Info

Your Creative Push

Your Creative Push is the podcast that pushes YOU to pursue your creative passion, even though you have a busy, full-time life. Twice a week, Youngman Brown interviews artists, musicians, writers, photographers, graphic designers, and other inspirational creative individuals in an attempt to get them to inspire you to put aside your excuses and START DOING WORK. Each artist opens up to YOU, revealing the things that hold THEM back on a daily basis, and how they FIGHT THROUGH IT. They then give you one final push, in an attempt to motivate you to start doing work as soon as the episode is over. If you have a full-time job or full-time responsibilities and WISH that you had the COURAGE and MOTIVATION to FINALLY do that thing that has been on your mind, this podcast is for you!
RSS Feed Subscribe in Apple Podcasts
Your Creative Push
2020
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January


2019
November
August
June
May
April
March
February
January


2018
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January


2017
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January


2016
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January


All Episodes
Archives
Now displaying: February, 2017
Feb 27, 2017

Clark Huggins is a visual artist who combines imagery from his 13 years of experience as a theater actor with his lifelong love of fantasy, science fiction, and comics. In addition to his personal work, he has worked on several tabletop gaming properties, including ANDROID:NETRUNNER, CALL OF CTHULHU, and STAR WARS. His work has appeared in SPECTRUM, IMAGINE FX magazine, and INFECTED BY ART. Clark also works as a professional storyboard artist for film and television production, and has worked on them television series TRUE BLOOD, DAMAGES, and AMERICAN HORROR STORY. Clark is the creator of RECKLESS DECK, an idea generating card deck for artists looking to jumpstart their creativity.

Full shownotes: http://yourcreativepush.com/clarkhuggins

In this episode, Clark discusses:

-His journey as an illustrator, storyboard artist, actor, and waiter.

-Striking a balance between working for money and working towards personal projects and goals.

-His advice for people who have a job that is not only non-creative, but it also takes up most of their time.

-Seeing your creative passion as the thing that makes you a superhero.

-Some of the Resistances that used to hold him back in his creative process.

-His apprehension to the solitude of visual art and the comparison of that with acting.

-Attacking the canvas in a romantic way, and how he conquered this ineffective process.

-The importance of learning technique, especially when it comes to starting a new piece.

-How he came up with the idea for Reckless Deck.

-The permissiveness that Reckless Deck can give to someone who might be timid or unconvinced to create something “unconventional.”

-Some of the lessons he learned from the first failed Kickstarter attempt.

-His advice for someone who wants to start a Kickstarter fund.

-How he balances his time with all of the different projects he has going on as well as having a 20-month old son.

Clark's Final Push will inspire you to not be afraid to create something “sucky.”  Work through your dumptrucks of dirt to find the gems!

 

Quotes:

“Use your time well.  When you have downtime, make sure that you’re productive.”

“When you’re trying to build a career from some kind of art form, it’s almost like you’re a superhero.  You have a secret identity that’s your day job and then at night you put on your costume and do your thing.”

“Be willing to make a mess.  Be willing to put things together that don’t belong together.  Enjoy the experience of making something, rather than worrying about whether it’s right or good enough or whether you should be doing it or not.”

“The deck is meant to inspire leaping before you look.”

“It doesn’t need to say something about you every time you pick up a pencil and open up your sketchbook.”

Links mentioned:

Reckless Deck Campaign

Connect with Clark:

Website / Reckless Deck / Instagram

On the next episode:

Agnieszka Pilat : Website / Instagram / Gold Gallery

Feb 23, 2017

Gwenn Seemel is a full-time artist, portraitist, and free-culture advocate. Her beautiful, unique portraits as well as all of her other work is intentionally free from copyright.

Full shownotes: http://yourcreativepush.com/gwennagain

In this episode, Gwenn discusses:

-How her personal, creative, and professional life merge all into one.

-The pros and cons of separating your personal and creative life.

-Her battle with endometriosis and the story behind “Crime Against Nature.”

-How things like homosexuality within nature are much more prevalent than is reported scientifically, and how things like dressing flamboyantly, not having offspring, and having multiple sexual partners can be connected to animals.

-The origins of her decision to free all of her work from copyright.

-How creativity and copyright go hand in hand.

-How she got over the question of “am I special enough and why do I think I am allowed to do this?” and how focusing on portraiture helped her to put that specialness onto them.

-The importance of showing your work and connecting with other people, because it adds responsibility and accountability.

-Art can be self-expression or communication, and the differences between the two types of people, and how she tries to move between those two things.

-How marketing can be a creative outlet.

-One of her first creative moments and how a compliment from her brother (during intergalactic travels) really inspired her.

-How sometimes all it takes is just that ONE compliment from someone who gets it to keep you going.

-What it is like to make a portrait for someone and then give it to them.

-How she deals with what she calls “the stupids,” when everything you do seems to be bad.

-How some of her best moments come when she completes a project, whatever it may be.

-Art and creativity bring her the desire and ability to be in this world.

-How she is inspired by everyone around her, especially the people who she makes portraits for.

-To reframe the way you think about mistakes and actually embrace them.

-If you are viewing something as a mistake, it means that you are evolving and not remaining stagnant.

Gwenn's Final Push will inspire you to embrace the mistake, because the mistake is evidence that you did the thing in the first place.

Quotes:

“The work is what’s valuable to the world and it should be done in the best way possible.”

“I am the only one who can do it anyway, so I might as well completely release it into the world and have it be used.”

“Creativity is about taking elements from the world around you and from inside of you and mixing that all up and making something of it.”

“Any time you take risks, you’re going to have this crippling self-doubt sometimes.”

Resources mentioned:

“Crime Against Nature”

Creative Commons

Zoobiquity: The Astonishing Connection Between Human and Animal Health by Barbara Natterson-Horowitz & Kathryn Bowers

What It Is by Lynda Barry

Free Culture: The Nature and Future of Creativity by Lawrence Lessig

“Rip, A Remix Manifesto” (movie)

All About Love by Bell Hooks

Give And Take: Why Helping Others Drives Our Success by Adam Grant

The Myth of Choice: Personal Responsibility in a World of Limits by Kent Greenfield

Covering: The Hidden Assault on Our Civil Rights by Kenji Yoshino

Connect with Gwenn:

Website / Facebook / Instagram / Twitter / Uncopyright / Patreon

On the next episode:

Clark Huggins : Website / Reckless Deck

Feb 20, 2017

Seth and Andrew McMurry (Nukazooka) have been producing high-quality action shorts since 2011.  Their polished films, riddled with special effects bring to life both current and nostalgic characters and worlds, like Super Mario Brothers, Pokemon, Roller Coaster Tycoon, Darth Vader, Buzz Lightyear, Minecraft, and Legos, just to name a few.  To date, they have well over a million subscribers and over 350 million views on Youtube.

Full shownotes: http://yourcreativepush.com/nukazooka

In this episode, Nukazooka discusses:

-Their creative history and what made them to making the Nukazooka channel.

-The idea of making shorter videos, knowing that their audience on YouTube tends to prefer shorter content.

-The advantages of keeping a small, family-like crew.

-How all of Nukazooka’s videos started out as a question of “what if?”

-Where the “dark” aspects of their videos come from and their intentional contrast to the happy-go-lucky type of worlds that they use as the setting.

-The idea of competition and how it doesn’t need to be perceived as competition, rather, shared growth.

-The importance of staying grounded and being inspired by the fans that are inspired enough to create something because of them.

-Looking back at the following that you have gained and making sure to be appreciative of how far you have come.

-The importance of consistent, quality content.

-Staying familiar, but adding a twist.

-Not wanting to stay stagnant as creative people and as filmmakers and wanting to think bigger.

-The actual process of creating one of Nukazooka’s videos.

-Andrew’s process of editing after everything is filmed.

-Nukazooka’s doubts after filming “Mario Underworld.”

-The strategy of working on the beginning and the end first and then working the middle afterwards.

-Spending so much time on a particular project that you don’t know if it is good or bad because you are too close to it for too long.

-Dealing with haters.

-Treating their characters lovingly.

Nukazooka's Final Push will inspire you to do what you love and keep producing consistently.

 

Quotes:

“I never wanted visual effects to be a thing that identifies us.”

“We pride ourselves in the quality we put out and I feel like that’s what our fans expect, which is what we like.  We start with the story first and then enhance them with the effects.”

“We try to do a lot with very little.  Simplicity is super-underrated.”

“I want people to be successful.  Because that’s what I would have wanted when I was starting out.”

“It was always important to us to make sure that we loved the videos, first and foremost.  That we made videos that we would want to watch.”

“Every single upload we try to learn something new.”

“Editing is very important.  Editing can really make something great.”

Links mentioned:

RocketJump

Corridor Digital

Connect with Nukazooka:

Youtube / Facebook / Instagram / Twitter

Feb 16, 2017

Nicolás Uribe is a painter born in Madison, WI, currently based in Bogotá, Colombia. He graduated with Honors as an Illustration Major from School of Visual Arts in NY. Nicolás has had numerous solo exhibitions both in the US and South America, and has exhibited his work in Mexico, Spain, and Egypt, among other countries. He splits his time between preparing works for upcoming projects and teaching Life Drawing and Painting at the Fine Arts Faculty of the Pontifical Xavierian University in Bogotá.  Nicolás is also part of the team at Blank Atelier in Bogotá, where he teaches workshops privately.

Full shownotes: http://yourcreativepush.com/nicolas

In this episode, Nicolás discusses:

-Some of his earliest artistic influences.

-The realization that he wasn’t good at creating comic books and the shift that he made as a result.

-The influence that his teachers have had on him, especially Steven Assael.

-How the fundamentals of painting are the same, no matter who is teaching them.

-The idea that art is taught within art and the problems that sometimes arise because of it.

-How to escape the influences of your teachers in order to develop your own style.

-The way that art is based on the things that YOU care about, and much less on the technical skills of making a piece of art.

-His advice for discovering your own true voice or style.

-Being able to be appreciative of other artists’ work instead of being envious.

-Taking inspiration from another artist’s journey, rather than their individual works.

-How your art doesn’t have to be larger than you think it has to be – it doesn’t have to make the world better or change the universe.

-His opinion on the “next Rembrandt” and trying to copy art.

-How human experience is what drives a great painting.

-The fear that comes from taking the first step in many of the things we do.

-His Kickstarter project and the vulnerability involved with it.

-How the projects that we do don’t have to be about making money, but about sharing, giving back, and creating something memorable.

 

Quotes:

“My one doubt, always, is to know if I have the same effect as my teachers had on me.”

“The effect my students have on me is probably far larger than the one I hope to have on them.”

“You can go to twenty workshops of twenty different artists and honestly, you’re going to hear the same exact thing.”

“That thing you’re feeling, that little thing in the pit of your stomach where you know that you’re suffering while you’re learning?  We’ve all been through it.”

“Art is amazing because it’s about so much more – so many other things that are not really even dependent on those skills.”

“Let’s try to figure out why you like something, and in trying to figure out why you like something, you’re going to learn something about yourself that is far more useful than knowing how to paint an apple.”

“You have to get to a point where you face yourself and you’re vulnerable.”

“When you’re moved by something, don’t walk away from it.”

“That first step, that’s what exceptional people do.  They take that huge first step.”

“This is measurable.  I’m going to do this and if nobody cares, it’s like the world telling me that nobody cares about my work.  That is horrifying.”

“I could care less what people will tell me about my painting.  I would still go back and paint.”

Links mentioned:

Nicolás's Kickstarter

Connect with Nicolás:

Website / Facebook / Instagram

On the next episode:

Nukazooka: YouTube / Facebook

Feb 13, 2017

Matt Kohr is a concept artist in the game industry and has worked at Motiga Games, Vicious Cycle Software, and Hi-Rez Studios.  He is also the creator of the digital painting resource CtrlPaint.com.

Full shownotes: http://yourcreativepush.com/mattkohr

In this episode, Matt discusses:

-How his path was much less linear than it might seem on paper, and more of jumping in and getting in over his head and figuring it out as he went.

-The idea of setting a major goal and working towards it every day, and then being okay if the goal changes over time.

-The difficulty that he sometimes has identifying as a teacher.

-The value of communication.

-How learning to digitally paint for beginners can be difficult even though there is a lot of free information and tutorials out there.  It’s a matter of where to start and in what order to consume things.

-Using your frustration for something that isn’t working as permission for you to do it yourself.

-How sometimes ignorance is bliss, and how sometimes it is better to not know how long and difficult a pursuit really will be.

-The approach that he takes with Ctrl+Paint to make the scary goal of learning to paint much more manageable for beginners.

-How beginner painters are in much more danger than intermediate painters.

-The idea of being working for someone else towards a goal that isn’t yours and that you don’t have complete control over.

-Maintaining focus on a central thesis that you set out for yourself and working towards it on a daily basis.

-Pewdiepie as an example of a rare case of personality overcoming an original thesis.

-His advice for people with no followers or few followers.

-The power in having a small, loyal following.

-The danger in using the amount of likes you get as a test for whether or not something was a terrible idea.

-His hesitancy to post his latest personal work online and why he chose to do it.

-Some of the day-to-day struggles of running Ctrl+Paint.

-How hard it is to start something and to get that momentum rolling.

Matt's Final Push will inspire you to just jump in and do it, even if you don’t have all the pieces lined up yet!

 

Quotes:

“It was really a series of me being overconfident and jumping into something, getting in over my head and then scrambling to make it work over and over and over.”

“Have one really strong goal and work towards it, but don’t expect to actually hit that precise thing.  Art is so unpredictable and things are changing.  It’s okay if that goal changes, because whatever it changes to could also be really exciting.”

“I’m not by any means the best painter, but I have been the most annoyed audience member.”

“That sense that something is wrong in the world and you could do it better is a really good feeling to act on.  Because you’ve got the taste.  Follow that hunch.”

“I think the beginner is in the most danger.”

“If you have a small audience that is dedicated to whatever you’re putting out into the world, you can totally make it work financially.”

“I think there really is something to having a vision and sticking to it and not overly relying on the popular feedback immediately.”

Links mentioned:

Ctrl+Paint

Pewdiepie

Connect with Matt:

Website / LinkedIn / Twitter / ArtStation

On the next episode:

Nicolás Uribe: Website / Instagram

Feb 9, 2017

Amanda Stalter is self-taught artist from southern California. She began creating art in the spring of 2014 and shortly thereafter began exhibiting her work in local galleries. Now residing in Brooklyn, New York, Amanda has been featured in magazines, Books, and exhibited her work in both national and international galleries.

Full shownotes: http://yourcreativepush.com/amandastalter

In this episode, Amanda discusses:

-What set her on the path of becoming a visual artist.

-The inspiration that can be gained from people who have already walked down the difficult path of a creative career.

-Why she went down the path of a musician for so long.

-Some of the initial fears that she had upon making the jump to be a painter.

-Dealing with aspirations of grandeur.

-Handling lack of support from people that are closest to you.

-The importance of taking “baby steps” to achieve your audacious goals.

-Her best and worst moments as a creative person.

-How being a workaholic means that you have to turn down fun activities (and also have to remember to eat food).

-How music influences her more than people might know.

-The inspiration that she gained from J.K. Rowling.

-How you are only failing when you stop trying.

Amanda's Final Push will make you realize that you can let go of your fear of failure.

 

Quotes:

“I really felt like I was treading water half the time.”

“That’s when I realized that everything I wanted to be was completely tangible.”

“The thing that’s the best to me is waking up every day and knowing that I get to do what I’m fully passionate about for a living and I get to spend all the time in the world really devoting myself to what makes me happy.”

“There’s no rule book for being a creative person.”

“If you’re not happy, you’re doing it wrong.  Period.”

“Art, in all its forms, is kind of like a rebellion.  So looking for guidelines is silly.”

“It shouldn’t be called ‘failure.’  I think it should be called ‘attempts.’  I don’t think you’re ever really failing until you stop trying.”

“Your own internal fear is so much worse than what other people are going to think.”

Links mentioned:

Devotchka - Till The End of Time [YouTube]

La Bodega Gallery Renovation [GoFundMe]

Pencil Kings Episode 128 with Cat Rose

Your Creative Push Episode 172 with Cat Rose

Your Creative Push Episode 102 with Mitch Bowler

Connect with Amanda:

Website / Facebook / Instagram / Twitter

On the next episode:

Matt Kohr : Website / Ctrl+Paint

Feb 6, 2017

Michael Thomas is the creator and owner of Linkup215, an entertainment, fashion, culture, and artist platform, and a company based out of Philadelphia.  Aside from running his company, he is also a teacher and an author of an upcoming book, which he discusses in the episode.

Full shownotes: http://yourcreativepush.com/michaelthomas

In this episode, Michael discusses:

-How he and Jasmine Anderson had the vision to create Linkup215

-The importance of giving back to the community and to those less fortunate.

-Working with Philly Homeless and Sunday Breakfast.

-How he finds time to achieve all of his goals while still maintaining a job as a teacher.

-His love for writing, stemming from his father’s influence and Encyclopedia Brown.

-The vision for his upcoming book, A Boy with a Dream.

-Losing his initial outline for his book and how he dealt with it.

-The importance of not dwelling on the bad things that sometimes happen, because thinking about them for too long will keep you stagnant.

-How he attempts to capture the uniqueness of each of the individuals he interviews.

-How information is readily available for the young and the old – it’s just a matter of taking it.

Michael's Final Push will inspire you to go for your dreams no matter what!

 

Quotes:

“I find the time because I’ve got to make the time.”

“This book brings a lot out of me.”

“Something that you create, you just want more and more out of it.”

“Anything can happen in a year.  That’s all it takes is one year.  Your life can just turn around.”

Links mentioned:

Sunday Breakfast

Connect with Michael:

Instagram        Linkup215: Website / Facebook / Instagram / Twitter

On the next episode:

Amanda Stalter : Website / Instagram

Feb 2, 2017

Kate Shaw is a Melbourne-based artist who creates landscapes that are simultaneously sublime and toxic.  Formed out of ‘paint pours’ and collage techniques, her landscapes capture the transcendent beauty of nature.  She has had many solo and group exhibitions and currently her work is touring to museums throughout Asia as part of the Asialink curated exhibition Vertigo.

Full shownotes: http://yourcreativepush.com/kateshaw

In this episode, Kate discusses:

-How she got to the point she is at today in her artistic career.

-The comfort and structure that a part-time job can provide while pursuing your creative passion on the side.

-How nothing stifles creativity more than having to worry about necessities like food and shelter.

-The power in finding a job that feeds into your creative passion.

-The importance of relaxing the body and silencing the mind in order to get to homeostasis. 

-Tapping into the creative energy of the universe so that you can more effectively communicate with people around the world.

-Getting out into nature and unplugging from the daily demands of being a professional artist.

-The surprise that many artists and creative people have as they discover that by becoming a professional artist, they are also becoming a small business.

-The connection with nature in her art.

-What people can do in their everyday lives to help climate change.

-How she developed and invented her style.

-The resistances that occur when you are inventing something new.

-The strategy of putting something that you are struggling with aside until the next day.

-How asking too many opinions of your work gives your creative power away.

Kate's Final Push will inspire you to JUST DO IT!


Quotes:

“I find if the body is relaxed and the mind is relaxed, that’s when the creativity really opens up.”

“I really believe in flow rather than push.”

“It’s time and money.  That’s all we have in our lives is time.”

“If I’ve been working on a painting for a long time and I don’t know what to do next, I just leave it and come back the next day.  There’s something about fresh eyes.”

“You don’t want to be asking too many opinions because then you’re just giving all that away.  You, yourself, actually know the best.”

“I think a lot of times people are just looking for reassurance because they are afraid.  But they actually know themselves if it’s good or not good.”

Links mentioned:

The Ethical Guide to the Anthropocene (The Guardian)

Nestle and Deforestation (Greenpeace)

Connect with Kate:

Website / Facebook / Instagram

1