It’s Friday, and a perfect time to talk with another fabulous friend. Travis Foster is a fantastic illustrator, and does a monthly spot job for me in the magazine. We’ve become great friends over the years, and often trade gardening pictures and family stories. He and his family are wonderful people, and I really adore them. His illustrations always hit the mark, and he has a great way of getting to the heart of a topic in a 3-inch square. His characters have a way of sticking around in the brain, and the colors and contexts are perfect for the setting. Here’s what he has to say about his path:
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Like most artists, drawing was something I enjoyed as a kid. I’ve never out grown this love of making pictures for others to enjoy. At sixteen, I worked in a seasonal theme park, and it continues for five summers – creating “caricatures” for tourists. It was a great first job, established a work ethic and I saw first hand artwork as a plausible way to create some income. This is how I worked my way through art school. My parents encouraged me to hold out for the right college, and Ringling ended up being a good choice. Great instructors, solid training. In 1989 I graduated from Ringling School of Art and Design, Sarasota Florida with an illustration major.
I hit the ground running, starting my freelance career and business right out of school. I asked other illustrators, “how do you do this?” I applied their generous advice, pursuing freelance full time. Never looked back.
I like to create clean, simple shapes and designs. I prefer images to read clearly and designs that are easy on the eye. The variety of projects that come into the studio I largely attribute to the “streamlined style” offered. An advertising campaign, children’s book, editorial assignment, it’s all good stuff. I enjoy them all and appreciate the steady stream of fun assignments.
For life, I’d say, “Learn to laugh at yourself often, don’t take yourself to serious.” Be kind to others. Love your family well.
Sarah and I have four wonderful children, and I’m proud of each of them. When I see my kids creating art, or playing their instruments, or working in the garden, I’m reminded that life itself is a gift. A precious gift.
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I think it’s easy to see why Travis is such a joy to work with, and such a fun friend. He gladly shares his gifts and friendship, and it makes my job a dream. Plus he’s darn talented. You can see for yourself at www.travisfoster.com. Thank you, Travis.
I’ll second the value of the streamlined style. When Sherri and I cook up art ideas for the Whee the People section in Citizen, we get a lot of mileage out of Travis’ versatility. We can apply “clean and simple” to a lot of different types of concepts.
Travis has a great feel for when to take a concept pretty much straight-up as delivered, and when to add various wrinkles of his own. He can be clever, and frequently is; but he doesn’t force cleverness when it doesn’t fit. He’s all about doing good work, not about himself. That’s the mark of the kind of pro who really is a pleasure to work with!