My name is JESSICA STASIE HUNTER. I am an Illustrator with a business background. My Art & Design degree has an emphasis in illustration and I love design as well. I am self-motivated and never procrastinate when there is a job to get done. Want to know more? Here's my Resume.
Also familiar with CSS, HTML, and Wordpress
Clients // Ann Arbor District Library, Westborn Market, Adagio Graphics, Panthalassa (band), Baguette & Butter (culinary blog), Private commissions
Too many thumbnails? Click the tags to filter by category.
Pseudo Significance
Crust Brochure (outside)
Crust Brochure (inside)
Color Spot Illustrations
B&W Spot Illustrations
Ann Arbor District Library – Card (front)
Ann Arbor District Library – Card (back)
Ann Arbor District Library – Bookmark
Bruce the Funny Dog
Menu #2
Brochure #2
Menu #1
Brochure #1
Lighthouse Tattoo
Nelly
Album: Front
Album: Back
Insert: Back
Insert: Front
Luna
Corgicycle
Stubborn
Costumes
Pembrokes & Cardigans
Thief
Propaganda
Odd Noises
Smell
Sight
Hearing
Taste
Touch
All the Pretty Girls
Windshield Smasher
You are the Ocean
One with the Freaks
Hidden in the Sand
It Gets Better
Uprooted
Ring Ring
Loss is a cycle and a process
A Dad but not a Father
You don’t remember until after you think you should
Versed: To be educated in a subject
About this Blog // I am an illustrator who loves to explore and wants to inform others about the interesting things I find
No matter where you work, always do your best. I have been working full time in an artisan bakery and have learned a lot about giving my all. I feel especially pressured as an artist to gain popularity among my coworkers and bosses because one day they may need some kind of illustration done and remember me. Do not get me wrong, I am not faking my pleasant personality. I genuinely enjoy my job and the people I work with.
I have also been promoting myself with every chance that presents itself. Any customer that brings up art with me I always mention that I am an Illustrator/Designer. I have also taken initiative to design a brochure for the bakery I work for to show them what else I could offer. I’ve given out business cards and postcards to anyone I believe would be interested. I think someday this will end up helping me as we all know, you can’t remember something you were never told.
Also, balancing illustration with a full time job is a bit tiring but I enjoy that it keeps me busy. Sorry that I haven’t posted anything lately.
-Jessica
Last week I had the chance to go to Chicago for the day with one of my best friends. We were going to the Art Institute but what I was really jazzed about was the Aquarium. I do not much care for Zoos but there is something about sea life that turns me into a five year old. At the AI I cannot wrap my mind around the idea that some of the objects I am looking at are older than dirt. I enjoy art museums more than I did before I took Art History classes but I am impartial to pretty much every other kind of museum. The one thing pictures in a book can’t really show though is how vivid and detailed a painting is. I love getting up close and personal with a painting to see how the artist did what he did. I never enjoyed oil painting so it is a process that mesmerizes me.
After the Art Institute we rushed over to the Shedd Aquarium. I was so happy to be inside a building where the wind wasn’t punching me in the face. Mind you, my coat is basically a sleeping bag, the outdoors were that awful. We bought tickets to the Jellies exhibit… along with everything else there is to see and were on our way.
NOTE: I have never been to an Aquarium before
I was blown away by the size of all the fish I was looking at. They were all HUGE! I have never seen fish as big as me before so I was all giggly. I was also really excited to get my own reference shots for future illustrations instead of scouring Google. We made our way through all of the first floor tanks and finally got to the really good parts: the Oceanarium and Jellies exhibit.
From the way I was talking about all of the Jellyfish, calling them snot rockets, you wouldn’t think I liked them very much but they were awesome. Looking at pictures and videos doesn’t give you the full effect of how they move around or how they look. None of them were very big but there were so many different kinds to look at. I still don’t understand how they eat or anything but they sure look dandy.
My first sight in the Oceanarium was of Beluga Whales and wow are they adorable. Everything I thought was cute I deemed a “sea puppy”… because puppies are the best. They were really active too, swimming really fast, coming up to the surface, making farting noises with their blow holes. There were sea otters, starfish (which I got to touch by the way, they feel slimy and really textured… very odd), anemones, and the best part was the Dolphins. I have never seen a real living breathing Dolphin before so I decided I would become a Dolphin Trainer instead of an Illustrator. There were barely any people watching and we got to get really really close while watching them do adorable tricks. Someday I want to be able to pet one.
I couldn’t have asked for a more fulfilling (or windier) day. I got to see so many animals I had never seen before and could go on and on about them but I won’t bore you. I feel fully inspired to draw some sea life now!
-Jessica
If you want to be an Illustrator, Designer, or any kind of artist really it takes a lot of self-motivation. It isn’t like when someone majors in Accounting and then becomes and Accountant. Although, in school you both learn what you need to… one can tell you the present value of your assets and the other draws adorable corgis. However, the Illustrator graduates into a scary world. They need to find publishers, art directors, editors, really anyone who can possibly get them one freelance opportunity so they can start to make a living while the Accountant just finished their internship PwC and was promised a fulltime job afterwards.
Does this sound like I’m bitter that I didn’t become an Accountant? It probably does and it is a true fact that I have a business minor and considered double majoring in accounting… but not I’m not bitter. I get to draw peoples’ portraits, dogs, whathaveyou and I am much happier because of that.
Today I spent my day researching and even went out to my local Barnes & Noble to find some places to contact. One of the most depressing things I found is that most magazines only include photos. I finally stumbled upon some sort of cooking magazine which had one illustration of a cake but… no authors, publishers… nothing. It was the most random magazine on the planet and if I can find anymore information about it I would be surprised. My search didn’t turn out empty handed though, I found two pages worth of editors, publishers, and all that jazz. This is my first step into attempting to be an Illustrator… and it is not very easy. I think if you find yourself a successful Illustrator you should give them $5 or maybe a pat on the back, whatever suits you. It is an incredible amount of self promotion (not to mention AS IF I HAVEN’T ALREADY finding the places to apply to), improving your portfolio, and being an all-around pleasant person.
The way I am looking at my life as it is right now is that my art and me as a person are one. If I can bring up that I am an Illustrator/Designer in a new conversation I have achieved my goal. I try to pop in my business card too, which most people seem to enjoy. It’s kind of strange but I enjoy it. I love getting to know new people and love when they take a glance at my work.
To continue my tangent, when you are an Artist (commercial especially) you are a walking bilboard of yourself. You need to represent yourself in the highest quality possible so you can show your potential clients what you can do for them. It’s quite a challenge but figuring it out is pretty interesting. Even if you’re not an artist you should always represent yourself well, you never know who is looking.
Did you learn anything from this post? Maybe, maybe not.
-Jessica
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