An Interview with Sidney Teodoruk

An Interview with Sidney Teodoruk

Guy Hepner and The TAX Collection are excited to be releasing a series of exclusive works on paper with Sidney Teodoruk on Thursday February 27th. The series features a set of two limited edition prints and fifteen unique hand embellished works which will be available directly on the Guy Hepner Online Shop on Thursday from 2pm EST. Please contact the gallery directly if you are interested in a pre-release purchase or original paintings by the artist.

Sidney Teodoruk

 Your work tends to feature both text and imagery – can you talk a bit about how you view the relationship between these two stylistic features? 

The use of text in my work acts as a compositional element and is specifically placed to create a block or a shape. I’m not too concerned with what the actual word is, more the look of it. Sometimes I’ll throw random letters together like PBR in my painting ‘Waste”. Those letters are not a hidden message and do not mean anything to me but rather I find the shape of the letters to be intriguing in that particular part of the composition.

You’re a very active musician as well as a painter – do you find your process shaped by the music you’re creating at the moment? 

Music and art go hand in hand for me and just on a side note, since I started painting again I now approach writing poetry totally different by searching for colour, weight and composition. I am always listening to music, whether it’s my own or someone else’s, when I’m painting. Like cigarettes and coffee but not as bleak.

Being based in Sydney, Australia – is your work influenced by your surroundings? 

I would say no but looking at the body of work I made during my Tasmanian residency it surely has to. My time there was considerably challenging for my mental health and the work shows that. In Sydney, however, I do search and look at graffiti removal – but I suppose you can find that in most large cities.

Fight Your Demons Black by Sidney Teodoruk

We really liked when you had said in an interview when asked “who are you?” and you said “I am everything and nothing at the same time.” – would you say this mentality towards yourself is applicable to your work? 

Totally! In life, you’ll find most things come in twos; Life/Death, Day/Night. Salt/Pepper.. It’s the ancient Chinese philosophy, Yin & Yang. I’ve spent my entire life trying to find out who I am and to be honest it was a waste of time. Just create who you want to be. Create the art you want to see. Create the art you want to question and make others question too.

What’s one thing that is always in your studio when you’re working? 

Me. That’s all I need. Take away my materials and my studio space and drop me in the middle of nowhere and I’ll still draw in the dirt.

It’s been said that you “use a language of juxtaposition to explore the way you perceive both the world and yourself.” Do you feel your work utilizes stark contrasts – or do you view it as one central theme of each piece? 

The idiosyncratic way in which I work to explore the use of juxtaposition is the central theme for my work. It doesn’t necessarily have to be stark or rigid and that’s the beauty of art. It’s free form and the art will tell me what to do so long as I’m in tune with it.

Waste Future by Sidney Teodoruk

Any upcoming projects we can learn more about?
I’m currently working towards the Busan Art Fair in South Korea which I believe is in May. Sydney artist Neil Tomkins and I are planning more collaborative works to show to coincide with a book launch of our paintings. Right now though I’m entirely content with just being in the studio pushing my practice.

For more information on work by Sidney Teodoruk, contact info@guyhepner.com.