Takeover Tuesday with Megan Pelto
Q&A with Megan Pelto, a freelance illustrator in Portland, Oregon.
Q&A with Megan Pelto.
Read time: 5min
Madison Caprara:
Hi, Megan! Thank you for taking the time to speak with me! Why don’t you tell us a little bit about yourself? How did you find yourself getting into the illustration game?
Megan Pelto:
Hi! I am a freelance illustrator, originally from Massachusetts but have moved around a lot while working on my career. I love hiking and getting outside, so if I am not drawing I’m usually somewhere outdoors. I have loved drawing my whole life and spent a lot of time, from elementary school through high school, creating art. I really gravitated towards illustration as I loved the storytelling aspect combined with drawing. I ended up majoring in Illustration at SCAD, but when I first chose that major I was still learning what I wanted to do with it.
Madison Caprara:
For those who may not be familiar, how would you go about describing your personal style?
Megan Pelto:
My style is pretty fun and combines simple shapes with chosen details. I like using different textured brushes and limited colors. Focusing on the outdoors and cozy scenes within my work is pretty standard for me, but I also feel like my style is constantly growing and changing! I used to work only traditionally, a lot of pencil drawings and paintings, so when I started to work mainly digitally at the end of college, my work shifted too.
Madison Caprara:
As technology continues to expand, do you believe there is still room in the game for those hand-drawn, or in your words, “traditional” illustrations, or is it all about the digital designs now?
Megan Pelto:
I think there will always be room for hand-drawn work. I am not sure how much so in the motion design industry, as a lot of projects do need things to be easier to animate and thus digital, but I know many artists who still do hand-drawn or a mixture of the two. That will always remain even if a lot of careers in animation or advertising tend to lean more towards the digital.
Madison Caprara:
I think I would have to agree with you, Megan.
Pivoting back to the topic of style, how important do you think it is to have a strong, recognizable aesthetic?
Megan Pelto:
I believe it can be a benefit but it is not a requirement. I have worked with amazing artists with a large range of styles. Some are super-specific, while others are skilled in a variety of areas. Being able to do both is a good skill to have, it takes a lot to have your own style but it also takes a lot to be able to jump into new styles for different projects! In my personal work, I have an overall style, in my client work, however, I work in a wide range of styles.
Madison Caprara:
It’s all about that adaptability!
Where are you based right now? Are you still in Massachusetts? Either way, what is the industry like there?
Megan Pelto:
I am based in Portland, OR, but I just relocated here from LA in March of this year. I had moved to Los Angeles to be able to work in the motion design industry. It was the necessary step to be able to work with all of the studios I admired. Now that I am in Portland, there is still a strong industry here but on a much smaller scale when compared to LA. I work remotely for the most part and hope to continue to do so moving forward so that I can work with studios both in Portland and beyond!
Madison Caprara:
You work primarily freelance now, correct? What has been your overall experience? Good? Bad?
Megan Pelto:
I have been working fully freelance since the summer of 2019. My experience has been really good, but it did take a lot of time and work to build up to that point. Prior to this, I did freelance for two years after graduating from SCAD in 2015. From 2017-2019 I was on staff at BUCK in LA for two years before transitioning back to freelance. I think freelancing in motion design is awesome, but I know it is also different than freelancing in other creative fields.
Madison Caprara:
From the two-plus years of experience you now have, do you think working as a freelancer is a suitable career path for a graduate just beginning their career, or would you suggest working for a larger company or agency first?
Megan Pelto:
I really think it can depend. When I graduated I wanted to try freelance right away, but that was hard to do. Though I had majored in Illustration, I took a motion design elective class my senior year and fell in love with that work. Prior to that, motion design had never been talked about or mentioned as a career path for illustrators and wasn’t well-known in my department. That may have changed since I graduated, however. I spent the majority of my time working on personal projects, while consistently contacting new people and researching opportunities.
After graduation, I had moved to Chicago and was looking for opportunities there. I ended up interning at Digital Kitchen for seven months which really helped me get some studio experience. It’s there that I learned from people what freelancing in motion design was like. I began freelancing after that but it was tough getting enough consistent work to feel comfortable, especially when having to afford to live in a large city.
Megan Pelto:
I had been freelancing for two years, hoping to break into the motion design industry. While I had had bookings with studios, things changed when I received a two-week freelance opportunity at BUCK LA. After that, I decided that I would move to Los Angeles to freelance and really pursue working with all of my dream studios. Shortly before my move I heard from BUCK and was offered an internship which led to being staff a few months after arriving in LA. Being on-staff at BUCK is what truly helped me take that next step, so I do strongly believe that working at a studio can ultimately help your freelance career. By having to illustrate every single day, I really saw self-improvement. I was working with amazing designers and ADs who helped my work grow. Also, it was pretty invaluable to meet people in person and form connections, which I find to be harder when working remotely or even when freelancing at a new place each week.
Madison Caprara:
Great advice all around. Do you have any other tidbits you would give to those just beginning their career?
Megan Pelto:
It’s not fun to hear, but I really encourage just giving it time. Be patient! Even though it was tough for two years before moving to LA, I was still able to freelance full time as an illustrator by being careful with money. Also, don’t hesitate to reach out to people in the field, most people are really nice and want to help! I have connected artists with studio internships and freelance work in the past and always strive to help, whether it be through advice or passing along an email. Always keep trying, I probably applied for jobs at BUCK at least four times before ever hearing back about a freelance job with them, so it's always worth it to keep pursuing even when you feel like you aren’t getting anywhere.
Madison Caprara:
In my experience, some of the best advice is the hardest to swallow.
So you went from studying at SCAD to working at BUCK, to now doing freelance work in 2021. With how crazy this past year has been, how does the external affect your art?
Megan Pelto:
It definitely affected my passion for creating personal work. I am really thankful that freelance work stayed just as busy, but the year certainly took a toll on my motivation. It was healthier for me to take a step back from personal work. I really value getting outside, so feeling a bit stuck in my hot LA apartment far away from any family was a hard year. Remember to take some pressure off of yourself. I let myself take more breaks and just focused on getting through. It was difficult, but I am grateful for being able to work and stay safe when many could not. My personal work hasn’t really picked up again yet but I think as things continue to improve, I’ll continue building motivation. Right now, all I want to do is be outside and I’m okay with that!
Madison Caprara:
And when you find that motivation hitting, where do you go for inspiration?
Megan Pelto:
Outside! Nature is my biggest inspiration. I love to draw the things I enjoy, like trees and cozy cups of coffee. Also, I am often inspired by other artists' work. I truly just love to draw, so sometimes that entails trying to come up with an idea just to have something to work on.
Madison Caprara:
Outside…I should’ve known!
Do you have a top three favorite illustrators list?
Megan Pelto:
I definitely don’t have a top three. I love so many illustrators' work and so many different genres. Often I tend to have favorite illustrations versus a single artist. I have all kinds of stuff saved on my phone and it’s made up of so many different types of creatives. My favorite work does usually come from motion design, be it the studios or individuals that work in the field, so much amazing work is made in this industry and I will always be grateful to be part of it.
Madison Caprara:
Looking forward, what does the rest of 2021 look like for you? Is there anything special we should be looking out for?
Megan Pelto:
I am keeping 2021 very open! I have worked on some really fun projects with places like oddfellows, BIEN, BUCK, Facebook, and SodaStream. I never know what work I will be able to share, so I am just excited for the fun projects I have had and will continue to work on this year. I am not making long-term work plans as I am leaving more free time to finally get to travel to see my family in Massachusetts.
I plan to head to the East Coast in July and then backpack with some of my family in the North Cascades in WA in August. I also am still super new to Portland so I am excited to continue to meet people here and explore all of it and try new hikes each month. Work is still important and I love what I do, but after last year, other things are my priority for 2021!
Madison Caprara:
Yes! I’ve noticed that the balance of work and life is a little skewed within this industry. More priority needs to be placed on the mental health upkeep of all you creatives out there.
Well, we’re reaching the end of our time, Megan. Do you have any closing points or statements you would like to share?
Megan Pelto:
Whenever possible, strive for a healthy work/life balance! Motion design is often 10a-7p which can be late hours compared to most jobs, so make sure to take time off or take a long walk on slower workdays. It’s good to put a lot into your work but put equal parts of that energy into your personal life as well.
