Interview with resident artist Gabriel Richardson

We sat down with Gabe last Thursday to talk about his current exhibition at the resident gallery, here's what he had to say.

How did you find out about AS220?

That's a good question. I think the first thing that I ever went to here was a show when I was in high school that was Drop Dead the Body, I think Verse and St Jude.

And for a long time, the only thing that I did was going to shows and then I realized that there was a lot of other stuff going on. Like, there's this whole building, you know, as funny as it wasn't just like a bar and a restaurant and a venue. I've done stuff at the print shop.

I live here now. You know, I’ve had friends that work here. I think I've done a little bit of everything at AS220

What made you follow the path of creating art?

Probably my parents. Both my parents are artists, and I grew up working with my dad, going to his shop, working with furniture and clothes and looking at the work that he was doing. And then also, like all of my parents' friends, everybody that I was spending time with when I was a kid, especially not having siblings, we're all artists. So it didn't seem like such a weird thing to do. And yeah, I just like making stuff. I don't want to just sit still and not do anything.

What do you pursue besides art?

I think what I do besides art, not a whole lot. I think maybe everything that I do has something to do with some kind of art, whether it's, you know, visual art or performance of music and I think that all the people that I know that I talk to, that I spend time with, like do something, whether it's they're in a band or, you know, they're an artist or they're a maker or whatever you want to call it. I think especially now that I'm older, that the more time I spend with people that aren't artists, I feel kind of out of place and uncomfortable.

What is something that you feel makes you and your art unique? 

Wow. I think with the sculptural pieces, I was able to merge the different interests that I had from two to d work with my work with printmaking, and then also my experience with woodworking, that first working in multiples is always really attractive, not necessarily to have copies of things to give out or to sell, but to be able to explore an idea in multiple ways. So instead of working on a painting and having it set, and then, you know, to be able to see all the different permutations of that. So I think that that is the most kind of authentic thing that I've been able to do, and it feels really kind of natural. Did you face any hurdles with this exhibition for making the pieces?

Did you face any hurdles with this exhibition / making the pieces for it? 

The only thing that was a hurdle was I wasn't sure that I was going to be here. I was away for a while and I came home, like right before I had to get the work here. But I had all this stuff. You know, A good thing I think about is AS220 and the opportunity to show work in a place where you live, especially if you're an artist. I have all my stuff with me. All I had to do was walk around the corner and then, you know, maybe it took me like an hour. So, you know, that is a really kind of advantageous thing about being able to live here, you know, and providence in general. It's just like if I'm downtown anywhere, downtown, it's like I can be there in, like ten or 15 minutes.

What do you see for yourself going forward?

Well, I'm not sure. I have been teaching for the last two years. I'm kind of looking for the next thing. So I don't know if that's here. I don't know if that's somewhere else. I think being an artist and then also being someone who has mostly done like kind of gig jobs, you know, always looking for the next thing, that it can be stressful to not know what you're doing or where your income is coming from. But because I've done not so much and it's always like something comes around. So it's not a totally foreign feeling. So, yeah, so let's see what happens

How can people see the show?

Well, I'm going to be here on Saturday, starting at 12 (3/16/2024), maybe for a couple of hours, depending on who comes. So you could always call me or send me an email, but I'll have to go find someone that can let me in.