Meet the artist: Aaron Brudvig — one of American Greetings’ bright art talents. He’s all about the art of animation and keeping it fun! Here’s what he has to say…
When did you first realize you are an artist?
When I was in third grade and I couldn’t stop drawing Garfield. I drew Garfield on everything.
What is your position at American Greetings and what is your background as an artist?
My position is a Senior Creative Developer. I design and animate digital greetings. Early in my career I was a fine artist and did drawings and paintings for gallery shows. I started doing more commercial work which led me to the opportunity of working in a traditional animation studio. I learned the traditional techniques of animation and started to apply them to digital animation. I freelanced as a digital animator for 7 years which led me to American Greetings where I’ve been for the past 4 and a half years.
Could you tell us some more about your work?
I really enjoy character animation. I find it to be the most challenging. Creating a character and making it come to life is really satisfying. I tend to create animations with a humorous tone.
What is it that inspires you when creating a particular design or graphic piece?
I love looking at what other artists are creating. There are so many amazing styles that artists come up with. The possibility of being able to inspire someone else with something I have created really makes it all worthwhile.
With Halloween approaching, what has been your favorite Halloween assignment and what inspires you about this holiday?
I really enjoyed working on the “Sweet Escape” digital greeting. I collaborated with Kathi Fay who created all the mini sculptures for the characters. We took photos of those sculptures and I brought them to life by animating them. The end result has a really unique look. Halloween is the best holiday for characters. You can pick any character and be that character for a day. That’s awesome!
What famous artists or graphic designers have influenced you?
Jamie Hewlett — his Gorillaz characters have so much style. I also enjoy the work by animator/director Genndy Tartakovsky, namely his animated series, Samuri Jack.
What inspires you to create your designs and how do you stay motivated?
Design and animation is such an ongoing education process. You think you know how something works and then you find that you could also do it differently. Every animation I work on I learn something new. That is what really keeps me going.
Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
Animating, animating, animating!
What advice would you give to an artist just starting out?
Don’t pigeon hole yourself into one art style. Learn to be as many different types of artists within yourself as you can. This opens up a broader range of projects you can work on, which equals more art fun!
What do you do for fun?
I’m a big kid so I have toys. I currently love building and driving hobby grade RC cars. Taking my cars out to different locations to drive them is a great way to get away from the computer.
