We were lucky to catch up with John-David Swiger recently and have shared our conversation below.

John-David, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.

The biggest risk I took in life was leaving my job in 2017 to become a full time Artist. Myself and my brother, Michael Swiger, had recently graduated from separate art schools with degrees in Graphic Design. After a few years of corporate America, we decided to open our own Art studio/gallery in our hometown of Gulf Shores, AL. We only had a handful of clients to start with… Some weeks were good and others we scraped by, but we were proud to be working for ourselves – calling our own shots. In order to grow as a company, we began developing new creative skills such as videography, photography, and mural painting. Flash forward 7 years and our small studio has won multiple community art awards including ‘Best Art Gallery in Baldwin County ’23.

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?

My small business is ‘Swiger Studio Art Gallery’ in Gulf Shores, AL. I have huge respect for my hometown of Gulf Shores and I want my artwork to reflect that. Most of what I create today are mixed media sculptures made from upcycled beach pollution. I’m best known for building life size trash sculptures depicting sea animals and other local species who are affected by our human waste. Aside from fine art, our small business is responsible for painting nearly 30 murals on the Gulf Coast that depict underwater scenes full of native sea life and structure. The combination of creating ‘community clean artwork’ with mural painting has given us an opportunity to give back. Through my artwork, I hope to raise consciousness about an ongoing problem while dignifying the animals who are forced to suffer from our selfish actions.

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

In 2017 I had just left my corporate job to become a full time artist. Our small business, ‘Swiger Studio Art Gallery’ was new to the scene with little credibility and a short list of clients. Our resilience was tested every first of the month. I often asked myself if I was making the right decision in becoming a full time creative as I had no road map on how to succeed or where to turn next. Over time, I began filling my creative quiver with a number of artistic skill sets. Every medium mastered was a potential revenue stream. We began offering more for our clients like mural painting and drone film in hopes of maintaining a steady income. Flash forward to today and our small studio has been in business for 7 years, gaining community respect and legitimacy along the way. I’ve learned that everyday is a test of resilience when you’ve chosen a creative path.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

The most rewarding aspect of being an artist is the ability to communicate to an audience without words. I am proud to make artwork that has more than superficial appeal. For myself, the privilege to display work only comes after weeks, sometimes months of toil – all for a message to be understood. Eventually, the work is complete and is put out into the world for the others to perceive. In many ways, this form of communication is art itself.      

Contact Info:

• Website: www.swigerstudio.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jd_swiger/?hl=en
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/johndavid.swiger
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/jdwswiger?lang=en
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@SwigerStudio