We recently connected with Andrew Taveras and have shared our conversation below.

Andrew, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

I would say I’m self-taught in everything that I do, but there were many people & experiences that I was able to learn & pull from. Coming out of high school, I picked a music major (thinking that I wanted to be a musician). That didn’t last long. I dropped out in a month and ended going to Youtube University lol I would watch how-to & DIY videos all the time. From how to draw this & paint that, to how to cut & sew, to starting your own business – I mean I learned so much from these people who were putting this information in their videos. I was just obsessed with knowing more, that’s really how I developed into the creative I am today.

My big brother & my peers influenced me a lot as well. My brother is a musician & a big part of my musical & art taste. I would just go through his CD book and find all these gems. He would also do graffiti on every book I brought home from school. I just remember being in class & opening a random composition book only to see his name in bubble letters all over the place. The kids I went to school with were also into graffiti & street art. It was all I wanted to do.

I wish I would’ve known how much art meant to me back in those days. I would’ve taken it a lot more serious & pursued different things out of high school. I have only been painting & designing for real for the last 3-4 years. I can’t imagine how far my skills & techniques would’ve developed if I started younger. I was just in a different state of mind with different priorities back then.

It’s funny – out of all the skills I’ve learned, I think the greatest skill is my ability to connect to all different kinds of people. I think the relationships I built with my peers & connecting to people has made more of a difference in my life than the art I’ve made.

Andrew, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

My name is Andrew Taveras. I am a designer/artist/creator & small business owner based out of Queens, NY. I run a clothing brand called Off The Books that I started back in 2018. It’s a peek into my idea of simple designs on high quality fabrics & other products. I am a renaissance man, I do everything from designing products, to producing them, then marketing them & finally getting them in the hands of people who support the ideas. I have always been into fashion but I’m picky when it comes to my clothes so one day I decided that I’ll just make my own. One piece turned into another. Before I knew it, I was putting together small collections of ideas & selling them.

I am also a painter. I started painting back in 2018 as well but I wasn’t taking it serious. It wasn’t until around 2020 where I starting pouring hours & hours into the craft. I don’t have the right term of what kind of painter I am, I just paint what I’m inspired by. I was very selfish with my painting up until recent. I always painted for myself. It’s almost like my therapy. I just recently started taking on commissions & making it more of a collaborative act. I realized that art is not mine, it’s just an expression of who I am.

I am a creative person at my core. Whether is making clothes, painting a portrait, building a piece of furniture, or putting together playlists – I just want to make & create. Collaboration is important to me as well. Alone you can do great things, but together we can really tap into something much bigger & impactful.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The process of creating for me is a gumbo of a bunch of different feelings. When it’s just you & the project, you go on this rollercoaster of emotions. It starts off with nerves of excitement – finally starting something that’s been brewing in your brain for weeks, maybe even months. Then comes in confusion & frustration, this is the hardest part but the most important – you just don’t know if you’re approaching it the best way or if you’re headed in the right direction. Once you overcome the voices in your head, you can finally see the finish line & make the final push. At last, you reach the finish line. You did it! You’re overcome with the feeling of accomplishment.

Just when you think the rollercoaster is coming to an end – you show what you created to the public & it touches all different kinds of people from different walks of life. Hearing how much someone appreciates what you spent all that time & sacrifice creating. That’s the most rewarding part. If you’re lucky, someone will want to buy it to hang in their home or add to their wardrobe. That’s the cherry on top.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

I was always told that if you want something done, you do it yourself. This is still very true! but that idea turned into a mindset for many years. Although I was sharing my ideas with many different people, it was just me doing everything for years. I felt like I didn’t need anyone, I could just do it myself. That way of thinking held me back so much in life as a whole. It was stunting my growth as a person. I needed to let go and trust others, that was the only way I could grow & build better relationships with people. Letting go of that way of thinking has helped me reach the goals I had for myself. As I said before, you can do great things alone, but together you can really make waves in the world!!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://mrtaveras.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drewhoudini/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/drewfromtheq

Image Credits
Select photos by Anderson Moran