Goodbye to Scandy's First Artist in Residence
Andrew “Rathbone” Debuys is a born and raised New Orleanian. He loves to travel and does so most often in cold northern European cities. Rathbone is a master pianist with an ear for the weird. He currently lives in the French Quarter. As a part of his residency, he developed skills in 3D visual creation and meshed that with music for some amazing music videos.
As we say goodbye to Scandy’s very first artist in residence, we decided to ask Rathbone a few questions about his artistry and experience with the Scandy residency program.
What is your style?
Irreverent. It means, when you should be taking something serious but you don’t. Surreal, abstract, subversive are words I like to use to describe my work. But not quite so on the nose, you know.
Was there a pivotal moment in your life when you decided to follow your path as an artist?
It sounds cheesy I know, but I knew I was going to do this for the rest of my life. Nothing stands out as a crucial standing point. It was just something that I always wanted to do. I do remember when I was 9 years old, a friend down the street had a piano. I remember looking at the piano, I was in awe. The power of it, of music. Then I got to play around on it, and I found I had an ear for music, and well, that was pretty much it.
What inspires you as an artist?
A lot. Waking up everyday and having a new canvas. It can be anything. Conversations with people. This conversation. Everything that we do is art. The way that we walk, the way that we eat, our dress. All this stuff influences who we are as people. Just being a human being in this world. I used to need a lot, but now I have so much experience that I find inspiration easy. You learn so much from other people. Women. (he says with a smile and a light in his eyes) and just relationships in general.
What is your view on the relationship/future of art and technology?
Always with technology there is something new to be developed. Art can be used to interpret technology. How can I take my experience and use this new media? It’s not new. Look at perspective in renaissance art, the printing press. How do we take this and make it interesting? Developing, changing, growing. And working within the limitations.
The future is now. It’s already happening. I wanna see this phone have an app that will project hologram music videos. And it’s like up on table. I want AR. 3d and 4d. I would just steal other people’s content and tag them of course to make it legit. Now I can make my own.
What musician of the past would you most like to meet?
Mozart, because I can’t just pull up interviews and videos on youtube to learn about his process. I need to go back and see his process.
Why did you want to work with Scandy?
To embrace the 3d technology and learn 3d animation. I downloaded the app over a year ago, but I wasn’t in the right place yet with my art. Wasn’t able to churn out art that I was confident in.
Tell us about your music videos that you worked on during your residency
I wanted to make music videos with interesting animations for them. I tried to use your technology to make the music more interesting and palatable but come from left field. Let’s get a different take.
What has been your favorite part about working with Scandy and at Scale Workspace?
The people - being around other people - a bunch of other entrepreneurs that are in the same space, and there is a bunch of creativity that goes into that. Being here, I was here to make art, it was an artistic opportunity. Come here and make weird stuff, and we will accept you. It was cool to be accepted. There was a lot of potential and creativity.
I still want to use Scandy even after the residency is over. I make to make things go viral. I want to think big. I try to be consistent but progressing forward.
What platform is good for virality? Does it change how you make your art?
As much as I want to say I make art for me and only me, if I make a 5 min song no one will watch it. The internet exists, and we can’t put it back in pandora’s box. It’s a marriage. I don't want to be 100% pretentious, some is good, but it (art) has to be accessible. There is no shame in getting people’s attention.
What is next for you?
Well, I will always be making music videos and art videos, putting together a live set and playing out more. I want to make a really bad ass danceable live show. I have been writing and recording a lot. It’s time to translate all my demos into a live atmosphere. ____________________________________________________________________________
Follow Rathbone on social media:
Instagram: @rathbone_
Twitter: @_rathbone
Youtube: Rathbone
If you are interested in becoming an artist in residence with Scandy, please fill out an application here.
