Overview

This monograph delves into the career of celebrated artist Robert Ryan. From his early roots as a musician and painter, he discovered tattooing and quickly became one of the preeminent artists in that realm. His work reveals a deep mastery of the American tattooing tradition while creating a mystical and fantastic world full of unique takes on Eastern religious iconography. The book covers two decades of stunning paintings & tattoos, interviews with art and music luminaries about his work and subject matter, detailing Ryan's personal journey and progression as an artist.

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9781943888283

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Reviews

“In his pictures, written on paper and skin, Ryan gathers the traditions drawn from a thousand sailors’ visions of Eastern temples and steeped in the practice of a thousand tattooers before him, from all of us searchers’ quest for meaning across a continent. From beneath the surface of America, from beneath the surface of reality, Ryan mines mystic possibility and gives these traditions new life and new power.” — Andrew Berardini “The Inborn Absolute is a window, an adventure, into Robert’s life that would otherwise take years of knowing one to experience.” — Freddy Corbin “The visionary art of Robert Ryan has the sincerity, urgency, and directness of great folk art. His inherent humility allows him to act as a conduit for images that convey the power of the unseen world directly and clearly, without resort to pretension or artifice that would dilute the authenticity of their spiritual source. Something real is happening here.” — Scott Harrison

In his pictures, written on paper and skin, Ryan gathers the traditions drawn from a thousand sailors' visions of Eastern temples and steeped in the practice of a thousand tattooers before him, from all of us searchers' quest for meaning across a continent. From beneath the surface of America, from beneath the surface of reality, Ryan mines mystic possibility and gives these traditions new life and new power. -- Andrew Berardini The visionary art of Robert Ryan has the sincerity, urgency, and directness of great folk art. His inherent humility allows him to act as a conduit for images that convey the power of the unseen world directly and clearly, without resort to pretension or artifice that would dilute the authenticity of their spiritual source. Something real is happening here. -- Scott Harrison The Inborn Absolute is a window, an adventure, into Robert's life that would otherwise take years of knowing one to experience. -- Freddy Corbin

In his pictures, written on paper and skin, Ryan gathers the traditions drawn from a thousand sailors' visions of Eastern temples and steeped in the practice of a thousand tattooers before him, from all of us searchers' quest for meaning across a continent. From beneath the surface of America, from beneath the surface of reality, Ryan mines mystic possibility and gives these traditions new life and new power. - Andrew Berardini The Inborn Absolute is a window, an adventure, into Robert's life that would otherwise take years of knowing one to experience. - Freddy Corbin The visionary art of Robert Ryan has the sincerity, urgency, and directness of great folk art. His inherent humility allows him to act as a conduit for images that convey the power of the unseen world directly and clearly, without resort to pretension or artifice that would dilute the authenticity of their spiritual source. Something real is happening here. - Scott Harrison

Author Information

Robert Ryan lives in Asbury Park, NJ where he has been painting and tattooing for 20 years, taught in the classic traditional American style of bold line, heavy shading and solid field of color. His knowledge of Eastern Spirituality, Western Mysticism, and Amazonian Shamanism are all distilled through the filter of this powerful folk tattoo aesthetic. Robert's work has been featured in many galleries, schools, and publications world wide. As a musician he has released albums with the bands Lord Sterling, Out Like Lambs, and Harmonize Most High as well as his solo effort American Cloud Songs. Continuing to take many pilgrimages to India, Nepal and Peru, learning from Curanderos, Sadhus, Tantrics, and Monks, his work has tapped into a hidden knowledge which can only be passed down through the oral traditions and ancient practices.

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