Today we’d like to introduce you to Katy Lipscomb
Hi Katy, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Like many young children, I was taken with drawing and creating from a very early age. I was lucky that my parents encouraged and fostered this creative mindset by ensuring I always had a place to make art. In one of our first family homes, this was just a little nook under the basement stairs, but it was my space, a place I could use as a studio. There, I would tinker with pipe-cleaners to make my own zoo or cut up fabric to clothe my stuffed animals. Through the support of my parents and the limitless imagination of a child, anything was a possibility.
As a young child, I had many different hobbies and obsessions, everything from soccer to paleontology to animals and video games. The drive to create was the common thread that tied all of these different worlds together. I had a constant need and desire to document all of these various interests through sketching and note-taking. For a time in elementary school, I remember keeping a daily sketchbook full of dragons with notes in the margins about each design, a project that was likely heavily inspired by an interest in Mythology intersecting with the video game Pokémon. Looking at my current work, this is still very much the case, where nostalgia and a love for the natural world are ever-present.
This passion led me to take my first formal art class at age 11, where, with my parent’s blessing and permission from the community art center, I was able to take figure drawing classes with live nude models. Studying the human body and making real-life observations reshaped the way I approached drawing and art making. In the past, where I may have heavily relied on copying or tracing, I now had the tools to study the real world and translate my observations onto paper. It was at this point in my artistic journey that I knew I wanted art to be an integral part of my life, if not my livelihood.
I continued through school, taking as many art courses as possible, whenever possible. In my free time, I consumed art books and blogs, entered competitions, and found a home for my art on a website called DeviantART. This was where I could finally share my creations with a larger community, and my fascination with alternative materials and mixed media grew; I discovered the beauty of a colored pencil drawing done with dozens of layers and the unique look of watercolor mixed with alcohol markers. The addition of color to my work came as a revelation, and once I could integrate this vibrancy into my ever-evolving creatures, I never looked back.
I opted to attend the Lamar Dodd School of Art at the University of Georgia, choosing Drawing and Painting as my area of emphasis. In art school, I could not only further explore my creative potential, but also take invaluable classes such as Professional Practices concerning art as a career, study contract law, and travel to Costa Rica for a “Maymester” to study watercolor in the cloud forest. All of these classes and experiences solidified my passion for creating into something with practical possibility and a certainty that I would make a living off my work. All the while, I was building a business, brand, and social media presence with the help of my amazing partner and now husband, Tyler Fisher.
Together, we began to sell at conventions, offer private commissions, and work with larger clients. In 2015, we signed our very first big licensing contract with a brand called Ethika. Since then, we have worked for companies ranging from Patreon to Adidas, Blick Art Materials, Derwent, Jaftex Fabrics, and so many others. We have created children’s books, artwork for board games, and participated in international campaigns, all while creating and offering our own unique products through our online store and conventions. In 2023, we had the incredible opportunity to publish “The Artist’s Drawing Book” with Blue Star Press, a 220-page guide to drawing that is a culmination of everything we have learned together through our combined years of knowledge of art and creating.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Committing to art full-time has certainly not always been smooth, and there have been a few bumps along the way. However, I will say that having supportive parents and a supportive partner has made all the difference. Having the support of the people who love you most can make even the craziest venture seem obtainable.
One of the biggest, most consistent struggles in running any business—but especially an art business—is ensuring that one has multiple revenue streams to weather market changes or drops in revenue. Tyler and I have worked very hard to diversify our revenue streams by selling our work in-person at events, licensing our designs, offering private commissions, working on commercial projects, and offering our own products through our online retail store. Even so, art and art products are luxury items, which the demand for fluctuates heavily with the tides of the economy. We have certainly had periods where multiple revenue streams have almost completely dried up and have had to lean heavily on just one or two areas of income. The COVID-19 pandemic was the perfect example of just how precarious owning your own business can be. Many artists like us had to close up shop when events were canceled, supply chain issues prevented product restocks, instability caused a shift to non-creative work, and so much more, all among the stress and hazards that come with a global health crisis.
Luckily, Tyler and I have been able to weather every storm together. I have been lucky to have a dedicated group of online supporters, some of whom have followed me from my very first days on DeviantART. These extraordinary people have been our champions when times are challenging and have consistently supported me and my art through every bump in the road. When people ask how to start an art business, usually, one of the first pieces of advice I give is to build your credibility as not just an artist but also as a brand. Having a strong, professional online presence can be the catalyst for so many different projects and opportunists, as well as be a strong support network during challenging times.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
My work is heavily influenced by nostalgia from my childhood, a love for the natural world, and curiosity for mythology and the obscure. When all three of these interests intersect, it is the perfect catalyst for creating something that genuinely makes me happy. I am often drawn to creating fantastical hybrids from real-world creatures or creating versions of mythic beasts that could be found in our own natural world. One of my ongoing projects is a collection of dragons merged with butterflies and moths, some inspired by the species found in my own garden, such as the Eastern Tiger Swallowtail, Monarch, and Rosy Maple Moth.
These illustrations tend to resonate with larger audiences as well. I find that when I create something that truly sparks joy in me, there are countless others who feel the same. So many of us wish we could return to childhood and have the innocent belief that we could stumble upon a dragon in our own backyard.
While the ideas for many of my drawings are taken directly from my childhood imaginings or my own garden, it is in the physical execution of these ideas that I am continuously striving to push my own boundaries. All of my work is made with traditional media. In a world where we are constantly surrounded by digital images, even more so with the rise of AI imagery, I find myself tunneling even deeper into my traditional roots. I find myself striving to mimic the effects of digital renderings with metallic pigment, working on Hotpress paper to achieve an ultra-smooth finish on my pencil drawings, and using opaque media to create areas of high shine. For me, there is satisfaction when a viewer truly can’t believe that one of my pieces is made with traditional media, as if I’ve pulled off some grand illusion.
Tyler and I take this one step further by scanning all of my traditional drawings in high resolution so that we are able to transform them into a multitude of offerings, such as prints, bookmarks, and enamel pins. These reproductions find their way into thousands of homes across the world, something that we are continuously humbled by. While we are certainly not the only artists who offer our original drawings as reproductions, we do take immense pride in meticulously crafting each offering, as if we are sending off a little piece of ourselves with each order. These tiny reproductions of dragons, wolves, and mythical beasts are tangible and, in a lot of ways, transcend the original artwork.
Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
For me, happiness is found in so many areas of life: a quiet morning with a cup of coffee, a game night with friends, searching for beach glass along the edge of a lake, and above all, being surrounded by family. I grew up in a loving, supportive household with a brother who was my best friend. I am lucky enough to now have that family in my life daily while raising a family of my own with my amazing partner and husband.
On top of this, I am always so humbled and grateful that I am able to do what I love for a living. Every day, I am thankful that Tyler and I get to walk down the hallway to our studio. It’s an immense privilege to do what we do, creating fantastical pieces of art and sharing them with clients and fans around the world each day. It is through passion and love that this journey was made a reality, and I can only hope to offer these same ideals and opportunities to the next generation, now that I have my own daughter. I simply couldn’t be more grateful.
Pricing:
- Private commissions are available upon request on the artist’s website: https://www.katylipscomb.com/commissioncontactform
- Products, prints, and other items are available via the artist’s store: https://store.katylipscomb.com/
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.katylipscomb.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/katy_lipscomb/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KatyLipscombArt/
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/katylipscombart
- Other: https://www.patreon.com/katylipscomb
