Distinctive and playful, I was pleased to discover the illustrations of Kristin Parsons on Etsy a few months back. Many people don’t know this about me, but I did my BFA in Illustration and so I actually have a lot of experience looking at and critiquing illustrations. I am particularly attracted to Kristin’s unique way of balancing color; she achieves excellent relationships between colors. I also love the whimsical nature of her various characters and creatures in her pieces.
Tell us about your background.
I was born in Houston, but lived most of my childhood and teen years in Canada and Europe. Dad’s career with international engineering firms took our family, in succession, to Montreal, The Hague, Barcelona, and Frankfurt. I’ve been making art constantly since I was two years old. Both my grandfathers and an aunt were artists, so it’s probably in my DNA. I took my first serious art classes on Saturdays in my very early teens, and after I graduated from the American High School in The Hague in 1964, I stayed in Europe for art school and lived at home. In Barcelona, I studied illustration at the Escola Massana and worked at Estudios Moro, maker of animated cartoons, as an inker and later a background designer, well before the advent of computer animation. In Frankfurt, I studied illustration at a school now known as the College of Art and Design Offenbach am Main. It was also in Frankfurt that I met my husband, then a lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force. We married the next year, and a year after that we returned to the States when he resigned his commission in favor of graduate school. Our daughter is a gifted craftsperson, married to an architect, and she’s the mom of the little guy (nearly six years old) who inspires the graphics I sell on Etsy. As for my career over the last forty-plus years, I’ve sold my work in galleries and art fairs, participated in group shows, done book illustrations, and taught art to kids and adults. And now I sell my art online on Etsy.
What inspires you?
My grandson, as I mentioned, is currently my best inspiration. He’s cute, he’s smart, he’s clever, a whirlwind of ideas and creative activity. It’s that spirited sweetness that goes into making my art for children. I’m also very inspired by random colors and interesting shapes and textures I encounter, both man made and in nature.
Describe the technical process for creating your pieces.
The art I’ve done most of my adult life (ink drawings and watercolors, mostly of people) is very different from the art I sell on Etsy, which is nearly all made on the computer. I started experimenting with digital art about ten years ago. After my grandson was born in 2006, I wanted to make him some handmade picture books with simple, direct, and colorful illustrations, so I developed a method to create a variety of little creatures by arranging pre-made components — body shapes, feet, eyes, antennae, furry bits, etc. — that I drew by hand, scanned in, and digitally manipulated in various ways. (I’m Dr. Frankenstein!) Over the years, I’ve built up a large library of components, which I mix and match to make new creatures. My experience at the animated cartoon studio still comes in handy, especially in keeping things simple and direct.
Name some people, artists, or artistic genres that have been influential to your creative process.
As a child and teenager, I was exposed to the great art and design of Europe. My impossibly lofty childhood goal was to draw as well as Michelangelo, but as a teenager, I broadened my horizons to include experimenting with modern ideas as well. I also used all sorts of things as a child to train myself — for instance, at around ten, I learned the basics of drawing hands by studying how they were drawn in comic books. When I was twelve, my aunt gave me an anatomy book for artists. She was very encouraging and taught me things I still use as an artist every day.
Describe a typical session in the studio, do you have any routines?
I drink my morning coffee at the computer in my studio (which is also a guest room), and unless something comes up or I have other plans, I’m there all day. If I have an Etsy order to fill, I do that first thing. Otherwise, I work on ideas for new creatures or create new color schemes for existing ones. I also compulsively tweak things in my Etsy shop. I’ve had so much fun with this, I’ve neglected my other art, so lately I’ve been making sketches for ink and watercolor drawings I’d like someday to offer on Etsy in a second shop. It’ll happen eventually!
Kristin’s Etsy Shop
