Did you ever doodle as a kid–squiggle lines or maybe paint what you thought was a masterpiece during your single digit years? For most of us, doodling was just a hobby or a way to kill time. For Emily Traynor, it was the beginning of her beautifully colorful career.
Growing up near Gettysburg, Emily loved art, especially drawing, and ended up attending the University of Pittsburgh majoring in Studio Art. Throughout her years at the university, Emily developed a unique style and concept with regards to her work.
With the combination of beautiful ink fountain pen lines and careful watercolor placement, Emily creates the perfect balance of realism and cartoon, minimalism and pop art. In a city where the art scene is always changing, growing, and embracing those who witness its progress, Emily certainly brings something new to the table, or the wall, in this case.
As a freelance artist, Emily’s work is used by local and non-local businesses, including print, online publications, blogs, and even podcasts. Additionally, she is always eager to create personal commissions through her etsy site (link at the bottom). As an independent woman, making art in the city of Pittsburgh, Emily says the best part about freelancing here is that she gets to do things how she wants to do them, without limits or boundaries. She says, “There is always art in something. It’s scary sometimes that I don’t have a set agenda, but that means you get to make it up as you go.”
Emily says she approaches her work in a way that is a little unusual for artists. Instead of obsessing about the piece as a whole, she focuses on the media that will be used. It isn’t all about the end result, but what you put into it to make it what it is. For someone whose work is so playful and whimsical, she gets serious about her pens. She says her fountain pens, and the lines that they create to set a boundary for her realism and cartoon world are the most important pieces. You can sense her passion when she talks about them. She says the pens’ lines are interesting and flawless, leaving just the right amount of space to color and fill them up with watercolors, and of course, a lot of turquoise, since it is her favorite color at the moment.
And for all the upcoming and thriving future Women of Power, I asked Emily, what does it mean and what do you have to do in order to reach this level of independence as a woman in today’s world? She couldn’t of responded with a better, more uplifting message. “You need to get over the feeling of not quite knowing what you’re doing. You have to make your own way and know that it’s going to work out. Once you get over that fear, you just learn to go with it, and fly by the seat of your pants.”
To see more of Emily Traynor’s work visit: www.emilytraynor.com and to look at her etsy store visit: www.etsy.com/shop/EmilyTraynor
