Resident Spotlight: RN Healey

August 23, 2016

What type of art do you create? What first got you interested in this medium?

I’m a screenwriter and a playwright. I started off writing plays when I was a teenager, and then when I was in college, I took my first screenwriting class which kind of transitioned me from doing stage-based writing to more screen-based writing.

What have you been working on while at Byrdcliffe?

I’m working on a collection of audio plays, which are sort of miniature slices of dialogue layered with sounds from the natural and manmade world (gas stations, supermarkets, beaches). I’m also working on a full-length screenplay.

Where do you find inspiration for your work? Are there other artists (working in any medium) who inspire you?

Inspiration is a tricky thing because it is constantly evolving as I grow and age as an artist. I generally get inspiration from the human stain; things that we don’t usually think about, the unexamined life, disregarded objects and spaces. I’m also interested in the musicality of speech and human speech patterns. A lot of the time, it’s not about what we say to each other, but how we say it.

I’m inspired by Brian Eno, Diane Arbus, Mikhail Lermontov, and I really enjoyed Lemonade by Beyonce.

How did you find out about Byrdcliffe?

This is my third time coming to Byrdcliffe. I originally came here in 2012, having heard about Byrdcliffe from the head of my graduate program.

How is communal living influencing your work?

I actually really like going to residencies like this because I am very intrigued by artists in other mediums and how they work. I’m really fascinated by their working process, and it’s really good to be in a space where people are really focused on creation. It drives your own process forward.

What’s up next for you?

I’m currently collaborating on a podcast that will be available in 2017.