How long have you lived in Pittsburgh?
I've lived in Pittsburgh for a little over a year! I moved here in January 2019 from East Palestine, Ohio (a tiny town southeast of Youngstown).
How did you get into illustrating?
I feel like I've been illustrating my entire life — when I look back at art I made in my childhood, a lot of the themes and ideas are the same as the art I make now. I've been passionate about illustration for a long time and started taking it seriously in college. I found a magical world of illustrators on social media who share their projects and processes and decided I wanted to give it a try. I created an illustration-based Instagram account for myself as a place to share my work, and most of my illustration career success has come from that!
You are both an illustrator and graphic designer … Do you find that your illustrations end up in your graphic design work or that the two overlap in any way?
The two definitely overlap! I always try to incorporate illustration into design projects if I can. I studied graphic design at Youngstown State University and the design skills I learned there have helped me grow and improve as an illustrator.
What inspires you?
I'm inspired by little, sweet moments and connections, bright colors and things that make me feel like anything is possible — I'm a big believer in dreams and I think we can all find our rainbow connection. Anything that makes me feel sunnier and stronger inspires me to draw — and hopefully my art makes other people feel that way, too.
Where did the name snailberryart come from?
Snailberryart is a combination of three things I love: snails (my favorite animal!), my very cuddly cat Blueberry, and making art.What is your dream job?
A dream job of mine is to author/illustrate a picture book! Kidlit is my favorite form of storytelling, I love the magic that happens when the words and pictures come together.
Where can people buy and see more of your artwork?
People can find me and my work @snailberryart on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Etsy :)
