Inspiring Artists

My BirdSwell art is influenced by surfing, ocean, design, and colors, but I am also very inspired and influenced by these 3 artists.

• Salvador Dali
• Hayao Miyazaki
• Nick La

I love the organic, fantasy, and mystical aspects that they all utilize in their work. Each artist has created their own unusual and unique styles.

Salvador Dali's drips and melting forms really inspire me. His unusual personality shines through all of his work and I love that he was always truly himself. I first saw his work in an art history high school class and fell in love with his work. When I studied abroad in Italy for a semester, I was able to travel to Barcelona and saw his art work in his gallery. His work is very complicated, but the forms in his work really speak to me.

I am inspired by both Miyazaki and Nick La's Japanese style.

The first Miyazaki I watched was "Howl's Moving Castle" and was extremely inspired by the mystical artwork and imaginative story. Before watching this, I was never really into Japanese Anime. After seeing and watching Miyazaki's work, I was completely hooked. I really enjoy Studio Ghibli's work. Miyazaki is not afraid to put his imagination into his work and that really inspires me.

I saw Nick La speak at Design Conference in New York City. He was my favorite speaker of the conference because he took the audience through his step by step process of creating his illustrations. His illustrations are detailed, colorful and eye catching. He starts off with a simple drawing and transfers it onto the computer adds detail and color through Adobe Illustrator. He is an incredible illustrator. I really love his work. He is really humble and extremely talented.

There are other artist that influence me, but these are my top three that I admire.

Spread the Swell,
J-Bird