Today we’d like to introduce you to Edward Smith.
Edward, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I grew up as a poor kid in Providence, Rhode Island. I loved comic books and cartoons as a kid. Something about them brought me happiness and gave me hope that things weren’t always as bad as they seemed. I found out at an early age that I could draw and just kept at it. I watched a lot of other people draw, read whatever I could get my hands on, in order to foster what I already had by way of talent, and improve on what I wanted to know. As time grew, I liked the way it felt, the joy I could bring to myself and others with just a couple of pen strokes and some color. Along the way, I picked up a military history, some college degrees and whole lot of human interaction which helped me bring my cartoons to life in a lot better ways. The angles, the poses, the expressions, the colors, all of it. I could just use it to entertain and make people feel better and smile.
Has it been a smooth road?
It’s not been a smooth road. I would like to tell you that it was magical and just happened on luck and talent, however it’s just not the case at all. Mainly time and money are the biggest struggles and they mostly interconnect. In that being an adult is full of responsibilities, no one ever really prepares you on how to balance them along with your personal life and the things that will truly make your soul happy. So, you have to make money, with a job. Jobs tend to take up a bear share of the day, so you have to then chase time in order to create the artwork and make your soul happy. It took a while before I became hungry enough and organized enough, to use my spare moments to chase the time, and wouldn’t you know it? The money situation began to lighten up as well. Those two are the largest hurdles any cartoonist TRULY needs to overcome. Only because the self-doubt and constant feeling that you’ll never be as good as your personal heroes will ALWAYS exist, you just simply learn to understand yourself more and come to the realization that they felt that way too at one point or another, and only pushed through because of their love for the work and became better for it.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Cartoonist @ Large – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
What I do is provide images for people or companies, for things that they might need. For example, advertising, birthday parties, social events, anniversaries, what have you. I specialize in mostly cartoons, but I am diverse enough, so that I can provide illustrations, or imagery for just about anything needed. I have a varied production background that affords me the knowledge to create for anything needed. Print, production, onscreen, just about all of it. Doing so, makes me happy to know that I’m becoming a greater part of the people around me. I can touch a life, make a great memory greater, and make a great campaign stronger. I pride myself on sitting with people, getting to know and understand what it is that they’re looking for, and bringing them the happiness of seeing it not only come to life, but come out better than they had hoped. I really don’t think of myself as a company, to be honest. I just feel like doing so, makes it less personal and I’d like I get approached to draw cartoons, or create prints for folks, any images, or artwork really, simply because I hope to bring happiness to people.
Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
I love so much about Boston. The rich history, the beginnings of the country, as well as it being influenced by so many other cultures. I love the architecture on the older buildings, as well. It seems really nerdy and trite to say, but Boston makes me love being an American. It’s like a grumpy old man that lives next door, then you wind up having a strong friendship with him that can’t ever be replaced. Every time I’m there, I notice something new, or find something that’s more interesting than the last time I had been there. What I like least however, is the standard dislikes that most folks have about the city. The traffic, the state of the roads and congestion. I’m not a big fan of the stereotype that Boston has of being a city that is full of gruff, rude individuals that hate one another.
Contact Info:
- Phone: 4016631614
- Email: eddesigns@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/supaed/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/edsmithcartoonistatlarge/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/EdEddesigns
Image Credit:
Tiny Supers Image, commission for Gallant Knight Games Role Playing Game by same name
Flyer image for Dante Luna Productions for upcoming Latino Family Festival at Fenway Park
Cover for Patreon project by Rich Woodall, Johnny Raygun and Savage Dragon Team up Comic book.
Getting in touch: BostonVoyager is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
