We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Swayam Parekh a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Swayam, thanks for joining us today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?
At some level I always knew I wanted to draw. It has always been a part of me, its meaning evolving unconsciously through the course of my life in a way that is now central to me. At every stage in my journey, art has played a distinct role. In high school, drawing was a hobby, an escape, and the only form I could express myself comfortably in. But, terrified of turning my ‘hobby’ into my work and losing its special place in my life, I chose a different, more academic path. Halfway through my undergraduate studies I recognized a growing unrest within me to create and be in a space with other creators whom I could learn from and with.
This unrest led me to shake off my fears and finally pursue an education in illustration. It widened my perspective, helped me grow as a practitioner and kickstarted my desire to pursue illustration professionally.
Now, I work as an illustrator and comic artist in a new city, creating visuals that I would like to see take up space in the world.
Swayam, 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 am an illustrator and comic artist from Bombay, India, currently based out of Brooklyn, New York. I received my MFA in Illustration last spring from the School of Visual Arts in Manhattan and have been working as a freelancer ever since, producing picture books, comic books and stand-alone illustrations.
Through my work, I am trying to combine the language of narrative illustration in the format of comics. Using my own experiences, I aim to tell stories that can be evocative and visually compelling, as well as feel deeply personal. I mostly use traditional materials as it makes me feel closer to the work I create and really bonds me to it. I think the way I use these materials helps me stand out. Along with my own stories, I have worked to create art for comic writers, painted murals, made picture books for children, and exhibited work from these books at cultural centers.
Have you ever had to pivot?
Before I pursued my MFA, I worked for Louis Vuitton Mumbai as their in-house artist. I painted artwork that clients requested on luxury trunks, along with drawing up plans for custom trunks to be built in France. The job was wonderful and opened many doors for me; I gained a vast amount of technical knowledge and corporate experience. However, I felt it limited my creativity to what was requested of me, and I did not know how I could grow as an artist. Although I loved the job, leaving it to pursue further education in a foreign country with only uncertainty ahead of me was one of the hardest things I have had to do. However, it was what I needed to find my own voice as an artist.
How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?
I think society values art and all that it does but it does not like to associate money with it. There is a general sense that making art for money somehow “lessens” the art, but how else is an artist supposed to make a living? Across media publications the pay for illustrators has not changed in ten years. The illustration industry is one of the most underpaid, undervalued industries and it is impossible to sustain a career in this field just by freelancing as an artist. Higher wages that match the times we live in would definitely help us support our careers, along with a shift in mindset with regard to how making art is viewed. It is what we are passionate about but it is also what we depend on for income.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.swayamparekh.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chop.sway
- Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/swayam-parekh-a4a803141
Image Credits
Swayam Parekh