I have always tried to encourage others because I never know if I may influence someone’s life direction in a major way. Kindness is at the heart of this idea—mainly because kindness is what got me on my path as an artist.
I had one such unexpected mentor, and unbeknown to him, the direction I took in life shifted dramatically. Around seventeen, I was still working food service as a fry cook, and I hated it, so I wanted out. I saw an ad for a graphic designer at a local silk screen shop. I knew a bit about silkscreen printing and was good at art, so I thought I would try and apply for the job. Most of the industry was shifting from old-school methods to computer usage, and I figured maybe I could convince them that I was computer savvy. I would focus on what I could do and show that I was a hard worker and was willing to learn.
To this day, I have no real idea of how I got the interview—hell, I had been working fast food and was a high school dropout—but I at least had the opportunity, which came with a portfolio review. I knew nothing of this process, and the internet didn’t exist yet, leaving me no way to research what I needed, so I set up a handful of images in a three-ring binder and took a sketchbook I had been working in.
Once in the office, I realized I had no clue what I was getting myself into, and I was in way over my head. The art director must have sensed this, and I had nothing to lose – so I drilled him for information about the industry, trying to figure out what it was all about and if it was something I wanted to do. The art director called someone in and asked them to show me around so I could see how things worked in the industry – while he flipped through my binder. I don’t know if he was just doing his job or was generally interested in my art – I only remember that he was down-to-earth and very professional.
After the walk-through, I was returned to the art director, who informed me I was not right for the position. However, he picked up my sketchbook in which he had put a couple of Post-it notes and opened these pages up – with an exclamation; he stated, “You drew these?” and “These are good”! I was taken aback – everyone who saw my art would say such things, but I had never heard it come from someone who deals with art all day. He talked with me for another ten minutes or so – and said I should look into art school and either focus on fine art or illustration, and he felt that for what I was doing, graphic art might not be the best fit.
I left that interview knowing I would remain a Fry cook for longer – but I didn’t care. For the first time, I had direction – I knew I could get out of the crap industry I was in and do something I wanted with my life. A few months after this, I landed a job as a printer at an architectural firm and art supply store. It would be many years before I got it together enough to make things work, but I would have never even tried to move forward if that one person had not been kind and supportive of my art… That man was a mentor at heart and permitted me to pursue a dream. From this short moment in time, I dedicated myself to art and to encouraging those entering the art world for the first time.
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