rob ryan

I randomly stumbled across Rob Ryan's book This Is For You one afternoon while browsing in the Muswell Hill Book Store, and I've been a fan ever since. This Is For You is a fairytale told through paper cut-out art, which explores the themes of love and loneliness. Rob is a British artist who specializes in papercutting and screen-printing, and who has a Masters in printmaking from the Royal College of Art.

'YOU HAVE ALREADY GONE TO BED. I STAY UP TO KEEP DRINKING AND LISTEN TO MUSIC AND MY GOD IT SOUNDS GOOD. PEOPLE KEEP ON MAKING GREAT MUSIC. BUT THERE ARE ONLY DO MANY NOTES AND ORDERS TO PUT THEM IN. HOW DO THEY DO IT?? HUMAN BEINGS SO RELENTLESS IT BREAKS YOUR HEART. JUST WHEN YOU’RE ABOUT TO GIVE UP ON THEM ALTOGETHER – THE SHIT WAY THEY TREAT EACH OTHER – AND THEN YOU HEAR A SONG SO TRUE AND BEAUTIFUL YOU INSTANTLY FORGIVE THEM EVERYTHING AND HEAR THEIR REAL VOICE “I KNOW I DO WRONG BUT I REALLY WANT TO TRY TO BE GOOD.” AND THEN I THOUGHT ABOUT MY DEATH AND ALL THE GREAT MUSIC THAT WOULD BE MADE FROM THAT DAY ON AND I WOULDN’T GET TO HEAR A SINGLE NOTE. AND I CRIED TEARS OF 100% SELFISH JEALOUSY. JEALOUS OF SOMETHING YET EVEN TO HAPPEN THAT WOULD NEVER AFFECT MY ROTTING DECOMPOSING CORPSE. THE HOT LITTL TEARS OF THE CHILD WHO WANTED EVERYTHING.'

''THIS BELL WILL RING WHEN I AM CRUEL TO YOU AND MAKE YOU CRY' and 'THIS BELL WILL RING WHEN WE GO BOWLING NEXT'