As part of our collaboration with Something™, this month, we have been shining a spotlight on some of the illustrators involved with interviews about their inspiration, experiences and advice for others in the industry and next up in the series, is the wonderful Tyrell Waiters, a Floridian illustrator currently based in Seattle whose first book we are very excited to be publishing in 2022!
What’s currently inspiring your work & message?
What’s currently inspiring my work recently is life itself. The constant changes in mood has helped shape my viewpoint of what I want to show people.
When did you start creating & why?
I started creating art at a young age. I fell in love with drawing all because of Dragon Ball Z. I loved the linework and the style of the characters and would constantly try to redraw that style when I was a kid.
What’s a key part of your creative process?
A key part of my creative process would have to be determination. When I was younger I remember people thinking I was crazy because I wanted to be an artist. They simply didn’t see the future in it I saw. So, I spent years with people telling me I couldn’t do something and I was determined to prove them wrong and I keep that same mindset to this day.
What creative obstacles (professional or personal) do you find yourself facing?
Over the years i’ve had to face a few creative obstacles that i’m sure a lot of other artists have had to deal with as well. The biggest being freelance work. Sometimes working with some can be harder than working with others. I’ve had people reach out to work with me because they love my work, and when I draw exactly what was asked of me in my style they want it changed to be something that doesn’t look anything like what they chose my art for. It can be a headache sometimes, but after a while you learn to adapt and grow your style.
What self-care measures do you take to create balance?
I draw everyday. It’s simply my form of meditation. When i’m stressed out I normally will just draw bold shapes on paper or hard ink marks or create texture out of it later. It helps me stay grounded with what I do everyday and always keeps me wanting to explore what else I can do with a medium.
We have curated a selection of 25 artists from our community to have their work exhibited within the Something™ Spaces Tab for a month, connecting the artists with new appreciative audiences across the globe. This collaboration features the work of illustrators including AJ Dungo, Helen Li and Bárbara Malagoli.
You can install Something™ Spaces new browser tab extension here, and be inspired with every new tab.
The full list of artists whose work you can see as part of the collaboration is: AJ Dungo, Avalon Nuovo, Bárbara Malagoli, Bia Melo, Eero Lampinen, Giacomo Agnello Monica, Gizem Vural, Helen Li, Isabel Roxas, Jasjyot Singh Hans, Lisk Feng, Loris Lora, Marcos Chin, Micah Lidberg, Molly Mendoza, Nishant Choksi, Noa Snir, Rômolo D’Hipólito, Sally Deng, Sapo Lendário, Sarah Soh, Tyrell Waiters, Yeji Yun, Yukai Du and Zhang Liang.