Steve Jobs famously said, “you can only connect the dots looking backwards.” This has proven true in my own life, where the seeds that sprouted my present are found in my past. I had a childhood filled with books, comics and toys that gave birth to my love of print media and physical objects. My notebooks were covered in ballpoint pen band logos and every inch of my bedroom walls were plastered with posters and photographs. I designed logos for my friends who had bands, painted album covers on their denim jackets and illustrated posters for my schools Students Against Drunk Driving chapter.
Early adulthood found me straying from my creative path into warehousing and logistics. But after more than a decade, I went back to school and got an associates degree in graphic design. My skills developed and greatly improved thanks to a position at Ross School where I had the chance to work on a variety of illustrations, logos, yearbooks, ads and other print materials.
My largest work to date, a 36 by 12 foot mural, resides at the Mineola location of Lucharitos, a growing restaurant chain. More artwork proudly hangs in the Aquebogue and Melville locations.
My love of the North Fork of Long Island, where I live with my wife and two daughters, led me to start Local Where. There I designed apparel, limited edition stickers and prints. I’ve also designed logos, brochures and collateral for other businesses. Find Your Balance, a book I illustrated and designed for a local author, was published in 2018.
For two years (2011 and 2012), my artwork received awards of excellence at the Babylon Art Festival. In 2016, I was one of fourteen artists chosen to participate in JumpstART, a public art program run by East End Arts in Riverhead. My project, Make Riverhead, was a mural and interactive postcard campaign meant to help residents envision the town they want to create in years to come. Additionally, my photographs have been published in Photographer’s Forum Best of College Photography Annual, on a Jones Soda label, on musician Butch Walker’s website and on the lifestyle blog ThinkInCouture.com.
Whether it’s graphic design, illustration or photography, I bring creativity, curiosity and resourcefulness to each project and I look forward to continual growth and exploration.