Meet Devon Bragg of Nickelodeon in Burbank

Today we’d like to introduce you to Devon Bragg.

Raised in Columbia, Maryland, Devon spent much of her life with her wonderful parents and dogs trying every sport and activity that was available to any socially awkward child. But nothing clung more than art. A passion that quickly stuck like glue to her and became the compass for her path. Though in the beginning, she had no idea it would become such.

After hopping around career ideas, Devon finally decided on attending the Maryland Institute College of Art located in Baltimore, Maryland to fulfill her dream of becoming an artist. She later graduated in 2017 with a Bachelors in Fine Arts before, rather crazily, changing her entire discipline, portfolio, and life to pursue her true passion for the animation industry.

While there were many nights of endless nights of questioning if she would make it, (along with quite a bit of emotional eating) she never doubted that it was the right decision for her and continued to do her best to learn and absorb every bit of the industry she could before entering the Nickelodeon Artist program and reaching the finals. While she was not chosen at the end for the program, she did eat an entire loaf of bread complete with hot sauce to wash away her woes and kick her butt back into gear to pursue what was her oxygen – for this was not the end! Merely a step!

Over the following months, she scrapped her entire portfolio once more (because she’s insane), worked alongside Wacom and their wonderful team, got another puppy and before she picked up her two suitcases and moved out to Los Angeles where she knew she belonged. It felt like home, more than anywhere else.

Since then she has not looked back and is now a Background Painter at Nickelodeon. A feat she never believed was possible in her lifetime – let alone out of the gate. But she couldn’t of done it without the support of her amazing parents, friends, and coworkers who gave her the opportunity. While she strives to not eat all the candy at the studio, Devon aspires to be a lead Character Designer and Art director. Until then, she is happily growing and learning with every new opportunity that comes her way.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Overall the path has been filled with ups and downs. Some days, I questioned everything. I worried about if I was doing enough if it was just a hopeless void I was throwing my energy into or not. After graduation, I had a serious art identity crisis. I was in editorial illustration and graphic design..but it felt unnatural. I couldn’t imagine myself doing that for the rest of my life or even a year!

Nothing was a bigger obstacle than myself and my self-doubt. Though, the distance in between Maryland and LA did come in at a close second.

We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
I am currently working at Nickelodeon as a Background Painter on Butterbean’s Cafe! It’s my first in-studio job, I have a lovely cubical that has too much candy trash in it but it’s quickly become my home thanks to my coworkers and friends.

Alongside that, for a good while I was a comic artist on Instagram who predominantly focused on bringing awareness to mental health in specifically the art industry. I felt like the mental health in that field was often glanced over or not taken seriously. Artists, not even just visual artists, put their everything into their career. They can sacrifice so much for it, just like any dream job and sometimes we get overwhelmed or get into a funk. It happens, it’s normal. It was hard to see fellow artists, including myself, bottling things up so tightly. So that’s when I started the comics. It was more so for me at first – a chance to create a sort of visual diary. But after a while, it became an actual job. Something I never could have guessed. Though currently I’m working at Nick full time so I’m focusing on that!

So, what’s next? Any big plans?
Everyday I wake up excited about work. I never have a “ugh, it’s Monday”, moment. Most times I’m more excited about Monday than the weekend!

Currently, I am focusing on growing as a background painter and artist at Nickelodeon. As much as I thought I knew after college, I was sorely mistaken. I am but a wee-babe in the art world. A fact that is so exciting to me. No day is the same, and while some weeks are harder than others, there’s never a moment where I’m not pumped to be at work – doing what I do.

My ultimate goal however, is to become a lead character designer, art director and eventually a show creator. That last one is a bit far down the line since I have a lot to learn before then but, I’m excited.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://devonbraggart.myportfolio.com/
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: devonbraggart
• Twitter: @DevonBragg

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