Ryker is a queer, trans, multidisciplinary artist, writer and storyteller whose practice spans mixed media, photography, painting, video and digital mediums. He holds a BFA in Graphic Design from MassArt and has worked professionally in the field for over 20 years. His work extends beyond the digital and encompasses art installations, exhibitions, community-engaged art, murals and publications.
Ryker’s process is rooted in exploring the boundaries between mediums and the boundaries between the seen and unseen, bringing the inner landscape of a visceral experience into being. He explores themes of identity, the body, nature and what it means to embrace truth—even the truths that hide within our shadow parts. He examines the trans experience through a universal lens in order to open space for seeing trans people as people first, without a label. He invites viewers to connect with shared human experiences to create deeper awareness and connection. Ryker believes art is connection and that creativity becomes art when it can be felt, shared and experienced by others.
My work is an experimental blend both in form and meaning. I fuse ideas drawn from inner landscapes, cultural observations, identity, personal histories and healing to create layered conceptual stories. I combine unexpected materials and forms—traditional, contemporary and experimental—to offer new perspectives and openings for experiencing the human condition. I challenge the limits of how materials and processes can unfold, and how stories can be shared.
Embracing identity, honoring nature, claiming the wild self and offering visibility to trans experiences are significant to my practice. I work with complex human experiences and seek universal ways to create connection, transformation and awareness. At the core of my work is a desire to create opportunities and spaces to embrace one’s truth and help transform communities into places where we all feel safe, seen and heard.
