Colin Egan. On Jan 16th, 2015 I took a big step towards achieving my dreams of becoming an illustrator. My whole life I’ve created characters but this was the first time I decided to go all in on a character, and this character was Blue Cat.
The Catoonist was born on Instagram as a way for me to develop the character and really experiment with where it could go. During this time I was located in Atlanta, GA and I did everything to get this character in the eyes of other people. Paintings, wood cutouts, pop-up markets, Free-Art Friday, Artist events, anything I could think of I was trying to do.
Through this process the character saw many different variations of different shapes and colors until it finally landed on the Blue Cat we know today.
Vinnie Hager. In my art making practice the envelope/letter has always been a symbol that I draw. This symbol has become almost a logo or signature for me where then I started to create meaning around it. My TIMEPiece, Send More Mail, is a narrative piece that questions if physical mail, whether letters, bills, notes, etc will still be utilized in the year 2115. As our world moves further and further into relying on technology for communication/relations, I’m curious if the envelope (or letter) will still be employed. Will hand written letters still be sent through the post office? How will the encroaching metaverse affect the physical forms of mail? I’m hoping for a bright future but technology continues to overcome these older forms of communication. Time will tell.
My work is based in drawing. The elements that I employ in my drawings are made up of lines, shapes, characters, and symbols that connect through form and structure, similar to a jigsaw puzzle. This way of drawing allows me to generate my own iconography that ranges from the recognizable, like envelopes, flowers, eyes, and stars, to the abstract and the gestural. By combining my iconography this way my work becomes a cleverly harnessed motif which then I vary by scale, intricacy, and repetition. I adapt this motif to objects that veer from the traditional paper and canvas and into the ready made space of home decor, wearables, and the utilized. My iconography and patterning engage not only in these analogue materials but further explore digital applications and new technologies.
