Katie Pertiet is one busy and talented artist.
When she isn’t creating beautiful collections for Wild Apple, Katie is running Designer Digitals (a popular digital scrap booking site), keeping her blog updated or spending time with her family.
I met Katie for the first time two years ago at Surtex, and was struck by her love of life, art and design. She’s been a graphic designer for over 20 years and I adored hearing her stories of how art licensing and publishing has changed over the years. Most of all, I was fascinated listening to her talk about how to balance a busy schedule and still have the ability to be creative every day.
I met Katie for the first time two years ago at Surtex, and was struck by her love of life, art and design. She’s been a graphic designer for over 20 years and I adored hearing her stories of how art licensing and publishing has changed over the years. Most of all, I was fascinated listening to her talk about how to balance a busy schedule and still have the ability to be creative every day.
Q&A With Katie Pertiet
“Taking old art and making it new and fresh again is very rewarding,” says artist Katie Pertiet. Katie blends patterns, colors, textures and antique engravings to create something new. She has worked as a graphic designer for over twenty years. Her home studio is a mix of old and new, just like her art. Her vintage book library and paints and brushes occupy the same space as her prized Macintosh computer.
Q: You recently started a “100 Days of Botanicals Challenge” – what do you love about creating botanical art?
It’s like having flowers delivered every day and who doesn’t like flowers?! They just make me happy. There’s symbology and beauty in them and creating fresh botanicals each day keeps me in a happy place.
Q: You are a busy lady – creating art for us, creating art and running your online business and blog – how do you keep it all so organized?
Lists, lists and more lists! I’m a list girl and write down my thoughts and plans and then rewrite them to keep them all fresh in my mind and sticking to a schedule with deadlines always on the calendar help keep everything aligned. Being busy I have always found to be a good thing and keeps my creativity evolving.
Q: What is your biggest challenge as an artist?
I don’t see being an artist as a challenge; it’s a luxury to be able to support my family as an artist! But I do like to challenge myself with different mediums, different types of compositions, different themes and color ways. Challenging myself like that keeps my skills as an artist evolving and encourage me to see things with fresh eyes.
Q: What blogs/trend sites do you follow to get inspired?
Pinterest seems to be where it’s all at these days. I love searching random terms and seeing what pops up and exploring different themes there too. It can get me going in all sorts of directions!
Q: What advice would you give young designers just starting out?
To follow your passion and let your creative self evolve. Don’t force the art; just keep making art and see where it all takes you!
