Japhy Ryder is a bipolar artist, interested in representing mental states through visual media. His work typically involves extensive digital manipulation of photographic images and output of the results in high-quality inkjet format. Some works undergo a secondary manipulation, involving layering of fixers and varnishes on top of the output to produce heavily stylized, almost psychedelic works.
Many of his preliminary images are shot in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, and are then shattered and recomposed to form challenging new images that feature colors and symmetry that are not present in the original reality. The intention is to articulate the process by which an individual struggling with addiction or mental health challenges might experience the world, first having to deal with the collapse of the structures many people take for granted, and then the long and painful challenge of rebuilding and recreating personal meaning from the rubble that remains.
Ryder has been showing artworks since the mid-2000s, with solo and group shows at various galleries across the Eastside. He also plays his own sassy brand of rock and roll with the ‘Kings of Kavorka’, and is working towards the launch of his first novel ‘Hotel Amnesia’ coming November 2021.
