We were lucky to catch up with Craig Blackmoore recently and have shared our conversation below.

Craig , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

I’ve been an artist of some sort all of my life. I remember that as a little kid, maybe around 4 or 5 years old I use to draw Tom and Jerry as little cat heads and mouse heads with happy faces and simple legs dropping from under their chins. I remember my mother showing me how to draw a person, complete with hair, a body, arms, and legs. I watched her pen strokes and copied them until i learned how to customize the body and make it appear to be doing things. Eventually I started drawing my own comic strips about burp jokes and misadventures. I sold my first comic to my friend’s mom for a $1 and although she was probably just being nice, this is when I knew that I could potentially do art for a living. In middle school I use to write short stories and comic strips for the school paper. I wrote skits for talent shows and acted in plays. I also made a pastel art piece and sold it in auction for $75. By my 8th grade graduation I was 100% sold on the idea of having a career as an artist. Creativity is first nature for me.

Craig , 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?

I’m a professional Artist who has been exercising my creative muscle since childhood. Right out of high school I went to school for Audio Engineering. Then I attended another college, Specs Howard School of Media Arts, to learn digital media arts; which is a program that taught script writing, news gathering, graphic design, video production, editing, web design, and how to use it all professionally in the real world. After graduating from there and while working professionally in the digital media field, I took a year of photography classes at College for Creative Studies.

On the tech side I’ve been heavily into technology since I first touched a PC in 1995. I’ve always had access to a PC since then too. I’ve had computer classes since kindergarten and became president of a FIRST robotics team in high school. I’m into the hardware, software, science, and theory. Computers and technology are an important piece of my creative process. Even if I’m painting or working on a piece of jewelry, a computer fits into the process somewhere.

Since about 2015 the majority of my work has been freelance, consulting, and contract work. In 2017 I started House of Blackmoore. It’s my art house where I produce projects and products. I also provide a wide variety of services: Photography, Video Production, 3D & 2D animation, Graphic Design, Editing & Retouching, Project Management, and Creative Consulting. I’m your freelance Creative Director. If a person or company needs creative ideas, inspiration, direction, or execution they call me. I do everything I can on my own but I also have a team of creatives and tech experts that I can call on if more hands or minds are needed. House of Blackmoore isn’t a massive corporation where you can’t reach the same person twice and everything has glass walls and limitations. It’s me and my network, so there is a lot of flexibility and unlimited amounts of creativity.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

A major thing that society can do to support artists and a thriving creative ecosystem is to shop at small businesses and when you think to buy something specific, search for an artist or crafter who makes it and buy it from them. A lot of mass produced products lack unique style, are not usually built to last, and can’t be easily repaired. Plus with artists and small businesses every dollar helps them directly and doesn’t dissolve in a massive corporate structure. If an artist is holding an event, exhibition, or an art opening take some time to check it out, and while you’re there share a few photos online. These things mean the world to artists and can be super inspiring and insightful for you and your friends.

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 that some non-creatives think of an artist as someone who sits around and draws or paints all day with no business plans or additional skills. While sitting around and drawing or painting all day is definitely a part of the job it takes a lot more than magic to turn those paintings into food and money for bills. Having an art career that pays often takes more creativity than it does to create the actual art. The world is changing fast and what worked for artists a decade ago may not be the best path to follow today. Artists also take on new crafts, mediums, techniques, and processes all of the time. We use a lot of mathematics, chemistry, computer science, and various other sciences all of the time. When I was in high school I would do physics and algebra equations while thinking that I would never need to understand this stuff in the real world, but when working with creative coding or on 3D animations in real world simulated virtual environments you use physics and algebra all of the time. Sometimes society talks down on art or creative careers, but I believe that being an artist allows you to explore and master many skills and wear many professional hats.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://cblackmoore.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/sirblackmoore
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/sirblackmoore
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/sirblackmoore