We recently connected with Mark Greenbaum and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Mark, thanks for joining us today. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?
One that had a lasting impact on me, was creating ‘Goats Vs Llamas’. A DIY, sustainably produced, 3D board game.
It all started when I shared a Ninja Turtles playset that I had made out of cardboard for my son. I hadn’t shared anything on LinkedIn in a while and felt it was a nice reminder that often a little imagination goes a long way. We are all surrounded with cardboard and we don’t make enough use of it as an ephemeral, sustainable, resource to build, experiment and play with. Even though it was very rough and cobbled together with tape and Sharpie doodles, it ended up trending and caught the eye of a fellow creative Dad who reached out and said hi. ‘Jude Pullen entered the chat’, a creative technologist who has worked for the likes of Lego and Dyson. This little bit of sharing marked the start of a great collaboration and friendship.
I saw an opportunity for us to work together when Mojo Nation posted a pitch session which included the industry’s big players. We created a board game together, whilst working remotely via Whatsapp. We created the concept together and then divided the work into his specialty of prototyping, and mine of illustration. Although our game didn’t get picked up by any of the majors, we did win a small prize from instructables.com and garnered over 30k views. The real success was in the collaboration. 2 Creatives, conceptualized, prototyped and pitched a game together whilst working fully remote. (At this point, we still hadn’t met in person).
This experience taught me how important it is to share your work, (even if it isn’t pretty), in order to connect. It also really drove home the fact that collaboration is probably the most effective way to turn your ideas into reality. We are currently working on another project together which aims to entertain and inspire the younger generation – follow me to see that drop.
See the project here:
https://www.instructables.com/Goats-Vs-Llamas-a-Crazy-Monumental-3D-Board-Game-W/
Learn about Mojo Nation here:
Mark, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I have been running my little design company ‘Greenbomb Studios’ for 21yrs now and I’m proud to say that I’ve kept the lights on for so long, in an industry that is constantly in flux. My path has had plenty of ups and downs and at points I had to take whatever jobs were available from landscaping to ‘coat check guy’ to stay afloat and fund my dream. In the end, my persistence and passion for design has allowed me to make a living doing what I love.
Being a creative generalist gives me a holistic view of a client’s needs and creates trust in my abilities. I’m able to see the big picture and deliver a concept with the end goal in mind, so that my design work from start to finish, has a clear purpose and goes beyond just answering the brief. I have been hired by industry giants like Marvel, Hasbro, Jazwares, Nickelodeon and DC Comics – and am proud to be trusted at the highest level. I also continue to deliver creative services to small businesses who are trying to make their mark and love to help them present the best version of their business to their clients.
What started out predominantly as a photography business, expanded into a broader offering of brand development, logo design, graphics, character design and illustration. Over the years, I‘ve had some great experiences including – designing a book cover for the biography of Richard Loren (Ex Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane and The Doors manager). I did a photoshoot with Eartha Kitt, created an original IP that had a 50k readership in a national comic strip and sold stationery, apparel and toys in major retailers (https://the-bogies.com). I designed some characters for ‘Bubble Guppies’ on Nickelodeon. I created a game with Bob Camp (Ren n Stimpy) and did graphics work for the MTV 30th anniversary. I recently designed and art directed some iconic board games like Monopoly, Candyland and Chutes n Ladders. Along the way, I’ve forged some lifelong creative partnerships, friends and clients.
Alright – so here’s a fun one. What do you think about NFTs?
When most people think of NFTs they remember the madness of ugly jpegs that sold for millions of dollars. It’s true that there were lots of scams, bad art and nefarious players in the space. However, my experience was very positive.
I was introduced to ‘Nouns’, a community-owned brand that makes a positive impact by funding ideas and fostering collaboration. They sell 1 NFT a day and the proceeds go into a community treasury where ideas are pitched, voted on, and funded. Sort of like shark tank but without the thirst for profit. Nouns survived the crash and is still going today. They have funded some great things including a new school in Uganda, a Coffee shop in LA, an Esports team, prescription glasses for kids, beach clean ups, an animation festival and many, many more things. (https://nouns.wtf/)
I was hired to make a collectible range of Noun characters to be sold as NFTs. We teamed up with a company that helped us with the tech – and we sold a bunch. We released 3 more ranges of fun characters and collaborated with another great community called the Pizza DAO. More great people, doing fun things and giving back to a global community. Every year they throw a global pizza party and give away free pizza in over 250 cities. (https://globalpizza.party/) Our project sold out within 5hrs and we made some magic internet money via a smart contract. This contract immediately delivered funds as they came in and split them into each team members digital wallets. I didn’t have to chase anyone for money?! It was the smoothest transaction I’ve ever experienced as a creative-for-hire. The other cool thing about this was that whenever our art was re-sold, we received a small % of that sale. Finally, an opportunity to actually thrive as an artist.
My friend and collaborator, Klim (https://bigshottoyshop.com/collections/nouns) was one of the most funded people in the Nouns community. He was able to produce a line of collectible toys, some hilarious oversized glasses, and funded several conferences in which we helped educate, collaborate and spread a message of fun, through art. We had our work displayed at Shibuya Crossing, the busiest intersection in the world, we exhibited artwork at a NY gallery, we traveled to LA, NY and Tokyo and we met people who were excited about the future of NFTs and what was possible. They had amazing ideas on how to use this tech in creative ways to build brands, give back to communities and give artists a platform to inspire and succeed.
NFTs may seem dead to most people, but there are still a few believers that are making moves in the space and using NFTs to drive their projects. I believe the tech will come back much like the rise and fall of the QR code.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
I think my biggest reward is inspiring the next generation. I have two sons that watch me sketch ideas and I always share every step of the process with them, from rough sketch to editing a 3D sculpt to animating marketing banners. I’ve shown them a peek behind the curtain and they understand that if you have an idea, you can turn it into a reality.
I love having the ability to help visualize someone’s dream and make it a reality. I’m proud to be a part of the creative community and for the most part, we all share similar values of inclusion, creating a better future and using our art to entertain, educate, empower and inspire.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://greenbombdesign.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/greenbomb/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/greenbaummark/
