Quicksilver
(╯°□°）╯︵ ┻━┻)
Well you all seemed to like the first one the other day where Brain Gray Ceo of Leaf Cards answered some questions .
I thought instead of cards cards cards each week (the schedule i'll try and stick do) I would try to embrace a lot more on aspects that draw us all together in the broader sense of collecting, one of which is artwork. Follow the links at the end of this post and I think you instantly figure out why i've asked the uber talented Joey Romero to answer some questions!
Well, most people I know call me Joey, but there are quite a few people who call me Joe. I guess as long as you get the first 3 letters right, it doesn't really matter what you call me. I'm a 31yr old freelance artist living in Orange County, CA. What I do for a living is basically create art for various people, for various reasons. Sometimes I could be doing a logo design for an individual or a company. Next, I might be working on some artwork for clothing. Or, my personal favorite, I might we working on some commissions that people have asked me to do of things that they love. It's all art related, and it's all fun to do for different reasons. I like to think that because I can switch between illustration/graphic design, it not only keeps my skills sharp, but makes me more valuable.
I've always been into art. Ever since I was 3-4, it's just something that I've wanted to do, and be a part of. I kept at it over the years, and did some freelance stuff here and there when I was younger. At that time I thought it was the coolest thing ever to have your artwork published in a magazine, or on the internet (I was using AOL back in those days - remember AOL??) I got into graphic design essentially to get my foot in the door to make art my living. When I was in high school, graphic design was really kind of becoming big. I mean, both Adobe Illustrator/Photoshop were in their early stages, and while you could do some pretty awesome stuff, it's nothing compared to what you can do with it now. I actually saw an ad in the classifieds section of the newspaper for a small company that was looking for graphics help. I called, met with the guy, COMPLETELY lied my way into the job (told him I was proficient with both AI and PS), and started a few days later. When the owner found out I had never really touched any kind of graphics program, he told me he'd give me a week to learn, or he'd have to find someone else. Now, this was before YouTube, so I actually had to go and find some illustrator/photoshop books and make a go of it that way. I learned enough within a week to keep my job, and just kept progressing as I went. I was with the company for about 2 years before I left. That was about 12 years ago, and I've been using illustrator/photoshop (and a lot other programs) ever since.
I guess they've accepted it fine. I mean, I kind of feel like it's a no brainer for me. Anyone who knows me, knows that art is kinda my thing. I've worked jobs that had absolutely nothing to do with art, but as I got older, I always tried to find something that was at least art related so I didn't feel like I was completely wasting my time while I was at work all day. The last full time office job I had was being an artist/designer for a martial arts company. That was 4 years ago. When I left that place to do my own thing, my Mom thought I was insane. They paid me a good amount of money, and it was literally down the street from my house. She just couldn't understand that I needed to be on my own and not punch a clock. I think during the first year of being freelance, she was really worried. I definitely had to struggle, but I've been in business for myself for 4 years now, and everyone seems to be happy for me. In fact, I get the "I wish I had a job like yours" comments all the time.
Actually, none. I'm entirely self taught. I mean, my brother got me started on drawing when I was a kid, but I've never had any formal training to speak of. I took the required art classes in high school, but I always thought those were boring. They'd always have you draw the most random things, as if it's going to help you later down the road. I remember one time, my teacher had us fold a 11x17" piece of paper into 4 squares. She had us draw a lantern. She told us to draw the lantern as it is in one square. In the next square, she wanted us to draw it with some heavy shading. In the third square, she wanted an abstract lantern. And finally, in the fourth square, she wanted us to draw our own lantern. So I did. I drew the Green Lantern. Needless to say, she was not amused and actually failed me on that project. That's kind when I knew that taking formal art classes, and dealing with people like that just wasn't in the cards for me. I'm a pretty quick learner, and I like to study different things and not have limitations set on what I can do. Any new skills I've developed, or any new art related programs I know now, are entirely self taught. I just apply them to something that interests me, and go to work.
That was tough. When I worked at the martial arts company, I had developed quite a few contacts with different vendors who needed art done for them. I knew at the time that they were not happy with the company I worked for, because they were WAY overpriced, and the bosses were…well, not cool guys. I knew that the vendors enjoyed my work, and we got along well, so when I left the company, I actually called some of the vendors and told them I was leaving, and that if they still wanted me to work on their projects, I would be happy to, and I would charge them a fair price. Some of them took me up on the offer. Was it kind of shady of me? Sure. But hey, business is business. If you know someone is unhappy with their current source, and you can give them the same quality (because I was the one doing it anyway) for a cheaper price, then why not? It took me about a year to develop a steady stream of clients. A lot of sleepless nights. A lot of wondering how I was going to pay this or that, but I stuck it out, and I made it. Honestly, it was pure determination.
I'm assuming you're talking about "Stone Cold" Steve Austin? I've been a fan of Steve's for probably over two decades. I remember him from his ECW, and WCW days, and I even remember him as the "Ringmaster" when he first made it to the WWF(E). To be honest with you, I was the biggest "Stone Cold" fan on planet Earth. I seriously worshiped this guy. When Steve hung up his boots, I was pretty much done with wrestling. I felt like I had been a fan for nearly my entire life, but when my all-time favorite decided to walk away, I was done. I'll never forget his last match against The Rock. When he got pinned, I kind of sat back and thought "whoa…this is it." I'm not even going to lie, I got teary eyed too. I felt like it was the end of an era - and it was. I felt like the attitude era officially ended with Austin's retirement. Since then, it just hasn't been the same. I tune in now and again to see what's going on, but I don't know a lot of the guys, or the story lines that are going on. In regard to what I created for Steve, I do most of the artwork for his personal "BSR" (Broken Skull Ranch) line, and I created some WWE shirts that he wore on RAW and at WrestleMania 27 (seen the "stompin' mud holes" shirt? That's me). I mainly work on his personal line of shirts that he sells through his website, and various other pieces of art he needs. He'll usually call me or text me with an idea, and then we'll kind of go back and forth until he have something solid. Steve got me in contact with the WWE, which was kind of a dream come true. I'll never forget receiving my first WWE paycheck, it was really awesome. I haven't gotten to work with any of the other guys, because most of them use the in-house creative team at WWE, but I would love the opportunity. I feel like I could do some cool stuff with guys like CM Punk, Cena, and even The Rock.
That IS a tough one. Different ones are memorable for different reasons. An example would be the Walter White/Jesse Pinkman illustrations I did. Up until that point (last August), I never thought I could do likenesses. Like, I could sort of do them, but you might take a sec before you'd figure out who I was trying to draw. My problem was that I was trying to draw exactly what I saw, rather than suggest certain things and try to be more "natural." Your nose for instance, if I tried to draw your nose exactly how I saw it in a picture, then I'd draw out the bridge, nostrils, etc, and it might make your nose look WAY off - because I'm trying to be too technical. What I learned is, if you hint at certain shapes, and then add in some shading/light - things like noses, lips, etc start to look more natural. Same thing with hair. I always sucked at drawing hair because I tried to make it look to precise. All the hair I tried to draw ended up looking like LEGO hair. With Walter, I just sort of started using "brush" strokes (even though I was using a pen). It just looks more natural to me. That illustration is the first time I've sat back and thought "whoa….I didn't know I could do that," in a VERY long time. As far as memorable for me personally - it's the Walking Dead illustrations. I worked on them with Gabby LoPorto (@piratehookergab on twitter), who is very near and dear to me. It's the first time we'd ever done anything like that together, and I'm really happy with the way our set of four (minus the Governor) turned out. Just a very big point of pride for me personally.
Man. Another tough one. I kind of don't feel like I'm in a place to give out advice to anyone, because it's not like I'm some industry leader in what I do. I'm just a guy who's always had a love for drawing, comics, etc and didn't really want to do anything else. I practiced (and still do), took some chances, and never allow myself to get discouraged when I see other artist's who are better than me. So - I guess that would be it. If you're really passionate about it, then go for it. Don't let the "what if?" stand in your way of taking changes. While you may not know the definite outcome if you DO take the chance, you're guaranteed to know the outcome if you don't - you were too afraid to try. J.K. Rowling once said "I want to be remembered as doing the best I could, with the talent that I had" and that's something that seriously sticks with me every single day. Some people love what I do, and some people think I'm a hack (especially on the internet - those people can be nasty). At the end of the day, I'm doing what makes me happy, and through doing that I get to make other people happy. I'd say it's not such a bad deal.
I have heard of Vegemite, but never actually tasted it. It sounds interesting to me. I would be up for trying it if you sent me some. Only one thing - no coconut, or coconut byproduct in it. I don't do coconut at all.
Lot's of places. To see my portfolio of work, you can go to www.averagejoeart.blogspot.com and www.facebook.com/averagejoeartdotcom. I just started a tumblr account too at www.averagejoeart.tumblr.com. To buy prints of my artwork, you can go to www.etsy.com/shop/averagejoeart or www.society6.com/averagejoeart. Or, if you want to see me ramble on twitter all day, you can follow me at @averagejoeart. And….to request commissions, you can email me directly at joe@averagejoeart.com
I hope you enjoyed and took a bit out of this post guys as always comments are welcome. At this point in time I have at least two more pieces of content lined up as long as peoples time permits.
I thought instead of cards cards cards each week (the schedule i'll try and stick do) I would try to embrace a lot more on aspects that draw us all together in the broader sense of collecting, one of which is artwork. Follow the links at the end of this post and I think you instantly figure out why i've asked the uber talented Joey Romero to answer some questions!
1. I’ve been following your @AverageJoeArt account on twitter for a while now and have had a few chats with you (and yes I will buy something eventually once I have paid off all my other purchases) and thought it would be pretty cool to introduce you to a whole new group of people that could check out your artwork. So I guess first and foremost for the Ozcardtrader members who are you and what do you do for a living?
Well, most people I know call me Joey, but there are quite a few people who call me Joe. I guess as long as you get the first 3 letters right, it doesn't really matter what you call me. I'm a 31yr old freelance artist living in Orange County, CA. What I do for a living is basically create art for various people, for various reasons. Sometimes I could be doing a logo design for an individual or a company. Next, I might be working on some artwork for clothing. Or, my personal favorite, I might we working on some commissions that people have asked me to do of things that they love. It's all art related, and it's all fun to do for different reasons. I like to think that because I can switch between illustration/graphic design, it not only keeps my skills sharp, but makes me more valuable.
2. At what age did you decide you wanted to pursue illustration / graphic design.
I've always been into art. Ever since I was 3-4, it's just something that I've wanted to do, and be a part of. I kept at it over the years, and did some freelance stuff here and there when I was younger. At that time I thought it was the coolest thing ever to have your artwork published in a magazine, or on the internet (I was using AOL back in those days - remember AOL??) I got into graphic design essentially to get my foot in the door to make art my living. When I was in high school, graphic design was really kind of becoming big. I mean, both Adobe Illustrator/Photoshop were in their early stages, and while you could do some pretty awesome stuff, it's nothing compared to what you can do with it now. I actually saw an ad in the classifieds section of the newspaper for a small company that was looking for graphics help. I called, met with the guy, COMPLETELY lied my way into the job (told him I was proficient with both AI and PS), and started a few days later. When the owner found out I had never really touched any kind of graphics program, he told me he'd give me a week to learn, or he'd have to find someone else. Now, this was before YouTube, so I actually had to go and find some illustrator/photoshop books and make a go of it that way. I learned enough within a week to keep my job, and just kept progressing as I went. I was with the company for about 2 years before I left. That was about 12 years ago, and I've been using illustrator/photoshop (and a lot other programs) ever since.
3. How has your family accepted your career choice? Was the support there to ensure you could make a good go of it?
I guess they've accepted it fine. I mean, I kind of feel like it's a no brainer for me. Anyone who knows me, knows that art is kinda my thing. I've worked jobs that had absolutely nothing to do with art, but as I got older, I always tried to find something that was at least art related so I didn't feel like I was completely wasting my time while I was at work all day. The last full time office job I had was being an artist/designer for a martial arts company. That was 4 years ago. When I left that place to do my own thing, my Mom thought I was insane. They paid me a good amount of money, and it was literally down the street from my house. She just couldn't understand that I needed to be on my own and not punch a clock. I think during the first year of being freelance, she was really worried. I definitely had to struggle, but I've been in business for myself for 4 years now, and everyone seems to be happy for me. In fact, I get the "I wish I had a job like yours" comments all the time.
4. What sort of courses and classes did you take to learn as much as you could? << This one is really dependent on the answer to #2 ignore if not applicable.
Actually, none. I'm entirely self taught. I mean, my brother got me started on drawing when I was a kid, but I've never had any formal training to speak of. I took the required art classes in high school, but I always thought those were boring. They'd always have you draw the most random things, as if it's going to help you later down the road. I remember one time, my teacher had us fold a 11x17" piece of paper into 4 squares. She had us draw a lantern. She told us to draw the lantern as it is in one square. In the next square, she wanted us to draw it with some heavy shading. In the third square, she wanted an abstract lantern. And finally, in the fourth square, she wanted us to draw our own lantern. So I did. I drew the Green Lantern. Needless to say, she was not amused and actually failed me on that project. That's kind when I knew that taking formal art classes, and dealing with people like that just wasn't in the cards for me. I'm a pretty quick learner, and I like to study different things and not have limitations set on what I can do. Any new skills I've developed, or any new art related programs I know now, are entirely self taught. I just apply them to something that interests me, and go to work.
5. How did you “break” into the business and start getting clients, I would assume it took a bit of work.
That was tough. When I worked at the martial arts company, I had developed quite a few contacts with different vendors who needed art done for them. I knew at the time that they were not happy with the company I worked for, because they were WAY overpriced, and the bosses were…well, not cool guys. I knew that the vendors enjoyed my work, and we got along well, so when I left the company, I actually called some of the vendors and told them I was leaving, and that if they still wanted me to work on their projects, I would be happy to, and I would charge them a fair price. Some of them took me up on the offer. Was it kind of shady of me? Sure. But hey, business is business. If you know someone is unhappy with their current source, and you can give them the same quality (because I was the one doing it anyway) for a cheaper price, then why not? It took me about a year to develop a steady stream of clients. A lot of sleepless nights. A lot of wondering how I was going to pay this or that, but I stuck it out, and I made it. Honestly, it was pure determination.
6. I know from a conversation we had on twitter you have had at least one client that a lot of Ozcardtrader members would know from his wrestling days. What did you produce for him and are there any others that spring to mind as memorable clients.
I'm assuming you're talking about "Stone Cold" Steve Austin? I've been a fan of Steve's for probably over two decades. I remember him from his ECW, and WCW days, and I even remember him as the "Ringmaster" when he first made it to the WWF(E). To be honest with you, I was the biggest "Stone Cold" fan on planet Earth. I seriously worshiped this guy. When Steve hung up his boots, I was pretty much done with wrestling. I felt like I had been a fan for nearly my entire life, but when my all-time favorite decided to walk away, I was done. I'll never forget his last match against The Rock. When he got pinned, I kind of sat back and thought "whoa…this is it." I'm not even going to lie, I got teary eyed too. I felt like it was the end of an era - and it was. I felt like the attitude era officially ended with Austin's retirement. Since then, it just hasn't been the same. I tune in now and again to see what's going on, but I don't know a lot of the guys, or the story lines that are going on. In regard to what I created for Steve, I do most of the artwork for his personal "BSR" (Broken Skull Ranch) line, and I created some WWE shirts that he wore on RAW and at WrestleMania 27 (seen the "stompin' mud holes" shirt? That's me). I mainly work on his personal line of shirts that he sells through his website, and various other pieces of art he needs. He'll usually call me or text me with an idea, and then we'll kind of go back and forth until he have something solid. Steve got me in contact with the WWE, which was kind of a dream come true. I'll never forget receiving my first WWE paycheck, it was really awesome. I haven't gotten to work with any of the other guys, because most of them use the in-house creative team at WWE, but I would love the opportunity. I feel like I could do some cool stuff with guys like CM Punk, Cena, and even The Rock.
7. Now this is a tough one! What is the most memorable piece you have completed?
That IS a tough one. Different ones are memorable for different reasons. An example would be the Walter White/Jesse Pinkman illustrations I did. Up until that point (last August), I never thought I could do likenesses. Like, I could sort of do them, but you might take a sec before you'd figure out who I was trying to draw. My problem was that I was trying to draw exactly what I saw, rather than suggest certain things and try to be more "natural." Your nose for instance, if I tried to draw your nose exactly how I saw it in a picture, then I'd draw out the bridge, nostrils, etc, and it might make your nose look WAY off - because I'm trying to be too technical. What I learned is, if you hint at certain shapes, and then add in some shading/light - things like noses, lips, etc start to look more natural. Same thing with hair. I always sucked at drawing hair because I tried to make it look to precise. All the hair I tried to draw ended up looking like LEGO hair. With Walter, I just sort of started using "brush" strokes (even though I was using a pen). It just looks more natural to me. That illustration is the first time I've sat back and thought "whoa….I didn't know I could do that," in a VERY long time. As far as memorable for me personally - it's the Walking Dead illustrations. I worked on them with Gabby LoPorto (@piratehookergab on twitter), who is very near and dear to me. It's the first time we'd ever done anything like that together, and I'm really happy with the way our set of four (minus the Governor) turned out. Just a very big point of pride for me personally.
8. What sort of advice would you give to someone looking to learn the ropes and enter the industry
Man. Another tough one. I kind of don't feel like I'm in a place to give out advice to anyone, because it's not like I'm some industry leader in what I do. I'm just a guy who's always had a love for drawing, comics, etc and didn't really want to do anything else. I practiced (and still do), took some chances, and never allow myself to get discouraged when I see other artist's who are better than me. So - I guess that would be it. If you're really passionate about it, then go for it. Don't let the "what if?" stand in your way of taking changes. While you may not know the definite outcome if you DO take the chance, you're guaranteed to know the outcome if you don't - you were too afraid to try. J.K. Rowling once said "I want to be remembered as doing the best I could, with the talent that I had" and that's something that seriously sticks with me every single day. Some people love what I do, and some people think I'm a hack (especially on the internet - those people can be nasty). At the end of the day, I'm doing what makes me happy, and through doing that I get to make other people happy. I'd say it's not such a bad deal.
9. Have you ever tried the quintessentially Australian spread Vegemite? If not would you have a taste if we sent you a jar and then report back your thoughts?
I have heard of Vegemite, but never actually tasted it. It sounds interesting to me. I would be up for trying it if you sent me some. Only one thing - no coconut, or coconut byproduct in it. I don't do coconut at all.
10. Where can people go to follow you as well as have a look at your work and maybe purchase a print or two?
Lot's of places. To see my portfolio of work, you can go to www.averagejoeart.blogspot.com and www.facebook.com/averagejoeartdotcom. I just started a tumblr account too at www.averagejoeart.tumblr.com. To buy prints of my artwork, you can go to www.etsy.com/shop/averagejoeart or www.society6.com/averagejoeart. Or, if you want to see me ramble on twitter all day, you can follow me at @averagejoeart. And….to request commissions, you can email me directly at joe@averagejoeart.com
I hope you enjoyed and took a bit out of this post guys as always comments are welcome. At this point in time I have at least two more pieces of content lined up as long as peoples time permits.
would be good if i was interviewed 
there is a story behind everything . i like this guys art, very unique
to all that do contribute, just remember the people who I do the Q&A with read the threads as well
