Throughout the Interviews conducted people sure do have their influences or they just spew out what's on their mind onto their canvas, paper, or any way they express themselves artistically. Others have studied multiple art styles by reading and about those who have seemed to have mastered the art style or pushed it forward in any way along with the experimentation our local creatives have done as well. Just as with music, there can be a genre attached to it, but by the end of the day, everyone's work has their own personal touch to it that makes it unique from each other. This leads us to this week's feature being Megan Quinn, @meganashleyquinn.
Megan Quinn
She starts off by stating one of her favorite local businesses "A little bit of a shout-out here, I’m really enjoying Quinn Comics, a local comic shop in Harlingen owned by my father, Rob Quinn! It opened in October 2019 and I’m just loving seeing my father following his lifelong dream of owning his own comic book store and catering to the nerd in all of us." I know about three local comic shops being Myth Adventures, Kaboom Comics, and Kirby's Comics I believe and they surely are nice shops to just get yourself lost in. I'm not usually in the Harlingen area, but I went earlier this year. From my experience, it's a nice area and I loved the lake with all the ducks. Next time I do go I'll have to check it out for sure!
We have our beginning points as Megan shares by saying "I’ve been drawing since I was a young girl. Being an only child, I had a lot of 'downtime', so to speak. I watched a lot of cartoons and wanted to draw what I saw on TV." I used to draw what was on TV which was usually the VHS tapes my mom would buy me which were usually DragonBall Z movies but in Spanish. It didn't take it any further, but Megan continues by saying "I got more serious around ages 10 to 12 and started practicing more. One Christmas, I asked my parents for my very first drawing tablet so I could pursue digital art and once I got it, I began drawing and uploading my art online when I was about 13 or 14 on a website called DeviantART. My parents have always been very supportive of my drawings and once I started uploading my art for others to see and began receiving positive feedback, it felt even more validating and gave me the confidence to continue what I was doing at that point." I always find it so heartwarming to hear family members being supportive of someone's goals/pursuits. Understanding the feedback received has to lead Megan to continue along with the support from others to be the artist she is today is good to hear.
As we bring up the idea of influences that necessarily have to be a certain artist or style, but it can be much more than that which can be turned and made into your own. Therefore Megan states "I don’t have any specific influences, as it stems from all sorts of things and places. There are a lot of artists I follow on Instagram that inspire me with concepts and color palettes they use in their works. I try my best to create things that make others feel warm and cozy." I do agree with your statement of "warm and cozy" as I look at the color palettes and the actual image itself. For example, the piece with the eggs and bacon feels "cozy" to me due to the colors and It makes me feel as if I'm at the kitchen table and the mornings are usually the times I have for myself before everything starts and time begins to pass. There are other artworks that Megan has shared that have this feeling of "warm and cozy" as well. Be sure to take your time with them and find what makes them "warm and cozy" to yourself.
From the artworks on this blog post the more works on her Instagram page @meganashleyquinn which has all come from practice and since she was young, but how has she changed over time or developed her work? She explains by saying "I started out with traditional art; paper, paint, colored pencils, etcetera. Once I began drawing digitally, I was able to experiment to my heart's content without running out of paper, paint, or colored pencils. I really liked that, as I was able to quickly find out what works for me in terms of personal style." The act of "experimentation" comes into play which is always interesting to know but understanding that it was different before as she stated how she did get her drawing pad at an early age as stated earlier. Which she explained the benefits and acknowledging her "personal style" which is the main idea. She continues by saying "My style of drawing has definitely changed over the years and I’m thankful for the growth I’ve experienced. Looking back on my older drawings is definitely humbling." The progress and the experience with the old way she created her artwork to the changes made with the drawing pad as mentioned helped her find her "personal style" which is amazing for any artist to find or acknowledge.
Speaking on the progress and experience and the multiple pieces of artwork created what can be said about the possibility of a favorite piece she's created to which she replied with "I don't have a particular favorite piece. That might sound negative, but I try not to get too attached to anything I've made since I'm always growing and changing in different ways. Each thing I make I'm learning from so I value all the pieces I've done in recent time, as each piece allows me to grow more as an artist." I understand and that's a perfectly reasonable statement as we have seen multiple artists grow and change. Not sticking to the same thing as we use musicians for an example and artists who experiment outside the field they're comfortable in. The idea of "not to get too attached" feels like it can have its cons like maybe being stuck and not experiencing what else the creative can do outside of their "favorite" piece. What we can surely take from this is that experimentation and learning as you grow with your work can bring results to the table.
I'm always curious about the creative process behind a piece or an artist's artwork in general. On how it begins and ends while it's been different every time which Megan explains hers "well, there unfortunately isn’t any fancy rhyme or reason whenever I create something. It just kind of, pours out of my lil’ brain. I really enjoy warmer colors, like peaches, pinks, yellows. Working with a limited color palette helps to keep my work consistent." As she explained her creative process; what caught my attention are these two statements being "It just kind of, pours out of my lil' brain" and "working with a limited color palette helps to keep my work consistent." It sounds simple, but then you'd have to consider the color choices you'd want to work with and all the ideas and thoughts bouncing off the walls trying to decide or just mush it all into one mixing pot. It comes together just how she wants it and that's perfectly fine.
As Megan grows and learns along with her art I question how she wishes to grow as an artist to which replied with "Exposure is one thing, but I would love to be able to have my own online shop for people to buy prints from and maybe other things! For now, I’m just a small artist doing my thing." Yes, exposure is certainly a way to grow, but I honestly thought Megan already sold prints, but that's something we'd have to wait for. She certainly has amazing pieces just like the rest of the local creatives within our community. You can imagine the "warm and cozy" artwork making your home much more warm and cozier! I look forward to what the future holds for Megan as local creative as much for the creatives in our community. Big things to come for everyone I'm sure!
Megan shares her thoughts on the local art scene in The Valley,
"I think it’s very interesting, there’s so many people doing different things creatively. Music, illustrations, photography, ceramics, dance, jewelry. I love to see people from where I was born shine their light out into the universe."
Along with something she wanted to share,
"I would like to say, be kind to each other and try to uplift other people’s voices if you’re able to. There’s a lot of ugly in the world and if we can help each other, we should try our best to do that."
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