“I want people to see my art and just remember how cheerful I was and find that sense of being happy to be alive.”
DeLenn Rufo, 27, has been making art their whole life. In middle school they sold art prints and jewelry at the Eugene Saturday Market, before realizing that it might not be the most sustainable profession.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, after leaving their job at a call center, Rufo realized that it was time to return to their art. And they were ready this time.
“I had known that I wanted to do it, but I didn’t know how, and I kind of just had this weird push of ‘this is the time in the place, so I better figure it out,’” Rufo said.
Now, they have had a booth at the market for six consecutive years.
Rufo specializes in colorful, psychedelic art filled with eyes, aliens and rainbows. They make their art mainly with COPIC markers, but have been branching out with acrylic paints, colored pencils and watercolors.
The alien characters present in a large portion of Rufo’s art are inspired by their relationship with one of their best friends. The pair spent a lot of time together during the pandemic experimenting with weed and psychedelics.
“We’re just these two silly little goons, getting high and traveling the cosmos,” Rufo said. “I love it because a lot of people see themselves in the alien characters. A lot of people will look at their partner, and they’ll be like, ‘that’s us’ and I’m like, yeah, that’s exactly what it represents, having this good, amazing friend with you who will travel with you for the rest of your life.”
Rufo’s current style began through their experience taking psychedelics and wanting to represent that on paper. After having those experiences, they took a step back and realized that it was not serving them any longer.
“I don’t really smoke and I don’t really do psychedelics at all anymore. And so it’s been a lot of getting more in tune with who I am and I think that has changed what I like and what I like to draw and where I find inspiration,” Rufo said.
There is one drawing that Rufo finds especially important to their journey as an artist in finding their style. It’s a woman with rainbow eyes, pink hair and a rainbow coming out of her mouth. Unlike the rest of their work, the woman is completely in black and white.
“I would flip through my sketchbook, and I would flip right over her. And eventually one day I was staring at her and I realized that I knew what I wanted to do. I call it turning point. It was like something clicked in my brain,” Rufo said. “This was definitely a piece where I was kind of realizing how I could improve my style in a way that I hadn’t thought about before.”
Since that moment, Rufo has had a clearer vision of their future. They know how they want their art to be perceived and where they want it to be. For the past few years, they have been expanding their art, making bigger pieces for businesses around town and hopefully breaking into the mural scene soon.
“I want to kind of make my footprint in the city,” Rufo said.
You can find Rufo’s art almost every week at the Saturday Market, as well as on their Instagram and website.
Website: drawings-by-delenn.square.site
Instagram: @drawingsbydelenn
