Meet Amber Brewer | Illustrator & Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Amber Brewer and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Amber, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
I’ve always been a creative person; as a kid I was always getting into all kinds of arts and crafts like those little foam kits from the craft store, making potholders, painting seashells and rocks, but I have always gone back to drawing and painting as my default. As an illustrator, I like to apply my illustration skills to many different mediums! I enjoy making illustrations and putting stuff together which eventually made me want to try and sell my work. I opened up my online shop on Etsy with a few sticker designs, and now I have expanded to zines, jewelry, art prints, more stickers, magnets and other creations on the way. It’s rewarding to have the ability to share my work with people and get paid for it in return! I love making art for people that makes them smile and allows them to decorate their lives with my creations.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
My work is heavily influenced by nature and animals. I’m very inspired by all different types of creatures and plants, and enjoy learning lots about them. I love creating work around these subjects and using lots of colors within my pieces. Art is something that I’ve always loved and I never pictured myself doing anything else. It’s a privilege to be able to draw for a living! But, this career isn’t always the easiest because there is no clear path of where to go. After recently graduating from college majoring in illustration, it’s really hard to know what path to go down. All of my former professors have different stories of how they got to where they are today. Because of that, it’s hard to give a step by step guide of where to go. It’s not like I’m studying to be a doctor or a lawyer where there is a clear step by step process of how to get there. But, I’ve learned to stay on task by writing things down and making projects for myself if things are slow. I’ve also learned that patience is a very important thing to have. Sometimes I feel like I’m behind or that I’m not doing enough with my career but it’s important to be reminded that being a full time freelance illustrator, artist, and creator is something that takes time. I’ve learned that it’s also important to have good relationships with your peers because you never know who might recommend you to someone for a job. Just being friendly and genuine with people can go a long way.

Despite the fact that art can be a difficult profession, I think that pursuing an artistic or creative career is very exciting because you get to meet so many cool people and have lots of interesting experiences. I’ve had many opportunities to create lots of artwork using my illustration background like murals, stained glass, zines, polymer clay magnets, linocut prints, jewelry, art prints, and so much more. Art becomes therapy for some people, and I believe it’s helped me a lot in my life. When I’m in the zone of creating an illustration, it’s like I forget about everything else and focus all my energy into what I’m doing. I’m really excited to see what illustration projects will come my way in the future!

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
There are so many things to do on Long Island, especially during the warmer part of the year. If my friend was coming to visit, I would take them to lots of places to draw and relax. There are lots of nice parks around, like the Bayard Cutting Arboretum State Park, where we could walk around and admire all the beautiful plants and flowers, see some animals and sit on a bench by the Connetquot River. Sunken Meadow State Park is also nice for scenic views and nice nature walks. For food places I would recommend for us to go to Toast Coffeehouse in Patchogue for brunch, Cactus Cafe in Medford for dinner, Carla Marla’s in Bellport is a really cute icecream shop, or Witches Brew Coffee House in West Hempstead. I would also want to take us to the Long Island Aquarium in Riverhead to see really unique animals and draw lots of fish. Escape Pod Comics in Huntington is a really great comic shop that we could explore, walk around the downtown area of Huntington, then visit the Heckscher Museum of Art in Heckscher park. We could finish the trip by spending a day in Montauk and visiting the lighthouse, going inside, then climb up the spiral staircase all the way to the top and enjoy the view of the water!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
There are so many people in my life who have helped me get to where I am today! Special thanks to all my friends and peers from art school. They all inspired me to do the best work I could, gave great feedback and were always sharing valuable resources with everyone. Same to my former professors, they really gave us the truth about the illustration world and really helped us get set up for what’s to come. Through their experience, they were able to share their knowledge about the art industry and always encouraged us to take risks, put ourselves out there and provided us with many valuable critiques!

Website: https://www.amberbrewerart.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ambrewart/

Other: Etsy- https://ambrewart.etsy.com

Image Credits
Charlene Ortiz