Meet Kendall Pata | Artist + Graphic Designer

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

Hi Kendall, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
Even as a young child, I knew I wanted to be an artist. Art provided me with a way of expressing myself, of making something beautiful. And when I found out that I could be creative for a living, I was sold. During my senior year of high school, I took two days of calculus and then transferred into a ceramics class. I knew I wanted to study art in college, and nothing could convince me otherwise! I love being a conduit between my clients and their vision and helping them to manifest their ideas into a design or a printed piece.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I trained as a fine artist, so when I first started out as a graphic designer, I was told that my work wasn’t good enough, and that I should go back to what I knew, which was painting. It was devastating feedback for a young professional. But instead of crushing me, the negative feedback pushed me to do better, to learn more, to work with experts in the field who were doing the type of work that I wanted to do. And little by little, I started to grow my business, doing freelance design while I taught art and managed a photo studio. All of the little creative jobs I had along the way have made me the professional I am today.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?

A perfect day in Santa Barbara includes playing tennis or pickleball, followed by wine tasting or cocktails. I like to take friends to the Funk Zone and visit Municipal Winery, and we always go to Harry’s Plaza Cafe for cocktails! For a casual dinner outdoors, we like to ride our e-bikes down to the beach and eat at Shoreline Cafe. They have great margaritas and our daughter could play in the sand for hours!

In Los Angeles, I love visiting one of my best friends, Sarah D’Agostino, and hearing what’s new with her dance studio, 8 Count Dance, and then taking in a show at the Pantages. If I’m with my husband, who’s a musician, we always have dinner at Dan Tana’s and then hear live music at the Troubadour. Sometimes I travel to LA to meet with clients, like LA Mart or Photo LA.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My high school art teacher, Johnye Neilsen, deserves a shoutout! She was and still is an amazing teacher, mentor, and friend. She not only inspired  me to pursue a creative career, she gave me permission to rest and take a day off when I need it (which is still hard for me, being Type A). I also have to give a shoutout to my father, Steve Pata, who told me that “maybe I should try that Photoshop class” in college. He was right: graphic design was the perfect complement to my fine arts background.

Website: https://www.type-a-creative.com/

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

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/type-a-creative-santa-barbara/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/typeacreative

Image Credits
Courtesy of Type A Creative