We recently connected with Shawnelle Dodds and have shared our conversation below.

Shawnelle, appreciate you joining us today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

I have received some requests over the years that brought tears to my eyes. For example, one time, when I was working at the Three Rivers Arts Festival, I was asked to draw a woman who had no hair due to cancer chemotherapy. They described her hair and asked me to draw her with hair instead of leaving her bald. Of course, everyone started crying at the final project, which prompted me to cry as well. They said I nailed it, which was nice considering I was scared I would mess it up because this was the first time I had ever done something like this. I was also honored to do a commission piece of a family with their deceased dog. I turned him into an angel. And probably the most powerful piece I was requested to draw, was a child in a wheelchair. He asked me to draw him “walking”. I put him in a park setting. I still get choked up thinking about that one. Anyone who knows me knows that I am a softy for things like this.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I started drawing caricatures in 1995 at the Three Rivers Arts Festival. It all came down to money. I grew up poor, so I saw an opportunity. I was in school for graphic design at the time in downtown Pittsburgh. Once I graduated from art school, I started doing grocery advertising. Every year for my vacation from my “real job,” I would take two weeks to do caricatures down at the festival. I think I fell in love with the lifestyle because I quit my regular job and started doing odds and ends jobs like bartending or dog walking so that I could have the freedom to do art festivals whenever I wanted. Another artist, Clarence Butler, took me under his wing and got me into other festivals. From there, I started doing proms with Clarence and another mentor of mine, Jeff Harris, both of whom I still work with. This all led to weddings, birthdays, etc. through word of mouth as social media wasn’t so prevalent back then. I never thought it would “stick” and I’d be here 30 years later doing the same thing. I have drawn in 3 different counties and about 10 states.

I am open to commission pieces, but honestly, I LOVE drawing and the interactions with humans. Depending on the setting, I will have my subjects cracking up at my jokes and stories, have kids telling me how much they love my outfit or talk about things like pets or roller skating. I have even drawn at retirement homes and love hearing about our elders’ lives or getting lifestyle advice. It truly is a unique “job” and is about so much more than just art.

One of my goals is to travel around the United States in a van with my dog and cats, having the freedom to go from festival to festival drawing caricatures. I still have a few details to work out though. 😉

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.

I think it’s important for people to know that artistic ability is not a “gift,” or “talent.” It requires hard work, dedication, and practice, just like anything else if you want to be good at it. I would not put myself in a tractor-trailer and expect to know how to drive it. I have to learn how to do it first, and I’m still going to be mediocre until I get the hang of it. If I’m lucky, somebody will show me how to do it and be there to help me when I need it. I’ll be really good after a year and even better after 30 years. It’s the same with caricatures. And for those who say they can’t draw a straight line—neither can I!

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

I think starting my drawing journey at festivals prepared me for pretty much anything that caricature life can throw at me. You have to take your good days with your bad. If I pay a fee to be somewhere, and it rains for all four days, I am out $200. Some days you sit in blazing heat for 10 hours to make very little money because it’s too hot for people to sit down in it. The packing and setting up, then tearing down your set-up and packing it all up again is grueling in and of itself. Then doing it all over again the next day. Now imagine doing that in the pouring down rain. There have been times when my stuff has blown away and my supplies have gotten completely drenched. Anybody who is from Pittsburgh knows that the weather can be somewhat trying at times and very unpredictable (even though the weatherman still tries 😂). You never know what the day is going to hold. One time we even got hail. Thankfully we all decided to use umbrellas that year. Needless to say, now everything except for my paper is waterproof.

Another note for anybody who is considering this as a profession, you have to develop thick skin. When I was younger, I did not have the confidence that I do today, and it shows in my drawings. Quite a few times I have had people say some pretty rude things to me. They still paid, but they were very crappy about the drawings. Once I got older, I stopped caring so much about what others think, and that is when my live art started getting better. I still get some weird looks at times, but I just roll the paper up and hand it to them. I’ve only had one customer in 30 years refuse to pay me. If you’re going to get a caricature, you may want to develop some thick skin as well. After all, you are paying an artist for their interpretation of you.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: Caricatures by S. Dodds
• Facebook: Caricatures by S. Dodds