Hiss and Hearse

“You have to make your own way. Set concrete goals for yourself. Send your work out constantly and Illustrate what interests you.”
-Ryan Casey

Name: Ryan Casey
Location: Oakland, CA
Occupation: Illustrator and Graphic Designer

I spent an idyllic eight months working with Ryan Casey, a Philadelphia, Pennsylvania transplant, doing corporate graphic design. We sat right next to each other, and during that span, we spent large chunks of that time laughing. I think to actually get work done, one of us had to put on headphones. Sometimes didn’t help, though, because he is sometimes too hilarious to ignore. I will never forget how Ryan took me out to lunch for my 27th birthday. If it weren’t for him, I would have spent the day alone. He lives in Oakland with his adorable dog Murphy, and I like to imagine him dancing to Kanye West, drinking wine, and creating these amazing illustrations. Ryan’s so talented that I honestly don’t know why he has a day job – why has he not taken over the world already?

Tell us the history of you, how did your style evolve?
Well, I was always into drawing and making art. Through grade school and high school, I was always painting and taking art classes, but no one ever told me you could make a career as an artist, which is really sad. I went to “normal” college for a year in D.C., and when everyone started picking majors such as political science, I knew I had to get the hell out of there. So I took a semester off, lived in the desert for a month, then decided to go to art school. I attended The University of the Arts in Philadelphia. It was a great experience, and I started out thinking I wanted to be a painter. But to cover my bases, I tried every medium possible until an instructor told me to check out the illustration floor. It was amazing, and the range of styles of the artists who were studying illustration was really inspiring. By my sophomore year, I discovered digital illustration. In this field, I could focus on my drawing skills without having to deal with mixing paint by hand, which was a major bonus.

Do you remember the first thing you ever drew?
I use to watch T.V. when I was little and draw the people I saw on the screen. I swear to God, I think I use to draw Luke and Laura on General Hospital when my mom use to watch.

Do you listen to music when you illustrate?
Always. If I find myself dancing in the middle I know I’ve hit on something.

Favorite clients? Why?
I have done some really fun work for Philadelphia CITYPAPER. Our relationship has grown and we have developed a trust. I need to find a west coast publication I can do the same with…

Would you ever illustrate a children’s book? I think your style would be perfect.
I actually wrote and illustrated my own children’s book entitled: “Marjorie, Please Let It Bee”. You can check it out here!

Things that inspire you-
BIG personalities, prints and patterns, ridiculousness

Three songs that you love right now-
“Blind”-Hercules and Love Affair
“Can You Discover”-Discovery
“Million Dollar Bill”-Whitney Houston

What are you wearing as you answer these interview questions?
I’ve turned into a total GAP guy. I want to keep it classic. I’m wearing a summer plaid shirt with khakis and some gray slip ons from Urban Outfitters.

Your art future, where are you going from here?
I would love for my comic strip to become syndicated on blogs, magazines and newspapers…maybe even a book.

Do you have a mentor or favorite artist?
I love Picasso and the illustrator Pablo Lobato.

Tell me about your personal style, how would you describe it? Does this style transfer over into your art?
I’m not sure how to describe my personal style but I think my comic strip sums up my personality. People have told me my sense of humor is a little off-color…and mean? I don’t think so…but we’ll let other’s judge.

Favorite blogs?
Dlisted, Techno Tuesday, The Unknown Hipster

Anything you are wishing for right now?
For a great year! I turn 28 in September!

Advice to aspiring Illustrators?
You have to make your own way. Set concrete goals for yourself. Send your work out constantly and Illustrate what interests you.

Links:
GoRyanGo (Ryan’s Portfolio)
ButYoureLikeReallyPretty (Ryan’s comic, where each week he meets a new celebrity!)

He is also a very talented Oakland based illustrator, we used to work together at Williams Sonoma. How I miss our afternoons of design production, giggling and chocolate chip cookie eating- it was summer camp at a job. You can see more of his beautiful illustration work here.

“practice and practice and practice and draw what you see in your dreams.”
-Caitlin Shearer

Name: Caitlin Shearer
Occupation: student and illustrator
Location: australia

Ten words that describe you:
curls, quiet, milk, pale, doll, swan, sharp, imaginary, secret and dreaming.

Do you remember the first thing you ever drew?
no, not my very first. it was probably a bunch of messy circles and lines. but i remember early in kindergarden there were plenty of drawings of a house and a tree and a sun and the family all standing in a little row.

Any particular artists that influence you?
i really love klimt and j.w. waterhouse. oh, and charles anastase.

How do you come up with your ideas?
they just appear in my head. some are from dreams and some are just visions that i get from thinking about things too much.

How would you describe your personal style?
shirley temple meets anne frank meets a french clown.

Is the dark haired girl seen in a lot of your work a self portrait?
i didnt start out to make self portraits, but when i look back at some of the dark haired girls, i think ‘oh my, shes got my face.’ it freaks me out a little, because its never intentional. maybe its subconcious and my hands are more truthful than my brain?

I love the paul banks portrait, where did that come from? How come you didn’t paint the other members of Interpol?
ah, well, interpol came to sydney back at the beginning of the year and the day after the show i was feeling really inspired and decided to paint paul banks. i had interpol on constantly, so it just seemed to work. i didn’t paint the rest of the band because i didn’t have any more canvases that size.

Favorite musicians?
marlene dietrich, patrick wolf, the grates, cocorosie and cold war kids.

What is your dream job?
being able to draw all day and sew dresses all day, and be my own boss and not have to catch a bus to work in a black commuter uniform.

What do you see yourself doing in the future?
dressing all my best friends in dreamy dresses and painting pictures on the walls of my dream home.

I found Caitlin’s art on flickr and am constantly impressed by her beautiful paintings and illustrations. Artists who can draw out of their brains inspire me- Caitlyn takes her dreams and makes them tangible. You can see more of her work here and buy prints from her etsy shop.

these images arrived in my electronic mailbox over the course of twenty-four hours, this girl is a similar soul and i do adore her- i can see her creating many spectacular pieces, she has that familiar drive and i was speechless when i saw the final product- jessica- m is amazing. and if you know me in real life, i think you can figure out who these two characters are… and if you are really good, you know what movie she depicted below- (which is one of our favorites…) thanks jessica-m, now dear readers, go heart her art!