We recently connected with Brianna, Carissa, Jacob and Kamren and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Brianna, Carissa, Jacob and Kamren thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?
Jacob: I was 17. I was exhausted from school, from soccer, from everything really, even drawing.
Then I found myself reading comics/manga. This delighted me more than just entertainment, but as a craft. Storytelling and drawing. I learned as much as I could on comic creation in order to create my own. The more I experienced the craft of comics, I realized, I the viewer will desperately consume a comic in minutes, while I the creator, spent a month of dark, delightful nights creating my comic.
I decided if that was the ratio between my creative struggles, and the chance to brighten any persons life with my works….Then so be it. 😃
Then, I had to learn how to draw…and create stories….now I’m 34.
Brianna:
I’ve always been drawing. Always making things up and playing pretend and drawing whatever was in my imagination or what I saw around me.
I’ve loved many things though and still do. Like a lot of kids, I wanted to be a paleontologist. But then it was archeologist, then zoologist, then as a teenager I took an interest in anthropology and psychology…. But so much of that always came back to art. I found myself putting everything I learned into art and storytelling.
This was before the 2008 crash and I don’t want it to sound as if I wouldn’t still be making art if I had decided to take one of those paths as a career. I definitely would, art was always going to be part of how I interact with the world.
In the beginning, it was film that had truly captured me, but I’ve come back to my roots.
I want so bad for folks to understand how fragile and beautiful our world and it’s people are, so now I’m working toward Science communication with art.
Kamren:
From too young to remember so i can’t give a specific age. But I grew up surrounded by a lot of animated films and fantastical stories. From film, to books, to theatre. I really was inspired and driven by the creative world. You could be anything, you could tell any story. So that was appealing, the concept of living many lives. So I have done so, through art.
Carissa:
I think the first time I realized I NEEDED to be an artist was in fourth grade. I’d had a really cool project and drew a lion looking off a cliff into the ocean. I had always loved arts and crafts and was known for being creative, but it was the accomplishment of that piece that made me want to do more. I’ve been inspired by the natural world and continue to incorporate it into my art for that feeling of accomplishment I don’t get from anything else but a finished piece of artwork.
Brianna, Carissa, Jacob and Kamren, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
We all come from different backgrounds. No two of us have a whole lot in common in terms of our upbringing or the cultures we grew up within. But we did all get into the industry the same. It was the animation industry, right before the 2008 crash. We hadn’t met at the time, but we had all unfortunately been suckered into a for-profit school that has since gone bankrupt and been wiped off the planet. We do not mourn it’s death. But it is where we first entered the industry proper and rubbed shoulders with professionals and with people who would go onto become professionals.
But that was really just the start and we all ended up with different expertise and experiences before we really came together as friends and colleagues. We didn’t know know back then we were all actually from the same area. We had all grown up within the same 20 miles of each other. We even had mutual friends! We just never met until we were in our late teens-early twenties. Just a funny twist of fate.
As far as what we offer people… With four of us, it’s kind of a lot and hard to go into succinctly. And we’re all still branching out and digging out deeper niches, bettering ourselves, and always learning. Like any craft, it just never plateaus. We do kind of get put into certain categories though when someone makes an inquiry;
Would you like a custom challenge coin for your business or club?
Well Carissa can design that and get it manufactured.
Need a big oil painting of a fantasy landscape. Jacob has got you there.
Do you need an accurate depiction of the plants and wildlife that can be found around the local park? Brianna can do that and the research.
What about a character design for your animation? Well Kamren can do it.
it feels like we’ve done a little bit of everything. Like we’ve all done children’s book illustration, we’ve all done paint and sips or art instruction, we’ve all taken private portrait commissions, and things like that. And then some of us have animation experience, 3d modeling, visual development, it just kinda spirals out between so many people.
But, the positive, is one of us will definitely be able to work with you for whatever a project might entail, and frankly, if we can’t, we’ll know someone who can and can send someone their way.
We all have different brands really as individuals, but our brand together, as Scribbles, is just Make Art!
Our studio, first and foremost is just that. A place to make art, and yes, sell art and take commissions, but to have a space that’s dedicated creative space is such a blessing.
A big thing for us has been branching that out. We’re all in love with the arts and we want to uplift other artists, we want to encourage art making and appreciation and accessibility in our community. We live in a depressed area, but there’s no reason we can’t have a beautiful culture here.
I think the thing we want people to know is that we’re here and we’re making Artwork! And we’re part of a rich artistic community that you can be part of or at least enjoy the fruits of our labor. or both!
We always talked about going in together for a shop or studio space or something like that. As much as the desert is beautiful, the area is depressed, and there wasn’t much of an art scene compared to some of our haunts before we returned like San Francisco, Downtown Riverside, Laguna Beach, or Los Angeles. And even our closest artsy neighbor, Joshua Tree, is still about an hour drive and has seen a lot in the way of gentrification in a place with resources already stretched thin.
All of us being self employed, unless we want to live in a closet, those places are a little out reach. But where we live, Apple Valley, has it’s own rich history. From a playground for the rich and famous to come and play cowboy to the first black dude ranch at Bell Mountain. The Inn where Roy Rogers entertained still exists, though in disrepair, but it offered us an opportunity, Affordable rent for our own small space. And we were given the go-ahead to renovate! So we did it, went in together at the Historic Apple Valley Inn in one of the old motel rooms.
We took down the popcorn ceiling, pulled up the carpet, ground the decades old glue underneath, painted, installed new lighting a large desk and shelving, filled termite damage, and cleaned and cleaned and cleaned.
And gardened! We have a small garden in front featuring almost entirely plants native to the Mojave. Though we allow ourselves a few others that can tolerate the drought and sunshine.
We’re proud of the work we put in, but we’re still figuring out how we want to do the business aspect.
In the beginning, we were under the impression we could host events at the inn itself, but that’s been backtracked, but we’ll figure it out. In the mean time, most importantly, this is our work space. Our dedicated creative space.
Until we work out everything else with the city, we’re appointment only for buying. In the meantime, we have online stores and we work markets and conventions locally and around Southern California. Carissa’s even gone as far as Colorado.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
Jacob: I think after almost 15 years of pursuing an artistic career, I am still training like a student. Always trying to reach higher heights, and wield deeper concepts. All of this energy still focused, even through technological, cultural, and social changes, I still continue. To spectators, I must look too stubborn to change. Truth is, I just love the journey, and maybe I am a little incapable to stop. Like a train, slow to start, but once moving almost impossible to stop.
Brianna:
I think honestly, it’s amazing I haven’t given up several times. I suffered a lot of mental abuse in my formative years. Being a queer woman threw in all kinds of other wrenches traversing through society. I’ve lost my living situation and ended up relying on the good graces of a family member to let me couch surf while I got on my feet for which I am forever grateful. Had serious health problems, physical and mental.
I’ve been competing in an industry that favors means I just don’t have. I’ve had to work since I was a teenager, I had to work through college, I still work full time for other people. The looming threat of rent and utilities that have only climbed and climbed after three once-in-a-lifetime economic busts keeps me in perpetual paranoia. The thoughts always come creeping in;
Is this how I end up homeless again or reliant on the whims of someone abusive? Is this how it all spirals our of control again? I have no time after all, how can I keep up with my peers that have financial support? Should I just get out of the way and let the REAL artists make art and stop chasing this pipedream?
But then it’s like, what am I gonna do? Just lay down and wait for the end? It’d be the worst way to repay my loved ones for their love and kindness. And cruel to myself. I lived through all that, I should be proud of what I accomplished. It’s made me wiser.
So I just kind of try my best. It’s not a perfect journey or a straightforward one, I wish I could go back and stop myself from getting hurt, stop myself from making innocuous decisions that led to disaster. Worked harder. Made more art. But I can’t. You can’t change what’s done and I can’t just live in the past. I can only move forward and try to make a more beautiful and more kind world as I move through it.
Kamren:
When my family found out I was queer I was given an ultimatum and subsequently pushed out of my living situation. I was going to school full time for animation and struggling to eat. At one point I was living out of a garage with my partner with no cooling or heat, and no easy access to a bathroom. Everything was made in a microwave and we owned one warped plastic bowl that we used to heat everything. I could go on but wont. The situation was not great.
This was right after the 2008 crash and despite filling out piles of job applications, there was nothing for me. So I turned to selling cheap sketches online with my quickly aging computer and yellowing screen. I sold so many 3-5 dollar commissions. I sold my art and time under minimum wage and grinded. I’m not exactly proud of underselling myself but I am proud of building my customer base. I now have a small personal following that supports me full time and pays me at least 30 dollars an hour.
I can support myself and my partner. Now I can afford to pay rent, utilities, buy food, house cats and reptiles, even go on trips now and then. It’s still difficult and there is no exact moment that shows any grand showing of resilience. I think I still need to be resilient every day. I know my friends and wife are the same. A lot of people that live through situations like us do.
Carissa:
A short story might be when I was doing the college program at Disney. I had to work 40 hours there in Disneyland, go to my normal college art classes, do the two Disney internship classes and after class programs, while commuting, doing commissions and running my store all so I could continue in my art field. I like to pretend I’m resilient.
What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?
Jacob: I really feel, every sapient being is unique. So rare, and powerful in a universe of inanimate matter. Never understanding it’s own existence. That is why, only “you” are capable of creating things, that only you are capable of creating. So for myself, I want to create things, I could only create based on my personal existence. If others beings, enjoy my creative endeavors, even better. Create things even the universe could not. ;D
Brianna:
It’s kind of twofold.
I want people to love and respect and understand this beautiful world. I want people to marvel at lizard tracks in the sand, which, I know, weird, but I have a point. I did most of my growing up in the Mojave Desert. the hottest place on Earth. A harsh spikey and dry place. A landscape so alien, it’s been in basically every science fiction film and it never ceases to make me laugh when I recognize my home on screen. there’s no disguising big gneiss rocks, creosote and rabbitbushes. Let alone Joshua trees.
But there’s a pretty poor consensus about the desert. It’s thought of as ugly and brown and it’s got all these gross bugs and reptiles. And I just don’t agree with that assessment. It’s a unique and beautiful place. And that’s how I feel about every place, it’s not just the desert. The ocean, the mountains the forests. All of it. I want to communicate the intrinsic value of all the wonderful forms of life. So, when someone sees lizard tracks, they think won’t just go back to looking at their phone, they might wonder what sort of lizard it might have been, what was it doing, or even the makeup of the sand itself. I want to spread knowledge and dispel fear. Everyone will love tarantulas, beetles, coyotes and snakes when I’m done with them!
The second part is story telling.
Empathy can only breed compassion.
I love literature because it allows someone to see through someone else’s eyes and explore the human condition, and hopefully in a way they never considered before.
The world is so divided, and so much of it stems from an unwillingness to engage with other people and other concepts different than what’s familiar. I’ve had relationships tarnished these last five years, friends and family drifted away or cut off because somewhere inside them was some form of bigotry I never imagined was living there. I think it’s too easy to just chalk everything up to a nebulous concept of evil. Instead, I think a lot of hatred is rooted in fear. Fear of the other, the unknown, a perceived threat, fear of losing something somewhere on Maslow’s hierarchy. Telling stories though, people can interrogate things in a, for lack of a better term, safe place. Discomfort isn’t so hard then, it’s abstract. You can sit with it.
Kamren:
I think I have two goals.
The personal one is to spend more of my creative energy crafting the stories I want to tell. To create more cohesive narratives through my artwork. Whether that is a series of illustrations or an actual comic or animated piece. Apart from being aesthetically pleasing, strong narrative is always my goal. I want people to be inspired, go on a journey, or discover something that makes them better when they experience art.
There is also a social goal. That would be to uplift and collaborate with more artists. To be in a position where we can craft together and generate a sort of creative momentum. I am inspired when I am exposed to a variety of artists and it helps me become a better creative. I would hope I help do the same for others. If we can continue to work together and create a strong artist community we can help each other and build something amazing. Definitely another goal of mine is to help be a part of something like that.
Carissa:
My particular goal is to never work at another 9 – 5 job again. I font want to work for someone else unless it’s in art and even then, I’ve fallen in love with working my own hours so much I just have to keep going!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.ScribblesArtCollective.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Scribblesartcollective/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scribbles.art.collective
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/ScribblesCoop
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCniKpR7Ulwap3PLvbOqRFSw
- Other: https://scribblesartcollective.tumblr.com/