ARTIST TO WATCH: BUCKLEY | @buckleynow
This interview is brought to you by Megan of Gazzy by Gazzo. Dive in as we learn more about the incredible artist, Buckley of @buckleynow! She creates murals for your favorite companies like ad agency KAMP GRIZZLY, Starbucks, Warbey Parker in Silverlake and the list goes on. Enjoy the interview!
1. Who are you , what is your name, where are you from? Give me a bio about you so we can start from there.
I’m Buckley or @buckleynow. An artist from Baltimore, based in Portland & LA.
2. What diff forms of art do you create or indulge in? Are you a dancer, maker, painter, etc? What do you call your art form/ art forms? How did you get started doing what you are doing?
I let myself work in whatever forms I feel called to. I write, paint, draw, dance, sculpt, create experiential events, speak, design functional objects…etc. I like to let this list grow and change naturally as I do, but these are the staples I generally return to.
I see each of these modalities as different ways to contemplate the question of how humanity can ideally function, both as a species and as individuals.
That’s more or less how I started as an artist… as a jack of all trades. I noticed how freely I explored different realms of expression, so instead of forcing myself to focus on only one discipline, I got my first art studio (almost ten years ago) and actively tried out every single medium I was curious about. I threw myself into a laboratory of new things, some I was terrible at but kept up with, some I despised and discarded, and some I instantly enjoyed and fell in love with.
And through focused efforts, my voice emerged naturally. To this day, if there’s something I want to explore, I just find out what I need to make it happen and green light myself until it’s realized. It’s not always a success, but I have built a lot of confidence in my ability to keep promises to myself and honor my own curiosity, so it pays off in other ways.
3. What inspires you or drives you? What gets you out of bed each day? Are there any particular art forms that you consider to be highly influential in your work?
I am driven to elevate human consciousness within my lifetime, even if that’s just moving the needle one tiny click forward. I want to see a world of people more connected to one another, themselves and to Earth. I am inspired to use my work as a vehicle for messages reminding us that the physical body is a soulful and spiritual instrument, and each of us is capable of serving and creating a more harmonious existence for all. I get out of bed because I want to participate in the radical shift of our collective evolution.
5. What are your rituals that keep you on track? Self care rituals, meditations, etc- any and all that keep you feel recharged and stoked.
100% above anything else, meditation. Specifically tantra hatha yoga, which is an energetic meditation practice. Otherwise, going to the forest or at least a long walk everyday. And my art practice… creating everyday heals me and helps me process, not necessarily through what I’m making, but just taking time to be in solitude and trust my hands. Each of these rituals energize me because they take me into states of being simultaneously mindful and mindless. They always bring me to my center.
6. How do you handle challenges i.e. creative blocks, or even bigger challenges like the one we are facing worldwide- how do you keep on track with your art and your mission?
For challenges, same answer as above. I meditate & go to the forest. Works every time.
Then, I START WORKING. I just start anywhere, making anything at all, I just go until something happens. Even if nothing “valuable” happens right away, I just show up everyday and eventually things are moving again. Creative blocks are only as strong as we let them be. That’s another reason I indulge many different muses… so that if I’m blocked in my writing one day, I can just paint, and if painting is blocked, I dance, and if that muse is out, I can always draw… etc. I have a contract with existence to never insult it by indulging in boredom, and an understanding relationship to my muses as weather patterns. I don’t take it personally if I have more or less immediate access to epiphany from day to day. That’s just natural. Sometimes when one medium is “blocking me” I surrender to that and trust where my focus goes instead.
Other times I push ahead awkwardly until the ball gets rolling again. As a career artist, I don’t always get to choose when it's time to create something, so I learned how to get those gears going manually. And as a soul on a big mission, I don’t have time to waste being in my own way, so I don’t trouble myself with the idea of creative blocks from within. The outside world presents enough uncontrollable limitations. In order to keep on track in challenging times, I try to build a relationship to outer circumstances in two forms. One as a mirror, and Two, as a mentor. The mirror asks me to find where I am accountable for what’s unfolding around me, and the mentor helps me parce through where there is meaning in it all and how I can use my gifts to be part of the solution. Building a relationship to a challenging time inspires me to be an active part of it, so I can stay empowered in my rituals and aligned with my role as a cultural first-responder. I expect the tides to shift in the outer world rather than hoping for endless certainty, and that keeps me nimble and dynamic in the face of change.
14. Please give us all and any social media links to your work, where we can find your stuff, buy it, how to , what its called ,etc.
What I’m most excited about in my shop right now is a deck of 78 cards for self-inquiry. They just became live for pre-sale!
