Daily Inspiration: Meet Richard T Walsh

Today we’d like to introduce you to Richard T Walsh

Hi Richard T, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I’m a Los Angeles based artist who straddles the line
between art, design and experience.

Born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, a city vibrant with art and music, I was exposed to everything from the Cleveland Museum of Art to R. Crumb comics, sneaking into jazz clubs in high school (Brother Jack McDuff was awesome!), Saturday “trips” to the Salvador Dali museum, and life drawing classes at the Cleveland Institute of Art … I absorbed it all like a sponge!

I attended Kent State University to study art (Bachelor of Fine Art in Illustration and Graphic Design), upon graduation moved to Colorado to ski, and ended up in Los Angeles where I enjoyed a 30+ year career in creating theme parks, retail centers, TV animation, identities and architectural design.

My Good Drawing workshops are a favorite experience for students
in Los Angeles and New York.

Enjoying art from an early age, I have been able to
incorporate his original style and character art into many of his
clients projects, like Disney, and seen by millions of people. This was the inspiration for Richard to lean into his original art with gusto!

My original art journey is just beginning, and I’m looking forward to where it will take me!

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I wouldn’t call it a smooth road, but I also wouldn’t change it for the world! I’ve had the opportunity to work for, with and along side some legendary people, including Disney Masters and icons of business and entertainment.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
My BFA was in Illustration & Graphic Design and I started out doing typical design work, layout and paste up, rubylith cutting and the like. I stumbled into design at a large sign shop and learned from their very talented art director (who was also a nationally recognized western artist). This lead me to work at Walt Disney Imagineering as a fabrication artist, then designer for Euro Disney.
That set the path in motion for a career in theme parks, animation and experiential design. I’ve been able to work with clients including Universal Studios, Saul Bass, Caruso Affiliated, Cartoon Network, Kanye West, Wolfgang Puck and many more. I’m very proud of my design at Disney’s California Adventure and Caruso’s The Grove, both seen by millions of people from all over the world.
I believe my ability to draw helps set me apart in communicating with the clients. They see the drawings and can understand the end result.

We’d love to hear about any fond memories you have from when you were growing up?
Growing up in Ohio we had a cherry tree in our yard. My brothers and I would pick the cherries and mom would make several cherry pies. To this day cherry pie is my favorite!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.richardtwalsh.com
• Instagram: @richardtwalsh