✂ ✂ ✂ CREATIVE SERVICES ✂ ✂ ✂
WHAT I CURRENTLY DO:
x Illustrations
x Repeat Pattern Design
x Graphic Design
x Fine Art Pieces: Paintings, Prints, Drawings
x Custom Stuffed Monsters for Babies and Adults
x Pixel Art & Pixel Art Animation
Photo by Kayleigh Morin of Neurocentrikk
✂ ✂ ✂ WHAT IS CRYSTAL BANANAS? ✂ ✂ ✂
“Crystal Bananas” was first born in 2012, when I had to keep a process blog for one of my senior art classes. The thing needed a title, and for some reason or another, that’s the one I chose. I was making a ton of stuffed monsters at the time, and the name kind of became my self-proclaimed alias while working on them. I don’t think anyone else really cared much about it, but I liked it. I was enthusiastic and had a lot of energy to burn. Unable to contain my restless curiosity and gut impulses, I struggled to find the perfect space for my art to exist. I was being trained in fine art techniques, which I was stimulated by, but my interest in art in a more commercial sense confused me. I was taken by the magic of producing collections of things. I was as inspired by brands like Lisa Frank and Pokemon as I was by Cy Twomby, or the art of ancient mexico. Despite my fascination with creative process and hybridization, I didn’t know how to synthesize my passions in a material way that made any sense. The stuffed monsters became my first experimental outlet. They sat somewhere in between toy and ritual, product and sculpture. And so it seemed appropriate that they have a name all of their own: Crystal Bananas.
After finishing school, I created a website and became more serious about beginning my career.
“Crystal Bananas” became a much broader label for the whole art-making thing I did, but I still didn’t really know how to focus my attention or where to find my true audience. I questioned my motivations and value as an artist. In unpacking the purpose behind my compulsive need to create stuff, I discovered that the name “Crystal Bananas” was not so randomly chosen as it initially seemed...
A treasure seeker by nature, I have always had an interest in uncovering hidden gems. The first book I read all by myself, at 7 years old, documented (in simple language and pictures) the discovery and excavation of tutankhamun's tomb. I was enamored. Never before had I learned of anything so tantalizing. My young appetite was whetted, and I wanted adventure. But where to find the one that was meant for me?
There are scattered pockets of childhood wonder suspended within the mundane minutia of daily existence. Oftentimes, these unexpected moments of crystalline purpose arrive in oddly shaped packages, which need to be unpeeled and deciphered. Sometimes the packages and contents make no sense together. Their combination is so uncanny that it is delightful, and can be taken simply at face value. The spectrum of human emotion and experience is nuanced and undefinable. Many of my characters walk the line between creepy and cute, gross and adorable, edgy and delicate. A crystal is a glittering, rare stone. A banana is a ridiculous looking fruit. I make things in pursuit of the fabled Crystal Banana.
After finishing school, I created a website and became more serious about beginning my career.
“Crystal Bananas” became a much broader label for the whole art-making thing I did, but I still didn’t really know how to focus my attention or where to find my true audience. I questioned my motivations and value as an artist. In unpacking the purpose behind my compulsive need to create stuff, I discovered that the name “Crystal Bananas” was not so randomly chosen as it initially seemed...
A treasure seeker by nature, I have always had an interest in uncovering hidden gems. The first book I read all by myself, at 7 years old, documented (in simple language and pictures) the discovery and excavation of tutankhamun's tomb. I was enamored. Never before had I learned of anything so tantalizing. My young appetite was whetted, and I wanted adventure. But where to find the one that was meant for me?
There are scattered pockets of childhood wonder suspended within the mundane minutia of daily existence. Oftentimes, these unexpected moments of crystalline purpose arrive in oddly shaped packages, which need to be unpeeled and deciphered. Sometimes the packages and contents make no sense together. Their combination is so uncanny that it is delightful, and can be taken simply at face value. The spectrum of human emotion and experience is nuanced and undefinable. Many of my characters walk the line between creepy and cute, gross and adorable, edgy and delicate. A crystal is a glittering, rare stone. A banana is a ridiculous looking fruit. I make things in pursuit of the fabled Crystal Banana.
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