Hello and welcome to the 58th 3 Art Questions With Jackson interview! This time I interviewed super talented visual multimedia artist and teaching artist Rajine the Queen. I discovered her art at Rosalux Gallery and then went and looked at her Instagram and website. So cool, so much unique art to see. I enjoyed what she had to say about her relationship to art and I think you will too. Thank you for reading! (Instagram: @whataweirdkidcreates / Website: www.rajinethequeen.com/ Images 1, 2, 4 and 5 courtesy of the artist)
Jackson: How did you first become interested in art? How old were you when you knew you wanted to be an artist?
Rajine: I've always been inclined towards creativity. My first memory of doing something "artistic" was when I was 7 or 8 years old. I was at an after school program called Rainbow Kids Club. I was transfer tracing a Betty Spaghetti character (2000's throwback toy, IYKYK). I remember the older kids and the teachers being amazed at how good it was. I was like, "What's the big deal? I'm just copying it." But the level of dexterity I was exhibiting at such a young age and not even being taught beforehand I would say looking back is impressive. I guess being encouraged by peers and adults swayed me towards art.
I went through adolescence drawing, (mainly during classes I should have been paying attention to) taking every opportunity to explore any other creative outlets like pottery (in middle school), and drawing in high school (I failed btw). I didn't see myself as an "artist" or a creative.
I didn't claim myself as an artist until I was at a crossroads in my first semester at the U of M Twin Cities. I transferred from Inver Hills Community College on a pathway program track for communications. The semester was rough, I had no interest in my classes, oddly enough my family was trying to persuade me to study art. I finally decided to pursue an education in art. Even then I didn't consider myself an "artist" when I was an art major in college. Yes I was studying art, yes I was making art, but I never claimed to be an "artist". It wasn't until 2019, my last semester of school, that I claimed to be an artist, since then my practice has evolved into what it is now. I'm a visual multimedia artist and teaching artist. My artwork centers around Black femininity, Identity, and body. My aesthetic is Afrocentric eclectic, I explore with different elements and mediums what Black women do with their hair.
Jackson: I've noticed that you make many different kinds of art. What is your process? What does art mean to you personally?
Rajine: I like to showcase through my art what it means to be a proud Black woman, especially in America. I like my artwork to tell a story (all art tells stories) that looks fun but has many different meanings to them. I don't want to be the "Black" artist that has to be hyper political, I not very much into politics but my work tends to always tie back to commentary of my Black experience.
I like using found recycled materials in my artwork. My first piece I made that I exhibited in undergrad was recycled Coke products. I still have the piece to this day. It's sentimental to me and surprisingly is holding up. I have an inception of the piece that I want to make. I don't sketch it or really plan it out. I just do it, putting it together piece by piece like a puzzle.
Jackson: If you could meet any artist living or dead, who would it be and why?
Rajine: I would want to meet Bisa Butler. I'm not very well versed on all the famous artists, styles, and techniques (people get art history confused with art, a lot of people are shocked that I don't know every artist and art style to exist!).
Bisa Butler is a textile artist famous for her quilts that she makes. Her quilts feature famous African (American) iconography. As soon as I saw them I was enthralled by her work. She is a huge inspiration to me as she started out similar to me. She was a high school art teacher way back when and her work exhibits across the world. One of her pieces was valued at $37,000! I would want to meet her.
