Gabbing with Andrew Thompson
I got the opportunity to interview the amazing Andrew Thompson, or more fabulously known as SchmandrewArt. I first stumbled upon Andrew while looking for inspiration for my No Man’s Sky illustration. You can probably see how his graphic style and colors inspired the piece!
Thank you so much to Andrew for giving your time to share your experience. You can find him on his website, Instagram, Patreon, and Twitter!
Without further ado, let’s jump into it.
Part 1: About Andrew’s Art
Broken by Andrew Thompson
Q) What’s your art story? Did you grow up with a pencil in your hand?
A) Very much so! From a very young age, I was always the art kid. I loved the “How to Draw Dinosaurs” book and memorized all the ways of drawing each dinosaur. From there, I kept at it throughout elementary, and high school.
Once I hit middle school, I started taking lessons here and there. Very quickly I latched onto illustration as something I wanted to do. It seemed like you could bend illustration in many different ways whereas the other art school majors seemed set in stone a bit more. I studied illustration at CCAD and graduated in 2013.
Right after that, I went out to Boston and worked as a graphic designer for Reebok for 2 years before going freelance and moving back to Columbus, OH. Now I do work in the TTRPG, and video game industries on top of creating my own personal work and selling prints and merch at conventions.
Q) Your colors are absolutely dazzling, where do you find inspiration for your out-of-this-world palettes? Otherwise, do you have some sort of system or technique for imagined palettes?
A)I don’t have one definitive way of picking my colors. For me, it’s a very fluid process.
I keep all my colors on separate layers so I can adjust them as I go and I keep an adjustment layer at the top to check my values as I go. It’s all about what feels right for the piece. I’ve taken inspiration from other artists, like Matt Taylor, Hookieduke, and Tomer Hanuka in the past.
Q) As someone inspired by you, I must ask: Who are your own artist inspirations, and how do they factor into your work? I see you have some Leyendecker inspired pieces framed on your wall (The Gatsby one looks like it goes back as far as 2014!)
A) Leyendecker is a HUGE inspiration! I love how he broke up shapes and made things so incredibly angular.
In addition to the artists mentioned above, I love Loish, Erik Jones, Kev Walker, Wylie Beckert, Norman Rockwell, Phil Noto, Chris Visions, Ami Thompson, Yoshi Yoshitani, Samantha Mash, and many more I can’t name off the top of my head.
Part 2: The Journey to Professional Work
Inspiration by Andrew Thompson
Q) As a professor, what are you seeing in today’s students that set them apart? Alternatively, what would you say are some amateur mistakes or don’t-do-this that you see being made a lot?
Self Care. When I was a student, I definitely didn’t take care of myself and as I’ve gotten older (I’m almost 32), I’ve come to realize how stupid that was of me. Students nowadays seem a lot more in touch with that idea, and I AM 👏 HERE 👏 FOR 👏 IT!
As for amateur mistakes I see a lot, the big one is sizing your illustrations in a way that makes sense. Please, for the love of all things good, pick a standard size format! Especially if you want to make art prints to sell.
Q) As students, internship, job hunting, and the big league clients seem very daunting. What did your early art career look like?
A) I was lucky to get the job at Reebok right out of school. It showed me what it was like working for a big company like that and what went into it. When I started freelancing, I didn’t realize how much work it was actually going to be, and at first I was doing any job I could. I worked for a lot of individuals, doing portraits and logos.
Eventually, I started selling work at conventions, and that got my work noticed by some AD’s who hired me to work on games. At first, I was working with a lot of small game companies, but now I’ve worked with some of the bigger brands and am currently working with a video game studio in the UK. I would definitely recommend going to industry events like conventions in order to meet AD’s and network.
Q) Watching your Ramsay Bolton timelapse, I noticed you were working very closely from reference. We recently had a similar exercise in class, and some students were surprised to learn using reference so closely (but making sure you interpret/stylize) was an industry practice. Do you have any similar “this is how the industry actually is” tips for students?
A) Oh, I love reference! Using reference just a tool to make illustrations more believable. Even Norman Rockwell relied heavily on reference!
The biggest thing to remember when using reference is to make it your own and recognize when reality looks weird lol. I’ve had students take their own reference and a pose or angle will look off, and you really have to train yourself to know what looks cool and what is a little wonky.
My big reference tip pertains to client work. If you took the reference, there’s no shame in tracing it to speed things up. You’re getting paid for your time, so cut corners where you can to maximize your hourly pay.
Q) What was it like working with big companies like Reebok (CrossFit Games), Into the Spiderverse, The Thing, etc.? Is the workflow particularly different from the projects an illustration student might go through, considering professionals have stakeholders and art directors to work with?
A) This is a fantastic question! When I was working for Reebok, my experience was a little different because I was in-house. My boss was the one spearheading the Crossfit Games posters so I didn’t have to deal with a lot of the corporate BS on those.
Other projects followed a more standard rhythm where we did rough comps and pitched those to internal teams for approval. Stuff like “Into the Spiderverse” and “The Thing” were also unique situations where I was invited to contribute to either an official art show OR a book.
I think art school prepared me pretty well for working freelance. CCAD really drilled in the process of doing research, thumbnails, sketches informed by reference, color sketches, and then finals. Generally, I follow a very similar pattern with my current work. I typically jump straight to color comps to show clients but I still research and thumbnail before I get there.
Q) On that topic, what would you say got you all that work? A lot of professionals emphasize networking, or in your case would you say there are other reasons (such as posting to multiple platforms, doing film/movie fanworks, or actively pitching yourself to these companies)
A) Networking is a HUGE part of that. When I started at Reebok, there was a guy there named Anthony Petrie who did a lot of work with Gallery 1988 on top of designing t shirts at Reebok. I was able to talk to him and get a portfolio review which eventually led me to reach out to Gallery 1988 and other pop culture galleries like it. They let me in and gave me a list of shows to participate in. Through the gallery, I got to do some official work for some big IP’s including Star Wars, Magic: The Gathering, and Bojack Horseman.
When I started doing conventions, I started meeting art directors in person and that led to a lot of the work I’ve done since then. Now, I either meet people at shows, through friends/peers, or they find my work online. I’d also recommend just reaching out to companies if you think you’d be a good fit with them. I would do that at conventions before I started tabling and it led to some freelance.
Part 3: On the Personal Side
Squadron by Andrew Thompson
Q) I think it’s awesome you’re able to work on personal pieces like Squadron alongside your work as an adjunct professor and freelance. What’s your routine nowadays? Would you say you’re a disciplined person (something most of my classmates wouldn’t say we are!)
HA! I feel like I have a pretty fluid routine.
I haven’t taught since last May (I need to adjust my website) so I don’t have class X times a week anymore. I tend to get up around 10-11am and slow roll my day until I feel ready to start. When it’s nice I like to sit outside with my dog before I get into work. Then, I’ll start on whatever my closest deadline is.
I’ll work for 3-4 hours and then take my dog out for a break, and I’ll usually grab a snack or do some chores around my place before getting back to work. Then depending on the day, I might record my Podcast “Your Art Friends” or I’ll unwind by playing video games or Magic: The Gathering.
Q) How long would you say your illustrations take? Is it difficult balancing deadlines with the amount of time needed for your illustration process?
A) Something like Squadron or Inspiration (the piece with all the hands) takes anywhere from 60-100 hours. Inspiration might be the most time I’ve ever put into an illustration! Some of my other pieces have taken 20 hours but I can usually whip stuff out pretty quick if need be. I have a less refined style I use for most client work that can cut down my time to 8-12 hours, but I only use that style if the pay is a little low.
Sometimes it can definitely be a lot to balance, especially with conventions! The thing I wish I had known sooner is communication. Many art directors and clients are ok if you need a few extra days to wrap up a piece.
Q) As illustrators, our art can go a long way. Aside from direct commissions, where would you say your art income is from?
A) Nowadays my income comes from a number of different avenues, and I don’t think you should ever just have one. For a while it was a mix of freelance, selling my own work, patreon, and teaching. Now, it’s mostly freelance, selling work at conventions, patreon, and online sales. The first two being the biggest percentage.
Q) What does the future look like for you?
A) I’m not entirely sure on all fronts. I know I’ll be releasing a graphic novel in the next year or two. I’ve been working on it here and there since 2020 and it’s all about depression and anxiety and how it can feel hopeless sometimes. I started a comedy art podcast last year and it’s been super fun to do with my co host BethBeRad! I hope we can continue to make engaging content and maybe eventually do live shows or host drink-n-draw nights at conventions.
I’m also starting to get into making apparel with my art, so I’m excited to flex the skills I picked up at Reebok after 7-8 years. Otherwise, I’d love to do work for Magic: The Gathering, and expand my client list.
Q) Ahem… So about your time as a camp counselor… 🙂
A) Summer college jobs don’t always need to be about art. Camp taught me a lot that I still use. It taught me how to adapt and think on my feet, how to comfort campers (and eventually college students) who feel overwhelmed, and how to be more outgoing. Without my time as a camp counselor, I think I would be a very different person today.
A great interview, and my first time talking to a professional illustrator outside of my peers and professors! Don’t forget to check out Andrew’s stuff at Schmandrewart.com. Thanks for reading!
