KPLU Local News
(2010-03-07)
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Ryan Henry Ward, a mural painter, says he often sees empty walls and thinks, 'There ought to be a mural there!'
We've all had that feeling. If you don't do something, it will drive you crazy. Some people can't cook a meal until the kitchen is absolutely clean. Others feel incomplete until they've updated their Facebook page for the 10th time in one day. This is how Ryan Henry Ward feels about painting.
"I just kept seeing walls popping out at me. Ugh, there needs to be a mural there, there needs to be a mural there, there needs to be a mural there! And (I) went and just talked to people and told them I'll put a mural on your wall for free," says Ward.
In order to pull this off, he had to save every last penny. Ward says he moved into a camper with his dog, Merlin.
"So I got my food out of dumpsters and food banks and stuff like that and just survived. Yeah, I just, like, cut out the bills."
The plan worked. In just the past two years Ward has painted more than 60 "Henry" murals. Most are in Seattle. Some can also be spotted in Bellevue, Tacoma and Bellingham. He's also been doing a lot of smaller paintings on canvas that are selling pretty well.
"Um, I've been busy," says Ward.
Today, Ward is off the streets and rents a room in a house in West Seattle. Paid work is starting to roll in and he says he's making about as much as a social worker.
At this point you are probably wondering what a Henry Mural looks like. They're usually pretty big; we're talking the side of a building. Lot's of bright primary colors and the characters can be anything from robots and unicorns to goofy birds with googley eyes. Quadropusses also show up a lot. That's a four legged octopus.
The murals can take anywhere from a few hours to several days to make. Ward knows his creations are silly. He wants to make people happy. He wants to make us laugh. This is exactly the effect they have on Corey and Anne Dickinson from Seattle. On this sunny day, they're enjoying a self guided Henry mural tour around the city.
"We love his art," says Corey Dickenson. "It's whimsical. It's not true to scale. The bird's eyes are in an odd place on its head. Things are in a little different place than you see them. It's just fun."
"Yes," adds Anne Dickenson, "I'd much rather see this than a lot of the graffiti and things that are passed off as art in the city. I just think this is great."
Their 8 year-old daughter, Keaton, lingers in front of one of the murals with the same focus of someone taking in a Picasso. "I like the way the way that there's the mushrooms are different colors. It makes me feel happy or jumpy."
At this point in the tour, the Dickinson's are at the Shortstop Coffee Shop. It's just off of Leary Way, the long neck of road that connects Fremont and Ballard.
One of Ward's most supportive fans, Garret Reily, owns the cafe. It's sort of like a "Henry" shrine. There are murals inside and out. The shop's walls are even dotted with the latest Henry paintings on smaller canvases. Reily and Ward have known each other for a few years.
"I love it. I love seeing people's comments about it. They don't get it. And a lot of people are offended by it."
It's true. Not everyone is completely sold on Ryan Henry Ward's style. Nell is one of these individuals. She lives in Wallingford. Last summer, across the street from her house, Ward started to paint one of his biggest murals ever.
"We weren't concerned," says Nell. "We were just sort of intrigued, because this was a large space directly in front of my window. And so it felt as though whatever was going up was pretty much in my living room."First there was a lot of green paint, and then a lot of blue. And then a brown figure began to emerge. A Sasquatch, with his back turned, standing before a blue alpine lake.
"And pretty soon," says Nell, "a great arc of neon yellow pee was streaming out from the front (and we can all imagine what it was streaming out of). And the creature was sort of looking over his back a little bit. And when I saw this I was just stunned because it was essentially in my living room!"
The title of the piece: "Ripple Effect".
Nell has a great appreciation for art, and has nothing against Ward personally. In fact she likes most of his other work. But this was not something she and her family wanted to live with. The neighbors got together, contacted the building's owner and "Ripple Effect" was painted over before the arc of neon yellow even had a chance to dry.
Ward says this sort of thing hardly ever happens and admits "Ripple Effect" might have missed the mark a bit.
"The idea just struck me as really funny. And I knew kids would think it was funny just seeing something like that. I guess it was a mistake."
When asked how long he is going to keep painting at such a prolific pace he doesn't really have an answer. One thought is to travel to other countries and look for new spaces where he can leave his mark. His busy season, summer, is right around the corner. A building he would just love to paint is Dale Chihuly's grey warehouse in Ballard. Until then, he's going to keep scratching that itch. Every wall he sees is fair game.
Jennifer Wing 88.5 KPLU
Ryan Henry Ward © Copyright 2012, KPLU
