Photographer Ryan Musick and I met, while we were both
showing art at this year’s Bluegrass Along the Harpeth on the Franklin
Square. He came with one piece of art, “Bingo’s
Banjo” (pictured right). However,
someone else took it home. With so many bluegrass enthusiasts gathered
together, it was no surprise that it sold.
It was truly a standout piece amongst all the art, and I knew right away
that I wanted to feature Ryan in my column.
Ryan calls himself “a gypsy kid”. He grew up in South Carolina but has moved
from coast to coast. This is his second
stop in Nashville. After moving back to
South Carolina for a while, he returned on the day of the flood and has been
here since then. Ryan feels that the artistic
culture is a good fit for him.
Photography has only been a professional career for Ryan in
the past year. He has had his hand in
many things, such as massage therapy, architecture and assisting in the buying
of rugs in Mexico. He has always had an
artful eye and appreciated the beauty in his surroundings. He photographed as a hobby, until he realized
that he was capturing something really special.
When Ryan moved back to Nashville, he was fortunate enough to apprentice
under artist Jack Spencer. Jack taught
him the difference in art and photography and how to print well. “Jack is a genius,” Ryan said, “And I feel
lucky to have worked with him.”
Ryan works in three different forms of photography. He photographs musicians; he does commercial
work in architecture and advertising; and he does fine art. His first fine art photograph was “Six String
Lottery” (pictured below). He decided to
let go of all of the technical aspect of photography and just see what
happened. The result was obviously
beautiful, so he continued on to the banjo.
He has also photographed Mickey Raphael’s harmonica and Jeff Coffin’s saxophone,
but the banjo is his favorite. He is not
stopping there, though. He already has
another instrument in the works.
Since photography has become a career for Ryan, he feels
honored to be hired to do it. He enjoys working on his own time with no art
director the most. “Although I
appreciate assistance in a commercial shoot,” Ryan said, “being able to do it myself
is amazing but most difficult because I’m my own worst critic.”
You can see more of Ryan’s work at
www.ryanmusick.zenfolio.com.
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