Ryan Roth's portrait
Ryan Roth: " I’d like to help make art a much greater aspect of society"
BPP: Ryan Roth, you are an
Art Representer, a Career Guider, you
do art investment consultation. And all these at the age of 32. What was
the motive that made you pursue a career in the industry of art?
Ryan Roth: Art has always been
around me and from a young age, I could see that art was ever lasting. Many
things come and go in our time and what is left, what remains thousands of years
later, is art. You can see so much in a piece of art, from a persons inner
struggle, inner darkness and or light, to political issues of the time. It can
be fascinating and it can touch, affect, inspires so many people in so many
ways, that it’s unquantifiable.
BPP: What is the relationship between Ryan
Roth and Art - not as a manager of
renowned artists - but personally, as a human being?
Ryan Roth: I love art there are
few things in my life that I can say that about, but I can about art. I can be
lost for an hour, in a piece and I cannot explain why. I can feel a wide
variety of emotions from a piece of art and that's my relationship to it. It’s
personal, raw, emotional. If it is none of those things, then it means little
to me, but it may mean the world to someone else.
I care about what art
can do for you, without you even knowing and I find that, beautiful and
wonderful.
At British Chamber of commerce conference
BPP: Living in Japan, a country with such a different culture from European, do
you feel like a stranger in town, or do you have manage to incorporate the
culture of the people within your everyday life? What was the reason that made
you decide to live there?
Ryan Roth: Japan has a great
unknown art community, just waiting to burst onto the international art scene
and that encouraged me to move to Japan and when you factor in the food and a
culture I’m learning about every day, the choice was very easy to make.
Of course being a
foreigner in any country, always puts you on the outside, but after living in;
France, Australia, New Zealand, Thailand and the USA, I became accustomed to
being on the outside looking in. That only goes so far, as when you have met
some people, made some good friends, then most countries are just the same in
many regards. We all laugh, we all eat we all seek out happiness. Knowing this,
knowing this is in all of us, it makes your perspective shift and you become
adept at being comfortable being on the outside, or at least I have. Luckily I
have always been fortunate in the friends I’ve made in different countries, who
have welcomed me into their worlds.
BPP: In what other countries did you travel,
work or live until now? These alternating
images, habits and cultures, made you consider yourself a citizen of the world,
or this sense was alreadyexisted inside you?
Ryan Roth: A long time ago, I
backpacked in Europe and Asia and traveled around the world. You see a lot and
you understand more and you become more of a citizen of the world, as you see
how your countries actions affect people in other countries. In a global society,
we are all connected. Our food, clothes, computers, cars and pretty much
everything can and often does come from another country. So thinking of
yourself as only caring about one country, I find very strange and fascinating
as usually when people backpack around the world, they’re ideas of self and
humanity change for the better.
As well as the
countries I’ve lived, I’ve traveled extensively through Europe, as well as;
Mexico, Canada, Papua New Guinea, Jordan and other countries.
BPP:What is the highest virtue of a
successful manager - in the opinion of
Ryan Roth- and what is his biggest
drawback may be?
Ryan Roth: Biggest virtue -
Integrity. It sounds simple, but so many people and so many people you deal,
have none. People don’t look out for the best interests of the artists, as they
are more concerned with how much money that can make today and as such, many
make career ending decisions for artists. Sometimes people offer a great deal
of money for a collaboration, but if it’s not the right fit, if it will damage
the long term image of the artist, then I discuss with the artists and
recommended that we pass. It's not about a quick buck, it's about a career.
Biggest drawback –
Single mindedness – Some artist
representatives push artists so much, that they produce work, that's just not a
good standard and the artist is reluctant to even create anymore. They get
concerned with money, over the happiness of the artist. Yes money is important,
but they burn out an artist. Again, it’s not just about this money, but about
10 years from now when you help an artist develop a successful and happy
career.
With Australia Environmental Minister
with Sue Wong at Sue Wong private event
BPP: Apart from the above activities as an Art
Representer, a Career Guider and an Art
Investment Consultant , we’ve heard that
you have some ambitious plans for the future. Would you like to talk about
them?
Ryan Roth: I’d love to and very
happy you have asked. There are two projects I will be launching. One is a very
large art event, which will be in; London, Tokyo, Paris, NYC and a few other
locations. I can’t say more except, it will have more floor & wall space
than any other art event in the world and I’m currently talking with galleries
and some organizations about collaborations on this project and still happy to
talk with others, as it will be large project, I will need a lot of help with.
I will also be looking at a location for a permanent art gallery in Tokyo and
London (2014/15).
Secondly I will be
launching a new travel company next year, an online travel site www.vagabondworld.com - An airline said “it’s amazing” and a tourism authority
said “it’s going to help so many companies”
- It was very humbling to hear this, as when you work on something for
so long, it’s kind of a surprise when people just understand what you're doing so
quickly and want to work you.
Board members of Catalina Film Festival
host an q & a at a film festival
on set filming 281 anti nuke with french tv crew in shibuya japan
BPP: Beyond your plans for the near future,
will you share with us the true vision
of Ryan Roth?
Ryan Roth: There are a few
things I’d like to do.
To change the
landscape of artist representation. To help make art a much greater aspect of
society, both for public art works and for the general appreciation of art in
general. To work on art projects which can help the community and to enjoy work
on interesting projects, while enjoying my life.
If you want to learn more about Ryan Roth, please visit:
Image courtesy Ryan Roth. Photos by Yuki Matsumura. All rights reserved.
