As I’m writing this, it’s the day before my first Kickstarter campaign is set to launch. I’m about 70% excited, 10% proud of all the work that’s already gone into this, and a not-quite-crippling 20% terrified of failing very publicly.
You see, I’m trying out something new– something similar to work I’m already pretty good at, but in different enough of a model that I feel like I’ve been dropped off on an alien planet. I haven’t felt this many butterflies in my stomach since a similar diagonal transition almost three years ago. But I’m getting ahead of myself– let me offer a short backstory.
My career as a creative so far can be boiled down to a series of pivots: from engineering to design student, from design student to ad/marketing designer, from graphic designer to hand-letterer, from letterer to muralist, and most recently– from lettering/design-focused person to someone others refer to as an “artist.” From the outside looking in I’m sure this appears to be tiny sidesteps under one big umbrella, but those in this field will recognize– these roles all have vastly different goals, measurements of success, and implications on what my life looks like every day. I have a mild case of metaphorical whiplash from all this frequent change in just a few short years!
That is not to say that I’m not grateful for all of these opportunities in different areas, frankly it’s just something I never expected or saw coming. I fully recognize that my journey has been pushed forward and challenged for the better by my clients' trust in me to try new things on every project. With their help and those opportunities, I’ve accomplished things I never even dreamed I would be able to do… But, the time has come that I would like the chance to steer my own boat, for a spell.
It is out of this sentiment that my first solo art show and this Kickstarter, titled HOMEGROWN, was conceived and is being produced. I’ve been honing my craft and skills for a few years now, and as I’m learning is inherent to the nature of artists– I finally feel ready and want to use them to communicate some things from my perspective.
The pieces in this show will explore concepts and themes of what home means to me as a small-town artist, native Floridian, and someone who has fallen back in love with the Panhandle after a return home I never expected. Some pieces will be deeply personal, some will be designed to resonate with people from this community, but all will tug on the heartstrings one way or another.
As I am not independently wealthy (and, life is expensive, ya know!) I’ve developed this Kickstarter campaign to help me offset the expenses of Homegrown by offering Florida-related physical goods, backer preview events, sponsorship opportunities, and an exclusive feed of updates to folks who believe in this project and want to see my work in a new format. I hope you’ll consider backing the campaign or sharing it with your friends if you want to see this project come to life in September!
There’s so much more to share (even this early in the game!), but I’ll save it for the Behind the Show feed a little later ;) For now, let me leave you with a few tasty previews of the physical rewards you could earn for backing HOMEGROWN.
Thanks so much for reading, sharing, and supporting however you are able–
Talk soon,
Morgan