Carolyn Gavin
We recently sat down with Carolyn, who is always “On the Go”, so we could get to the heart of her creative flow. Despite living in a house built in the 1800’s, this Oopsy daisy artist paints everything from modern and cute little animals to friendly invading aliens! We asked Carolyn to describe who, what, when, where and why and this is what she had to say:
GreenBox: Can you describe the time when you first realized that creating was something you absolutely had to do?
Carolyn Gavin: When I was really young I loved painting and creating and then at the age of about 7 or 8 I watched my aunt doing her fashion illustrations for the newspaper and was completely entranced. I knew then that graphic design was the way to go for me. I’ve since branched out into illustration and other mediums.
GB: How would you describe your style?
CG: Fun, whymsical, colorful, organic, happy with a touch of surprise.
GB: What kind of creative patterns, routines or rituals do you have?
CG: I generally sketch and draw patterns and ideas out first. I then scan them and recreate them using Illustrator. I also paint with gouache, acrylic and watercolor and draw with black ink. Whatever it takes to get the message across.
GB: What message or feeling are you trying to communicate with your art?
CG: A positive, healthy, joyful and happy message.
GB: What jobs have you done other than being an artist?
CG: I worked in a fashion boutique, as a waitress for years and then an au pair in the UK.
GB: What artists do you look up to?
CG: ARTISTS I LOVE Jeffrey Harrison. Illustrators I love are Nate Williams and Helen Dardik.
GB: Which creative medium would you love to pursue but haven’t yet?
CG: mmm I’ve tried lots of media… I guess I would love to focus on one and that would be painting.
GB: What food, drink, song inspires you?
CG: LOVE tea and chocolate. LOVE anything by Amy Winehouse.
GB: What superpower would you have and why?
CG: I’d LOVE to have wings and be able to fly as I actually am terrified of flying, this way I could have total control if I fell out of the sky of something…
GB: What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given?
CG: FOCUS and PRACTICE. The more you work on something, the better you get at it, and you never stop learning.
GB: Lastly, any words of advice for aspiring designers/artists?
CG: Never, never, never give up!