We were lucky to catch up with Jean Saiz recently and have shared our conversation below.

Jean, 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 cannot remember a time I did not want to express myself in some visually creative way. I was always drawing as a kid and that intermittently got me in trouble (like my infamous first-grade drawing of a werewolf decapitating a human) and gained me accolades from friends when I could whip up a custom Ninja Turtle drawing on the spot.

Fast forward many years and many artistic disciplines later, and I am able to manipulate a variety of media – from burning on wood and bone, or traditional pen & ink work, to digital graphic design and video work – to conform to my creative vision for that particular project.

Jean, 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?

Name’s Jeannie, please call me Jean. Chaotic Neutral, Art Director, Horrible Artist.

I’ve a life-long obsession with the macabre, medieval, and occult. Pair that with a healthy dose of horror movies, heavy-metal, psychedelic comics and a library on the esoteric, and that paints a fair picture of the kind of aesthetic I bring to my work & brand.

Artistically my primary focus is on medieval-inspired wood burning illustrations, but that is only one facet of my arsenal. I design books, magazines, animations, and graphics of all kinds for a small host of clients and collectors.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

The most rewarding aspect of being a creative for me is finding inspiration in so many things and constantly having new ideas of that I want to do or make. I once had a friend ask me what I was going to do when I’ve “drawn all I could draw” and that made no sense to me. There is always something to make, to see, to appreciate and to be inspired by. I don’t think everyone is able to view and experience the world in the way an artist or creative naturally does.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

If you see illustrations or art that you like, research the artist, support their work. In this digital age even sharing or referring someone’s work can lead to new connections and can help creatives reach more people.

Contact Info:

• Website: theecrookedhand.com
• Instagram: @thee.crooked.hand