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I was recently asked by Lauren Hoover to participate in an interview for a class project. The interview is below.

Dear Mr. Jones,

My name is Lauren Hoover and I am a student at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh (Online division). This week I have been given an assignment by my Graphic Illustration professor to interview a professional illustrator. If you wouldn’t mind, I would really like to interview you.

I like your style and the extent of your business’s service offerings. I also think it would be interesting to interview an entrepreneur/stay at home parent. I would like to be able to continue staying at home with my kids after I graduate, so I may be a future entrepreneur as well.

Thank you for your time,
Lauren Hoover

Here are my questions:

 

How did your professional career start?

First, let me thank you for involving Splattered Ink and I in your project.

I believe I’d been on course to start Splattered Ink since I discovered my passion for art and illustration. I admit that I am very blessed. My college and work experience has provided me a degree of versatility that is a huge asset to my business.

It started in college; I went to the Savannah College of Art and Design in Savannah, GA. My major was in Sequential Art, a major for those who wish to go into the field of comic books. Sequential Art may not be the typical major for the foundation of a design firm, but let me tell you how the major contributed. First, SCAD (the Savannah College of Art and Design) is a great art school. Their focus on foundations, basic drawing, basic design and art history, for all majors will make any artist more balanced and well rounded. Secondly, Sequential Art is not just about drawing super heroes. The subjects for illustration are very diverse, people, backgrounds, buildings, and more, from the mundane to the extraordinary. And, though I wasn’t designing logos, design was a large focus. How do pages flow, where is the focus, how does color affect emphasis and emotion? Needless to say, I got a lot more than comic books from my degree.

After graduation, it took a couple of years to find a full-time art job, though I did have the occasional freelance job that I did under the heading of Splattered Ink. At the end of 2001 I was hired by a large screen printing company where I designed t-shirts. This allowed me to continue to improve on my illustration and design abilities, drawing college and high school mascots, cars, animals and just about anything you can think of to help promote the events and organizations that t-shirts are used for. T-shirts also have a huge focus on text and layout. This job really stretched my abilities and taught me a lot of techniques that I still use today.

After the screen printing job I moved into a management position for a sign company. The design requirements were not as intense, but the management and organization experience was invaluable, not to mention my freelance business was growing.

And then a very important thing happened, I met Cavanaugh Gray of the Entrepreneur Café (www.ecafellc.com). We quickly became very good friends. He works primarily in business development and business education. I told him my interest in going out on my own as a designer and he developed a business plan for me. He encouraged me and gave me the confidence I needed. I feel very strongly that anyone who is interested in starting their own business enlist the help of a business development professional. It will help your focus and vision, not to mention having a resource for all the business questions we all have starting out. August 1st, 2006 was my first day working full time for Splattered Ink.

How would you define your artistic style?

Wow. That’s very difficult to answer. It’s hard for me to define my style to just one area. As a graphic designer it’s important to be versatile according to the needs of the client. I think some of my favorite work comes from three different areas. I’ve done some “high-end” graphic design for a credit union, which included a new logo and advertising (www.splatteredink.com/ads.htm). Some of the work that I enjoy the most is that of a children’s book style illustration (www.splatteredink.com/color3.htm). But the art that I consider to be most pure personally, is a loosely impressionistic style of painting I’ve recently begun doing (www.splatteredink.com/paint.htm). This work has become my most expressive and rewarding.

To be continued… I will post the remainder of this interview soon…

In the News!
Monday, 06 October 2008
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