Meet Ruby Brown | Graphic Designer & Illustrator

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

Hi Ruby, we’d love to hear more about your end-goal, professionally.
Currently I am working as a Prepress Operator in the suburbs of Chicago. My degree is in animation and graphic design, which I would like to tap into more as I continue with my career. Working prepress involves prepping digital files for print on presses as well as large format machines. I still spend all day in the Adobe Creative Suite as well as various other software programs to do my job. When I get home at night, it grants me the opportunity to do the fun stuff. I’ve been doing freelance illustration and graphic design work since the day I learned how. I am always excited by the prospect of a new commission, and freelance is something I see myself doing for a long time. I’d be thrilled if I had enough clients to financially support myself through those means, but that’s a look deep into the future. In the meantime, I will be looking to Chicago later to get a job as a designer again. I dearly miss designing on a daily basis. There’s nothing quite like wrapping my brain around a problem that needs a good design solution to fix.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
My art is quite truthfully all over the place. However, I don’t mind that. There are certain perks that come along with having range within my skill set. It allows me to work on vastly different pieces. One minute I could be doing a detailed portrait illustration and the next I could be typesetting for a flyer I’ve made. I strongly feel that my professional journey has barely begun and that I have hardly scratched the surface of what creative projects the future holds. I’m proud of the freelance jobs I’ve done in the meantime. My most notable client is an indie production team, Salty Quill Studios run by Rebecca and Ashley Wilson. They’ve been incredibly kind and generous in requesting that I create the posters for their web series and short films. Most recently, I just finished the ‘Camp Agony’ poster for them and I’m looking forward to seeing the finished project towards the end of October. Designing and illustrating for them is always a treat since they have a pretty clear vision of what they want and entrust me with the creative freedom to make it a reality and add my own twists.

Along the way, I have learned that commission projects are fun and exciting, but I should never stop making art for the fun of it or for myself. Typically I tend to create when I’m captivated by something. Recently that hyper fixation has been on Better Call Saul and its gripping final season. I’ve channelled a lot of that focus into making art of the characters. After all is said and done, art inspires art.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I live near Chicago so we’d definitely be making the trek out to the city. We would have to visit the Museum of Contemporary Art. They update the exhibits frequently and my brother was the first to introduce me to it. If we’ve got a week, catching a concert wouldn’t be a bad idea either. Usually there are some good shows in the city. Recently I went to Metro in Wrigleyville and saw a dual headliner of Joywave and IDK How But They Found Me and that was a blast. We’d have to round out the trip with another one of my favorite places, Wasabi. They serve authentic ramen and I’ve never tasted anything better in my life to this day.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
First and foremost, my family has always supported me through my artistic endeavors. They have encouraged me from day one to create art and ultimately supported me when I chose art as a career path. I am grateful for their love and support. The teachers and mentors along the way also deserve mention. My high school art teacher, Hannah Bradshaw, and the head of the animation department at Bradley University, Scott Cavanah, always pushed me to be a better artist. The love and feedback from my friends was integral to my success as well. I wouldn’t be half the person or creator I am today without all of these lovely people.

Website: https://www.rubybrowndesigns.com/

Instagram: rubybrowndesigns