Life & Work with Andy Sklar

Today we’d like to introduce you to Andy Sklar.

Hi Andy, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Sure! My story starts in the north suburbs of Chicago.

I always loved drawing as a kid and using my imagination to tell stories and create places.

The Field Museum in Chicago was a favorite place of inspiration and I would draw and recreate the dramatically staged dioramas of wild animals from all over the world of course the Dinosaur displays blew my mind.

Growing up, I found my community in the theatre and arts, doing program designs, and helping build sets for the storied Highland Park High School theatre department. The instructors were amazing like Barbra Patterson and Timothy Conway. They really instilled in us to be ourselves and build our confidence and our unique voices.

The idea of creating imaginary worlds led me to theme park design after graduating from The Rhode Island School of Design in Illustration.

While living in New York, I had the good fortune of connecting with a woman who, to this day, I owe so much gratitude for giving me my big break -Peggy Van Pelt. Peggy was the head of creative development with Walt Disney Imagineering.  Her back story was incredible as she had started as an accomplished production artist working in the famed WED model shop at 1401 Flower St.

A New York interview with Peggy plucked me out of obscurity, and I was flown to LA, where I started my career as an Imagineer. Truly a dream come true. Surrounded by legends in the industry, I learned so much. I eventually stepped out on my own, working as a production artist and art director for companies like Universal Studios Hollywood and Universal Studios Japan. And most recently, I’m working as  Art Director consulting for MYCOTOO INC. in Pasadena for a variety of exciting projects in Saudia Arabia.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Being an independent artist is hard work, but friends and acquaintances have told me I’m built for it.  It’s what I’ve always been and done.   It does take some real intention and effort, so managing how I disperse my time & energy is something I’ve learned to pay attention to.

Being creative and making art, whether commercial or fine art, is a skill and a trade -to some degree, but for me, it was born from needing to buffer and escape from the challenges, I suppose maybe being gay growing up and choosing the road less traveled.  Today I have a better handle on that and an understanding of making commercial work and passionate work when it comes to making art.  It’s a balancing act. Both I enjoy!

I suppose my struggles of not letting fear and uncertainty get the better of me are universal . Perhaps it stems from some early experiences of not fitting in.

I have learned to stay vigilant and practice self-compassion when life’s stresses weigh me down. Exercise and meditation are essential. Also I’ve learned I’m not alone, and I have a great community of friends and associates to lean on for advice and vice versa. There is strength in being vulnerable.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?

As an Art Director for Themed Entertainment, I have to keep an eye on making things look cohesive and aligned with the story and the overall vision.  I’m so grateful for the opportunities I’ve had thus far and the incredible collaborative talent I work with daily. Much of the work I do is reliant on being collaborative. I think my personal secret sauce, though is my ability to understand the story and visual narrative. I was a minor in film and love movies and I think that understanding visual storytelling brings a lot of strength to how I go about creating interesting environments,  picture making, and paintings in general.

I have enjoyed seeing my work applied as a licensor to fabric and textiles,  for children’s books, illustration, and exhibiting my work within the Los Angeles art community. The thread that connects my work in all these different applications is storytelling.

Currently, I’m looking forward to collaborating with Frances Grace Home, where I will have paintings of mine included in a Mid-century Show House for  Modernism Week in Palm Springs.

Risk-taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
My view on risk-taking bounces back and forth.

When I was starting out, my goal of finding a place that could provide certainty became accurate with a dream job with Walt Disney Imagineering.

As I  got more experience my desire to step out independently proved to be a good fit.  As you become older and more experienced your risk assessment grows. There is risk in anything, including a great job, but I think I came to learn I thrive stepping out on my own and being entrepreneurial – pursuing my ideas, designs, and endeavors. All risky but all so rewarding too! I think that the gambler spirit in me is part of being creative of being imaginative and having confidence in one’s ideas.

Contact Info:

• Website: andysklar.com
• Instagram: @andysklar.art
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=734187951