What I’m about…
My name is Layla Blue Rudolph. I am a multimedia artist based in New York City. I grew up in Los Angeles, California, where art and culture were central to my life. There, I began exploring different mediums to capture the world around me. I was raised in an artistic household, where my parents ensured my sibling, and I always did something music or art-related. It was vital that we explored our creative side, and music continuously flowed through my home. Every Sunday, we would have a family dinner that ended in a “jam session.” This continues to motivate me to create space for music in my life. My upbringing led me to practice photography, videography, and design, all heavily intertwined with music.
I attended eight different schools while growing up, which has led me to be someone who thrives on change as I grow as an artist. That has become a central point for me. I am always open and looking to expand and grow my practice. However, the stability of going to college at The New School allowed me to hone in on some of my niches. I originally wanted to go into journalism and do documentary photography, which most people think of as documenting war or catastrophic events. I realized my goal was to document hope. The world is filled with so much sorrow. I wanted to show that art is being made. There is hope in community and creativity.
My practice:
My work began by documenting my friends as we went to shows in high school or playing my parent’s guitars. During my studies, I joined New York’s music community through my older sister. I majored in Journalism and Design. My concentration was musicology, writing, film, and photography. This led me to my passion: documenting artists doing what they love to do, perform, and create. This program guided me to survey arts and culture through the lens of photography, capturing my community of young artists.
For my Senior Thesis, I explored the topic of the tri-state area’s reemerging “DIY” music scene. I created a sixty-page handbound “yearbook.” It featured five bands involved in the scene here in New York. This experience led me to further delve into my practice within the arts community. In doing so, I expanded into other art forms, such as fashion.
Post-graduation, I started working for the “DIY” music label House of Feelings, where I have worked on various music videos and photographed shows.
Through these experiences, I have continued to hone my craft of documenting artists and am open to growing my practice. I document the artists and musicians in the community while considering composition and how to capture the energy of the audience, models, and performers. My work is not just about capturing a subject but also about making the spectator feel like they can hear the “music,” whether or not the content is of a musician.