We recently connected with Michael Patterson and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Michael , thanks for joining us today. I’m sure there have been days where the challenges of being an artist or creative force you to think about what it would be like to just have a regular job. When’s the last time you felt that way? Did you have any insights from the experience?

I think creative describes me best as I am both a musician and artist. As a creative, I am happy because I get to continue working on my skills as an artist and musician. I do wonder what it would be like having a steadier income. This would allow for more stability financially. But, at the same time, I would have to sacrifice not being able to continue to work on certain aspects and skills in the craft in the pursuit of my art.

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

On the music side of things, I play both clarinet and saxophone in different professional capacities. I studied music and art in college, and I come from a family of professional musicians. I have had the opportunity to work with many great people including Doc Severinsen, Van-Cliburn gold medalist Jose Feghali, Cirque Du Soleil, Canadian Brass and many more talented musicians. Some of the organizations that I have played with are the Abilene Philharmonic, East Texas Symphony, Plano Symphony, Casa Manana, Wichita Falls Symphony and Texas Winds Musical Outreach. I also toured and recorded with the AETC Air Force Band.

On the artistic side, I have found a great community through a DFW based painting and drawing group, which meets weekly. Due to my participation in the group and the contacts I have made there, I have been able to work frequently with the Adwise Group and the Dillard Group ad agencies. It is through this group that I have had the pleasure of meeting and working with my friend, Gene Dillard. Gene has been an incredible mentor to me and my pursuit of work in the graphic design field. Some of the clients I have worked with in graphic design are Ace Cash Express, Mr. Jim’s Pizza, Glass Doctor, and the City of Plano.

It is interesting how the world of music and the work of graphic art can overlap. An old friend I met through the music industry, Mark Dooly, approached me about graphic design work for a new music product he was introducing for flute players. As a result, I had the opportunity to design the logo, packaging, and various other graphic design work for his product, “WINDEFENDER”. He returned for my graphic design assistance for his second music product, “PICCPOCKET”.

More recently, I have had the opportunity to collaborate with my brother on a children’s story titled Basement School. I created all the artwork and designed the layout for the book. It has just been published and is available on Amazon at this time. There is a production studio in California that has taken an interest in possibly licensing our book to screen. It is not a done deal, but it is exciting that there is an interest in our project.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vigC2EVL MW4&ab_channel=BasementSchool

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=basement+school&crid=8141CHAGE7GZ&sprefix=basement+school%2Caps%2C94&ref=nb_sb_noss_2

In addition to my work in graphic design and music, I have completed several commissioned paintings for organizations in my hometown of Abilene, Texas These include paintings for The Hardin-Simmons Cowboy Band, including a painting for their centennial celebration, and a painting for the historic Paramount Theater. I enjoy painting a variety of subjects ranging from musicians to western art and commissioned portraits. In December 2024, I was selected as a finalist in a Portrait Society of America competition.

Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

The internet, especially Youtube is a great resource for learning from others. There are a wide variety of educational tools, platforms and other resources that exist online and elsewhere that were not available to me in past years. Tutorials and resources are available from top professionals working in their field from all over the world. This would have been helpful to me if this was available to me earlier in my creative journey.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

The rewarding aspect of being creative is that I get to use my mind and body in creative ways. Music and Art are physically demanding. They both require practice, prep-work and study. When done correctly, the outcome is very rewarding. I am able to make a living by expressing myself with something that I enjoy doing.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.behance.net/michaelpatterson
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/michael.m.patterson/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-patterson-48a44b9b/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vigC2EVLMW4&ab_channel=BasementSchool
• Other: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=basement+school&crid=8141CHAGE7GZ&sprefix=basement+school%2Caps%2C94&ref=nb_sb_noss_2