Rejecting Convention & Keeping Artistic Integrity with Richard Malone

Ceri is joined by Richard Malone, a groundbreaking Irish artist whose work has been commissioned for the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Permanent Collection and is held in MoMA. Coming from a working class background in Ireland, Malone talks about forging a unique creative path, rejecting conventional systems, embracing being an outsider and keeping artistic integrity despite opportunities for commercial success.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• The colours and materials in Richard's work connect directly to his experiences on building sites and his grandmother's textile work.
• Despite not following traditional paths, Richard's commitment to making work on his own terms has led to significant recognition, including being the first Irish artist commissioned for the Metropolitan Museum's Permanent Collection.
• Richard believes in maintaining complete creative control, rejecting commercial opportunities (including creative director positions) that would compromise his artistic integrity.
• For Richard, success means having the daily privilege to create in his studio rather than external validation, fame, or financial reward, which helps him maintain perspective.
• Richard views trust as essential to the creative process, crediting collaborators who created psychological safety for his most successful projects, including his Royal Academy installation.
• Coming from a working class background in Ireland has given Richard a different perspective on institutions like the Royal Academy, allowing him to approach them with both respect and necessary irreverence.
• Richard believes artists need to become comfortable with failure and rejection and accept things when they don’t happen the way you would like or expect.

BEST MOMENTS

"The further that you get from where you started, the more you realise the importance of those things in constructing who you end up becoming."

"I think there is a part of me that really resists that art market in the way that I resisted the fashion system because it doesn't feel right to me.”

"The real luxury and the real joy, which I don't think a lot of people understand now, is that I get to come and sit in a studio and make whatever I want in a day. That is unbelievable to me from where I have come from."

"Like it reads immaculately, award, award, award, show, show, show, institution, institution, institution. But like, none of that was planned. And there's so much shit that's in between."

"I've been rejected for everything at least once. And I think now when I get rejected for something, it means nothing. It means absolutely nothing to me. I'm just like, oh, it's just not in my path.”

"Get off social media. It's not real and stop looking sideways."

EPISODE RESOURCES

Guest Links:

https://www.richard-malone.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/richardmalone/?hl=en

PODCAST HOST BIO

With over 30 years in the art world, Ceri has worked closely with leading artists and arts professionals, managed public and private galleries and charities, and curated more than 250 exhibitions and events. She sold artworks to major museums and private collectors and commissioned thousands of works across diverse media, from renowned artists such as John Akomfrah, Pipilotti Rist, Rafael Lozano-Hemmer and Vito Acconci. Now, she wants to share her extensive knowledge with you, so you can excel and achieve your goals.

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