We were lucky to catch up with Devon Delcastillo recently and have shared our conversation below.

Devon, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What do you think matters most in terms of achieving success?

When valuing success, I think it is important to note what bring you joy as a creative. Success takes many forms: the ability to financially support yourself, bring forth new ideas to one’s community and discovering what makes you happy. It ultimately requires balance between creating work for oneself versus clients.

As society, we tend to gravitate towards the notion of comfort. This can be found in something as simple as the “9-5.” Creating a routine that repeats itself over and over until one moves up the ranks. Often relying on the amount of money you make to declare your importance within the world. Yet, success isn’t as clear cut as this. There are other values in life than one’s numerical income. In my opinion, it is all about how one portrays themselves in this world. Are you allowing yourself to create what you truly desire? Then you have reached success. Do you find joy in at least one aspect of your day? Then you have reached success. Do you allow yourself to experiment, talk to other’s about your work, take feed back and expand on it? Then you have reached success.

Success is just about your perspective. Focus on uplifting values/personal morals and success will reach you.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

As an artist, I balance my day to day between freelance illustration work, concert photography and my screen printing business. I can’t pinpoint the exact moment when I began drawing, however, growing up surrounded by creatives pushed me to find my own artistic path. I find inspiration in all aspects of my life, specifically books and music. Striving to portray a rich sense of storytelling, by blending fantasy-based elements with leisure based activities. It wasn’t until I moved to Manhattan, 4 years ago, that I really started to hone my craft. My inspiration shifted to fully depend on emotions drawn from song lyrics and my experience with NYC night life. My illustration work began to rely on dark line-work, bold colors and overlays of textures. The client work I create takes form in the style of comics, band posters, ect. Illustration is ultimately like solving a puzzle. Figuring out the best way to portray a client’s idea while staying true to their identity and your personal art style. The notion of figuring out how to represent one’s brand in a new, unique light.

Attending local events in NYC allowed me to dive deeper into the music scene. Here is where I began to experiment with concert photography. I started to contact small bands on social media, asking to photograph their show in order to build up mu portfolio. From here, I was able to gain access to larger venues, working with different lighting techniques and compositions to capture a band’s raw, natural talent/energy. Currently I work with the music publication, New York State Music, to produce photo gallery content and show reviews.

It may seem like I have my eggs in numerous baskets but my illustration work and photography come together for my screen-printing business. Upon getting access to a printmaking studio, I was able to explore the blend of digital media with graphic design. My brand, BlueDellaDraw, combines photographs from my favorite concerts, with intricate line-work. Once these graphics are created, I source used clothes and vintage products to screen-print on. Producing physical work is such a rewarding feeling. The tactile aspects of burning a design into a mesh screen, and squeegeeing ink through, allows old fabrics to take a new form . It is such a rush seeing people wear my designs in real time or getting recognized at in-person markets. I’m most proud of the artistic community I have connected with these past few years. The support from other creatives, clients and followers push me to continue working.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

The idea of giving back to the community is what drives my creative journey the most. Illustration and photography is a way to highlight those that support my work. Questions such as what separates a small business from the rest, what makes a band worth listening to or what illustrations best convey these client’s goals are often what I think about when working. My main goal is to make sure the client feels valued and that their ideas are well represented.

Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

Honestly the best resource I have found over the years, that I wish I knew about earlier, are in-person art markets. Tabling at markets have allowed me to meet so many interesting and creative people. More often than not, artists love to share their personal success story. I have received tips and tricks when it comes to editing photos, best websites to print out my illustrations, online resources to expand my figure-drawing skills ect. Artists are brimming with knowledge, you just have to ask. It’s important to surround yourself with like-minded artists and place value in your community! After all, it is those around you that end up supporting and fueling your career.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://bluedelladraw.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bluedelladraw/?hl=en
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/devon-delcastillo-80326a25a/