We recently connected with Daniel Jacobs and have shared our conversation below.

Daniel, appreciate you joining us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

I have been creating art ever since I was a child. My mother and Nana were artists and they were always a huge inspiration to me and the reasons I started creating. It wasn’t until later in my life however that I found a true passion in the arts. After discovering Norse influenced music from bands such as “Wardruna” and later discovering other bands with the same or similar influence such as “Heilung” , “Gealdyr”, “Danheim”, “Kalandra”, “Sowulo”, “Percival Schuttenbach”, and “A Tergo Lupi”, I was brought back to a time in my life when nature was my world and home. This music and games from my childhood such as “The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim”, allowed me to relive memories of the woods that I had come to know and love in Jamestown before it was lost. I wanted to give back for the gift of this music, as it was there for me when I needed an escape. And after my discovery of the Norse, their history, and culture I was overwhelmed with inspiration. After continual research of such cultures with Germanic roots I felt as though I had found my calling. It was at this point I would aspire to create and share my craft, to honor my memories of those I cared for most, to honor nature upon this beautiful world of ours, and to honor my ancestors and keep their fires lit for as long as I remain.

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?

After I had returned to the U.S. from Australia when I was young, I ended up growing up with my mother’s side of my extended family in the deep woods of Jamestown in South Carolina. These woods were my home for some time. My mother, father, nana, papa, and I lived in a small riverside house by the Santee river on land that belonged to my extended family. The quiet flowing river just outside, my great grandmother’s house and the other homes belonging to my extended family just down the rocky road, the vast forestry filled with beautiful wildlife that surrounded us, all of it was home to me. The nature there and the tranquility it offered was a large part of my life at that time. It was a real friend to me, it was my world. Eventually, we had to move away to make room for my brother and sister, but we always visited that small riverside house and many of my extended family there in Jamestown. But as time continued, changes were beginning to take root.

My great grandmother was diagnosed with dementia, and a feud broke out between parts of my extended family over inheritance of the land I grew up on. After the passing of my great grandmother the threads that held my extended family together had snapped. Part by part the land I had grown up on was divided. It was split up, sold, lost. I would have no ability to return there and relive the memories I was so fond of. The family I grew up knowing and loving was broken. But my memories still remained with me and after my discovery of Norse Folk Music such as that of the band “Wardruna” I was able to find my way back to the woods when I needed them most.

This music alongside games with Nordic influence, such as “The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim” set me on a new path that led me to the history of the Norse and their ties and connection to nature in both their mythology and folklore. It was truly captivating, so much so that the Norse religion and animism became a large part of my own beliefs. Before all of this I had tried my hand at creating art but it wasn’t until I discovered the Norse that I could feel as if a fire had started within myself. It was a feeling like no other when I started creating works influenced by the Norse. It wasn’t until later that I discovered my mother’s side of the family derived from Sweden and Germany, and my father’s from Ireland and Scotland. By this time, I felt as though I had to give back for the gift of this music from bands like “Wardruna” and for games such as “Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim” that many times helped me escape and relish in memory. This is when I had found my purpose, to represent and respect my ancestry, and to display their admiration of nature through my artwork. I truly believe fate has brought me where I am today and I don’t intend to stop creating soon. And I hope that I can give others the same feelings within my artworks as my home within the woods once did for me.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

One of the most rewarding parts of creating my artworks is the stories that I get to tell in my pieces and my ability to inspire with such stories. I am very fond of creating works that viewers can get lost in. I truly enjoy being able to create small details and hidden features within my pieces. Ones that keep viewers coming back so that they may see something new each time they approach the work that they may not have noticed before. But most of all, the feeling of being able to honor the stories of those of the past, is what feels the most rewarding to me. I create this work in memory of the peoples that were here before us that once treaded upon this same sacred world, this sacred world that must be preserved.

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

I was very quiet when I was younger and at times felt very distant. I struggled with social anxiety and feelings of loss during the separation of my extended family. I felt absent and wasn’t very good at voicing my feelings even to my close family who I have today to thank for caring about me. But it was during this time that I was able to grow as a person, I kept resilient, I pushed through the hard times, broke through their barriers. It was my love of art that kept me down this path. I wanted to use this section as a way to reach those who have also felt lost and distant at times in their lives. My message to you is that you must keep pushing forward. When you find that thing that drives you, latch onto its thread. Do not let it go. You will never know what this world has in store for you if you lose your grip.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.danieljacobsart.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/danieljacobsartist/