Interview Transcript Segment 1 of 5 with Kentucky Hustler Cover Artist Richard Sullivan on creating the cover art for the debut sports humor memory by Terry Hatton.

Paisley Mountain Press: We’re here with Richard Sullivan, thanks for having us in your studio.

Richard Sullivan: Yeah, of course. Thanks for coming.

PMP: Obviously, you did our cover art for Kentucky Hustler. Maybe we could start there. What did you think of the experience of creating book art for the first time?

RS: Yeah, it was very challenging, honestly. Talking with you guys for the very first time was very exciting and we had all of these ideas flowing. Then getting into the sketches. And there were so many different collaborators and I think that’s what was fun working with people like you. There’s the person you’re writing about, and there’s the creatives (you guys), and I’m trying to capture your vision. I think that’s what was the challenging part, and the fun part too. Once we got to the final sketch where I knew what I was painting, I think I could have fun at that point.

PMP: Well, it was really cool too, from Terry’s perspective, as soon as he saw the final piece he said “That’s my life.” When you’re painting do get that reward a lot? With baseball players or whoever, do you feel like there is a culmination where you’ve captured something for them?

RS: Yeah, I think I love painting sports in particular because that has been my life for so long. It’s so engrained in my blood – and with Terry, when I’m painting, I can feel okay this is what he’s doing every single day. He’s hustling. He’s talking to people.  It’s so outside my comfort zone, for me as a person, but it’s cool to get to paint it, and capture it, and get the feedback that he gave. When he does say ‘this is my life’ I can be like yeah. Because up to that point you never know. With watercolors especially, you don’t know what the final product is going to be like until it’s done. That’s exciting and also nerve-racking at the same time.

PMP: Because watercolors just do their own thing.

RS: Right, you don’t have as much control as with an oil painting. That’s also why I like it. You have to let go a little bit. In painting these, I never really know what I’m going to get until it shows up. I’m in the flow. It’s definitely a different experience than painting with oil or acrylic.