We were lucky to catch up with Neon Thrash recently and have shared our conversation below.

Neon , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.

I think the biggest tool I’ve had with learning the craft is the internet. There is SO MUCH knowledge out there and that can feel like drinking from a firehouse at times. I think the real challenge is figuring out a path and getting organized to see it through. Lists are huge and breaking things down into specifics to focus on really helps.

So much trial and error and playing around with different tools and mediums. That’s the fun part and I encourage everyone to do as much as possible!

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.

I’m a kid that never grew up. I picked up a pen at a young age and start mimicking everything I thought looked cool. Capturing all of my favorite cartoon and video game characters and even entire pages from comic books. As I got older I started drawing inspiration from my peers, from canvas to train cars and buildings to people’s skin, there was amazing stuff everywhere! It’s giving me lots of new ideas on how I can create and keep things interesting.

You’ll often find me out in public sitting with a sketchbook or an iPad furiously capturing some idea I have for a new product design, brand design for a business or concept for a future project.

I’m mostly just trying to entertain myself with my designs so they often come across weird but I think that’s what sets me apart. I love little creatures! I draw a lot of inspiration from animals.

Another big element in my work is playing with sensory overload. For the viewer’s senses I use lost of bright colors and detailed designs and the subjects involved are creatures with multiple sensory organs, several eyes, extra ears, extra tongues, etc.

Right now I’m working on coming up with fun product ideas. A 2d print or painting is awesome, but taking that to another level of something you can use in day to day life is very intriguing. I am so bored with plain objects in our day to day life and want to decorate everything! I’m on a mission to find fun ways to brighten up everyday objects like shoes and towels to light switches and mirrors.

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

I think the biggest thing driving me is the desire to reach as many people as possible and bring them some joy. I want to find everyone that’s looking for whimsey and silliness in the same ways I am. So I’m trying to make things that can stand out a little more and break through the monotony of people’s day to day and hopefully bring a smile to their face.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

I’ve def had to unlearn what success looks like. It’s such an abstract concept and I think in our society it’s very closely tied to finances. If you tie creating too closely to the financial output it is suffocating and manipulative to the process and the product. Success is different for everyone, and I’m still navigating what it looks like for myself, AND I think it’s changing every few months or years.

I’m in a privileged spot to be able to remove the focus for financial return and that has really helped to focus on having fun and getting weird.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://neonthrash.com
• Instagram: @neonthrash
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NeonThrash/