On Being an Outsider Illustrator

What Do I Have to Offer if I’m Not Really a Great Artist?

Sometimes, I come here to write as an expert. But sometimes I would like to come here to write as someone who is less certain about things. There are a handful of things I can write about that I seem knowledgeable in. I have some interesting ideas around how to approach the art and business of commercial art. But what are some of my uncertainties? What don’t I know about? What am I decidedly not an expert in? What am I patently bad at? Usually I stick to my lane. On which lanes do I not belong?

This morning, I was thinking about how I call myself an illustrator, but when you compare me to a lot of illustrators, especially ones whose work and techniques are more traditional, I don’t quite fit in. Certainly, when you compare me to commercial illustrators of the past, there really isn’t much in common at all. In fact, I can be somewhat disparaging about traditional illustration, especially that involving realism, literal representation, anatomical proportionality, and things like that. I’m always talking about the virtues of abstraction, stylization, minimalism, and embracing idiosyncrasies. I’m constantly assuring my audiences that they don’t have to be good at drawing to be an illustrator.