Hallmark was great. It was like a
candy land of art. Matt Kesler, an illustrator from Hallmark, showed us the
magic. It was a privilege to have a
chance to visit one of the biggest greeting card companies in the world.
Our first destination was the Library
full of books and resources from all over the world. What a great place for
inspiration! Also, illustrators get
together once a week to have a little drawing session. The
company store was the next destination.
It had all the tools and materials for the artists’ needs. If they didn’t have what the artists were
looking for, a simple request from the artists and it would be in the
mail. How fun is that! I couldn’t help
but notice all the art collections
Hallmark had hanging from the walls. As
we made stops here and there we finally reached the desk where Matt worked.
Computer on one side and working area on the other, Matt has done
numerous great illustrations for this company.
He showed us how he approached his illustrations and some art that he
was currently working on.
It was so fun and great to see how Hallmark approached things. One of the things that really stood out to me
was the way Hallmark valued the importance of inspiration. They not only had an updated library and all
the tools necessary to create great art, but also encouraged the artists to try
something different and learn something new. Matt said, “I’ve got to be filled,
in order for them to get it out.” Hence,
this might be the secret to doing great art.
Matt Kesler at his desk |