We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Courtney Crider a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Courtney, really happy you were able to join us today and we’re looking forward to sharing your story and insights with our readers. Let’s start with the heart of it all – purpose. How did you find your purpose?
As a child, I always thought my purpose was to be a veterinarian surgeon. I distinctly remember some time in kindergarten when I was looking at the ground and thought about how people overlook animals and abuse them. I decided then that I would be someone who would stand up for them and help them out.
From then on I dedicated a lot of my free time to preparing to be a vet. I was in multiple 4-H clubs, made animal research projects for myself, volunteered at pet adoption events and more. I was so looking forward to this future that I even drew blueprints of my future veterinary clinic and hung them on my wall.
Then when I was 13, everything changed. I had a severe anaphylactic allergic reaction to a dog one night, which triggered a host of other allergies to foods, plants, and most importantly – animals. We did blood tests for all the animals we could test for and I was allergic to them all. Cats and dogs being so severe now that my IgE blood test was “>100”, literally off the charts.
I was devastated. Too sensitive to continue allergy shots that could lessen my reaction to animal dander, I had to give up my dream of being a veterinarian.
Immediately I turned to God. In reading the Bible and praying I found comfort and joy in the midst of this new season. And it was during this time that I began to draw.
I had always doodled but never considered making art a career. It was always being a vet. But as I started drawing more often I began to realize I was kind of good at it. The following year in 9th grade I started an art instagram account and gained 1,000 followers in just 3 months. Then in 11th grade I transferred to a dual enrollment school on a college campus and began to work towards an Associates in Graphic Design. My teachers loved my work and told me that I had the skills of 3rd and 4th year art school students.
Since then I’ve illustrated 5 children’s books for self published authors and created designs such as logos, flyers, social media posts and more for various clients. I love what I do. And I never would have done all of this had I not developed those allergies.
So how did I find my purpose? I let God guide my life. I held on to the belief that all things happen for a reason and that good things can come out of the bad.
I believe that I’ve found part of my purpose. But that desire to help those who are overlooked and hurt, my motivation for wanting to be a veterinarian, it’s still there and stronger now – especially towards people. I believe that in trusting God I will be given the opportunity to use my talent and skills to show love to those who have been hurt. In trusting God’s plan for my life I will find my full purpose.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
As an illustrator and graphic designer, I do many things.
For illustration, I primarily illustrate children’s picture books in my unique style. I love to create drawings that express and spread joy to those who see them. Additionally, I create spot illustrations for brochures and websites, illustrate couple and family portraits, design illustrated posters and more.
For graphic design, I most enjoy doing brand identity projects where I learn about the client’s brand and translate this into something visual. These projects often include a logo, business cards, website, packaging design, social media icons, and more. I also like UI/UX projects where I design an app layout. Some other areas of graphic design that I work in are advertising design, flyers / posters, menu design, and print collateral.
With both graphic design and illustration I love that I’m taking words and concepts and creating something visual and tangible. I put a little bit of myself in most of my work which I believe adds a human aspect and makes it easier for others to relate or feel an emotional reaction from my designs.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
#1 – Being Open-minded With art and design, you never stop learning. And you’re almost always going to receive some sort of feedback that you have to take into consideration, whether it be from a teacher or a client. Being open-minded and willing to learn makes design a lot easier.
#2 – Design Principles and Fundamentals
Design principles such as hierarchy, balance, white space and more are important for both graphic design and illustration. Following these guidelines makes your work look and feel better, and choosing when to break them helps you create a special effect. Knowing these principles and how to use them is important. Additionally learning the fundamentals of drawing by doing things like figure drawing and still life studies are useful as well.
#3 – Communication
Most of the time you’re going to have to explain your design decisions to someone. It could be to a client, your boss, peers during a critique, admirers at an art gallery or others to give a few examples. Your work should speak for itself but also to stand out and really sell yourself, knowing how to communicate well is very helpful. For me what helped was taking a public speaking class and being in Toastmasters.
Don’t forget to have fun and do your own thing when creating. But working on these skills as well will help you to create better art and designs.
How would you describe your ideal client?
My ideal client is someone who wants to work together to create something beautiful. I love doing a variety of projects, some of my favorites being brand identity / brand refresh projects and children’s book illustration. Ideally this client will have done some research and introspection into how they want their brand or idea to be represented and what kind of emotion they want it to give off. From there I can use your values and goals to create something unique that will impact those who view it.
Contact Info:
- Website: criderillustrations.com
- Instagram: @crider.illustrations
- Twitter: @CriderIllus_
