Today we’d like to introduce you to Jack Currey.
Jack, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I couldn’t even pinpoint a beginning or where it started. It was always something I’ve put time and energy into. I remember liking fanart submissions I would see in video game magazines and trying to replicate certain pieces so I could have them on my wall, drawing particular cartoon characters I was drawn to from shows I watched, drawing pages from video game books when those were still a thing, Eventually getting into the art of the merchandise of bands I was listening to in middle school. I ended up going into the local magnet arts school, Chattanooga High School Center for Creative Arts, for visual art which encouraged exploration in sculpture and painting, it opened me up to what all was possible as well as teaching me techniques and a slight intro to different ‘rules’ of successful/cohesive pieces. I went to the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga for drawing and painting for a couple of semesters when I realized academic art wasn’t for me, and I enjoyed them more, for lack of a better word, underground of visual art I was seeing on the internet more and more in time. The past four years have been me finding my voice in this vast digital marketplace where anyone can create and present their work and it led me to meet some incredibly talented artists across all planes of creation. I got lucky with a stretch of time spent being able to do graphics for merch and logos for bands around town I was pals with. Still, eventually I started gravitating more towards just drawing for the sake of it unbound by any theme or guideline, just making things I wanted to make. At this point in the process, I’m working towards developing a catalog of work that is uniquely me that has people gathering around to see. I want to make stuff that’s fun to look at. I try to trigger the brain in ways where it intends to investigate and understand: bright colors and lots of meticulous detail for our minds to get lost and play with. Maybe my work isn’t incredibly profound, but at least it’s at times sugary and fun, bold, jarring, and attention grabbing.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I feel like the more serious I’ve been about finding a way to make this my primary source of income, the more difficult it has become, especially with the older I get and this societal pressure to start getting my life ‘together.’ It’s a time of expanding because there’s so much I’d like to do, I want to go from painting and to draw in my spare time to a much more grandiose and less limited to the confines of my bedroom repertoire. This is the hardest it’s been. It’s oftentimes directionless which is challenging to navigate. I try to remain true to myself, but I’m also in that stage of life where my sense of self is constantly evolving. I feel like this era makes it the easiest it’s ever been to be a ‘professional’ artist with platforms online connecting us to the rest of the world, so at least that’s less to worry about. I struggle with networking especially, as well as natural and cohesive collaboration and connection with other artists, either stylistically or just because I’m too in my own world more often than not and there’s not much room for anything else. I’m looking to branch out and work on group efforts more, I start to become comfortable with my voice as an artist and I would like to figure out how to harmonize with others and have my work coexist in the same plane as someone else’s. Marketing has been a struggle too if I want to do this full time and live off of it, I’ve got to get myself out there which pushes me to create more wild and attention-grabbing pieces – but it’s a double-edged sword because it makes it a lot more stressful too and sometimes can take the fun out of it. It’s still a blissful process in the moments of creating thankfully, and I don’t think it ever won’t be this intrinsically beneficial and fulfilling activity.
We’d love to hear more about your work.
I don’t want to downplay years of hard work and dedication, but at the end of the day, it’s just me in my room drawing or painting. Which is probably the source of most of my confusion and feeling lost. The more I aimlessly wander and create what I think looks cool, the more attention it’s garnered. I’ve been developing a direction recently, wanting to work more on clothes using pants and hoodies as a support rather than a traditional canvas. I’m sure it’s a phase for both art and fashion, but it’s been lucrative so far with so much positive reinforcement – people gravitate towards a piece they can wear quicker than they’ll buy a piece that hangs on the wall. I like that I can highlight individuality and provide something someone might not have been able to find elsewhere. As far as the rest of what I do, I’m proud that visual art has remained something I still explore after all these years, finding ways to adapt and grow with any trend that’s working in the art world and still make it my own/something I want to make in the first place. There’s been reaffirming instances like having the opportunity to do a show in LA, selling pieces to help with bills when money is tight and working with particular individuals who are hard to get in touch with otherwise. I’m proud that I’ve been building this name for myself over a hobby turned small business that has people seeing something in me and what I do that they want to be a part of, especially people who want to something that I can take from our experience and use in my tool belt in the future. My mentor Myles for instance, has helped me make visual art more seriously in the entrepreneurial side of things. Drawing and painting have made me fortunate enough to work with people who’ve given me countless lessons in marketing and even with things like believing in myself. I’m happy to be learning all of this knowledge obtained through making art that I will eventually be able to pass down to those who will find themselves where I am currently. I don’t think there’s much that sets me apart from other visual artists other than how I regurgitate my personal experiences on the canvas. Maybe thematically, there’s something unique, but I don’t want to think about it too much because I don’t want it to go to my head.
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
Emulating what successful artists are doing to get their work out in the world has taught me more about ‘ranking up,’ and the rest of the heavy lifting is in the work I create. I think passionate art that is constantly evolving with the artist has no glass ceiling, I constantly am working on becoming a better artist as far as technique goes because it makes my heart feel good and I think people can see that in my work. I’m not trying to be anyone else, and I can’t say that I have ever tried to be someone other than myself. I think remaining genuine and comfortable with yourself will be apparent in what we create. Being consistently genuine is the most crucial part.
Pricing:
- Pricing determined on a piece by piece basis, general ballpark of $100 and up for 1/1 work
Contact Info:
- Email: oualms@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/oualms/
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