We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful John Coleman. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with John below.

John, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

I have been drawing since age 5, watching my mother and various teachers mold my ability over the years. After high school I started drawing again as a hobby which eventually, led to me wanting to build my Social Media presence to gain exposure. It was because of Social media , I transitioned to learning Digital art using Procreate. This was a game changer for me as I love technology and drawing but Photoshop at the time wasn’t as accessible for me as I would have preferred and I couldn’t truly create art in the same style as my drawing/painting style. In time through self journey and many online tutorials I have surpassed my earlier works but I still have so much to learn. I think actually mastering all the features and tools that the Procreate app has would help me truly advance in the level of detail in my work. Most of my early years with digital art were about learning how to gain techniques and styles, drawing FanArt or Still Life objects. Now my goal is to begin creating Subject Matter work that truly expresses my feelings and even though I’m still learning how to master Procreate I don’t want to allow that to hold back my creative mind from putting out work.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

Houston based self taught digital artist, that watched my mom since I was young create beautiful work but get occupied with the daily tasks of life, raising a family. I appreciate her creativity and she always encouraged me to excel in my arts but I truly dont want to lose my creativity by getting consumed by the day to day routine.

My Name of Clutchart, stems from the Houston Sports nickname of being the Clutch City. To me it was a name given that I felt resonated in some ways with my personality as I try to thrive in difficult situations. My early work centered on still lifes, Musical influences, sports figures and comics. A mix of art subjects I’ve never been one to stay within a box and more so just enjoy drawing whatever I felt at the time. My most proudest moments have been several of my art pieces that I feel transformed my style and the kind of work I enjoy, Other moments have been being able to attend various Art Pop ups in the city as well as hosting my own solo show in Austin, Tx with other featured artists.

As the years have gone by my work will now begin to focus on themes that better express my culture and scenes that represent the African-American community of where I grew up. I still enjoy doing the occasional pop and fan art so that won’t go away anytime soon as thats what drew most of my current audience to me initially.

Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?

As a self taught artist I tend to try delve in learning art history to get inspired by other artists and their journeys. Recently I learned about Ralph Goings in my eyes a founding father of realism and although Im far away from producing work at his stature I appreciated his journey. He really didn’t fully devote himself until later in life with his art. He had a family and other obligations but the one thing I appreciated was that he never stopped honing his skills and it helped him to later be revered for his work. Today, as much as I love social media, I think at times it makes many creatives feel rushed to put out work and content to keep up with other creatives. Don’t t get me wrong I get inspired from other creatives all the time but the instant gratification of social media can make you think you have to be a machine in this world. Reading about Ralph really help me put things into perspective and appreciate the slow grind while still growing into maturity with my art. This has really helped me become more goal oriented and focused on what direction I want to take in my art career.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

Honestly the most important thing for me is just seeing others react to my work good or bad. Of course I gravitate to the positive but when someone truly appreciates the details of work that I put out it’s very gratifying feeling. I’ve never done drugs but to be honest it’s like a high , a sense of euphoria. My wife has seen me at Art shows and events and will comment on how even if I don’t sell anything, I’m just happy to be in that atmosphere. Even when I go through my hiatus stages, I need to see art daily to keep getting inspired and keep that level of enthusiasm.

Another aspect that brings me joy from a creative aspect is being able to give back in someway. When I was still emerging as a new artist, someone by the name of Franck Mille found me and gave me an opportunity to showcase my work. through his Cr8Can organization. Throughout the years he kept checking on me and believing in my abilities. Teaching me the importance of building networks and not giving up on your dreams. I was able to produce my own event in 2021, despite covid and in having the show in an unfamiliar city. Following a similar blueprint he taught me, I was able to give other artist an opportunity to show their work, some experienced and others novice. That was a beautiful sight and in the future thats a goal of mine that I hope to accomplish. Providing a space for young and old alike to be able to create in a digital or physical space and being the bridge that brings people together in that capacity.

Contact Info:

• Website: clutchart91.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/clutchart1991/?hl=en