We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jacob Davenport a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Jacob, appreciate you joining us today. Before we get into specifics, let’s talk about success more generally. What do you think it takes to be successful?

I believe the key to success starts by precisely defining what success looks like, and making tangible goals to reach that. Before graduating college, I had a very general idea of success was. I thought “Make money with my art”, and this vague definition created a lot of anxiety in the way I worked. I was constantly searching for industries to apply myself, and questioning the work I’ve made in the past. I was so consumed with the idea of making money with my art that I stopped creating.

Luckily I have some great people in my life that were extremely encouraging to me during this period. Through a lot of conversations and venting, I was able to narrow down that vague statement of success to something more tangible. The thought “Make money with my art” turned into “Make work that I’m proud of and find ways to put it in front of people.”. This drove me to create my latest series of illustrations and designs which have helped me define my artistic style and also earn an income.

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?

I’m Jacob, I’m an independent illustrator and designer. I’m based in Northern California and I love making art, running, and being outside in general. I create designs for print applications such as T-shirts, stickers, totes, card games etc. I’m passionate about creating beautiful unique designs that have tangible applications for my clients. Recently I’ve found a lot of satisfaction in making designs that fill a gap in the market and working with manufacturers to create products for sale.

What sets me apart from others is my drive to finish projects and ability to become passionate about my clients visions. Through iterative design, creating something that meets their needs in a unique way to bring value to them and their customers. I love what I do, and being able to do it for others makes it that much better.

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

One of the more useful underutilized resources at the start of my creative journey was non-designers opinions. I definitely was prideful in my work when I started, I thought that I needed to make opportunities for myself. Learning to be humble and listen to the advice and opinions of others has helped me grow so much in the last few years. Hearing people out in their critiques or ideas for my work has lead to a lot of cool opportunities and growth.

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

The most rewarding part of being an artist for me is the satisfaction in finishing a project. Going from a vague idea to a final print ready design takes time and intentionality in the process. It’s a lot of problem solving and communicating to make something that works for both the artist and client. Coming back with a finished product that tells the right narrative is what makes this role so rewarding.

Contact Info:

• Website: abeldrawing.com
• Instagram: @abeldrawing
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacob-davenport-1b3275233/