ARTIST & CREATIVE INTERVIEW SERIES,
Starbucks, fashion illustration and philosophy of art from the fabulous Australian native, Jessica Mack.

I’m pretty giddy about this creatives interview series for various reasons. Mostly because it has very little to do with me and very much to do with the intriguing stories of OTHER fascinating human beings. It gives me a chance to leave the cool, if not somewhat deep and firework-y depths of my own brain and enter the amazing worlds of others.

As completely AWESOME as the last interview with Joe Average was (and believe me it was amazeballs) THIS latest artist continues to uphold the high standards of excellence in creativity. Here’s the speedy Scooby Doo flash back as to why this interview with Jessica Mack is so cool, for me in particular.

The first time I met the uber talented Jessica Mack was about a year and a half ago while diving in to Marie Forleo’s Bschool. A few thousand or so of us were navigating the wonderful world of growing and marketing our businesses under the leadership of the divine Ms. F. and I naturally gravitated towards other creatives and artists I found intriguing. One particularly fantastic stand out was Jessica. Her vibrant, lively and flowing watercolors tease the mind’s eye and her scopes on Periscope are nothing less than fabulous.

(Now pull up close and I’ll tell you a secret. That’s right, dear reader. Scootch a little closer. I don’t bite and I may even give you a nice cookie. Now because I’m no longer the spry, young whipper snapper I used to be I’m not always up on the latest and greatest in technology. This means I’ve only seen a few “scopes” as the cool kids call them. The first I ever saw was Jessica’s. I feel all expertisey now that I’ve masted the viewing, commenting and sending hearts portion of the platform.)

As another related aside, I’ve only ever done one watercolor painting and one oil painting. The oil was a mini painting of a whale beached on a deserted island, wearing a bad toupee with a part down the middle and the watercolor was a particularly lack-luster but heart felt landscape I created as a gift for an art-school compadre, busom buddy and kindred spirit. (I can only imagine what a therapist would have to say about the theme and stark contrast of those paintings.) Now because I’ve only briefly dabbled in either medium, anyone who works in them at any length MESMERIZES the heck out of my lusty Jane-of-all-trades soul and keen eye for sparkly new doo dads and learnings. Which is ONLY one reason I find Jessica’s work so … great, lovely, mesmerizing and all the other similarly spirited adjectives I’m too lazy to look up on thesaurus.com. Basically her work is the bees knees. The cat’s pajamas. And although lack of sleep may be driving significant parts of this foreword its by no means an exaggeration.

Now that’s the basic Reader’s Digest back story on my wee connection to Jessica. So, without further ado, I present the incomparable Jessica Mack …

shari: WHEN DID YOU get your artistic start?

jessica: I had always wanted to learn to draw and paint but it seemed like something you’re either good at or not good at, and I believed I was in the second category so I never tried. Until a recent New Year’s Eve, when I made a resolution to take an art class. The next week I signed up for a creative painting class, at the Australian National University. We did everything from life drawing to painting portraits using spoons and buckets of ink. A few classes in and I was hooked!

shari: HOW DID YOU COME TO LOVE fashion illustration?
jessica: I tried all sorts of subjects and mediums trying to find what I really liked, from scrap-booking and mixed media journalling to paper crafts, to watercolor landscapes. But when I started drawing and painting people, and then fashion that took my interest, that’s when I really started to enjoy myself.

shari: WHAT IS YOUR PERSONAL PHILOSOPHY when it comes to art?

jessica: It should make you happy. I don’t subscribe to the tortured artist stereo-type that has existed for so long. I believe that if you’re not getting pleasure from either the process or the end product, you should do something else. The same applies to how I want others to feel about my art. If it makes them smile, or brightens their space, then it’s done it’s job.

shari: HAVE YOU ALWAYS worked with water-colors or did you get your start with another medium?

jessica: I’ve tried just about everything from acrylics to oil pastels. Really, every type of paint and process you can imagine. Something about watercolors just really speaks to me. I love the ability to layer, their portability, and the variability and unpredictable nature they often have.shari: DID YOU TRAIN FORMALLY with any art classes or did you take a more organic, non academic approach?

jessica: When we first moved to America I jumped at the chance to enroll in a Masters of Fine Art (majoring in Illustration) at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco. I did one semester of charcoal still life drawing, saw that it would be another two years (I was studying part time) before I got to do anything in watercolor, or any actual illustration and put my studies on hold. I did learn a tremendous amount about perspective, light and shade etc. But I was just too impatient to start doing my own things with bright colors, paint, and subjects that spoke to me. (Cheese boards, and plaster shapes weren’t terribly exciting).

shari: OTHER THAN WATER-COLORS what is the one medium you couldn’t live without?

jessica: Definitely ink! Whether it’s liquid and I’m using a paintbrush, or it’s brush markers, I love the vibrancy you can get with ink.

shari: WHAT CONTINUES to drive you to create?

jessica: I always have a million ideas swirling around in my head, and never enough time to pursue even 5% of the things I want to create, so that keeps me painting regularly! Also, I find if I’ve been out of the studio for a few days because of travel or I’m sick etc I start to get ‘the itch’. A physical restlessness, that can only be satiated by creating something. When that happens I just have to put paint down on something, anything, no matter what it turns out like!

shari: TELL US ABOUT YOUR CREATIVE PROCESS. Does it differ from project to project?

jessica: It does differ quite a bit depending on whether I’m working from a brief for a client or project, or just experimenting with a new idea. If the project is a bit more structured and there is a defined outcome I’ll usually start by doing a little research, play with a couple of different color palettes and then start a rough sketch in my sketchbook or on my iPad Pro. Once I’m mostly happy with it, I transfer it to watercolor paper and get to work!

shari: WHO ARE YOUR MAIN creative influences?

jessica: Gosh, I have so many, from Monet and Degas to Peter Breese and Megan Hess. I also get a lot of inspiration from Street Artists and other types of creatives like graphic designers and architects.

shari: DID YOU FALL INTO your personal style or was it developed over time?

jessica: It’s definitely developed over time. You would never recognize some of my early paintings as mine! And I think style is something that continues to develop as you experiment more, and spend more time deciding what you do and don’t like in your own work.

shari: TELL US ABOUT your favorite project to date?

jessica: I did a series of rainbow-haired girls for Inktober last year, and then turned them into a calendar. I had a lot of fun with each portrait and it satisfied my need for bright colors and simplistic design.

shari: WHO IS THE ONE PERSON (or people) who supported you throughout your
journey?

jessica: My husband has been fantastic, encouraged me to try new things, helped me out at art fairs (he makes more sales with the ladies than I do), and given me a lot of much-needed design advice when pulling together final pieces.

shari: TELL US A LITTLE (or big) something about yourself that no one knows.

jessica: I’m Australian? Nah, anyone that’s seen me on Periscope already knows that. Let’s see. I used to sell and drive tanks and armored vehicles for a living. Seems like another lifetime ago!

shari: WHAT IS YOUR one dream project and why?

jessica: I really want to do something at a huge scale — side of a building sort of big. I’m not sure what yet, or where, but one day… I’m so drawn to street art and unexpected beauty in urban settings. I’d love to contribute something that made a commuter smile on their way home from work, or brightened up an otherwise grey corner of the city.

shari: IF YOU COULD COLLABORATE with anyone (living or dead) who would it be and why?

jessica: I would love, love, love to work with Paper Fashion on something fashion-related. I just love her work, and have been following her career and seeing her style change and progress over the last seven or eight years! Plus I just know we’d be besties if we ever met in person. ;)

shari: IF YOU HAD TO PICK another career other than the one you have now what would it be and why?

jessica: Social Media & Content Director for Windsor & Newton, Brit + Co, or Ban.do. I’ve been doing Marketing and Social Media work for major brands for almost 16 years, but I’d love to turn my skills to a brand that spoke to me creatively.

shari: IF THERE WAS ONE THING you’d want people to know about you and/or your work what would it be?

jessica: My moto: You can never have too much color, especially bright pink. ;)

shari: IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE you’d like us to know? Your next project?

jessica: I’m currently working on a some guides and courses to help other artists improve their own social media and online marketing. Come join our Facebook Group and tell me what you most struggle with. I might just have a solution, and if I don’t, someone else in the group certainly will.

*Take a gander at some of Jessica’s work (& hands) in the Starbuck’s video below. Additional goodness after the video jump.