Chuck Anderson is a graphic artist whose success came after a lot of hard work and imagination. He promoted himself by contacting art directors at various companies and publications and soon began building a portfolio that now includes various publications and top companies and clients, from Nike to Reebok and from the Jackson Hole Film Festival to the rock band Less Than Jake. Besides creating art for client campaigns, Anderson also has a book out and sells prints of some of his art through his Web site.

NEUMAN: Could you tell us a little about how you got started?

ANDERSON: I got started with all this back in late 2003. I had my website, nopattern.com filled at the time with personal work I'd done throughout high school on my own time. No client work yet. I was about six months out of high school and working some odd jobs here and there (local screenprinter, packing T-shirts for Threadless.com, etc.) when I started noticing more and more artists and illustrators in the magazines I would read all the time. This got me thinking, and I started getting in touch with art directors at magazines by finding their name in the masthead. I also was getting some small work at the time from a friend doing flyers for a club called Smartbar in Chicago. All this stuff snowballed, pretty much.



NEUMAN: How did you promote your company after getting a few clients?

ANDERSON: Just started getting in touch with more magazines, then ad agencies, studios, etc and went from there. I promoted online and in the magazines I was getting work in. Every place I could put my name and NoPattern.com I did.

NEUMAN: Were you able to charge more as you became more popular?

ANDERSON: Yes — over the years as I've built my client list and portfolio, I've been able to charge more, but I just think that comes with the territory of gaining experience.

NEUMAN: What programs do you use primarily in creating your art? Anything besides Photoshop and Illustrator, and which one do you use the most?

ANDERSON: No programs other than those. I use Photoshop for most everything I do.

NEUMAN: Clients obviously come to you for creating your unique look and aesthetic. Has there ever been a time when the client wanted to change the look over your proposal so much that you had to convince them to let you do your job?

ANDERSON: That happens occasionally, but there are compromises to be made on both sides. Sometimes I have to flex a little bit and do things I don't usually do. However, that's fine with me because I just try to look at that as an opportunity to do something new and different. If it gets to a point where they're asking me to do things I just simply don't do, then yes, I have to speak up and tell them I'm unable to do it or it's not something I'm happy or comfortable with. On the other hand, sometimes they'll want me to stay too simple and I try to push them to be more open to my new ideas. Often times that works and obviously is the most ideal situation.



NEUMAN: How do you determine what kinds of color you will use in a project? Do you utilize any kind of color coordination or is it more random?

ANDERSON: It's usually more random and I see how things go as I work on it. However, sometimes a project will have some kind of color “theme” or requirement and I work in that range. For example, a recent project for an energy drink that had blue branding led the client to obviously want to stay in a blue palette, as well as incorporate one additional color that was left up to me. That's nice when there are rules and guidelines sometimes, I don't mind it.

NEUMAN: What artists from the past and present do you find inspiration from or at least admire?

ANDERSON: There are so many great artists; I always have a hard time with this question but I'll just list as many as I can think of that have inspired me in some way. Geoff McFetridge, KAWS, Jim Phillips, Ernesto Caivano, Deanne Cheuk, Marcel Dzama, Non-Format, Mark Romanek, Cai Guo-Qiang, Erika Somogyi, Saiman Chow, Nago Richardis, Robert Longo, and John Dyer Baizley. Those are the people who are on the very front of my mind right now in terms of inspirational. All of them are easily “Googleable.”



NEUMAN: Do you find inspiration from any musicians, whether it be rock bands or other artists?

ANDERSON: Absolutely. I listen to music all day while I work. A few of my favorites are Pedro The Lion, Isis, Animal Collective, Torche, Botch, Aloha, Oasis, Cursed, Engine Down, Frodus, Jay-Z, meWithoutYou, Thelonious Monk, and late at night when I need to really focus I listen to stuff like Chopin, John Coltrane, etc. All sorts of stuff.

NEUMAN: Do you find any inspiration in the beauty of nature? If so, could you explain?

ANDERSON: Absolutely. Lots of my work is rooted deeply in my love of nature. I grew up going with my family to my grandparent's vacation cottage on Lake Ontario every year. It's in upstate New York. It's so beautiful and peaceful there. I also came back feeling so inspired. I think I just really love the serenity and calm of nature. It's not busy with arguments, politics, gas prices, fighting, and trivial things that we let consume our lives every day. Of course, nature has its downsides (see: Katrina), but I'm talking in general: trees, mountains, skies, stars, clouds...I can't think of anything more genuinely inspiring.



NEUMAN: Do you ever apply compositional principles such as the divine proportion or the rule of thirds, and other principles from nature and even the renaissance artists?

ANDERSON: Honestly — not really. I'm sure I would sound more educated, smart, and intellectual if I said yes, but I'll be honest and just say not so much. I use the rule of thirds with photography a lot, actually, but in terms of taking cues from traditional compositional principles, other than that, not really. I'm sure I should probably brush up on that and learn more about them, however, as they're no doubt incredibly good to know about and good to know how to utilize correctly.

NEUMAN: What do you think it is about your art that stands out from others? It's very colorful, edgy, and visually appealing.

ANDERSON: I think I just use my work to fully unload my imagination and ideas onto. The fact that anybody enjoys it and likes what I do is great, but I do what I do because it's my way of getting out the things that I see in my head. I think maybe the main thing is that I just do my best to be myself, do what I love, and be as genuine as possible regardless of what anybody says. I think it's simpler to stand out in a crowd than people, specifically artists, often think. You just need to not worry about what other people are doing, don't copy other people's work—EVER—and just pursue what you love and dedicate yourself to it. Anybody doing that in any craft or profession will surely gain a following in some way.

NEUMAN: Do you plan on moving to New York or L.A. or do you plan on staying in Illinois?

ANDERSON: None of the above. I've lived in Illinois my whole life and I'm finally moving, at the end of May, to Grand Rapids, Michigan. It's a cool, small little city close to the lake, outdoors, a downtown area, and not far from me and my wife's family in the Chicago area. I have some good friends up there and always liked when I visited so we're giving it a shot. I don't really see myself in New York or LA unless an absolute dream job was offered to me. I can do everything I do over the internet for now and travel whenever I'm needed...I just don't see myself living in a large city like that. It's just not me. My wife and I are much more laid back than the pace of a big city would demand.



NEUMAN: How do you balance the time between your work and your wife? As a professional who is self-employed, do you ever find yourself spending too much time in the office?

ANDERSON: My wife Holly has been with me since before I was known at all for my work. She was there when I started NoPattern, while we were dating, all the way to today now that we're married. She knows how I work, that I like to work late at night, and that sometimes my job demands that I work weird hours or have a lifestyle that's not as “typical” as most. She's totally understanding and helpful and supportive—I couldn't really ask more of her than that. I have to definitely be careful sometimes about how much I let myself sit in front of the computer or my Blackberry though, and make sure I devote proper time to her, friends, and other family. It's easy to get caught up in the work side of life when you work from home and vice versa. The two get intertwined all the time. It's just important that I maintain a good balance.

Chuck Anderson's portfolio can be seen at nopattern.com. He would also like you to check out these other sites he's involved with: npandco.com and thebrilliance.com.