Name: Tuesday Bassen
Age: 23
Occupation: Illustrator and Designer
Etsy Shop: tuesdaybassen.etsy.com
Tell us a little about yourself:
I'm a full time freelancer that lives in an
old Victorian home with two other Illustrators and my cat, Mischka Babayaga. I
recently moved from my Brooklyn apartment to a small New England town to pursue
a different quality of life.
When did you start creating and how long have you been on Etsy?
I'm an Illustrator by trade and graduated with a BFA in Illustration and Design
from MCAD and Brighton UNI. I opened an Etsy shop while in school, but only
actually started using it last December when I was experimenting with clay and
ceramics.
How did you come up with your business name, is there any special meaning
behind it?:
It's my full given name. :)
Has your Etsy shop become your full time job? If not, would you like it to be?
My Etsy shop is an excellent supplement to my Illustration career and consider
it a facet of what I do.
How would you describe your creative process?
With Illustration, I sketch lots, erase, sketch, erase, get melodramatic,
sketch, sketch, ink, and then color digitally. With my Ceramic work, I find it
a lot more intuitive and go directly to painting on pottery with a brush and
non-toxic glazes.
Where do you get your inspiration from?
Though it’s hard to pinpoint one specific thing or person that inspires my
work, I find myself returning to a few things and people that continuously
“wow” me: Modernismé architecture, vintage seed packets, cigarette cards, early
90′s independent comic books (Dirty Plotte, Meat Cake, Peep Show), campy horror
movies, Sally Cruikshank, Fleisher Brothers animation studio, Gaslight Era
design, and female rappers (Lil’ Kim and BO$$ are my favorites).
What is your most cherished handmade item?
I have lots of handmade things
around that house that I love, but I have a small collection of original
paintings by my good friend, and now roommate, Yelena Bryksenkova. I think that
her work is so unique and beautiful, I love getting lost in all of her tiny
details. My most cherished of the four originals I own is one that was commissioned
for my Birthday, with a scene of me in my "ideal" room--the rounded
bit of a brownstone--with my cat, my favorite books, music, and drawings all
beautifully painted into a perfect scene.
Apart from creating things, what do you like to do?
Since moving to New England, I've started doing a lot of rural exploring, going
on hikes, picking apples, and using my time here to learn to knit and take
kickboxing. PLUS I go back to NYC weekly to go to openings and visit friends,
which is always great.
If you weren’t an artist, what would you be and why?
It's hard to imagine not making something with my hands, but I love
communicating on behalf of other people. I had a fairly short stint as a
Project Manager/Agent and really enjoyed talking about other Illustrators' work
and finding jobs that were a good fit.
OR I'd be happy working for a florist or a baker, but that might fall under the
"artist" category.
Five years from now you will be…
It's hard to say. It's exciting to know that I could do anything that I want
and I'm lucky to have a good support system. I envision moving to different
cities, like Austin and LA, but I'm content letting magic happen.
Describe yourself in five words:
Cheerful, invested, excitable, fickle, and present.
Carrying on with the five theme, if I were to turn on your iPod, what five
artists/songs would I see on your recently played list?
Alone Again Or--Love, Genesis--Grimes, Jea Deux L' Amour--Josephine Baker, When
Will You Come Home--Galaxie 500, Stockholm Syndrome--Yo La Tengo
Lastly, do you have any advice for anyone thinking about opening their own shop
or participating in craft shows?
Go for the gut! Make something that you want to make and trust your
instincts--people will know if it's not genuine and there's so much out there
that you should let your freak (or straight laced) flag fly.
