, but but it's like so no,
there's lots more art than that.
That's just like what, what,what we're, you know, keeping in
the, in the collection and grow.
Those are like unique imageimages.
(08:35):
If that makes sense, got it.
So when did you get the?
Speaker 1 (08:38):
sense that you, what really?
When did you get the sense thatyou were on to something that
you have?
You had to get a stance.
Speaker 2 (08:45):
My first stencil is in 2006.
I had transferred into CainUniversity after going to an art
school and a liberal artsschool and I didn't graduate
college yet, moved back home,was able to enroll at Cain
through a tuition waiver programthrough unemployment if you
(09:07):
have like 30 previous collegecredits, the government will pay
you to finish school if you geta job that's in demand.
So I was able to finish schoolfor free and Cain accepted me
for one year because I have togo there for one year and when I
was transferring in my thecounselor was Debbie Skibitzky,
(09:30):
the old mayor of Westfield'swife oh, yeah, and she looked at
my portfolio of work and said,wow, you have accomplished
portfolio.
You went to these art schools.
You've been in school for areally long time.
You need to graduate.
You should try something andget out of your comfort zone.
And I was like, well, whatshould I do?
And she said, well, I'm lookingat your portfolio and you
haven't taken screen printing.
And I was like you're justamazing, because not many people
(09:55):
especially you know if it's notlike art-centered would
understand the differencebetween a lithograph and etching
a print.
You know what I mean screen.
So she offered that I shouldtake screen printing.
So I enrolled the teacher forthe first day was like cut
shapes out of paper and I waslike I love this, oh my god, and
(10:16):
I love this story.
I love this hand-cutting andthe teacher, joe Zapotowski, who
I'm seeing Thursday, actuallyat Cain University, because they
invited him to be artist inresidence after 17 years of ago
when I discovered, you know,that art could be made this way.
And Joe, as a professor, waslike, look, that's just like the
(10:37):
intro.
Like when you learn math, youget like a stick of like ten
cubes, and that means ten and sowhen you go to pay your check,
as an adult, you don't like pullout the cubes, you're like hold
on a second, let me get thepercentage of this.
Like you just learn it.
So the hand-cutting was just tounderstand layering and that's,
(10:57):
in all aspects, right.
And I was like, no, no, I lovethis and he goes.
Well, you got something there,why don't you just run with it?
And he let me not learn theother aspects of print make, of
screen printing, and I justfocused on that.
So it was when I cut my firststencil.
I truly fell in love at thattime.
I also fell in love with mywife, now girlfriend then.
(11:18):
So love was just like allabound and you know, you know
when you know, and I just likedove in wholeheartedly it in
both the love of my life and thelove of my art, and you know,
as an oil painter.
As a painter, I was alwaysstruggling with where to put the
paint, how to tame that animal,but with screen printing and
(11:39):
hand-cutting I cancompartmentalize the piece.
I can actually show you what'sgoing on in my head.
I can more clearly describe howI see the world in all shapes
and colors, like right now, andthen I can express that.
And it was so much of a clear,so much of a better vision for
me, and so I just ran with it.
(11:59):
And now, 17 years later, theyactually invited me to be
artists in residence.
I created a 44-foot mural.
My art has developed intohand-cut stencil murals, so not
just hand-cut stencil attachedto the screen, but now I
hand-cut stencil on a wall and Iuse spray paint and overlap the
spray paint to create the mixedcolors.
Speaker 1 (12:19):
Yeah, I've seen your murals.
Speaker 2 (12:20):
They are, they are beautiful they are so much,
thank you.
Speaker 1 (12:24):
I love making them.
Let me just pause for a second.
I want to go back to somethingthat's so important and critical
in your life.
Okay, mayor scabitsky's wifewhat was her name, I believe is
Debbie scabitsky.
Debbie scabitsky, she gave youan idea and you ran with it a
challenge.
Speaker 2 (12:42):
She said try something you've never taken
before.
Get out of your comfort zone.
Yeah right, she gave you adirection.
Speaker 1 (12:48):
She pointed you in that direction yeah and then the
day you showed up and Ilistened so the important theme
is the fact that it is sometimeswise to listen to the advice of
others.
Now it's okay to question thewhen it's expert advice.
Speaker 2 (13:02):
I mean, she's a counselor, wasn't like somebody
on the street, like that's whatshe does for a living.
Speaker 1 (13:06):
You know, and true, you know so here's the thing,
though, is you and I share avery similar story, and I know
many of the listeners share thisstory as well.
I was told by my brother that Ishould go into
telecommunications before I wentto community college.
Right, I was graduating highschool.
I had no idea whattelecommunications was, but his
advice to me is I love math, Ilike science, I like breaking
(13:31):
things, take them apart, puttingthem back together working with
my hands and this is a new andexciting field and career.
So what did I do?
I listened to him.
So I enrolled intelecommunications classes.
Within the first five minutesof sitting in my first class in
college it was an electronicsone class the professor said he
(13:51):
put down what's called abreadboard in front of us okay
you put electrical componentsfor testing.
He put it down and had somecircuitry on it, so resistors
etc.
And he said follow the path ofthe electrons from the voltage
source until the ground and that.
With that sentence I'm lookingat this and that's when I said I
love this wow right, and thatadvice from my brother listening
(14:14):
to my brother's advice in yourcase, debbie Skibisky's advice,
the advice of others that careabout you that put us both on
the paths where we are oh, yeah,yeah, I think the signs are all
around, but it's up to you.
Speaker 2 (14:27):
Like no one can force you to do anything.
It has to be your willpower.
Like you have to look for thesigns, whether it's like a penny
on the floor, a feather, youknow, 111 1 1, 1, 2, 3.
Like 4, 4, 4, 3, 3, 3.
Like you ask yourself, like isthis really what I should do?
And then you look up at a stopsign and a garbage truck comes
(14:49):
by and it's like, yes, youshould do it you know, like,
like written on the side.
You know, it's like like I wastalking to a collector last
night and his daughter was gonnago to Brown and for some reason
he didn't want to go to Brown,but he didn't really want to say
that.
Speaker 1 (15:01):
And she started yelling.
Speaker 2 (15:03):
Well, I don't know, I don't think he was, but is that
it?
They're?
Speaker 1 (15:06):
the opposite I'm like .
So the daughter was like calledhim up.
Speaker 2 (15:15):
He's at a red light.
She's like yeah, dad, I thinkI'm really good wanting to go to
Amherst.
He looks up the bus next to him, says Amherst it's like that
type of, that type ofsynchronicities of things when
they happen more rapidly.
The signs are there.
So like I guess that started itright, like you chose that path
(15:36):
, you listen to him and then itkind of like probably has just
unrolled, unraveled more of yourlife, right, like on that path
right.
Speaker 1 (15:44):
Being in tune with signs is wild how I live my life
that's all I do, that's it.
Speaker 2 (15:52):
I just follow the signs and then you're like, hey,
let's go hiking in the woods.
And I'm like, oh, my god,that's amazing.
You know it's like, let's do it.
Speaker 1 (16:01):
You know, like, like, I want to do this point because
it's so critical, being openand willing to listen to the
advice of others.
Again, you can question if youthink?
Something is bad advice, butwhat is coming from a good place
, just being willing to listenand being in tune to the signs,
whether it's whether it's nature, or just being being just
(16:22):
completely available.
Yeah, take in your sights, yoursounds, your scenery because,
like you just said, the busdrove by.
Oh my god yeah, this isinspiration right here oh right,
here you kidding me.
Speaker 2 (16:35):
I mean, and that's it .
Like if, if you want to receive, you got to be ready.
Your hands have to be empty.
You can't like, have 50 bagsand want more.
No one's gonna give you morebecause you've nowhere to carry
you have to be so you have to beavailable, which means like you
have to cut out distraction,you have to focus, you have to
(16:55):
audit your life, you have tomake the hard choices.
You know what I mean.
You have to like have your willstronger than the programming.
You know what I mean, becausethe programming is all there for
you to just fall in line.
You have to have the will toovercome that and to do it on a
daily basis, which is thediscipline.
So you know you could have Ithink there's a quote it's like
(17:18):
your life could have one of twopains one, the discipline.
The pain of discipline, whichis hard and you get there.
Or the pain of not beingdisciplined right, and it's so
much better to just like knowwhat that focuses and to get at
it.
I don't know that's right.
I just feel like that if youwant to receive, you have to be
(17:40):
ready to grab it.
You know what I mean.
No one's going to give you morethings if your hands are
already full.
So you know, kind of likemeditating, being in the moment,
when you're present.
The teacher will reveal theself when the student's ready,
you know.
So I just kind of look at theworld that way and I saw it that
(18:00):
way and you saw it that way,and it probably just your
electrons were flowing throughthat path the rest of your life.
Right, like you're still tryingto see where the next uh.
Speaker 1 (18:09):
I don't think I could have put this any better myself
.
Really.
Yeah, you, I'm inspired by justwatching you, really.
Speaker 2 (18:15):
Yeah, I mean, this is kind of interesting.
What's going on right now.
It's like this is interesting,like I'm just talking, and it's
like we're hiking.
We're hiking, we're in thewoods.
Look, mom, I'm safe.
My mom was like you're going inthe woods with who?
(18:36):
You know him, that's awesome,you know him.
I was like mom.
I'm like 39 years old, it'sokay.
Where's?
Speaker 1 (18:44):
mom from.
Speaker 2 (18:45):
Uh, dominican Republic.
We all like joke.
She joke with her accent andstuff.
It's just like a family thing,you know, do you know him?
Listen to me.
Speaker 1 (18:55):
Let's get one more.
Yeah, whatever you need, that'sa good one, we'll take a few
more on the way out.
Yeah for sure, Listen, that wasa beautiful yellow section
right there.
Speaker 2 (19:07):
That's right, this is inspiration.
Oh hell yeah.
Speaker 1 (19:11):
So so I love that message right.
It is so deep and I don't thinkmany people understand it.
Speaker 2 (19:18):
Well, if your life is full of distractions, you're
just going to be like pushedaround, like you know what I
mean.
Like you got to see the wavecoming, you got to see the wave
breaking, you got to see thatwave was meant for you and you
got to stand tall on that wave,otherwise it's going to pass you
by, have you always?
Speaker 1 (19:35):
been like this Hell yeah.
Speaker 2 (19:38):
So do you take time to rest.
No, I've been like this sincelike kindergarten.
You know what I mean.
Like growing up in Westfield.
It was a great education and Iknew early that being an artist
was something you could do for aliving and I was like sign me
up.
I think like in kindergarten.
Speaker 1 (19:54):
So you always had the artistic ability.
Speaker 2 (19:57):
Everything in my life has been surrounded by art.
If I'm learning geography, well, where did the artist live?
Right?
If you're learning abouthistory of wars, what did the
artist do in times of war?
You see what I'm saying.
If you're learning aboutlanguage, well, we're all the
(20:17):
different types of artists andart.
History of the world is art.
You see it through thedevelopment of people,
expressing how its form andfunction and works.
And architecture I mean scienceis art.
Look at pointillism.
Art developed at the same timewhen they were developing, I
(20:40):
believe, a cell.
So they realized thateverything was broken down into
cells.
Everything was broken down intocolors.
So art, science, life it's allinterwoven and I saw that early.
So that's how I approach.
Learning is like art is theglue that holds it all together
for me, so if I don't have artin my life, it's all falling
(21:02):
apart.
Art is my glue.
You have to find what connectseverything.
You know what I mean.
And then you just go where youget energized.
When I met you, you're likelet's go, frank, let's do it.
These guys that are not reallyhere are awesome.
They drove an hour and a halffrom up St York to be here.
If you don't show up for it.
(21:24):
That's what it's about showingup for each other and keeping
your energy high.
Speaker 1 (21:28):
It's being ensured.
And being open, being availableand being ready to say yes to
an opportunity which.
I think too many people are sofocused in their daily lives
Because you wake up too late.
Speaker 2 (21:38):
You're already like controlled, like you get up at
nine.
Think of the world that gets upat nine.
You know, but think of theworld that gets up at five.
Speaker 1 (21:45):
Early bird catches the worm.
Speaker 2 (21:46):
Think of the world that gets up at six.
You're kind of like with thattribe, Like you don't see them,
but you could feel them.
You wake up.
The world is calling you.
Speaker 1 (21:55):
What time do you?
Speaker 2 (21:56):
get up.
Speaker 1 (21:58):
Hey, listener, thanks for hiking along with us.
Discover more episodes atiTokaHikecom, or to recommend an
adventurous guest.
Try to be a sponsor.
Discover books along the trail,or to simply drop us a line.
Let's reminisce on somethingyou just said before is that
when you get an idea that popsin your head, you just run with
(22:19):
it.
Speaker 2 (22:19):
You have to, and how can you run with it?
Your studio has to be clean.
You have to be ready.
You know, like, I think, a lotof people who are creatives,
they don't have a dedicatedspace and so they spend half
their creative time likeorganizing and setting it up.
That feeling is going to escapeyou.
I have two studios one forlarge oil paintings and large
works and one for hand cutscreen prints, and I'm also on
(22:42):
location for murals so,technically, three studios.
When the inspiration strikes, Igo to that space, ready to rock
it and roll Like, not like,well, let me clean up and sweep
the floor.
You know you have to right Like, when the idea strikes, write
it down.
You know.
Speaker 1 (22:59):
Someone who is in the opposite world, the business
world.
We'll say we follow the samethought process when I get an
idea that pops into my head.
I don't care what time it is.
Sometimes that best epiphany isin the middle of the night,
when you're sleeping and youwake up.
I go straight to an O-pad, Iwrite it down, or I type it down
.
You don't turn it off, youdon't thwart that, that that
(23:22):
resignation, because if you'rein tune to that, your best ideas
start flowing.
For me, my best ideas are inthe middle of the night I wake
up, or in the shower, andsometimes I I kid you not,
sometimes I scribble with myfinger on the shower glass.
Speaker 2 (23:37):
Oh, I do that all day long.
Yeah, because you, so it lastslonger, it lasts longer.
Speaker 1 (23:42):
But it's the art of writing, though that handbrain
connection, that I ended upwriting it also puts it out into
the world like on a super deeplevel.
You know, I haven't when youwrite it out.
Speaker 2 (23:52):
It's like it's epic.
Speaker 1 (23:54):
I haven't actually researched it as a product Like
a shower pad that I could use,because that would be really
cool if that does exist.
So I will look at that after.
Speaker 2 (24:04):
But no, the shower pad.
I like that.
Speaker 1 (24:07):
It's like the scrub daddy family.
Speaker 2 (24:08):
The shower pad man that thing is awesome, by the
way.
I have like 10 of those.
I have a daddy scrub mommyscrub baby scrub sister for your
brother.
Speaker 1 (24:15):
And truck looks pretty clean?
Speaker 2 (24:16):
Oh no, it's a Jeep.
Speaker 1 (24:18):
Jeep's are meant to be dirty.
Speaker 2 (24:19):
Oh, okay, it's clean as you drain one, two weeks.
Speaker 1 (24:24):
So no, I think that's an important fact that people
should pay attention to is don'tstop the creativity.
I don't care what line ofbusiness you're in.
When the idea pops in your head, let it flow.
Don't stop working if you're inthe mood.
And in the mood, why Right?
Like you as an artist.
You don't stop painting whenit's five o'clock.
(24:46):
You keep running right.
Speaker 2 (24:48):
Well, it depends.
So I run galleries too.
So if someone reaches out andthey're like, oh, I need to buy
this piece, tonight I'm going toa wedding, I'll stop creating
and I'll go make the sale,because that's my job too, I try
not to stop the creativeprocess and I block out like
times that I can't be, you know,interrupted.
(25:09):
However, you know a sales ofsale and when those come in and
through an email or something, Itry to put the emails after the
creative time.
Speaker 1 (25:18):
But you're our business owner, right?
You have your own gallery.
Sure, that makes you a businessowner, so you're the business
world.
What aspect of being in thebusiness world do you not
appreciate?
I love it all honestly, I loveit all yeah, because I just even
the emails.
Speaker 2 (25:32):
Yeah, I get excited because, like I love I'm not
just like a guy who can createart.
Like I like creatingrelationships and building humor
into people's lives and takingmy energy and adding excitement.
Like I love what I do throughand through, I'm happy as a I'm
so fulfilled and part of havingit all is understanding that you
(25:55):
do.
You know what I mean and notsearching for things to fulfill
it.
You know, like I have twolittle kids, a wife, I get to
make art all day.
I get to connect with creative,interesting people.
I get to collaborate withcreative, interesting, you know,
businesses.
It's I just have fun with it.
You know what I mean.
Like I remember like stressfuldays as a teacher, sometimes
(26:17):
when I was on a cart pushing artinto a classroom and if at any
moment, I started to get likeyou know not the high vibes,
like I was like oh, like fearset in, like can I do this?
Like you know, becauseessentially, art teaching on a
cart is like nonstop birthdayparties.
You know you're running like 25little kids like birthday.
(26:37):
Like we're doing this, yay, allright, let's take it home, but
at any moment I would just sayto myself have fun with it.
Because if I'm being presentedby the world to be in uplift 25
young minds, I better you knowwhat I mean have fun with it.
I better be those high vibesand guess what More
(26:59):
opportunities come out whenpeople like the people they work
with and they're fun to bearound and they're exciting and
you know what I mean.
So it's just like a solid wayto live.
So yeah, no, I I have fun withall of it Like and that's why I
like doing it all and I don'tsee anything as a.
You know, you know what I mean.
But hey look, there's only somuch time of the day and if I
(27:22):
get to a level where it's like,oh my gosh, I really need, you
know, help with the, with thesales organizing and all that, I
think that person willorganically approach themselves
and I'd love to partner withsomeone you know what I mean
Rather than like higher andtrain, like, if I have to like
(27:43):
kind of like instruct somebodyon how to do something, they're
probably not the right person todo that.
Speaker 1 (27:48):
If you're going to pick a partner for your business
, they need to complete you, asJerry McGuire would say.
They need to be able to fill inthe gaps, naturally, of all
your weaknesses.
Anything you don't want to doBecause the goal.
If you don't like filingpaperwork, then you hire someone
who's great at filing paperwork.
Speaker 2 (28:08):
Why?
Because that frees you up tomake art, because they're
excited about it too, yeah, andthen they love what they do, and
then that energizes you.
You know healthy partnerships.
Speaker 1 (28:15):
Obviously, there are unhealthy partnerships, which is
detrimental, and unfortunately,there is nothing wrong with
sharing the workload and sharingin the success.
In fact, myself I have alwaysdone better with partners,
people who truly wanted me to dowell and I wanted them to do
(28:36):
well.
Together, you combine, likeVoltron oh yeah, Right and you
make this great magic happen.
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (28:42):
Oh for sure, yeah, like, for instance, one big, big
opportunity that came throughwas a partnership.
So the Ritz Carlton Hotels, theaddition hotel Miami is, you
know, inviting me to demonstratemy art on December 7th to a
private party of their residents, and I'll be doing a demo of my
(29:04):
art before the first look ofArt Basel Miami.
Wow, great partnership, right.
Speaker 1 (29:10):
I would say so.
Speaker 2 (29:11):
I'm an artist.
They're a fantastic hotel thatoffers, like I think they have
an ice skating rink in theirhotel, like it's fabulous.
So it's like what a coolpartnership where, like you know
, they have residents that wanta dynamic event and here's an
artist with a dynamic artprocess that you can watch and
(29:33):
you know that exactly.
Together, like you said,voltron right.
So there's Voltron, right, likeyou know.
And speaking of Voltron, Iguess, transformers I'm doing a
mural for Rumble Gym.
They're a gym in opening.
I did the one in a couple ofmurals in Westfield, new Jersey,
but now they're opening upanother in Princeton, and so
(29:54):
part of what they do in theirgyms is they bring in local
scenes, and so they're bringingin Einstein, you know, being
from Princeton, and also, well,they're not bringing him in.
Speaker 1 (30:06):
Right right, I'm sorry.
In the art, in the art, themural, right right Sorry.
Speaker 2 (30:11):
And I'm like hiking and talking.
But the other one that I'll becreating is, I believe, a
bumblebee from Transformers.
So when we said Voltron, Ithought of the Transformers and
like, what a cool partnership aswell.
Like I get to create murals fortheir you know, for their gym,
which creates community, whichis about, you know, that mindset
(30:34):
of being your best self, of youknow, so you can help others.
It's just like all together andI think those like partnerships
truly work when everybody hassomething unique to bring and it
just adds value to each other.
Like the Ritz Carlton when Idid an event in DC last month,
the head of the property said,wow, you really elevated this
(30:56):
experience.
And I'm still just speechlessfrom that Because I'm like, oh
my God, like this is RitzCarlton, this is like Sinatra,
this is like Epic.
And I'm elevating yourexperience through my love of
art, making Like so cool, rightso you have to seek those
partnerships because they getyou out of your comfort zone and
(31:16):
they are the bridge totransform you.
You will not transform to thelevel that you're, I guess,
destined to if you don't takethose partnerships and that
trust on another person oranother organization or you know
, like with this wonderfulcollaboration with Kane
University, as the artists andresidents and you know, I've
(31:38):
worked with Hilton and Amazonand W Hotels and W Hoboken I had
an art gallery for basicallylike four and a half years- in
the hotel, and that's whatreally was my biggest.
Speaker 1 (31:52):
That's what I needed.
Speaker 2 (31:53):
Well, yes, I was a teacher and we were running an
art gallery and I was making art, you know, full time and
teaching full time.
I never took anything part time.
And after a few years of that,in Hoboken, the W Hotel reached
out and said hey, we would loveto have your gallery in our
hotel.
We have this space.
And I was like are you kiddingme?
(32:15):
And so I told my wife and she'slike you know what?
It's time for you to leaveteaching so you can, like swim
with both arms and and and youknow what I mean.
Instead of, like you know,teaching from you know whatever,
it is 830 in the morning till330, then rushing to Hoboken and
running a gallery from 5 to 8and then making art from 8 to
(32:37):
like 3 in the morning.
I mean, I did that for so manyyears.
And she's like look, you workedhard.
Like this is you'll regret ifyou went at this not full
heartedly.
And when I left teaching in2000, I think it was like 17, 18
, that's what happened.
The W Hotels offered me thisgallery and, and there's the
(33:00):
collaboration that then allowedme to get my art internationally
in.
Paris, germany?
Oh for sure, because the it'san international hotel.
You know, ball players staythere when they play.
It met life, sadie, you knowlike.
I got to meet a wonderful groupof residents.
Even, too, there's 40 residentsthat live there.
It was a great, convenientlocation for the community of
(33:23):
collectors and art lovers andhoboken, and it was fantastic,
you know.
But as hotels go, they evolve,and the next, you know, the next
iteration of that space is thisawesome Omakasi experience,
which is fabulous for a datenight, and I still have my art
in the windows on the riverstreet windows, these big like
(33:43):
Macy's windows, so I get to putmy larger pieces and people can
purchase them through the window, through the QR code, through
emailing me, but they can viewthem 24 seven.
You know it's like a streetgallery but it's through a glass
window on the outside and youknow it's through working with
them.
That connected me with RitzCarlton and you know I mean.
(34:05):
So it's just.
I definitely advise people toseek those collaborations when
they're ready.
Yeah, the issue I think withpeople is they're so ready to
get to the next level, but theyrealize the first level is
endurance and, like you know, ittakes a long time to develop
and to get your signature style,but then you have to recognize
(34:28):
it once it's there and go.
You know what I'm saying.
So not not taking, I meanwhatever.
Everybody has their own path,but for me I definitely develop
my paintings for a while, andthen I develop my hand cuts for
a while and then it's just likemagnetized.
Speaker 1 (34:43):
You got your practice , all the opportunities.
It sounds like you've had a lotof inspiration and your wife by
the way is your biggestchampion.
Speaker 2 (34:49):
I can hear it she's my muse.
Yeah, she's not the first timeI have heard a guest call their
wife.
Oh, she's everything I find mywife amusing.
Speaker 1 (34:58):
I don't know if I'd say I love that.
Speaker 2 (35:00):
But no, my wife inspires me all the time.
Speaker 1 (35:07):
It's really important , much like a partner in a
business to have the rightpartner in life.
You have to, and listening toeach other is very important.
Your wife put you in thisdirection.
You were in tune.
Recurring theme in your life,you were in tune.
And that sets you up for the WHotel, which puts you on an
international stage.
Speaker 2 (35:24):
Definitely.
Speaker 1 (35:25):
And with international notoriety which is
phenomenal.
Speaker 2 (35:28):
So I mean with private collectors who stayed
there and things like that.
You know, I haven't really goneto that like other gallery
level yet, because I just beenso busy with doing, you know,
running my own and I'm happywith this level of success
because I had two little boysand, like you know, if I had to
go across the world to go to anart show, I don't know if I'm
(35:49):
ready for that, because I reallywant to like see my kids grow
up and be there for them, andthat's why I like doing things a
lot on the local level and, youknow, like going to Miami
school, but they're coming withme.
Speaker 1 (35:59):
You know what I?
Speaker 2 (36:00):
mean Like.
So I think in time you canalways go get bigger and grow
the importance of balance in asuccessful life.
Speaker 1 (36:09):
You could be the most successful artist on the planet
, most successful CEO, businessperson, investor, it doesn't
matter.
Oh yeah, right.
But if you are not present inlife for your family, all you're
doing is racing your life away.
For the material thing thatyou're not taking with you, but
the legacy of deep rooting,strong family values, is de
(36:29):
minimis.
Speaker 2 (36:31):
Oh for sure.
I mean, like, think about it,if I gave you all the fortune in
the world that you want toachieve, you know, with your,
your talent, or your skill, or,like you said, if I vow you said
earlier like I value this time,right, so I give you all of
that in a material sense, you'regoing to fall over because you
have no balance, you know what.
I mean.
So you need the balance inorder to accept the abundance
(36:53):
that is generated from producingvalue through your passion,
your drive, you know and thechoices you make on a daily
basis.
Speaker 1 (37:03):
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Speaker 2 (37:38):
So cool, yeah.
I mean, I loved hiking.
I need to do it more.
Speaker 1 (37:42):
And this is like everyone needs to do it more.
Speaker 2 (37:45):
Everyone needs to do it more you want to take a hike,
you know to be like.
Follow the signs, like okay,you know like well, now you took
a hike.
Speaker 1 (37:53):
I did take a hike.
Speaker 2 (37:54):
You know it's funny, one of my neighbors there was
like a neighborhood birthdaythis weekend and so we're
talking and he's like, what doyou got going on this week?
I was like, oh, I'm taking ahike.
This guy local has a podcast,darren, he goes.
Oh my God, my daughter goes tohis.
I know my son goes to hisschool, cause I always see him
pull up.
He has this big car with asticker on the backs.
(38:14):
As I took a hike and I was like, oh sweet, you know.
So my neighbor's kid goes tosome school yeah, very cool.
Or after school some program orsomething.
Speaker 1 (38:24):
I got three kids.
I don't know which kid youprefer.
Let's watch out for the mudthere.
Oh yeah, we are almost to ourdestination.
You got it, man.
Speaker 2 (38:32):
The Grand Canyon of Union County.
Speaker 1 (38:35):
No, the other one is more grandiose.
So talk to me more aboutinspiration.
Speaker 2 (38:40):
Yeah, so I think you know, I think you have to be
honest with yourself and go withwhat you're curious about, that
feeling and that energy withinyou that's pulling you, and you
know, towards maybe a medium ora subject matter and just to,
like you know, go with it andgrow with it and not so much try
(39:01):
to find it all the time.
And you also have to be readyfor inspiration, like I was
talking to you about that Manetand de Gaucho.
I haven't seen it yet because Iwant to make sure that once I
see it I could rush back to thestudio that day and get into
another piece and be ready toreceive that inspiration and
then run with it.
(39:21):
But yeah, so the new source ofinspiration, I'm doing a big
solo show at Cain University inJanuary.
It's like a 3000 square footgallery space and I get to fill
it with all my art and you knowthey asked me to develop a new
body of work for part of theshow and so to find inspiration.
(39:42):
That was something different, adifferent, you know, not
necessarily a scene or a personor a place, but maybe imagery
that correlates and creates somekind of allegorical message.
And so I kind of like lookedwithin for inspiration for that
and got into like horoscopes andenergies and learning about.
You know that kind of life andyou know.
(40:07):
So that's pretty cool becausewhen you follow your inspiration
, it leads you on a new path anddevelops you in a different way
.
Speaker 1 (40:14):
So what is making it look like for you?
Speaker 2 (40:17):
I mean the ability that there's just like so much
demand, like it's just amazing,like to receive an email like
this week from you know newcollectors they saw my work,
like seven years ago at an openhouse in Jersey City and they
were like we've loved your workever since, you know and then to
get another email later in theday of you know me and my
(40:38):
husband looking at your work andyou know you're on our dream
list of pieces and we'reinterested to see you know what
you have available.
You know it's like I feel like.
I feel like making it is justlike having really good
collaborations that want tocontinue to collaborate with you
.
I emailed with the W Hobeaukentoday about Miami going down to
(40:59):
Art Basel to do thisdemonstration, and I think that
making it is just likeunderstanding that you're riding
that wave and you don't have topaddle as hard.
You have to work just as hardbut in a different way, and
acknowledging that you'refurther along your journey than
(41:20):
when you started and to have theconfidence to continue that
path rather than trying to addmore to your plate and just
serving what has grown.
I don't really do marketing formy work.
I don't do paid ads.
I don't really pay for the wordto get out, and so, for me,
(41:40):
making it is like the fact thatall these opportunities are
coming towards me Like a vortex,like I've magnified my energy
into this art and the world islike really responding to it.
That's the feeling, I guess, ofmaking it, you know.
Speaker 1 (41:55):
Well, I asked you about making it because we made
it back to the trial.
Speaker 2 (42:00):
Well, I guess yeah, when you make it back home,
coming back to Westfield openingup a gallery locally and seeing
the kids that I used to teachcome by and say wow, mr Roy, you
said you were going to leaveteaching to follow your art and
you opened up a gallery in townand you know, seeing them
further on their journeys,whether it in art and you know,
I guess that's you know goingfull circle back to Cain
(42:21):
University and having them, youknow, basically like invest in
me and, you know, commission mytime for talks and to speak to
others, and what I'm seeing nowis like, yes, creating it is so
important, yes, making it is soimportant, yes, staying in that
vibe is so important.
But now I've reached all ofthese opportunities to reach
(42:45):
others, to energize others, toshare that positive message and
to get that fire kindling or Idon't know if that's the word,
but igniting it and sparking itand being called to do that, you
know.
And so I guess that's thefeeling I don't know how did you
know of making it?
When you made it?
Was it your exit?
(43:06):
Was it your the fact thatsomeone valued it at that much?
Or is it having all thesepeople sign up to podcast?
You know, and saying yes toyour offer of these fun
adventures, like what you know.
Speaker 1 (43:22):
So for me it's been making it in stages, but I don't
feel like I open quote, made it, and I know that sounds like a
safe answer.
Sure, I'm not an egotisticalperson, sure, so I like to be,
you know, at least in my ownthoughts, a little humble on it.
So did I make it by selling abusiness?
Yeah, I sold the business, so Imade it on that milestone Right
(43:45):
.
But now I'm at the beginningsof a startup.
Speaker 2 (43:50):
I'm at the beginnings right.
Speaker 1 (43:51):
This is a new venture .
Speaker 2 (43:52):
I didn't make anything Because you have many
journeys, right yeah?
I'm still a beginner, I'm anoob, as I think that's still
the cool kid work which now, Ijust made it uncool.
Awesome, didn't work hard, butI'm so new at this.
I'm learning.
Speaker 1 (44:06):
You know a different style of interviewing, active
listening, which is incrediblyimportant.
And now I think back to myselfwhen I reflect if I knew then
what I know now, you heareveryone say that If I knew then
what I know now, right.
Well, it's true.
If I knew then what I know nowand was just a better listener,
maybe the exit of the companywould not have been the exit.
(44:29):
Maybe I would have kept itgoing.
Maybe it would have been doubleor triple in size.
Maybe there's so many maybesthat.
I'll never know in a slidingglass door moment that I don't
know.
So that causes me to reflect ondid I ever really make it in
the first place?
And the answer is no.
No, I don't think any of usmake it Right.
We keep remaking it.
Speaker 2 (44:50):
And that is value.
Speaker 1 (44:53):
Hey, listener, thanks for hiking along with us.
Discover more episodes athightokahikecom, or to recommend
an adventurous guest, Apply tobe a sponsor, discover books
along the trail, or to simplydrop us a line.
So I guess, are you motivatedby increasing the value of your
art for your collectors or areyou motivated by increasing the
(45:13):
amount, the vastness of your artto the public?
Speaker 2 (45:19):
I love the rarity of my work.
I love the rarity of life andthe uniqueness, so that's what
my art speaks to.
And these are all greatquestions to think about.
And I do read about thisbecause that's it right, that's
the culture, but you have tostudy it.
(45:39):
Yeah, and now you get a lot ofquestions of what's the
investment in this piece overtime, and I think was it you who
asked, maybe when we first met,or someone Chances?
Speaker 1 (45:48):
are?
I would have asked that styleof question.
Speaker 2 (45:50):
Yeah, I think it was actually you.
This week I was asked oh, byyou, yeah, and I do tend to ask
those questions.
You know, where I'm at now isthat I make art, that I love to
make and people value it and Ilove that, and I don't think
they're trying to sell it on asecondary market.
Speaker 1 (46:09):
It's not about selling.
It's holding value.
You wouldn't buy into an artistthat you believe in if you
thought that $40,000 piece willbe worth $10,000 next week.
Speaker 2 (46:17):
Sure, I mean, I love that, please.
You know that's great.
Like this week I was, you know.
So this week a collectorcontinued to be interested in
the piece, like, oh, I have yourearly works, I want a new one
you made of this Far Hills racetrack.
And I was like, yeah, it's likeinspired by horse racing.
(46:38):
And you know he was like, yeah,I want to continue to collect.
And you know, it's just likesomeone who early work wants to
continue to collect your workwhen people have, like some
people have over 10 pieces ofmine, you know that's a lot.
Speaker 1 (46:52):
That is a lot.
Speaker 2 (46:53):
Some people have bought four pieces the first
time they saw my work.
Like four big pieces, like youknow what that means.
Speaker 1 (46:59):
That means, not only did they love it, they loved it
so much, they also bought you.
They believed in you.
Speaker 2 (47:04):
I just so, I just look at it in terms of that.
You know, I think the value ofthings now with doing, you know,
shows with the Ritz Carltonresidents and opportunities like
that, you know that is a biggerquestion, right, and that's
that's another field of it and Ithink, like it has to right, it
has to get the value of whatit's valued at and rather than
(47:29):
try to seek a mass scale of mywork in a production line or
something I'm not ever trying todo, that I'm trying to make
everything original, valuable.
But I do have different pricepoints for my work.
So if you have $250 to spend onart, I have a small piece.
If you have $1,000, I have apiece like that, and there
(47:51):
generally be other things.
So I'm starting to do drawingsat $500.
I sold my first drawing inPhiladelphia to an art you know
dealer and art advisor.
I'm sorry.
And so, rather than try to takesomething that's pure and like
put it in merchandising orposters, I love to keep it pure.
(48:12):
I love to get that value, youknow, adjusted to what it's
currently valued at, alwaysbeing in the positive sense and
just opening other things thatare original, that I like to
create, that explore otheraspects of my art.
So I think it's just having adiverse range of it rather than
jeopardizing.
You know, if things are gettingmore valued and more valued,
(48:34):
god bless, I hope they do.
Speaker 1 (48:36):
You know what I mean.
Like, like, as I said, I wantto add value.
Speaker 2 (48:39):
I always want to add value.
So if you feel like you know,you're just like wow, I have so
much value out of this, ThenI've done my job.
Like, for instance, yesterday Ihad to meet a collector who
wants to commission two pieces,Not just one, two pieces, right.
So we had dinner, we're talking, and I was supposed to be in
Hoboken to deliver and meet anew collector who want three
(49:01):
pieces for their law firm inHoboken.
But because the other collectorwanted to meet, I sent my buddy
, Matt.
I said Matt, could you go hangthese pieces in Hoboken?
He went into Hoboken, he hungthe three pieces.
He calls me up and he goes dude, I know we don't have Google
reviews, but he just kept onsaying he was the value there of
getting the work hung where hewanted it, the pieces that he
(49:24):
want delivered on time, so withthe whole service of that makes
me feel good and that he's overthe moon with the value of the
pieces he purchased Now.
Should that increase in valuenext year or next year, I think,
with more mass scale of knowingmy work, those pieces have to
become higher.
But at the same time I don'twant to not have something
(49:47):
available for the introcollector of my work and when
I'm not here anymore.
That's something that mychildren and their children have
to decide on.
That's what I'm striving forwith my life is to create this
art in a hand cut paper stencilmedium that I love so much, that
still, after so many years,just invigorates me and lifts my
(50:11):
soul, and the beautiful part is, nobody else has really created
them ever.
Speaker 1 (50:17):
I've developed a whole new thing.
Speaker 2 (50:21):
Some artists, another painter, another printmaker.
This is printmaking, but I'mtrying to develop a whole new
movement, a whole new techniquethat hopefully will be studied
and ignite other people who wantto spend hours on end with an
exacto knife and a piece ofpaper in a room by themselves
cutting like and nerd out onshapes and colors, like all day
(50:43):
long.
And I hope I find my tribe themore that I can get this message
out of what I'm doing and howI'm doing it.
There are no secrets.
I'm not worried that someone'sgoing to come up with my formula
, and that's not it at all.
My formula is my brain.
Speaker 1 (50:59):
And I want to see where they get.
So you're not worried aboutcopycats, because there will
certainly be a copycat wheneverthis success is a copycat.
Speaker 2 (51:04):
Oh for sure, and that's why you didn't bring it
up yet.
So I figured I would.
But I don't feel that way,because no one can ever be you,
no one can be me.
And in the end, let's say, thisis like status quo or the
average or whatever, and youjust put 1%, which is yourself,
(51:26):
and you change that, and youfocus on that Over time.
That 1% separates.
You see what I mean, like agraph, like math.
Speaker 1 (51:35):
Like cream, right to the top.
Speaker 2 (51:36):
It's just, and it's not about one's top and one's
low, it's just that this is thestatus quo, like you said, of
you can't do this, or nobody'sdone that, or this is not
something, and then youbelieving that you could over
time, and then you're like, wow,look at this and it's truly
shocking, but you try not tofocus too much on it, because
(51:59):
that's when you can get curledup into whatever like imposter
syndrome or crippling yourgrowth.
So, you just stick to theprocess and keep that daily
discipline.
But you also have toacknowledge look, these people
are buying four, five, sixpieces at a time.
I think the value needs to go alittle bit higher this year,
and so you increase it a littlebit.
That's the business aspect ofwhat you do, but you always give
(52:21):
a savings of we do 10% tocontinued collectors, and I will
always do that, because if youcollected my work when I started
, my prices are more now, but Iwant to thank you for allowing
me to get my prices more now.
So here's this 10%.
You know savings.
And now everybody takes it.
They say, no, you keep it, I'mhappy to pay more.
Because, like you know what I'msaying and that's how it is
(52:45):
when you add the value right.
Speaker 1 (52:47):
So that is the universality.
I think that's a word,universality.
Speaker 2 (52:52):
Sure, I'll take it.
I'll take it.
It's a word.
If you believe it, I'm makingup words.
I got my note back.
Speaker 1 (52:55):
Listen.
I make up words all the time.
I listen back to these episodes, I'm like what are words?
Speaker 2 (52:59):
That's not a word.
Speaker 1 (52:59):
Right, listen, I'm hiking, I'm tripping, sometimes
I'm stuttering.
Speaker 2 (53:03):
This is what it is, yeah.
Speaker 1 (53:04):
But that is the universal nature of any industry
.
Art has a business Buildingcustomer loyalty and offering
and extending customer discountsas a reward is how you
negotiate with the customer tostay loyal.
Speaker 2 (53:18):
But what the truth about it is.
I didn't study that, I didn'tread that in a book.
I just do that out of my owncommon sense and integrity and
value system.
Speaker 1 (53:29):
You see what I mean.
Integrity, you know Integrity,you nailed it.
Speaker 2 (53:32):
I think that's huge man.
I think it's like so when I wasfirst starting and I was
painting, working as a waiter inHoboken, I would sit next to
businessmen that were bythemselves at the bar and I'd
strike up a conversation and I'dbe like give me some advice.
I know how to make art, but youlook like you're a business guy
(53:54):
Like what do you?
Like?
I want to turn this into acareer Like that's who I saw and
they were like.
I remember Ryan Mitchell.
He became a collector and afriend for life and he said to
me he does business accountingin Hoboken still.
And he said to me he goes,align yourself with
collaborations and businessesand people and collectors that
(54:16):
have the same value system asyou.
That's right.
If you ever take on a businesspartner, make sure your values
overlap.
Your ideas can be different.
They should be, because that'sthe best partnership when you
have different ideas andperspectives.
But you cannot change yourvalue system Because if you
value something, for instance,mass production of art at a
lower price point to get massscale, and I don't it ain't
(54:40):
going to work.
And so I've been approached bya puzzle company.
I've been approached by aninterior design popular brand
that was going to release aseries of my works and I said
I'm grateful for theseopportunities but at the end of
the day, you have to turn themdown because they're not for you
.
It's not what your ethics andintegrity speak of.
(55:00):
So I just think that's superimportant too, and I think over
longevity, of being yourself andproviding this value and
creating this art.
People see that and they trustit more and they're like oh no,
he's really into this.
17 years later, you dosomething and you start to try
(55:21):
to monetize it so soon, and Idon't know, sometimes that could
be an easier path, but I don'tthink it's the right path.
I think it's like the marathon,you know.
Speaker 1 (55:31):
Well, so, ricardo Royg, I think we could sum up
this episode with the valuesystem.
You cannot change your valuesystem in order to be successful
.
Speaker 2 (55:41):
So, ricardo Royg, I thank you for the inspiration.
Speaker 1 (55:45):
I like that I enjoyed this hike.
I enjoy going off trail off thebeaten path and back on.
Oh my god.
I enjoyed your inspiration.
Speaker 2 (55:53):
Me too, and I am certainly motivated, thank you.
I mean it's just transformativeand those are the best
experiences when you're changedafter in a better way.
I think this is truly my firsthike.
I think so, you know.
I mean you totally set the barhigh, but it's your own bar.
It cannot be compared to.
You know what I mean, like goto a room and talk or go out
(56:14):
into nature and let itre-energize you, so thank you.
Speaker 1 (56:19):
Next time when I took a hike.
We find passion and purpose anddrive, all while learning from
the master of LinkedIn himself,joe Appelbaum.
Okay, Ricardo Royg, are you okay with being recorded
on a podcast?
Speaker 2 (00:07):
Sure, yeah, gotta get out of your comfort zone if you
want to grow.
Speaker 1 (00:12):
So, ricardo Royg, I know you as a very famous
creative person, personality,you are an artist, you are
prolific your art is all overthe place and I want to learn
from you and I want to hearabout your successful journey.
Speaker 2 (00:30):
Oh, thank you so much .
Well, likewise, I'd love tohear about yours, and thanks for
the opportunity to be here onthis hike podcast, you know.
First of a cut.
Speaker 1 (00:40):
It's going to be a fun adventure, especially as we.
Speaker 2 (00:42):
It's a moving.
Speaker 1 (00:43):
Well, hopefully you don't get too out of breath.
This is not a very difficulttrail.
Speaker 2 (00:48):
No, no, this is good.
I needed this, and what abeautiful day for it.
I mean, it is Scorpio season,the colors are bursting, and
getting to meet you for thefirst time here is fantastic.
Speaker 1 (01:02):
Well, you know secretly, the main reason why
I'm taking you on this hike is Iwant you to get so much
inspiration from beauty.
Basically you're backyard thesefall-autumn colors the sights,
the sounds, the smells, yeahRight, it is just so inspiring
and I would love if I could bepart of that inspiration.
Speaker 2 (01:23):
Oh, totally, oh for sure.
Now this is going.
If I didn't have lunch withsome collectors after this, I'd
run right to the studio.
So I'll get the lunch and thengo to the studio.
Speaker 1 (01:35):
So I do want to hear about the world of being an
artist and a creative and thewhole collectors thing, right?
So someone like me who's been acorporate professional and
entrepreneur small business,large business, collectors
aren't really a thing that comesaround, so you know.
Oh yeah, that's an interestingconcept to me and we'll hit this
(01:55):
point.
Then we'll go back to who youreally are, where you came from.
Speaker 2 (01:59):
Well, I guess in your world you would call them like
shareholders, yeah, Shareholders.
Well, think about it.
You're buying into the.
When you have a piece of mywork, you're literally buying a
piece of my art and my journeyand whatever transforms from it.
So in your world, you guys buyinto stocks For me, collectors
(02:24):
buy into my art.
I guess that's, I don't know.
I'm all about terriblemetaphors.
So that's number one.
Where's the clicker?
You know, like gee, like?
There's number one terriblemetaphor, I don't know.
Speaker 1 (02:36):
Well, no, I just have to.
Speaker 2 (02:37):
It's how I make sense of the world is through
relationships and you know, it'sjust how I kind of cope.
Speaker 1 (02:43):
Well, you and I can relate on terrible metaphors,
because I make horriblemetaphors all the time.
I make references to baseballand football.
Speaker 2 (02:51):
Oh, yeah, are you a baseball football guy?
No, me neither, and I do thesame thing.
Oh God, it's universally known.
It's going to be a long hike.
Speaker 1 (02:59):
So when you are selling a piece of your art, do
you feel that it is a piece ofyou?
Speaker 2 (03:05):
It is yeah, for sure.
Speaker 1 (03:07):
Yeah, oh yeah.
Are you emotionally attached toall of that?
Speaker 2 (03:09):
art, everything, all of it, man.
Speaker 1 (03:12):
And what does that feel like when someone buys your
art?
Speaker 2 (03:15):
Oh, it's thrilling, uplifting.
It's so fulfilling to be valuedand to know that through what
you can create, other people geta joy and happiness.
And I could go on and on aboutit, but I don't want you to ask
one question and me talk for twohours, so I'll stop there,
listen this is a conversation,right, I am very inspired by you
(03:37):
, not a speech.
Speaker 1 (03:39):
There are these questions that I've just always
wondered, and now I get to askthem with all our guests, which
is rewarding for me.
But do you ever feel sadnesswhen you sell a piece of your
art, like something of yours isnow gone?
Speaker 2 (03:52):
No, never.
You just don't sell thosepieces.
If something's going to bringyou sadness to let go of it, you
just don't let go of it.
You know there's other works tosell and works to keep, Do you?
Speaker 1 (04:00):
have any pieces that you just won't sell.
Speaker 2 (04:02):
Oh, of course, yeah.
So basically, like I mean,you'll probably ask, like, how I
make my art.
Speaker 1 (04:09):
Oh yeah.
Speaker 2 (04:10):
I'm going there, but the art that I've developed is a
hand cut paper, stencil, screenprint.
So essentially you're cuttingout with an X-Acto knife like a
really sharp scalpel or penknife or blade.
You got to point them in thedirection because I don't know
where we're going.
Speaker 1 (04:27):
Don't worry, I won't.
Speaker 2 (04:29):
Thanks for driving me here by the way, like literally
coming to my driveway andhaving me follow you because
otherwise I will still be tryingto find it.
Speaker 1 (04:38):
I will not let you slip down this mountain, don't
worry.
Well, thanks.
Well, if you do, we've got acouple of people like that.
Speaker 2 (04:43):
Yeah, for sure, who may or may not be here, guys,
but basically, and you have yourlike total, like outdoor car
that's ready to rock and driveover, like you know, trees.
Speaker 1 (04:57):
I can definitely rock and drive All right.
So back to the artwork.
Speaker 2 (05:01):
Yeah, so I hand cut a stencil right which is
essentially a piece of paperwith a bunch of holes out of it,
and all those holes representwhere I want a certain color to
go, you know green, blue,whatever, but it's just one
color right.
And then I cut that stencil andI put it over a screen and then
(05:22):
I push ink through the screenand through the stencil, oh,
like a silk screen.
Essentially Correct, but silkscreening, uses Photoshop, uses
computers, uses photography andburns it into the screen.
I'm literally like a caveman,just cutting everything with a
knife right, so it really is.
That sets separates me.
So I cut everything out with aknife out of paper, I pass the
(05:45):
ink on that and after about 20passes, after you get about 20
passes, you make an addition of20 prints, right, so they're all
unique, one of a kind, and thenyou layer the next color and
the next color and the nextcolor and by the end you may get
16 or 15 good ones, because theothers kind of fell apart in
(06:07):
the process.
But the reason you asked melike, do I ever feel sadness of
letting go of something?
And I wouldn't, because what mywife does is she keeps one or
two of each addition.
So I have like 21 flat files ofmy own work.
I have over 3,000 of originalworks that I've kept Well, my
(06:29):
wife's kept for the kids and forher, and you know what I mean
and so you could sell out of.
You know an addition, but youstill have one or two of them.
Speaker 1 (06:41):
If that makes sense to you.
Speaker 2 (06:43):
So the oil paintings that I've made are truly one of
a kind, and those are in thehouse.
You know, those are hanging onthe walls, like I have in.
Oh, now we're hiking.
Speaker 1 (06:54):
Okay, this is awesome .
This is not a cakewalk, this isawesome.
Let me just fix your mic.
Speaker 2 (06:59):
No, this is great, but but yeah, so, so, anyways,
but that's how I.
That's to avoid that factor oflike you don't let go of
everything because you stillhave one or two.
You know what I mean.
And then, yeah, but that's it.
I don't mass produce anything.
Everything's original.
And then you know, nextgeneration, sure, I'd love for
(07:23):
my kids to you know, capitalizeon having all this original in
the copyright and be able totake the art to that next level.
Speaker 1 (07:31):
But we'll make sure you put that in your will.
Yeah, no, I'm creating thewhole trust and everything.
Speaker 2 (07:35):
Yeah, right now it's just original, because that's
the, that's the special part oflife, right, the rarity, and you
got to keep to that.
That's right so anyways, sothat's my answer.
Speaker 1 (07:48):
So you have these like it's in the process, right.
Speaker 2 (07:50):
Like you know, like within the process, you don't
add that and I don't know, sorry, so you have these 3000 pieces
of art that essentially are anextension of you.
Speaker 1 (08:03):
Is that the right way ?
Speaker 2 (08:03):
Oh, for sure, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1 (08:05):
And you feel like each one of these are your baby.
Speaker 2 (08:08):
That's just what I have for myself, if that makes
sense to you.
Speaker 1 (08:11):
You have more than that, wow.
So how long have you beencreating art?
Speaker 2 (08:14):
20, so they're each.
So I just expect to that, likethey're an addition, right.
So there's 20 of.
It's kind of hard to do, Iguess on a hike I'm a visual guy
to like draw your picture Iguess, but but it's like so no,
there's lots more art than that.
That's just like what, what,what we're, you know, keeping in
the, in the collection and grow.
Those are like unique imageimages.
(08:35):
If that makes sense, got it.
So when did you get the?
Speaker 1 (08:38):
sense that you, what really?
When did you get the sense thatyou were on to something that
you have?
You had to get a stance.
Speaker 2 (08:45):
My first stencil is in 2006.
I had transferred into CainUniversity after going to an art
school and a liberal artsschool and I didn't graduate
college yet, moved back home,was able to enroll at Cain
through a tuition waiver programthrough unemployment if you
(09:07):
have like 30 previous collegecredits, the government will pay
you to finish school if you geta job that's in demand.
So I was able to finish schoolfor free and Cain accepted me
for one year because I have togo there for one year and when I
was transferring in my thecounselor was Debbie Skibitzky,
(09:30):
the old mayor of Westfield'swife oh, yeah, and she looked at
my portfolio of work and said,wow, you have accomplished
portfolio.
You went to these art schools.
You've been in school for areally long time.
You need to graduate.
You should try something andget out of your comfort zone.
And I was like, well, whatshould I do?
And she said, well, I'm lookingat your portfolio and you
haven't taken screen printing.
And I was like you're justamazing, because not many people
(09:55):
especially you know if it's notlike art-centered would
understand the differencebetween a lithograph and etching
a print.
You know what I mean screen.
So she offered that I shouldtake screen printing.
So I enrolled the teacher forthe first day was like cut
shapes out of paper and I waslike I love this, oh my god, and
(10:16):
I love this story.
I love this hand-cutting andthe teacher, joe Zapotowski, who
I'm seeing Thursday, actuallyat Cain University, because they
invited him to be artist inresidence after 17 years of ago
when I discovered, you know,that art could be made this way.
And Joe, as a professor, waslike, look, that's just like the
(10:37):
intro.
Like when you learn math, youget like a stick of like ten
cubes, and that means ten and sowhen you go to pay your check,
as an adult, you don't like pullout the cubes, you're like hold
on a second, let me get thepercentage of this.
Like you just learn it.
So the hand-cutting was just tounderstand layering and that's,
(10:57):
in all aspects, right.
And I was like, no, no, I lovethis and he goes.
Well, you got something there,why don't you just run with it?
And he let me not learn theother aspects of print make, of
screen printing, and I justfocused on that.
So it was when I cut my firststencil.
I truly fell in love at thattime.
I also fell in love with mywife, now girlfriend then.
(11:18):
So love was just like allabound and you know, you know
when you know, and I just likedove in wholeheartedly it in
both the love of my life and thelove of my art, and you know,
as an oil painter.
As a painter, I was alwaysstruggling with where to put the
paint, how to tame that animal,but with screen printing and
(11:39):
hand-cutting I cancompartmentalize the piece.
I can actually show you what'sgoing on in my head.
I can more clearly describe howI see the world in all shapes
and colors, like right now, andthen I can express that.
And it was so much of a clear,so much of a better vision for
me, and so I just ran with it.
(11:59):
And now, 17 years later, theyactually invited me to be
artists in residence.
I created a 44-foot mural.
My art has developed intohand-cut stencil murals, so not
just hand-cut stencil attachedto the screen, but now I
hand-cut stencil on a wall and Iuse spray paint and overlap the
spray paint to create the mixedcolors.
Speaker 1 (12:19):
Yeah, I've seen your murals.
Speaker 2 (12:20):
They are, they are beautiful they are so much,
thank you.
Speaker 1 (12:24):
I love making them.
Let me just pause for a second.
I want to go back to somethingthat's so important and critical
in your life.
Okay, mayor scabitsky's wifewhat was her name, I believe is
Debbie scabitsky.
Debbie scabitsky, she gave youan idea and you ran with it a
challenge.
Speaker 2 (12:42):
She said try something you've never taken
before.
Get out of your comfort zone.
Yeah right, she gave you adirection.
Speaker 1 (12:48):
She pointed you in that direction yeah and then the
day you showed up and Ilistened so the important theme
is the fact that it is sometimeswise to listen to the advice of
others.
Now it's okay to question thewhen it's expert advice.
Speaker 2 (13:02):
I mean, she's a counselor, wasn't like somebody
on the street, like that's whatshe does for a living.
Speaker 1 (13:06):
You know, and true, you know so here's the thing,
though, is you and I share avery similar story, and I know
many of the listeners share thisstory as well.
I was told by my brother that Ishould go into
telecommunications before I wentto community college.
Right, I was graduating highschool.
I had no idea whattelecommunications was, but his
advice to me is I love math, Ilike science, I like breaking
(13:31):
things, take them apart, puttingthem back together working with
my hands and this is a new andexciting field and career.
So what did I do?
I listened to him.
So I enrolled intelecommunications classes.
Within the first five minutesof sitting in my first class in
college it was an electronicsone class the professor said he
(13:51):
put down what's called abreadboard in front of us okay
you put electrical componentsfor testing.
He put it down and had somecircuitry on it, so resistors
etc.
And he said follow the path ofthe electrons from the voltage
source until the ground and that.
With that sentence I'm lookingat this and that's when I said I
love this wow right, and thatadvice from my brother listening
(14:14):
to my brother's advice in yourcase, debbie Skibisky's advice,
the advice of others that careabout you that put us both on
the paths where we are oh, yeah,yeah, I think the signs are all
around, but it's up to you.
Speaker 2 (14:27):
Like no one can force you to do anything.
It has to be your willpower.
Like you have to look for thesigns, whether it's like a penny
on the floor, a feather, youknow, 111 1 1, 1, 2, 3.
Like 4, 4, 4, 3, 3, 3.
Like you ask yourself, like isthis really what I should do?
And then you look up at a stopsign and a garbage truck comes
(14:49):
by and it's like, yes, youshould do it you know, like,
like written on the side.
You know, it's like like I wastalking to a collector last
night and his daughter was gonnago to Brown and for some reason
he didn't want to go to Brown,but he didn't really want to say
that.
Speaker 1 (15:01):
And she started yelling.
Speaker 2 (15:03):
Well, I don't know, I don't think he was, but is that
it?
They're?
Speaker 1 (15:06):
the opposite I'm like .
So the daughter was like calledhim up.
Speaker 2 (15:15):
He's at a red light.
She's like yeah, dad, I thinkI'm really good wanting to go to
Amherst.
He looks up the bus next to him, says Amherst it's like that
type of, that type ofsynchronicities of things when
they happen more rapidly.
The signs are there.
So like I guess that started itright, like you chose that path
(15:36):
, you listen to him and then itkind of like probably has just
unrolled, unraveled more of yourlife, right, like on that path
right.
Speaker 1 (15:44):
Being in tune with signs is wild how I live my life
that's all I do, that's it.
Speaker 2 (15:52):
I just follow the signs and then you're like, hey,
let's go hiking in the woods.
And I'm like, oh, my god,that's amazing.
You know it's like, let's do it.
Speaker 1 (16:01):
You know, like, like, I want to do this point because
it's so critical, being openand willing to listen to the
advice of others.
Again, you can question if youthink?
Something is bad advice, butwhat is coming from a good place
, just being willing to listenand being in tune to the signs,
whether it's whether it's nature, or just being being just
(16:22):
completely available.
Yeah, take in your sights, yoursounds, your scenery because,
like you just said, the busdrove by.
Oh my god yeah, this isinspiration right here oh right,
here you kidding me.
Speaker 2 (16:35):
I mean, and that's it .
Like if, if you want to receive, you got to be ready.
Your hands have to be empty.
You can't like, have 50 bagsand want more.
No one's gonna give you morebecause you've nowhere to carry
you have to be so you have to beavailable, which means like you
have to cut out distraction,you have to focus, you have to
(16:55):
audit your life, you have tomake the hard choices.
You know what I mean.
You have to like have your willstronger than the programming.
You know what I mean, becausethe programming is all there for
you to just fall in line.
You have to have the will toovercome that and to do it on a
daily basis, which is thediscipline.
So you know you could have Ithink there's a quote it's like
(17:18):
your life could have one of twopains one, the discipline.
The pain of discipline, whichis hard and you get there.
Or the pain of not beingdisciplined right, and it's so
much better to just like knowwhat that focuses and to get at
it.
I don't know that's right.
I just feel like that if youwant to receive, you have to be
(17:40):
ready to grab it.
You know what I mean.
No one's going to give you morethings if your hands are
already full.
So you know, kind of likemeditating, being in the moment,
when you're present.
The teacher will reveal theself when the student's ready,
you know.
So I just kind of look at theworld that way and I saw it that
(18:00):
way and you saw it that way,and it probably just your
electrons were flowing throughthat path the rest of your life.
Right, like you're still tryingto see where the next uh.
Speaker 1 (18:09):
I don't think I could have put this any better myself
.
Really.
Yeah, you, I'm inspired by justwatching you, really.
Speaker 2 (18:15):
Yeah, I mean, this is kind of interesting.
What's going on right now.
It's like this is interesting,like I'm just talking, and it's
like we're hiking.
We're hiking, we're in thewoods.
Look, mom, I'm safe.
My mom was like you're going inthe woods with who?
(18:36):
You know him, that's awesome,you know him.
I was like mom.
I'm like 39 years old, it'sokay.
Where's?
Speaker 1 (18:44):
mom from.
Speaker 2 (18:45):
Uh, dominican Republic.
We all like joke.
She joke with her accent andstuff.
It's just like a family thing,you know, do you know him?
Listen to me.
Speaker 1 (18:55):
Let's get one more.
Yeah, whatever you need, that'sa good one, we'll take a few
more on the way out.
Yeah for sure, Listen, that wasa beautiful yellow section
right there.
Speaker 2 (19:07):
That's right, this is inspiration.
Oh hell yeah.
Speaker 1 (19:11):
So so I love that message right.
It is so deep and I don't thinkmany people understand it.
Speaker 2 (19:18):
Well, if your life is full of distractions, you're
just going to be like pushedaround, like you know what I
mean.
Like you got to see the wavecoming, you got to see the wave
breaking, you got to see thatwave was meant for you and you
got to stand tall on that wave,otherwise it's going to pass you
by, have you always?
Speaker 1 (19:35):
been like this Hell yeah.
Speaker 2 (19:38):
So do you take time to rest.
No, I've been like this sincelike kindergarten.
You know what I mean.
Like growing up in Westfield.
It was a great education and Iknew early that being an artist
was something you could do for aliving and I was like sign me
up.
I think like in kindergarten.
Speaker 1 (19:54):
So you always had the artistic ability.
Speaker 2 (19:57):
Everything in my life has been surrounded by art.
If I'm learning geography, well, where did the artist live?
Right?
If you're learning abouthistory of wars, what did the
artist do in times of war?
You see what I'm saying.
If you're learning aboutlanguage, well, we're all the
(20:17):
different types of artists andart.
History of the world is art.
You see it through thedevelopment of people,
expressing how its form andfunction and works.
And architecture I mean scienceis art.
Look at pointillism.
Art developed at the same timewhen they were developing, I
(20:40):
believe, a cell.
So they realized thateverything was broken down into
cells.
Everything was broken down intocolors.
So art, science, life it's allinterwoven and I saw that early.
So that's how I approach.
Learning is like art is theglue that holds it all together
for me, so if I don't have artin my life, it's all falling
(21:02):
apart.
Art is my glue.
You have to find what connectseverything.
You know what I mean.
And then you just go where youget energized.
When I met you, you're likelet's go, frank, let's do it.
These guys that are not reallyhere are awesome.
They drove an hour and a halffrom up St York to be here.
If you don't show up for it.
(21:24):
That's what it's about showingup for each other and keeping
your energy high.
Speaker 1 (21:28):
It's being ensured.
And being open, being availableand being ready to say yes to
an opportunity which.
I think too many people are sofocused in their daily lives
Because you wake up too late.
Speaker 2 (21:38):
You're already like controlled, like you get up at
nine.
Think of the world that gets upat nine.
You know, but think of theworld that gets up at five.
Speaker 1 (21:45):
Early bird catches the worm.
Speaker 2 (21:46):
Think of the world that gets up at six.
You're kind of like with thattribe, Like you don't see them,
but you could feel them.
You wake up.
The world is calling you.
Speaker 1 (21:55):
What time do you?
Speaker 2 (21:56):
get up.
Speaker 1 (21:58):
Hey, listener, thanks for hiking along with us.
Discover more episodes atiTokaHikecom, or to recommend an
adventurous guest.
Try to be a sponsor.
Discover books along the trail,or to simply drop us a line.
Let's reminisce on somethingyou just said before is that
when you get an idea that popsin your head, you just run with
(22:19):
it.
Speaker 2 (22:19):
You have to, and how can you run with it?
Your studio has to be clean.
You have to be ready.
You know, like, I think, a lotof people who are creatives,
they don't have a dedicatedspace and so they spend half
their creative time likeorganizing and setting it up.
That feeling is going to escapeyou.
I have two studios one forlarge oil paintings and large
works and one for hand cutscreen prints, and I'm also on
(22:42):
location for murals so,technically, three studios.
When the inspiration strikes, Igo to that space, ready to rock
it and roll Like, not like,well, let me clean up and sweep
the floor.
You know you have to right Like, when the idea strikes, write
it down.
You know.
Speaker 1 (22:59):
Someone who is in the opposite world, the business
world.
We'll say we follow the samethought process when I get an
idea that pops into my head.
I don't care what time it is.
Sometimes that best epiphany isin the middle of the night,
when you're sleeping and youwake up.
I go straight to an O-pad, Iwrite it down, or I type it down
.
You don't turn it off, youdon't thwart that, that that
(23:22):
resignation, because if you'rein tune to that, your best ideas
start flowing.
For me, my best ideas are inthe middle of the night I wake
up, or in the shower, andsometimes I I kid you not,
sometimes I scribble with myfinger on the shower glass.
Speaker 2 (23:37):
Oh, I do that all day long.
Yeah, because you, so it lastslonger, it lasts longer.
Speaker 1 (23:42):
But it's the art of writing, though that handbrain
connection, that I ended upwriting it also puts it out into
the world like on a super deeplevel.
You know, I haven't when youwrite it out.
Speaker 2 (23:52):
It's like it's epic.
Speaker 1 (23:54):
I haven't actually researched it as a product Like
a shower pad that I could use,because that would be really
cool if that does exist.
So I will look at that after.
Speaker 2 (24:04):
But no, the shower pad.
I like that.
Speaker 1 (24:07):
It's like the scrub daddy family.
Speaker 2 (24:08):
The shower pad man that thing is awesome, by the
way.
I have like 10 of those.
I have a daddy scrub mommyscrub baby scrub sister for your
brother.
Speaker 1 (24:15):
And truck looks pretty clean?
Speaker 2 (24:16):
Oh no, it's a Jeep.
Speaker 1 (24:18):
Jeep's are meant to be dirty.
Speaker 2 (24:19):
Oh, okay, it's clean as you drain one, two weeks.
Speaker 1 (24:24):
So no, I think that's an important fact that people
should pay attention to is don'tstop the creativity.
I don't care what line ofbusiness you're in.
When the idea pops in your head, let it flow.
Don't stop working if you're inthe mood.
And in the mood, why Right?
Like you as an artist.
You don't stop painting whenit's five o'clock.
(24:46):
You keep running right.
Speaker 2 (24:48):
Well, it depends.
So I run galleries too.
So if someone reaches out andthey're like, oh, I need to buy
this piece, tonight I'm going toa wedding, I'll stop creating
and I'll go make the sale,because that's my job too, I try
not to stop the creativeprocess and I block out like
times that I can't be, you know,interrupted.
(25:09):
However, you know a sales ofsale and when those come in and
through an email or something, Itry to put the emails after the
creative time.
Speaker 1 (25:18):
But you're our business owner, right?
You have your own gallery.
Sure, that makes you a businessowner, so you're the business
world.
What aspect of being in thebusiness world do you not
appreciate?
I love it all honestly, I loveit all yeah, because I just even
the emails.
Speaker 2 (25:32):
Yeah, I get excited because, like I love I'm not
just like a guy who can createart.
Like I like creatingrelationships and building humor
into people's lives and takingmy energy and adding excitement.
Like I love what I do throughand through, I'm happy as a I'm
so fulfilled and part of havingit all is understanding that you
(25:55):
do.
You know what I mean and notsearching for things to fulfill
it.
You know, like I have twolittle kids, a wife, I get to
make art all day.
I get to connect with creative,interesting people.
I get to collaborate withcreative, interesting, you know,
businesses.
It's I just have fun with it.
You know what I mean.
Like I remember like stressfuldays as a teacher, sometimes
(26:17):
when I was on a cart pushing artinto a classroom and if at any
moment, I started to get likeyou know not the high vibes,
like I was like oh, like fearset in, like can I do this?
Like you know, becauseessentially, art teaching on a
cart is like nonstop birthdayparties.
You know you're running like 25little kids like birthday.
(26:37):
Like we're doing this, yay, allright, let's take it home, but
at any moment I would just sayto myself have fun with it.
Because if I'm being presentedby the world to be in uplift 25
young minds, I better you knowwhat I mean have fun with it.
I better be those high vibesand guess what More
(26:59):
opportunities come out whenpeople like the people they work
with and they're fun to bearound and they're exciting and
you know what I mean.
So it's just like a solid wayto live.
So yeah, no, I I have fun withall of it Like and that's why I
like doing it all and I don'tsee anything as a.
You know, you know what I mean.
But hey look, there's only somuch time of the day and if I
(27:22):
get to a level where it's like,oh my gosh, I really need, you
know, help with the, with thesales organizing and all that, I
think that person willorganically approach themselves
and I'd love to partner withsomeone you know what I mean
Rather than like higher andtrain, like, if I have to like
(27:43):
kind of like instruct somebodyon how to do something, they're
probably not the right person todo that.
Speaker 1 (27:48):
If you're going to pick a partner for your business
, they need to complete you, asJerry McGuire would say.
They need to be able to fill inthe gaps, naturally, of all
your weaknesses.
Anything you don't want to doBecause the goal.
If you don't like filingpaperwork, then you hire someone
who's great at filing paperwork.
Speaker 2 (28:08):
Why?
Because that frees you up tomake art, because they're
excited about it too, yeah, andthen they love what they do, and
then that energizes you.
You know healthy partnerships.
Speaker 1 (28:15):
Obviously, there are unhealthy partnerships, which is
detrimental, and unfortunately,there is nothing wrong with
sharing the workload and sharingin the success.
In fact, myself I have alwaysdone better with partners,
people who truly wanted me to dowell and I wanted them to do
(28:36):
well.
Together, you combine, likeVoltron oh yeah, Right and you
make this great magic happen.
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (28:42):
Oh for sure, yeah, like, for instance, one big, big
opportunity that came throughwas a partnership.
So the Ritz Carlton Hotels, theaddition hotel Miami is, you
know, inviting me to demonstratemy art on December 7th to a
private party of their residents, and I'll be doing a demo of my
(29:04):
art before the first look ofArt Basel Miami.
Wow, great partnership, right.
Speaker 1 (29:10):
I would say so.
Speaker 2 (29:11):
I'm an artist.
They're a fantastic hotel thatoffers, like I think they have
an ice skating rink in theirhotel, like it's fabulous.
So it's like what a coolpartnership where, like you know
, they have residents that wanta dynamic event and here's an
artist with a dynamic artprocess that you can watch and
(29:33):
you know that exactly.
Together, like you said,voltron right.
So there's Voltron, right, likeyou know.
And speaking of Voltron, Iguess, transformers I'm doing a
mural for Rumble Gym.
They're a gym in opening.
I did the one in a couple ofmurals in Westfield, new Jersey,
but now they're opening upanother in Princeton, and so
(29:54):
part of what they do in theirgyms is they bring in local
scenes, and so they're bringingin Einstein, you know, being
from Princeton, and also, well,they're not bringing him in.
Speaker 1 (30:06):
Right right, I'm sorry.
In the art, in the art, themural, right right Sorry.
Speaker 2 (30:11):
And I'm like hiking and talking.
But the other one that I'll becreating is, I believe, a
bumblebee from Transformers.
So when we said Voltron, Ithought of the Transformers and
like, what a cool partnership aswell.
Like I get to create murals fortheir you know, for their gym,
which creates community, whichis about, you know, that mindset
(30:34):
of being your best self, of youknow, so you can help others.
It's just like all together andI think those like partnerships
truly work when everybody hassomething unique to bring and it
just adds value to each other.
Like the Ritz Carlton when Idid an event in DC last month,
the head of the property said,wow, you really elevated this
(30:56):
experience.
And I'm still just speechlessfrom that Because I'm like, oh
my God, like this is RitzCarlton, this is like Sinatra,
this is like Epic.
And I'm elevating yourexperience through my love of
art, making Like so cool, rightso you have to seek those
partnerships because they getyou out of your comfort zone and
(31:16):
they are the bridge totransform you.
You will not transform to thelevel that you're, I guess,
destined to if you don't takethose partnerships and that
trust on another person oranother organization or you know
, like with this wonderfulcollaboration with Kane
University, as the artists andresidents and you know, I've
(31:38):
worked with Hilton and Amazonand W Hotels and W Hoboken I had
an art gallery for basicallylike four and a half years- in
the hotel, and that's whatreally was my biggest.
Speaker 1 (31:52):
That's what I needed.
Speaker 2 (31:53):
Well, yes, I was a teacher and we were running an
art gallery and I was making art, you know, full time and
teaching full time.
I never took anything part time.
And after a few years of that,in Hoboken, the W Hotel reached
out and said hey, we would loveto have your gallery in our
hotel.
We have this space.
And I was like are you kiddingme?
(32:15):
And so I told my wife and she'slike you know what?
It's time for you to leaveteaching so you can, like swim
with both arms and and and youknow what I mean.
Instead of, like you know,teaching from you know whatever,
it is 830 in the morning till330, then rushing to Hoboken and
running a gallery from 5 to 8and then making art from 8 to
(32:37):
like 3 in the morning.
I mean, I did that for so manyyears.
And she's like look, you workedhard.
Like this is you'll regret ifyou went at this not full
heartedly.
And when I left teaching in2000, I think it was like 17, 18
, that's what happened.
The W Hotels offered me thisgallery and, and there's the
(33:00):
collaboration that then allowedme to get my art internationally
in.
Paris, germany?
Oh for sure, because the it'san international hotel.
You know, ball players staythere when they play.
It met life, sadie, you knowlike.
I got to meet a wonderful groupof residents.
Even, too, there's 40 residentsthat live there.
It was a great, convenientlocation for the community of
(33:23):
collectors and art lovers andhoboken, and it was fantastic,
you know.
But as hotels go, they evolve,and the next, you know, the next
iteration of that space is thisawesome Omakasi experience,
which is fabulous for a datenight, and I still have my art
in the windows on the riverstreet windows, these big like
(33:43):
Macy's windows, so I get to putmy larger pieces and people can
purchase them through the window, through the QR code, through
emailing me, but they can viewthem 24 seven.
You know it's like a streetgallery but it's through a glass
window on the outside and youknow it's through working with
them.
That connected me with RitzCarlton and you know I mean.
(34:05):
So it's just.
I definitely advise people toseek those collaborations when
they're ready.
Yeah, the issue I think withpeople is they're so ready to
get to the next level, but theyrealize the first level is
endurance and, like you know, ittakes a long time to develop
and to get your signature style,but then you have to recognize
(34:28):
it once it's there and go.
You know what I'm saying.
So not not taking, I meanwhatever.
Everybody has their own path,but for me I definitely develop
my paintings for a while, andthen I develop my hand cuts for
a while and then it's just likemagnetized.
Speaker 1 (34:43):
You got your practice , all the opportunities.
It sounds like you've had a lotof inspiration and your wife by
the way is your biggestchampion.
Speaker 2 (34:49):
I can hear it she's my muse.
Yeah, she's not the first timeI have heard a guest call their
wife.
Oh, she's everything I find mywife amusing.
Speaker 1 (34:58):
I don't know if I'd say I love that.
Speaker 2 (35:00):
But no, my wife inspires me all the time.
Speaker 1 (35:07):
It's really important , much like a partner in a
business to have the rightpartner in life.
You have to, and listening toeach other is very important.
Your wife put you in thisdirection.
You were in tune.
Recurring theme in your life,you were in tune.
And that sets you up for the WHotel, which puts you on an
international stage.
Speaker 2 (35:24):
Definitely.
Speaker 1 (35:25):
And with international notoriety which is
phenomenal.
Speaker 2 (35:28):
So I mean with private collectors who stayed
there and things like that.
You know, I haven't really goneto that like other gallery
level yet, because I just beenso busy with doing, you know,
running my own and I'm happywith this level of success
because I had two little boysand, like you know, if I had to
go across the world to go to anart show, I don't know if I'm
(35:49):
ready for that, because I reallywant to like see my kids grow
up and be there for them, andthat's why I like doing things a
lot on the local level and, youknow, like going to Miami
school, but they're coming withme.
Speaker 1 (35:59):
You know what I?
Speaker 2 (36:00):
mean Like.
So I think in time you canalways go get bigger and grow
the importance of balance in asuccessful life.
Speaker 1 (36:09):
You could be the most successful artist on the planet
, most successful CEO, businessperson, investor, it doesn't
matter.
Oh yeah, right.
But if you are not present inlife for your family, all you're
doing is racing your life away.
For the material thing thatyou're not taking with you, but
the legacy of deep rooting,strong family values, is de
(36:29):
minimis.
Speaker 2 (36:31):
Oh for sure.
I mean, like, think about it,if I gave you all the fortune in
the world that you want toachieve, you know, with your,
your talent, or your skill, or,like you said, if I vow you said
earlier like I value this time,right, so I give you all of
that in a material sense, you'regoing to fall over because you
have no balance, you know what.
I mean.
So you need the balance inorder to accept the abundance
(36:53):
that is generated from producingvalue through your passion,
your drive, you know and thechoices you make on a daily
basis.
Speaker 1 (37:03):
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Speaker 2 (37:38):
So cool, yeah.
I mean, I loved hiking.
I need to do it more.
Speaker 1 (37:42):
And this is like everyone needs to do it more.
Speaker 2 (37:45):
Everyone needs to do it more you want to take a hike,
you know to be like.
Follow the signs, like okay,you know like well, now you took
a hike.
Speaker 1 (37:53):
I did take a hike.
Speaker 2 (37:54):
You know it's funny, one of my neighbors there was
like a neighborhood birthdaythis weekend and so we're
talking and he's like, what doyou got going on this week?
I was like, oh, I'm taking ahike.
This guy local has a podcast,darren, he goes.
Oh my God, my daughter goes tohis.
I know my son goes to hisschool, cause I always see him
pull up.
He has this big car with asticker on the backs.
(38:14):
As I took a hike and I was like, oh sweet, you know.
So my neighbor's kid goes tosome school yeah, very cool.
Or after school some program orsomething.
Speaker 1 (38:24):
I got three kids.
I don't know which kid youprefer.
Let's watch out for the mudthere.
Oh yeah, we are almost to ourdestination.
You got it, man.
Speaker 2 (38:32):
The Grand Canyon of Union County.
Speaker 1 (38:35):
No, the other one is more grandiose.
So talk to me more aboutinspiration.
Speaker 2 (38:40):
Yeah, so I think you know, I think you have to be
honest with yourself and go withwhat you're curious about, that
feeling and that energy withinyou that's pulling you, and you
know, towards maybe a medium ora subject matter and just to,
like you know, go with it andgrow with it and not so much try
(39:01):
to find it all the time.
And you also have to be readyfor inspiration, like I was
talking to you about that Manetand de Gaucho.
I haven't seen it yet because Iwant to make sure that once I
see it I could rush back to thestudio that day and get into
another piece and be ready toreceive that inspiration and
then run with it.
(39:21):
But yeah, so the new source ofinspiration, I'm doing a big
solo show at Cain University inJanuary.
It's like a 3000 square footgallery space and I get to fill
it with all my art and you knowthey asked me to develop a new
body of work for part of theshow and so to find inspiration.
(39:42):
That was something different, adifferent, you know, not
necessarily a scene or a personor a place, but maybe imagery
that correlates and creates somekind of allegorical message.
And so I kind of like lookedwithin for inspiration for that
and got into like horoscopes andenergies and learning about.
You know that kind of life andyou know.
(40:07):
So that's pretty cool becausewhen you follow your inspiration
, it leads you on a new path anddevelops you in a different way
.
Speaker 1 (40:14):
So what is making it look like for you?
Speaker 2 (40:17):
I mean the ability that there's just like so much
demand, like it's just amazing,like to receive an email like
this week from you know newcollectors they saw my work,
like seven years ago at an openhouse in Jersey City and they
were like we've loved your workever since, you know and then to
get another email later in theday of you know me and my
(40:38):
husband looking at your work andyou know you're on our dream
list of pieces and we'reinterested to see you know what
you have available.
You know it's like I feel like.
I feel like making it is justlike having really good
collaborations that want tocontinue to collaborate with you
.
I emailed with the W Hobeaukentoday about Miami going down to
(40:59):
Art Basel to do thisdemonstration, and I think that
making it is just likeunderstanding that you're riding
that wave and you don't have topaddle as hard.
You have to work just as hardbut in a different way, and
acknowledging that you'refurther along your journey than
(41:20):
when you started and to have theconfidence to continue that
path rather than trying to addmore to your plate and just
serving what has grown.
I don't really do marketing formy work.
I don't do paid ads.
I don't really pay for the wordto get out, and so, for me,
(41:40):
making it is like the fact thatall these opportunities are
coming towards me Like a vortex,like I've magnified my energy
into this art and the world islike really responding to it.
That's the feeling, I guess, ofmaking it, you know.
Speaker 1 (41:55):
Well, I asked you about making it because we made
it back to the trial.
Speaker 2 (42:00):
Well, I guess yeah, when you make it back home,
coming back to Westfield openingup a gallery locally and seeing
the kids that I used to teachcome by and say wow, mr Roy, you
said you were going to leaveteaching to follow your art and
you opened up a gallery in townand you know, seeing them
further on their journeys,whether it in art and you know,
I guess that's you know goingfull circle back to Cain
(42:21):
University and having them, youknow, basically like invest in
me and, you know, commission mytime for talks and to speak to
others, and what I'm seeing nowis like, yes, creating it is so
important, yes, making it is soimportant, yes, staying in that
vibe is so important.
But now I've reached all ofthese opportunities to reach
(42:45):
others, to energize others, toshare that positive message and
to get that fire kindling or Idon't know if that's the word,
but igniting it and sparking itand being called to do that, you
know.
And so I guess that's thefeeling I don't know how did you
know of making it?
When you made it?
Was it your exit?
(43:06):
Was it your the fact thatsomeone valued it at that much?
Or is it having all thesepeople sign up to podcast?
You know, and saying yes toyour offer of these fun
adventures, like what you know.
Speaker 1 (43:22):
So for me it's been making it in stages, but I don't
feel like I open quote, made it, and I know that sounds like a
safe answer.
Sure, I'm not an egotisticalperson, sure, so I like to be,
you know, at least in my ownthoughts, a little humble on it.
So did I make it by selling abusiness?
Yeah, I sold the business, so Imade it on that milestone Right
(43:45):
.
But now I'm at the beginningsof a startup.
Speaker 2 (43:50):
I'm at the beginnings right.
Speaker 1 (43:51):
This is a new venture .
Speaker 2 (43:52):
I didn't make anything Because you have many
journeys, right yeah?
I'm still a beginner, I'm anoob, as I think that's still
the cool kid work which now, Ijust made it uncool.
Awesome, didn't work hard, butI'm so new at this.
I'm learning.
Speaker 1 (44:06):
You know a different style of interviewing, active
listening, which is incrediblyimportant.
And now I think back to myselfwhen I reflect if I knew then
what I know now, you heareveryone say that If I knew then
what I know now, right.
Well, it's true.
If I knew then what I know nowand was just a better listener,
maybe the exit of the companywould not have been the exit.
(44:29):
Maybe I would have kept itgoing.
Maybe it would have been doubleor triple in size.
Maybe there's so many maybesthat.
I'll never know in a slidingglass door moment that I don't
know.
So that causes me to reflect ondid I ever really make it in
the first place?
And the answer is no.
No, I don't think any of usmake it Right.
We keep remaking it.
Speaker 2 (44:50):
And that is value.
Speaker 1 (44:53):
Hey, listener, thanks for hiking along with us.
Discover more episodes athightokahikecom, or to recommend
an adventurous guest, Apply tobe a sponsor, discover books
along the trail, or to simplydrop us a line.
So I guess, are you motivatedby increasing the value of your
art for your collectors or areyou motivated by increasing the
(45:13):
amount, the vastness of your artto the public?
Speaker 2 (45:19):
I love the rarity of my work.
I love the rarity of life andthe uniqueness, so that's what
my art speaks to.
And these are all greatquestions to think about.
And I do read about thisbecause that's it right, that's
the culture, but you have tostudy it.
(45:39):
Yeah, and now you get a lot ofquestions of what's the
investment in this piece overtime, and I think was it you who
asked, maybe when we first met,or someone Chances?
Speaker 1 (45:48):
are?
I would have asked that styleof question.
Speaker 2 (45:50):
Yeah, I think it was actually you.
This week I was asked oh, byyou, yeah, and I do tend to ask
those questions.
You know, where I'm at now isthat I make art, that I love to
make and people value it and Ilove that, and I don't think
they're trying to sell it on asecondary market.
Speaker 1 (46:09):
It's not about selling.
It's holding value.
You wouldn't buy into an artistthat you believe in if you
thought that $40,000 piece willbe worth $10,000 next week.
Speaker 2 (46:17):
Sure, I mean, I love that, please.
You know that's great.
Like this week I was, you know.
So this week a collectorcontinued to be interested in
the piece, like, oh, I have yourearly works, I want a new one
you made of this Far Hills racetrack.
And I was like, yeah, it's likeinspired by horse racing.
(46:38):
And you know he was like, yeah,I want to continue to collect.
And you know, it's just likesomeone who early work wants to
continue to collect your workwhen people have, like some
people have over 10 pieces ofmine, you know that's a lot.
Speaker 1 (46:52):
That is a lot.
Speaker 2 (46:53):
Some people have bought four pieces the first
time they saw my work.
Like four big pieces, like youknow what that means.
Speaker 1 (46:59):
That means, not only did they love it, they loved it
so much, they also bought you.
They believed in you.
Speaker 2 (47:04):
I just so, I just look at it in terms of that.
You know, I think the value ofthings now with doing, you know,
shows with the Ritz Carltonresidents and opportunities like
that, you know that is a biggerquestion, right, and that's
that's another field of it and Ithink, like it has to right, it
has to get the value of whatit's valued at and rather than
(47:29):
try to seek a mass scale of mywork in a production line or
something I'm not ever trying todo, that I'm trying to make
everything original, valuable.
But I do have different pricepoints for my work.
So if you have $250 to spend onart, I have a small piece.
If you have $1,000, I have apiece like that, and there
(47:51):
generally be other things.
So I'm starting to do drawingsat $500.
I sold my first drawing inPhiladelphia to an art you know
dealer and art advisor.
I'm sorry.
And so, rather than try to takesomething that's pure and like
put it in merchandising orposters, I love to keep it pure.
(48:12):
I love to get that value, youknow, adjusted to what it's
currently valued at, alwaysbeing in the positive sense and
just opening other things thatare original, that I like to
create, that explore otheraspects of my art.
So I think it's just having adiverse range of it rather than
jeopardizing.
You know, if things are gettingmore valued and more valued,
(48:34):
god bless, I hope they do.
Speaker 1 (48:36):
You know what I mean.
Like, like, as I said, I wantto add value.
Speaker 2 (48:39):
I always want to add value.
So if you feel like you know,you're just like wow, I have so
much value out of this, ThenI've done my job.
Like, for instance, yesterday Ihad to meet a collector who
wants to commission two pieces,Not just one, two pieces, right.
So we had dinner, we're talking, and I was supposed to be in
Hoboken to deliver and meet anew collector who want three
(49:01):
pieces for their law firm inHoboken.
But because the other collectorwanted to meet, I sent my buddy
, Matt.
I said Matt, could you go hangthese pieces in Hoboken?
He went into Hoboken, he hungthe three pieces.
He calls me up and he goes dude, I know we don't have Google
reviews, but he just kept onsaying he was the value there of
getting the work hung where hewanted it, the pieces that he
(49:24):
want delivered on time, so withthe whole service of that makes
me feel good and that he's overthe moon with the value of the
pieces he purchased Now.
Should that increase in valuenext year or next year, I think,
with more mass scale of knowingmy work, those pieces have to
become higher.
But at the same time I don'twant to not have something
(49:47):
available for the introcollector of my work and when
I'm not here anymore.
That's something that mychildren and their children have
to decide on.
That's what I'm striving forwith my life is to create this
art in a hand cut paper stencilmedium that I love so much, that
still, after so many years,just invigorates me and lifts my
(50:11):
soul, and the beautiful part is, nobody else has really created
them ever.
Speaker 1 (50:17):
I've developed a whole new thing.
Speaker 2 (50:21):
Some artists, another painter, another printmaker.
This is printmaking, but I'mtrying to develop a whole new
movement, a whole new techniquethat hopefully will be studied
and ignite other people who wantto spend hours on end with an
exacto knife and a piece ofpaper in a room by themselves
cutting like and nerd out onshapes and colors, like all day
(50:43):
long.
And I hope I find my tribe themore that I can get this message
out of what I'm doing and howI'm doing it.
There are no secrets.
I'm not worried that someone'sgoing to come up with my formula
, and that's not it at all.
My formula is my brain.
Speaker 1 (50:59):
And I want to see where they get.
So you're not worried aboutcopycats, because there will
certainly be a copycat wheneverthis success is a copycat.
Speaker 2 (51:04):
Oh for sure, and that's why you didn't bring it
up yet.
So I figured I would.
But I don't feel that way,because no one can ever be you,
no one can be me.
And in the end, let's say, thisis like status quo or the
average or whatever, and youjust put 1%, which is yourself,
(51:26):
and you change that, and youfocus on that Over time.
That 1% separates.
You see what I mean, like agraph, like math.
Speaker 1 (51:35):
Like cream, right to the top.
Speaker 2 (51:36):
It's just, and it's not about one's top and one's
low, it's just that this is thestatus quo, like you said, of
you can't do this, or nobody'sdone that, or this is not
something, and then youbelieving that you could over
time, and then you're like, wow,look at this and it's truly
shocking, but you try not tofocus too much on it, because
(51:59):
that's when you can get curledup into whatever like imposter
syndrome or crippling yourgrowth.
So, you just stick to theprocess and keep that daily
discipline.
But you also have toacknowledge look, these people
are buying four, five, sixpieces at a time.
I think the value needs to go alittle bit higher this year,
and so you increase it a littlebit.
That's the business aspect ofwhat you do, but you always give
(52:21):
a savings of we do 10% tocontinued collectors, and I will
always do that, because if youcollected my work when I started
, my prices are more now, but Iwant to thank you for allowing
me to get my prices more now.
So here's this 10%.
You know savings.
And now everybody takes it.
They say, no, you keep it, I'mhappy to pay more.
Because, like you know what I'msaying and that's how it is
(52:45):
when you add the value right.
Speaker 1 (52:47):
So that is the universality.
I think that's a word,universality.
Speaker 2 (52:52):
Sure, I'll take it.
I'll take it.
It's a word.
If you believe it, I'm makingup words.
I got my note back.
Speaker 1 (52:55):
Listen.
I make up words all the time.
I listen back to these episodes, I'm like what are words?
Speaker 2 (52:59):
That's not a word.
Speaker 1 (52:59):
Right, listen, I'm hiking, I'm tripping, sometimes
I'm stuttering.
Speaker 2 (53:03):
This is what it is, yeah.
Speaker 1 (53:04):
But that is the universal nature of any industry
.
Art has a business Buildingcustomer loyalty and offering
and extending customer discountsas a reward is how you
negotiate with the customer tostay loyal.
Speaker 2 (53:18):
But what the truth about it is.
I didn't study that, I didn'tread that in a book.
I just do that out of my owncommon sense and integrity and
value system.
Speaker 1 (53:29):
You see what I mean.
Integrity, you know Integrity,you nailed it.
Speaker 2 (53:32):
I think that's huge man.
I think it's like so when I wasfirst starting and I was
painting, working as a waiter inHoboken, I would sit next to
businessmen that were bythemselves at the bar and I'd
strike up a conversation and I'dbe like give me some advice.
I know how to make art, but youlook like you're a business guy
(53:54):
Like what do you?
Like?
I want to turn this into acareer Like that's who I saw and
they were like.
I remember Ryan Mitchell.
He became a collector and afriend for life and he said to
me he does business accountingin Hoboken still.
And he said to me he goes,align yourself with
collaborations and businessesand people and collectors that
(54:16):
have the same value system asyou.
That's right.
If you ever take on a businesspartner, make sure your values
overlap.
Your ideas can be different.
They should be, because that'sthe best partnership when you
have different ideas andperspectives.
But you cannot change yourvalue system Because if you
value something, for instance,mass production of art at a
lower price point to get massscale, and I don't it ain't
(54:40):
going to work.
And so I've been approached bya puzzle company.
I've been approached by aninterior design popular brand
that was going to release aseries of my works and I said
I'm grateful for theseopportunities but at the end of
the day, you have to turn themdown because they're not for you
.
It's not what your ethics andintegrity speak of.
(55:00):
So I just think that's superimportant too, and I think over
longevity, of being yourself andproviding this value and
creating this art.
People see that and they trustit more and they're like oh no,
he's really into this.
17 years later, you dosomething and you start to try
(55:21):
to monetize it so soon, and Idon't know, sometimes that could
be an easier path, but I don'tthink it's the right path.
I think it's like the marathon,you know.
Speaker 1 (55:31):
Well, so, ricardo Royg, I think we could sum up
this episode with the valuesystem.
You cannot change your valuesystem in order to be successful
.
Speaker 2 (55:41):
So, ricardo Royg, I thank you for the inspiration.
Speaker 1 (55:45):
I like that I enjoyed this hike.
I enjoy going off trail off thebeaten path and back on.
Oh my god.
I enjoyed your inspiration.
Speaker 2 (55:53):
Me too, and I am certainly motivated, thank you.
I mean it's just transformativeand those are the best
experiences when you're changedafter in a better way.
I think this is truly my firsthike.
I think so, you know.
I mean you totally set the barhigh, but it's your own bar.
It cannot be compared to.
You know what I mean, like goto a room and talk or go out
(56:14):
into nature and let itre-energize you, so thank you.
Speaker 1 (56:19):
Next time when I took a hike.
We find passion and purpose anddrive, all while learning from
the master of LinkedIn himself,joe Appelbaum.
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