Local artist Bryn Perrot has been a part of Morgantown’s creative scene for over a decade now.
After graduating from West Virginia University with a BFA in printmaking in 2004, Perrot stuck around and further fostered her printmaking abilities, all the while contending with financial insecurity and uncertainty about the future.
Perrot has become something of a local celebrity since then – better known online by her artist moniker Deer Jerk, Perrot has amassed 67.8K followers on Instagram, been featured in publications like WV Living, designed merchandise for Supersonic Festival in Europe and partnered with Speedball Print Art to design her own limited edition, mint green posse relief printing ink.
Her work has been showcased in a variety of exhibitions, including at Stuart’s Opera House in Nelsonville, Ohio and Pskaufman Gallery in Los Angeles, Calif.
As Perrot prepared to depart for Ohio, where she and her sister Sage will present an art show titled “Ill-Humored” at Arts West in Athens until the end of the month, she spoke with The Dominion Post about challenges, inspiration and success from an artist’s point of view.
This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
Q: Was there ever a clear moment when you realized that you wanted to pursue are in a career-related way?
A: There was never specifically a moment that I knew I wanted to make a career in art. Even as a kid, I knew I wanted to be an artist. It’s been a constant in my life.
Q: Where do you find inspiration for your pieces?
A: I find inspiration and reference in animals, plants, folk art, pop culture and other artists’ work.
Q: How would you describe your art style?
A: I would describe my work as bold, graphic and curious.
Q: What was the hardest piece you’ve ever worked on that you can remember?
A: I think all of my work presents challenges during the process, but my larger scale work is especially time-consuming. This large scale cobra woodcut, which is eight feet tall, was one of my favorites to carve.
Q: What do you think makes an artist successful?
A: I think that’s hard to define except on a personal level. For me, success is continuing to work and evolve, to get better by my definition. It’s also being able to support myself financially.
Q: Can you name a couple of significant challenges that you have faced as you’ve tried to make your way as an artist?
A: Most of my challenges have been financial. I worked low-paying jobs for years to pay rent and bills until I was able to support myself exclusively with my artwork. Building a following and client base took a long time, but thanks to the Internet I was able to do that in a way that allowed me to stay in Morgantown.
Q: Are you proud of where you and your work are today?
A: I’m mostly satisfied with where my work is currently. I can always do more, and that’s my plan for the immediate future.
TWEET @DominionPostWV
