Maximalism, Imagination and Sustainability with Zelda RayGun

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Zelda RayGun is a creative individual of many talents, known for their whimsically maximalist aesthetic. Their art often draws upon colorful and fantastical imagery that encompasses nature, creatures, aliens, the occult, absurdism, metaphysics and more. RayGun’s work lies at the crossroads between imagination and utility, emphasizing the vibrant embellishment of everyday objects and decor. An interdisciplinary approach to art has allowed them to explore a vast array of mediums over the years including (but not limited to) paintings, murals, clothing, jewelry, posters, tattoos, and costumes. 

Originally from the west Milwaukee suburbs, Zelda RayGun became interested in arts and crafts from a young age. “I was really encouraged as a child to pursue being creative,” they recall. “There was never any opposition from my parents; it was what I found made me happy and was something I felt I naturally excelled at.”

They learned how to sew as a kid and would start making clothes as they got older out of both necessity and affordability, adding, “I remember when JNCO pants were very expensive, my mom agreed to make homemade ones for me and that was my first experience with sewing.”

Dressing Up

Goth culture, Japanese “Fruits” magazines from the early 2000s and both Decora and Lolita fashion all became RayGun’s early inspirations for making outfits and costumes. “The culture of dressing up has always meant a lot to me, and over time the Internet started making things more accessible which is really cool,” they continue.

RayGun received formal training with mixed media while attending college at UW-Milwaukee. After graduating with a degree in fibers, printmaking and book arts along with various minors and certificates, RayGun had a residency at Redline Milwaukee at one point and co-ran the space Lucky Cat Gallery in Riverwest with a friend where they threw a number of successful rock shows and art exhibitions. Eventually RayGun moved to Chicago, where they would live for five years before returning to Milwaukee in 2020. 

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“The goal is to make the most of it while I’m here,” RayGun said about their trajectory. “I went to Chicago with the intention of really making it as an artist, working in a professional setting and having a curatorial practice and platform but it just didn’t happen. But I did find a very inspiring art community that I wasn’t quite exposed to in Milwaukee, and I feel like that liberated a part of me where I could get weird and be confident and bold in what I was doing. I learned a lot from Chicago as far as who I am and what I make as an artist. ”

Be a Buddy

Zelda RayGun launched Always Be a Buddy in 2019 as an outlet to make, share and sell individualized art, specifically clothes they designed. For a while, their signature focus had been consciously made shirts designed with puffy-painted album covers and pop culture references. They share how it started, “I was in a band called Sweet LaLa with my pal Spero Lo Menzo, and we made Sweet LaLa shirts with puffy paint, but he also wanted to make a Modern Lovers shirt the same way. Then I just kind of ran with it and took it to where it went.”

A core goal of RayGun’s is to make art that has functional value. “I constantly think about the concepts of ownership and identity,” they elaborate. “I don’t like owning things that just sit there and collect dust; I want everything to have a specific purpose, even if that purpose is only for one thing. Things should be beautiful while having a reason. I’m all about moving past what things are supposed to be and instead seeing what they could be.”

That said, RayGun has recently rebranded Always Be a Buddy into Doom Town & Country, where they are pivoting to focus on selling handcrafted home goods. Although RayGun has moved away from regularly making the puffy-paint shirts, they are still happy to make them upon request for friends. 

The new name is a reference to several things at once—a Wipers song, fake towns staged in real towns that were used for atomic bomb testing in the 1950s, and a food forest that they and their partner are working on - all of which are thematically relevant to either RayGun’s sociopolitical consciousness or creative philosophy. “There’s a duality to everything, whether it’s beautiful or sad,” they note.

Doom Town & Country is an emporium of wares organically grown or made from RayGun’s own garden in conjunction with the moon phases; their products range from edible flowers to soaps to candles to smoke cleansing wands as well as ethically sourced marimo moss, suncatchers, books and other curios. 

Ambitious Projects

One of RayGun’s most ambitious projects since moving back to Milwaukee has been their art installation of fish, eyeballs and skull made from acrylic yarn that lines the walls of Walker’s Point bar and music venue Promises. They felt that the opportunity came at the perfect time, reflecting, “I’m grateful to have Joey Turbo as a friend and as someone who believes in my work. When he asked me to do it, he didn’t really give me suggestions and said to just do what I wanted, and it was really the first time in Milwaukee where I had the opportunity to trust my own vision. I had no idea what was going to come of it but Joey and Casey were into it and I’ve heard nothing but great feedback. The whole experience really boosted my confidence and helped me learn to trust myself as an artist again.”

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Their latest endeavor—which is still in the works—has been a mural at Cactus Club along the stairs between the venue and its green room. RayGun describes the installation as a minigame that they hope both local and touring acts will enjoy interacting with. “The stairs are going to be painted in a way that’s inspired by 1960’s paper fortune-telling games, and since the stairway is a liminal space, I imagine it like a time machine; I’m also adding some tufted pieces that reflect a 1970’s apartment aesthetic like clocks and vases. I wanted to give artists and bands something to do while they’re there, so the game will be where you throw these little sandbags up or down the stairs, and wherever it falls will correspond with an index that tells you what your fortune is.”

RayGun is interested in keeping a notebook up in the green room where bands can document their fortunes, saying, “I’m really excited to finish it up and see it be used. Especially for touring bands it’ll be a great way to break the ice and build connections.”

They collaborated with Amanda Neuman on the mural adorning Cactus Club’s seed library and adjacent fence as well. Additionally, RayGun sings vocals in the gothic post-punk/new wave band Delicious Monsters; their debut album “FREEDOM PLASTIC REALISTIC?” was released in May and is available on Bandcamp.

In terms of future projects, Zelda RayGun has been writing a play for about a year now, are getting into puppet-making, and they hope to work more with soft sculpture. “I love making tubes from fabric and I’ve been really drawn to experimenting with lines, so I’m really finding my place with that medium with where it fits in the home and on our bodies,” they said. 

Doom Town & Country vends alongside Dimension Seven Coffee at the Riverwest Gardeners Market every Sunday. They can also be found at the Brown Deer Farmers Market on Wednesdays and at Zocalo Food Truck Park on Thursdays. Follow @doom_town_and_country on Instagram for updates.

Visit Zelda RayGun's website at zelvis.space.

“I want to be part of a movement of creating inclusive spaces where adults have to use their imagination,” RayGun concludes. “If you believe in what you do for long enough, then you keep making it happen and it’s going to mean something.”