We recently connected with Jeff Farinosi and have shared our conversation below.

Jeff, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Going back to the beginning – how did you come up with the idea in the first place?

Tiny Beast Studio is a place in my head…in the deep corridor of my memories. It’s my Dr. Seuss, Where the Wild Things Are, Tim Burton and all the wild and wacky creatures that live on our planet. Tiny Beast is my childhood inspiration, all caught up to me in this adult body. After I left the corporate world, I became a full-time freelance designer as Jeff Farinosi Design. Snore. As I was visually storytelling for my clients, I knew I needed to do the same for me. How can I gain the trust of my clients if I’m not true to myself and secure of telling my own story?

Tiny Beast Studio is becoming bigger than I imagined it to be. As a lifetime artist, I was always dabbling into many forms of fine arts until I sunk comfortably into paints, ink and charcoal. Oh…and that graphic design thing. My “mantra” is “if you’re not proud enough to have your brand on a t-shirt, let’s get you there.” I also love companies with mascots, so I do my best to push my clients to latch onto something tangible. Audiences remember mascots. They’re Greeeeeat!

Yakoon is my main beast. He is a animammal mix of a yak, mandrill baboon and wild boar. He has many other friends and I’m now writing and illustrating a children’s book, as well as in the stages of online swag. All of this is in the works and I hope I can deliver! If you don’t recall the name Tiny Beast Studio, you hopefully will remember Yakoon!

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

Hey there folks, this is Jeff in the raw…no A.I. or copy/pastes necessary. Oh, and also not naked at this moment. I am currently sitting at my kitchen island a.k.a. office and my dog is driving me mad! I need to move to my other office, a.k.a. brewery or coffee joint. Yes, my cute border collie mutt is my colleague that just wants to have multiple chats throughout the day by the water cooler. He’s sweet but I gotta go! I am currently a Coloradan, originally an Illinoisian or whatever you may call us from that state.

I am an artist, a gardener, a landscape designer, a music obsessor, an adventurer and a kid at heart. Because who really wants to grow up? I am very glad to be an artist and to work on my trade for life. This is truly happiness for me and I encourage you all to end your gig if that’s not the case. That’s my way to suck you into hiring me to build your newest venture. Mwahahaha.

I am a brand designer and visual raconteur for my clients. I cater to mostly start-ups, solopreneurs and small companies. I also focus on rebrands for businesses that decided to get out of the 1970s with their clip art logos.

What’s a brand designer? It’s a glorified graphic artist. Many business owners struggle to find authenticity with their brand and marketing. They feel stuck. That’s where I come in to guide these heroes to victory–to shed their kryptonite. I have a “Choose Your Adventure” plan they start off with, which entails them figuring out what they need. For example, they have this great idea but no name or brand. That’s where I slap butter on that bread and start my process.

As a lifelong artist, I stick to my guns…which are my pencils, paints and ink. I work my magic on paper to begin, then refine the imagination to digital on my Mac. That’s where the personalized touch comes into play. My ideas come from the clients and the empathy I suck up from them like a sponge. The brand should speak to their personality. Their vision. Their voice. It’s a lot of stress for a client that has to rely on another to develop a mark that is tattooed to their chest. Hypothetically of course. Well, I have had clients ink some art I created for their bods. Pretty cool.

All of that said, this is FUN for me and I do my best to inject that “playtime” into my clients.

Have you ever had to pivot?

I had a robust 18 years working for a vacation wholesale company before the pandemic hit the world. I learned everything I could in the marketing department as a senior graphic designer and art director. When I first started working there, 911 happened not too long after and was laid off. Eight months later after a few little gigs in between, I was brought back on board. It was a great environment to work for, but too many ups and downs. Anytime there was a hurricane, disease or even cartel issues in Mexico, we suffered in the travel industry. Pay cuts and time off. The pandemic was the true sign that I had to move on and get uncomfortable in order to grow as an artist and brand designer. With that corporate job, as well as a few others that weren’t really the true hues to my palette, I knew I had to try this full time freelance business owning thing. It’s been a whirlwind, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

For most of my life, I never had a future goal when it came to career. I never looked ahead, not even five years. I got comfortable in the corporate world and thought I’d keep hiding under the security blanket for another year. Then another year. And so on…until now.

Networking has been a big part of this freelance gig. It’s allowed me to look deep into my own reflection in the pond and see that I am bigger than one product. I have now designed for countless industries and that has opened the flood gates of creativity for me. And as I stated earlier, I even have a plan for a swag store and writing and illustrating a children’s book based on my tiny beast characters. It’s a beautiful manifestation.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.tinybeaststudio.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tinybeaststudio/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tinybeaststudio
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeff-farinosi/
• Other: https://dribbble.com/tinybeaststudio