Meet William Mitchell | Sign Painter

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

Hi William, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
It started as a common request that someone who can draw and paint can get. A lot of people ask you to make graphics for them and I painted many signs before I thought of it as a business. It took a second to appreciate letters and signs as a satisfying arform to focus on, but when I did I started to approach it as a service I could provide for money.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
The best part about being a sign painter is that your art becomes the way the stores start to look around you. Its the most effective and direct way of presenting art in the public environment. It is also an art “for the people” and its purpose is to advertise for other entrepreneurs and artistically minded businesses. You also get to work outside and you get to interact with a lot of people while you work so its definetley good for a more extroverted artist. Also even though there are rules, there are also no rules. It doesn’t matter what your signs look like if they work, and make money for you and your client, that’s all that matters.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
It depends who they are but I usually take people to Decatur Square because of all the good restaurants there and how pleasant and walkable it is. I also like the downtown Lawrenceville area for that, especially if my guest had kids. But I think there are things like going to see the Braves, or going to the Chatahoochee that are special. Personally my favorite Atlanta thing is to get wings and sit in traffic with my windows down in the middle of summer but that’s not for everybody.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I would probably shout out all of my restaurant clients that use Sign Painting and hire artists for their signs and decor. A lot of the chefs and entrepreneurs are artists as well and they don’t have to hire artists but they are taking extra time to do that and its a special thing. I don’t know if I have time for all of my clients but some names that come to mind are Alex Aton of Juniors Pizza, Terry Koval of Deer and the Dove, Melanie Wade of Golda Kombucha, Raphael Pereira of Southern Feedstore, Sarah O’Brien of Little Tart Bakeshop, Duane Kulers of Pollo Primo. All of these people have used artists for their advertising and paid them fairly to do it. There are more, but these are some clients that stick out for using only handmade signs and using independent artists.

Website: https://williambrucemitchell.com

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