Stevie Rae Drawn is the artist behind the beautiful cover of Oneshi Press Quarterly Anthology #06. We talked to Stevie about digital art, live-streaming, and binge-watching TV.
Tell us about yourself, stevie! How did you get into digital art?
You know, I always had an interest in art and drawing. I’ve been doodling in sketchbooks since I was a child, and I kept filling them up through high school.
However, when I was fifteen I was gifted a copy of Photoshop 7 and a Wacom Intuos. This was a dinosaur of an Intuos, not something you would recognize as the sleek, slim, reliable devices that Intuos tablets are today. It was so old that it didn’t even have a USB cable! (That feels like a joke to me, “Your tablet is so old…that it doesn’t even have a USB cable!”) It even used a serial port to attach to my computer and required an external power source! I played around with digitally coloring some of my lineart art back in those days. But eventually I packed the Intuos away and forgot about it.
I ended up out of touch with digital art until 2009 when I got an IT job at my university. One of my fellow desktop support techs had a hobby of digitally coloring lineart from DeviantArt. She had a tiny Wacom Bamboo and she showed me some of her tricks. I was immediately hooked. It was like the old days, but so, so much better! I bought myself a tablet and dove in headfirst.
Did you study art formally or teach yourself?
At school I sought out a program where I could learn more, but I couldn’t find a place in the art department or the new media department where digital painting was taught and/or accepted. So, my newly rekindled love affair with digital painting ended up mostly self-directed. I made a handful of pieces, works that I never spent more than ten hours on each. I did several series of illustrations for my painting classes, but it was a fine art program, and the first question was always: “Why did you choose to paint this piece? Wasn’t it better suited to [performance/installation/multimedia/you name it] than painting?”
It wasn’t until five years later, in 2014, when I started streaming on Twitch and boothing at conventions that I really pushed myself to work with dedication. Choosing digital art was always an intuitive decision for me. The art I looked at and aspired to was always digital. I think that has to do with color and vibrancy. The digital work I admired was always hugely focused on characters and anatomy, but it also felt bright or dark in really intentional ways, something unique to digital art.
Who are your art heroes? Who inspires you?
My art heroes include Jodie Muir, Kai Carpenter, LittleUlvar, Brom, Dan Dos Santos, Maxfield Parrish, Eytan Zana, Charlie Bowater, and many more. I will say that I tend to fall in love with specific pieces, but not so much with an artist across the board.
What fictional character do you identify most with, and why?
I’ve always felt really identified with the whiny boy Luke. He wants gratification, excitement, adventure… all these selfish things, but he mostly wants to help other people. He doesn’t care what is in it for him, he wants to do the right thing and make sure people aren’t hurt. He’s the ultimate idealist. Actually, I’m pretty identified with a bunch of fictional idealists like Captain America and basically every member of Starfleet.
What does the world need that art can provide?
A whole lot more empathy.
What are you currently reading, listening to, and watching?
I’m watching The Walking Dead, Riverdale (Southside Serpents for life), and Outlander! I’m all over the board in my taste, but I love binge-watching shows. I’ve been listening to Yeasayer and Giles Corey a lot recently! I’m also always going back to old classics like Kate Bush and Ray Lynch. I consume a lot of TV, music, and audiobooks, trying to get to that playful place in myself where I make the most lighthearted art.
How do you make your work immersive and progressive (the Oneshi Press themes)?
By expressing myself and what is important to me, I’m already accomplishing the progressive side. The act of being different and being heard is radical in and of itself. I hope to someday get to a place where I can uplift other people’s voices as well. On the other hand, “immersive” is a trait I’m constantly after. It’s the most fascinating part of art and storytelling. For me, when I fall into a world and forget everything else…that’s why I watch, read, and listen. I want to create that experience for other people, so I try to make images and worlds that draw people in.
How did you come to create the cover art for Oneshi Press Anthology #06?
I came to know Jayel and Lynsey through the streaming community of Twitch Creative. I think Jayel came to my stream one day, and that’s how I first met him. Through my stream we ended up spending so much time hanging out that when I finally discovered Oneshi Press, I fell in love. They are creating something that elevates the voices of people who might not normally be heard, and they put all their hearts into it. For a long time, Jayel and I wanted to work on something together. I can’t remember how it came about; we may have just been chatting when the idea of doing a cover came up. It was an easy answer for me: YES!
Have you worked on any other comics projects?
In 2010 I did a webcomic called Dictionary Girl. I also have a small side project collaboration with the author M.K. Sauer called “Going Still,” which updates quite infrequently. It’s about an underdog investigator who takes her case too far when she discovers a Martian cult intent on consuming Earth’s ghosts.
My main project is called Weatherwax Coven. It’s about a coven of four gorgeous witch men who unearth an unlimited power flowing from their Colorado mountain manor, but when the cruel ambitions of older, stronger witches threaten to seize the land, the divided coven of men must lay old wounds to rest.
The project consists of illustrated short stories that are being published to my Patreon. Eventually we will collect them all and make printed versions available! You can read the stories at Patreon.com/stevieraedrawn.
I am also organizing an artist collective called Hellebore Collective. Together with other skilled artists, we’re making work that focuses on the mystical, the ominous, and the occult. You can learn more about us at HelleboreCollective.com.
Where can our readers find you online?
I would love to share my story with you! You can support it for as little as $3 a month: Patreon.com/stevieraedrawn
My website is:
stevieraedrawn.com
The best ways to connect with me are on Twitter:
Twitter.com/stevieraedrawn
or Instagram:
Instagram.com/stevieraedrawn
I also have a seasonal etsy store:
stevieraedrawn.etsy.com
And I occasionally stream on my Twitch:
twitch.tv/stevieraedrawn
Get your own copy of Oneshi Press Anthology #06 in print or digital, featuring gorgeous cover art by stevieraedrawn!
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