Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Jakob Prolog. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Jakob, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

My first realization that I could pursue art as a career was watching cartoons as a kid. The network of choice was always Cartoon Network, but I loved tons of shows on Nickelodeon, Disney, and Adult Swim. Outside of the world of television, there were tons of animation happening on the internet that really caught my interest early on. Homestar runner, Albino Blacksheep, and Newgrounds were all huge hubs of art, animation, and flash games. I was hooked from the minute I was old enough to use the family computer in our basement. Seeing all these people, some in major studios and many at home, independently creating their own art to share with the world really inspired me to make my own art. The DIY side of the art, mostly the things I was seeing on the internet at the time, were my biggest inspirations and inform a lot of how I go about making art today.

Jakob, 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?

My name is Jakob Prolog and I am a 26 year old artist based in the Lehigh Valley of Pennsylvania. I mostly create 2D cartoon illustrations, but I have experience in animation and 3D modelling as well. Currently I work freelance and mostly do commission work, but I also have a small instagram following and store under the name “Pantaloop”. On the commission side of things, I do anything from character designs to physical posters, beer labels, and twitch overlays. My artistic weapon of choice at the moment is my 2nd gen ipad with procreate, but I’ll also use photoshop and/or illustrator depending on the work.

I’ve always been a very curious person. Growing up I grew up in a very wooded area without many neighbors so many of my best childhood memories are exploring outside in nature. Throughout all my work, I try to harness that same child-like whimsy and wonder of discovering something new. My love of nature is equal to my love of video games, television, and creating. When I was younger I would always cook, draw, build Lego’s and create wild stories in my head. I grew up the youngest of 4, and always played hand me down video game systems (everything from the NES to the gamecube). All of this formed me into the creative I am today and I mention these things because it informs my creative process and all that I do artistically to this day.

Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?

Growing up with the early stages of the world wide web and social media, I’m kicking myself for not knowing about online art classes sooner. There are hundreds if not thousands of FREE online tutorials and classes that are so easily accessible, and teach a wide variety of skills and techniques. I’ve personally used many of these throughout my artistic career. Discord has also been a huge resource for me as of late. I’m a part of a few art servers with both amateurs and professionals alike. They provide support, tips, job postings and more. There’s even servers that offer online critiqes of your work!

How did you build your audience on social media?

I get this question a lot (which always surprises me because I still consider my following very small in the grand scheme of things haha). My Answer is to just start posting. Be as consistent as you can but also have realistic expectations of yourself. If you can only post once a week that’s great, twice a week is even better. It’s a full time job in itself not only creating posts, but engaging with your audience and also reacting to and reaching out to other artists and their work. It’s not something that will come overnight, it takes time to build an audience. And if you do it right, your won’t think of them as an audience. The beauty of social media is the ability to start a conversation with anyone anywhere. Build a community and make friends with other artists. So many people have helped me get to where I am today and I really think that is a key part to growing not only on social media, but as an artist as well.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.pantaloop.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/pantaloop
• Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/jakob-prolog
• Twitter: www.twitter.com/Pantaloop
• Youtube: www.youtube.com/channel/UCaX-GMqdsIPILGUYKC5yVYg
• My online shop is on Etsy: www.etsy.com/shop/pantaloop

Image Credits
All images created and taken by myself (artist pic taken by my wonderful girlfriend)