We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jon Sideriadis a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Jon, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Earning a full time living from one’s creative career can be incredibly difficult. Have you been able to do so and if so, can you share some of the key parts of your journey and any important advice or lessons that might help creatives who haven’t been able to yet?
I have. I wasn’t finding much work, so I started teaching while creating my own mythology and world on the side. While teaching, I picked up a much larger set of skills, learned to network better, to communicate, to present to a wide audience, and to stay in touch with current trends in the sci-fi/fantasy world by taking an interest in my students’ favorite past-times. It was extremely difficult from day one, and I often escaped my workaday life by painting and writing stories for what would eventually become my illustrated book series. One of my major milestones was getting into my first convention after taking my prints and originals to small shows in Connecticut, where I live. I also applied for and won a scholarship, the presenter of which, was a production designer in Los Angeles. I was later able to intern at his creature shop and do some professional work there for movies like Godzilla, Silent Hill, and Underworld Evolution. I then started applying to more galleries, conventions, and for illustration competitions while working on my book. In grad school, I devised a plan to publish my book for my thesis project. This is when I started teaching. Ten years later, I found a publisher and produced Astromythos: Book One. I could have sped up this process if I had known more about online publishing because that’s eventually what made it happen, but I had no idea at the time. However, it all worked out. I wasn’t getting enough freelance work after graduating, but even before publishing my book, the artwork helped me find more freelance work. And now that the book is published, I have companies like Hasbro approaching me with illustration opportunities.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I was born in Hartford, CT as a first generation Greek American. Greek Byzantine art, which I grew up seeing in church every Sunday in Hartford, inspired me to use mediums like gold leaf and to add calligraphy to my artwork. In high school, I was in many different art-related clubs and illustrated drama club murals, the yearbook cover, t-shirts for sports teams, and op-ed pieces for the school newspaper. I learned as a student how to draw and sculpt the human figure, which is very important in my field. In college, I used to go to class early in the morning to draw my own subjects in my sketchbooks and to write. I found ads posted on the bulletin boards there, which is when I started doing concept art for local filmmakers. I worked in Los Angeles for a while on monster movies but I returned to teach and do some freelance work. I now write and illustrate my own books for the fantasy fiction and tabletop RPG industry while teaching and doing mostly game-related freelance jobs. I’ve illustrated comics, novels, logos, trading cards, board games, and book covers. I think my style most sets my work apart from others. The rich storytelling and meaning in my paintings really captivates potential clients and fans. I’m most proud of Astromythos, my book series, that has been published in the form of illustrated novels, miniatures, dice, cards, ttrpg adventures, concept art books, pins, bookmarks, and has gotten me a ton of freelance work. It did, however, take twenty years to publish, while teaching full-time for over a decade and struggling to make ends meet every month. I’m still paying off my college loans over twenty years later, but it was well worth the long-term risk).
Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?
I’m old school. I’m inspired by many movements in art history like Classicism, Romanticism, the Pre-raphaelites, Byzantium, and Medieval art. Davinci is my favorite artist. I’m also influenced by John Bauer, Gustave Dore, and Howard Pyle. Astronomy, mythology, physics, biology, modern and ancient poetry, Tolkien, Homer, and Blake are my other influences. My favorite books are Hero with a Thousand Faces, any Stephen Hawking books, Pindar’s Victory Songs, The Kalevala, the Volsungs, the Poetic Eddas, and Imaginative Realism. I often watch Shakespeare movie adaptations, nature documentaries, and Bob Ross (I’ve always loved Bob Ross since the 80’s and he still calms me down no matter how stressed I am). The Brand You 50 is a great book to help increase your entrepreneurial skills, along with the Four Agreements, and the Artist Appeals. Pricing and Ethical Guidelines for Illustrators also helped me with such things.
Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?
Every artist needs to keep things fresh and interesting. This also encourages them to learn more techniques. Mine changed from mostly black and white drawings to oil paintings, gilding, and calligraphy. Paying more attention in school really helped me accomplish this as an aspiring artist. When I later taught art and illustration history, I was able to review my favorite artworks and truly understand what it takes to stand out in the art world. But this happened much more recently. I really had to pivot in my career when money became a serious issue. I remember living with my friend while trying to teach, write my book, and keep up with freelance work while living check-to-check. I was also working at Napa Auto Parts at the time, which almost literally killed me. I had come down with a very bad case of pneumonia there, and I was still expected to come in. I needed the money, so I continued to go to work, and gradually recovered two months later after I could afford to pay the doctor’s bills. While working there with pneumonia, they fired me for coming in late too many times (because some days I simply couldn’t get out of bed). I very nearly died, and this did permanent damage to my lungs and probably to other important parts of my respiratory system, so I’d advise you not to work for Napa or support them for that matter (unless you have no choice). I later was able to afford a one-room apartment in a complex so loud, I never slept. As fights raged in the adjacent rooms and people stomped, cursed, blasted music, and screamed 24/7 in the room above me, I wrote Astromythos: Book One while teaching part-time for peanuts. I frequently taught four to five courses (a full-time load) for less than 25% of what I made much later as a full-time professor. I had little to no health insurance, developed tendonitis, a collapsed disc, insomnia, chronic asthma and ate hot dogs and ramen every night for ten years. Now I know there are more people out there who’ve probably worked three times harder than me for three times less pay and have hardly anything to show for it, but this pivotal part of my life really showed me what it takes to hold on to a dream that consumes all your free time for ten years including weekends and most nights after a full day of work, which is what my father did his whole life after coming here from Greece with no savings and no job. That is to say, it finally worked out and I’m still creating. So now I’m able to finally do freelance work with top-notch companies, make more Astromythos books and products, and really appreciate hard-earned luxuries like a house, a family, and a decent car that can transport my convention cargo.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.astromythos.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jonsideriadis/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jon.sideriadis/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jon-sideriadis-492255a/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/JSideriadis
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuzu-yNdhZEAjwPL9WxyXjg