A Tough Choice to Make

Leaving home is never easy. For artists, however, the decision must be made, even if it takes years. There are as many reasons to go (or stay) as there are artists in the world. So I asked three recent creative exports to tell me how they made their decisions.

Henry Riggs, the humorist and former leader of the political sketch-comedy troupe Maximum Brain Squad, moved to Chicago this summer to pay his dues in the improv comedy scene and the 200-plus theaters that populate the Second City.

Amanda Rose moved to New York right after graduating from the College of Charleston’s theater program to live the life of a starving artist. Five years later Rose is ensconced on Broadway as an understudy of a principal role in the hit musical, Wicked, which is sold-out for the next four years.

And Kevin Earl Taylor, the well-known artist who spent a decade trying to make a life in Charleston, is finally achieving national recognition for his work — ominous, grotesque, fantastical paintings — now that he lives in San Francisco. —John Stoehr

Kevin Earl Taylor painter, San Francisco

I love Charleston.

It’s part of my training. It’s my biggest influence.

I’ve left twice. First I went to San Diego. When I came back, I renewed my love for Charleston. I went through a phase when I wanted to say where I was from. I wanted to show there’s more to the South than racism and rednecks.

I spent 10 years in Charleston doing that. I learned about promoting myself and all the in-and-outs of marketing. That’s a hard thing for an artist to learn. But I got to a point where I wasn’t inspired anymore. I didn’t have a reason to paint.

I ended up doing a show in Monterey, Calif. When I was done, I spent a week in San Francisco, going to galleries every night. I was like, “Man, this is what I need.” In that environment, you can’t go home and not paint. I gave myself a year to get ready to move. It was the best decision I’ve made.

The proof is I’m progressing. I look at old stuff and think, “Oh, my god.” That’s my biggest accomplishment. In terms of my career, I’m having more shows. Stuff is going to Berlin and London, New York, and Philadelphia. I have five shows in the next two months.

If not for my time in Charleston creating venues for my work, I don’t think I could have come out here. Charleston was a huge training ground, a good place for that. I’m still connected to the South. I’m cooking boiled peanuts right now. Got them from my Chinese friend. My inspiration comes from the backroads of South Carolina and from being with my grandfather. You can’t get that in a big city.

A long time ago, Charleston really was the cultural mecca of the South, the Paris of America. We’ve lived on that legacy for a long time. Some people forget to change with the times. We thought we didn’t need to progress with the rest of the world. Charleston never really did that.