Rick Sealock: Still Shit-Disturbing

2005: I say, "Are You Listening ?" I call this piece " Target Ears". . . I hate targets, hate 'em lots; they're so cliché. But that's why I wanted to use them, hopefully in a clever way. This is an image for Selling Power magazine, describing that effective listening skills will uncover what you need to know about your customer.

In a Q&A, illustrator and frequent Applied Arts Awards winner Rick Sealock reveals that he hasn't lost his edge – or his love of livestock

Illustrator Rick Sealock has been profiled in Applied Arts three times – the first time famously hugging a cow. This is both a reference to his upbringing – born on a farm, near High River, Alberta – and a tribute to the livestock motif that kept cropping up in his high-energy, off-the-wall work.

Our April/May 2005 profile revealed Sealock's penchant for pushing the envelope, with one magazine art director explaining (good-naturedly):  “He's always pushing you to get in as much shit as you can with the publisher.” Sealock admitted he's "always been an instigator, always wanted to push the envelope. See what shit I can get away with – that's my motto."

Seven years ago, Sealock and his family moved from Calgary to Kitchener, Ont., where he divides his time between doing freelance illustration and teaching illustration at Sheridan College in Oakville. 

Over the years, Sealock has been a frequent winner in the Applied Arts Illustration Awards. Go to our Archive  and plug in his name to see all his winning pieces.

Applied Arts: How would you describe the unique relationship you have to livestock?

Sealock: Thankfully that's not a question from the local constabulary or psychiatrists. At first I used livestock imagery in my illustrations because no one else was doing it. Then they became part of branding (pardon the pun) my stylistic and conceptual approach. Now they're entrenched in my visual vocabulary; they're even sort of family and friends now. You can take the boy out of the country . . .

AA: As you work, what music do you have playing in the background? Is it still Sinatra and show tunes?

S: Oh I've grown. Now it's Sinatra singing show tunes.

AA: What is the market for illustration like right now?

S: Most of my work is still editorial. Like most markets, it has slowed down. I think illustration is more bearish than bullish. Either budgets or the art direction is tighter. Some of my old clients have gone in-house, instead of commissioning freelancers. Others are putting projects on hold until things improve. Plus my style may not be the easiest to work with in a tight market.

AA: What's the difference between working in the Ontario and Alberta markets?

S: Two hours.

AA: What would you change about this business if you were made Emperor of the Universe?

S: My rates: crowns cost a great deal . . . and the robes – well, don't get me started. I would first issue an edict ordering all illustration to be pushed to its creative, conceptual and technical edge. Commissioned illustration is not scary or without the need of art direction. I know it's not a photograph and may be interpreted in a variety of ways, but that is why we are in this profession. Creativity and boundaries – crucial!

AA: Where is most of your work coming from?

S: Most of my clients are still in the United States. I've  built up a dialogue with many of them over the last 25 years while freelancing. You broaden your client base so you can work with art directors in publishing, advertising and, my strength and goal, in magazines such as Rolling Stone and newspapers like Las Vegas Weekly or Monterey County Weekly. I also teach.  I've been a sessional instructor for almost 20 years. First at ACAD, in Calgary, since 1993, then OCAD, in Toronto, and now at Sheridan in Oakville, Ont. My two careers complement each other perfectly.

AA: What advice would you give to students entering the illustration market?

S: I like to give them the big PEE talk, as in the letter 'P.' Be Professional, be Prolific, and be Passionate about your work.

AA: Are you still a technophobe, and what's the problem with relying too much on technology?

S: No, I'm just a hopeless romantic with traditional illustration. Blackouts!

AA: If you could magically change careers, what else would you like to do?

S: I'd like to be a famously huge-time mega designer/art director, so I could hire me!

AA:  So what's on your horizon?

S: What an amazing and timely question! Without sounding too self-involved, I'm currently working on a book about illustration, education and my journey through the amazing world of making images. We're working to have the book out in 2013 – may I put you down for 1 or 10 copies?

Comments

Julia Minamata

January 18, 2012 03:57 PM