Image Copyright Sharon Scanlin 2011 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED!
Sharon Scanlin is my biggest Shero and an absolutely brilliant woman with a wide array of talents. She’s also my mom. Sharon is a graphic designer, writer, artist and visionary. Sharon made our new logo and somehow managed to encapsulate all of the whimsy and joy of this concept into one fun filled image. She raised three kick ass warrior women and she is the original. Everything I know about being a strong, smart, independent woman came from her. So I asked my mom if she’d be willing to be the first person featured on the Craft. You. blog and I was tickled pink when she said yes.
* Welcome to Craft. You. I’m so excited to have you here! That logo blew me away, thank you!
I'm feeling a little sheepish with all that praise. Of course, you know you are my inspiration on so many more levels than you can even imagine. As a mother yourself, you know how much it means to have your daughter tell you that you're wonderful. I love that you love the logo. In all honesty (but without humility), I love it too.
* You have managed to carve out a career where you get to do something you love and are really excellent at doing. It’s funny because I am computer challenged, but I can’t blame my age because my mom is a computer wizard! Can you talk about how you became a graphic designer and what the rewards and challenges are in having a freelance business?
Long story short: I was raised to be a housewife. When that didn't work out, I had to make a living with the only marketable skill I possessed - typing. I could type 95 words per minute. My first job in computer typesetting was with a vanity press. It was in the very infancy of computers. I worked with 8-inch floppy disks and a 32 character display above my keyboard. That was it - no monitor. In the following years, as typesetting gradually evolved into desktop publishing, I became expert in both the hardware and the software. In the mid-1980's I was hired to configure systems, train end users, and support sales for a national color separator. Since I had to know all of the software so that I could get our clients up to speed when their IT departments upgraded them, I was given the latitude to create whatever I wanted in the latest beta releases of drawing software, image software and layout software. As the industry morphed into the graphic designer doing the work of multiple old-time journeymen, I was able to design a variety of projects and I just loved it. I've done freelance graphic design for a number of years. The challenge of collaborating with a client and providing a design that exceeds their expectations is the best feeling in the world. The biggest challenge in freelance work is understanding that because I think something is beautiful, does not mean my client will. It's so critical to get a real feel for what the client wants. Sometimes that means losing my attachment to a design, not taking the rejection personally, and working together with the client to create a finished project that makes them smile.
* You are a painter and your work is beautiful. There is one painting in particular you worked on for years. It’s the butterfly woman. To me, that painting personifies the idea of creativity defying destruction. I love that painting. What compelled you to paint that and do you think it will ever be finished?
That painting is hung directly across the room from my computer. When I look up I see her face. I'm looking at it now. When I study it, part of me goes back to when I painted it and part of me shuts out that moment in time. I painted it as a desire to fly away from the turmoil. It was the picture of a dream of finding a place of peace. I don't think I can finish it. My mind and spirit are in such a different place now that I couldn't give her what she deserves. Not finishing it seems like the right thing to do. Walking away from that time and place but never forgetting what happened. And, yes, creativity did triumph over destruction.
* You raised three very different, very amazing women, mostly on your own at a time when being a single mom was a very tough row to hoe. If you could share one spark of wisdom about being a woman in this world today, what would it be?
Wow, that's quite a question. For me the secret I wish I had known was that I am enough.
* Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers? Where can they find you if they want to hire you to design? (And they should because you're fantastic!)
I knew I was an artist from the moment I was born. There were many detours away from the arts. There were many choices made in the heat of the moment that separated me from that. But I have no regrets. I have three amazing daughters. I have one amazing granddaughter. I have seen the worst in human nature and I have seen the best. I have lived a life of substance. It's been a roller coaster ride but I wouldn't trade the highs or lows if it meant I had to live life in the middle. My website Sharon Scanlin Graphic Designer has some samples of my graphic designs. Feel free to contact me for a no-obligation consultation. inquiries@sharonkscanlin.com
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