Decked Outtt: Q+A with Resin Artist Adrienne Deck

Photography by Khaila King

[dropcap letter=”W”]e can thank the West side of Indianapolis for giving us the insanely talented and creative Adrienne Deck, whose resin art instantly captured my attention as I was visiting a friend’s home. The Indy native was originally a freelance makeup artist working at Sephora before she began to hone her skills as a resin artist and painter. I had a chance to chat with Adrienne about her creative process and some of her interests and I can attest that her personality is just as vibrant and colorful as her incredible work! Read the interview below!

Khaila King: When did you first fall in love with your medium?
Adrienne Deck: Painting specifically, I would say high school. My sophomore or junior year, I started taking art classes and I thought “wow, I’m kind of halfway decent at this, I should try to fine tune my craft.” As for resin, I’m a very visual person, especially as an artist, but also texture is a huge thing for me too. When a resin painting is done, I love that it is so clear, glossy and feels so smooth. I think that’s what drew me in, the combination of texture and visuals.

KK: From your instagram page I can see that you were a makeup artist. Can you tell me a little bit more about that and your transition from makeup to resin?
AD: I don’t do makeup freelance any more for weddings or proms. I don’t really know how I got into that. I was just working at Sephora at the time. It was a pretty easy transition. I think that at that time I wasn’t focused on fine art, makeup was my art. I always had some creative outlet, which made the transition really easy. Once I quit that job, I think that’s really when I started painting again. I was like “okay, I used to do this in high school. Let me take what I learned from makeup artistry and put that into painting, which I think has helped a lot. It wasn’t that big of a change, the only major difference was makeup is really expensive. (Laughs) There was a big difference in creating my kit. 

KK: How do you manage your day time gig with your art gig?
AD: It’s pretty hard actually, especially this year. I would have thought that having to stay home meant I would be making more art, but it’s been really stressful. Even though art is my outlet to where I can express myself if I’m feeling some type of way, sometimes those feelings can also prevent me from creating. I just create when I’m feeling the flow, sometimes I really do have to push myself and tell myself, “Adrienne, you really have to get this done,” being my own teacher in a way. It’s a work in progress, I’m still trying to find the right balance. I would like to have a day time gig and focus on my art for the rest of my life, I’m still working on it. 

KK: That’s the same with me, I like to paint and sometimes it’s hard now that I have jobs and responsibilities to tend to, to find time to create.
AD: Right!! And the job pays for the supplies too so you can’t have one without the other. (Laughs)

KK: Are there any artists that really inspire you? Any local? 
AD: There’s only one person that comes to mind. She isn’t local, I follow her on Instagram. Her name is RelmArtist. She is so good, her drawings are very detailed. I’ve been a fan of hers for a while now. I’ve never really had a good habit of exploring more artists so umm…I need to do that. (Laughs)

KK: (Laughs) Sometimes it’s better to not view a lot of other artists’ work, just because sometimes their work starts to mix into your stuff and your work becomes less original. I can totally see that, so there’s no shame in not keeping up with a lot of other artists.
AD: Right! Right!

KK: What kind of art are you into, more realism, more abstract, or?
AD: I really like realistic art. That’s what I liked to do originally, when I first started painting, like hyperrealism. That’s also what I took from my makeup background, smoothing things out and making things look very airbrushed. Recently since I’ve started doing pouring, it’s been more abstract, free flow. I like both honestly. I like to dabble, I like to mix the two. One of the paintings I brought today, I first put some realism and then used resin to make it more abstract. I like it all. If it’s colorful, I like it.

KK: Where do you see yourself in about five years from now?
AD: I’m hoping I’m selling my paintings for way more than I’m selling them for now (laughs), but I want people to be able to buy it. If I wanted to buy my art, I would want to be able to afford it. 

KK: I understand, I understand. Pricing is always difficult. You honestly just need to go to an art exhibit and see the prices of the work on the walls. It will change your perspective, you’ll think, “wow, my stuff really could be up there.” I feel like with artists it’s either they have the talent, but lack the confidence to sell their work for what it’s truly worth or they have all the confidence in the world, but they are lacking in the talent department. (Laughs) Your work is amazing, if you could see some of the stuff that sells, you’d have a huge reality check. 
AD: I feel that way too! Maybe in five years, I’d like to have more confidence! (Laughs) 

KK: We kind of touched base on this earlier, about how Covid affected creation and business for you. Did you want to expand on that more?
AD: I think it’s more of a personal thing. A lot of people have been out of work so that’s probably why I haven’t sold a lot this year. I guess it’s slowed things down on both sides, as the creator and also from a customer standpoint. It’s fine though, I’m not too stressed about it. (Laughs)

KK: I see that your art alias is Decked Out, I’m guessing it is a play on your last name being Deck. Did that come naturally to you or did you take some time?
AD: No, it just came to me. I like to think that I’m relatively clever and funny. One day I was like “decked out, that’s my last name, that’s funny, we’re rolling with it.” My personal account is PooopDeck, (Laughs) It’s like a whole thing.

KK: (Laughs) I like it, like it. Some creators either love their name and want to use it and some just don’t. But just to transition a little bit, I really want to know what does being an artist mean to you?
AD: Letting go and making something, period. It could be anything. Even when I’m cooking, I’m like, “oh wow, I’m a culinary artist.” (Laughs)

KK: Resin is a pretty challenging medium, is there any specific technique you use? 
AD: Oh gosh! I’m still getting the hang of it. It’s very tricky. I’ve watched, I can’t even tell you, how many Youtube videos. It’s also science too, the resin and the hardener. Temperature plays a factor, you can’t mix old resin with new resin. It’s crazy. I’m still learning. I’d like to think I’ve come a decent way. I think I’ll still be learning five years from now. 

KK: Last question, what’s the creative process like for Adrienne Deck? Let’s just imagine you are waking up and you know you’re going to create today. Is there a specific playlist you put on, is there anything you do in the morning that’s special, any affirmations you tell yourself. What does your process look like?
AD: Oooh! That’s hard. I’m going to preface this by saying that I have ADHD, my process is probably different every single time depending on my mood. I do always have to have music. I have to be singing while I’m creating or chewing gum. (Laughs) I don’t know, that’s just a thing for me. Sometimes I have to let a lot of my creative energy just build up. I try to create maybe once a week, I get burnt out really easily so I don’t try to push myself too hard, because then I also have a fear that I’m going to fall out of love with it. So it’s just music for me and space in between the times I create. 


You can keep up with Adrienne and see more of her work on Instagram!

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