Musings with Caitlyn Murphy
Toronto-based artist and muse Caitlyn Murphy welcomes us at her studio and shares her work process for RUS latest collaboration along with some thoughts on rituals, small pleasures and everything that inspires her.
Caitlyn’s artwork portraying the SORA dress, TAMAGO skirt and KUMO top textures.
Where’s home to you?
Home is Toronto, Canada.
What are some of your personal “small pleasures”? What effect do they have on you?
Walking my dog in the early morning, when the streets are empty and the sun is rising, brings me a lot of contentment. When a flower blooms in the garden after an endless winter, or when the weather is the perfect temperature for a sweatshirt. Cooking food for loved ones! These small pleasures help remind me that life is good, and helps any anxiety I may be feeling start to fade away.
What sort of rituals do you perform to relax, recenter or regenerate creatively?
On the micro level: drinking a glass of water, going for a walk, sitting outside, talking to a loved one, or playing with my dog. On the macro level: allowing myself to take a day off (or two) to not do anything art related in order to find my groove again.
A corner’s of Caitlyn’s studio and detail of the TAMAGO skirt .
What led you to start painting?
The Illustration program I was in had us take painting and drawing classes every year, and this is where my brain started turning more towards painting over illustration.
What sort of things do you find inspiring? Where do you find them?
Walking throughout the city inspires me and my work deeply. Movies, music, books, gardens, cooking shows… inspiration comes at random moments.
Do you perform any rituals before you sit down to paint?
Cleaning my desk, putting away work that I finished the day before, changing my painting water, putting on a podcast or dublab.com
What colours and shapes are you drawn to the most?
Soft blues and purples, butter yellow, raw umber, pink…
Work in progress for Caitlyn’s collaboration with RUS.
In your day-to-day, do you follow a routine or are you guided by spontaneity? And, if you follow a routine, what does it look like?
A good day would be: walk the dog, feed the dog, breakfast, make lunch to bring to the studio, walk or bike to the studio. Get to the studio, waste a good amount of time on the internet, start painting, have lunch, waste time, paint, walk the dog (or keep painting), go home, make dinner, walk the dog, relax. Repeat. Life was a bit more exciting before the pandemic hit, and hopefully spontaneity with friends finds its way back into my daily life soon.
What musical artist/album/song are you currently listening to on repeat?
I love to listen to sets by Frosty or Rainbow Jail w/ Jimi Hey on dublab.com, or any soulection.com radio show.
How would you describe the RUS universe in three words?
Soft, serene, beautiful.
