14.3.09

The divine prints of Toxic guinea pigs





I stumble across the work of such talented artists and designers continuously on Etsy (not only are these guys SUPER talented, they are sooo nice as well) . After seeing the wonderful flowing lines of her prints, I contacted Maggy O´Reilly from toxicguineapigs/O´Reilly ink to ask her if she would be willing to say a little something about herself and her work, and this was her response:


“My name is Maggy O'Reilly and I live in Hilliard, Ohio which is a suburb of Columbus. I didn't grow up here, though. I grew up (proudly) on a farm.”


How long you have been drawing, doing art, doing creative work?:
“Yikes, forever? When I was a little one, I used to draw in the inside covers of all my books. And I had this weird affliction for putting rabbit ears on every person I drew. I should probably add that I wore bunny ears as everyday attire at the time.
I've always been fairly serious about my artwork. I grew up in a very tiny primarily Amish town in Morrow County, Ohio where there was honestly nothing to do. So drawing was always something I had. I did my first actual commissioned piece when I had just graduated from high school and the school board came to me to do a mural on one of the buildings. I had never done one and it didn't turn out too great, but I got paid and I think they've painted over it now. Hah. I do the occasional commissioned pet portrait now, craft shows, and of course etsy.”

Tell us a bit about your process of inspiration and work:
“My inspiration comes from primarily the nature of good ol' Ohio and the Midwest. I have always loved adventuring through woods and fields. I find little places here in the 'burbs that haven't been destroyed by housing complexes yet to go exploring in with my boxer, Cherry (she's another inspiration, by the way). I also have a great love for all things retro, vintage, and tacky. Especially the old cruiser bicycles. Bikes can be a pain to draw, but those old ones are just too freakin cool not to.
I do pen and ink for almost everything, and for original works I like spray paint, watercolor, and recently I'm getting into some mixed media stuff.
And of course, I'm also inspired by the artist that I enjoy: Tara McPherson, Kyungduk Kim, Michele Maule, Elise Towle Snow (ArgyleWhale), Shira Sela, Adrian Tomine...and the list goes on and on.”

2 comments:

  1. A good friend emailed me this interview as she knows how much I like your unique work ("Blue bird" is hanging in my living room!)..hope somebody saved those drawings you made with the bunny ears on everything ~ I have a feeling they will be worth something, someday.

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