Austin Pardun's Year-Round Spooky Season
If you're an artist obsessed with Halloween, October is your time to shine. You draw a few Jack-o'-lanterns and ghouls, post them on The Gram, then come November, your unused sketches and pumpkin spice get packed away until next year.
Unless you're Austin Pardun. The Michigan-based illustrator has turned spooky season into a full-time creative practice, keeping his Halloween dreams alive all year long.
In this October special interview, Austin shares how a Halloween drawing prompt in 2015 helped him find his true creative self, his strategy for keeping his work fresh, and why he'll never stop pitching himself as the guy to save the Goosebumps movie franchise.
How did you find your way into graphic design and illustration?
I hated going outside as a kid. So when I wasn't made to stay outside until dinner I would watch cartoons and draw Goku and Pokémon all day. That turned into drawing at school instead of listening to the teacher blabber on. I only really figured out I happened to be good at it when I started to do shirts and album covers for my friends' bands, and people actually wanted to buy them.
I got into a lot of this stuff in the 2010s thanks to Kyle Crawford's clothing company Electric Zombie, man that guys work is still a huge inspiration to me till this day.
Was horror or Halloween imagery something you gravitated to as a kid, or did it creep into your work later?
I was a scaredy cat as a kid, I went as a firefighter or a power ranger for trick or treating. I remember hiding under the blanket during the vending machine scene in Maximum Overdrive and not wanting to leave the house. I don't know what traumatic episode happened in my teens but all my art started to lean towards guts, pimples, and skulls. I always loved Halloween growing up, the freedom of running around and all the fall parties with cider and donuts. I try to chase that feeling again and when I started to do Drawlloween in 2015 I discovered it gave me that nostalgic feeling back. I hope my work does that for anyone who sees it, if it does for even just one person its a mission accomplished.
Was there a specific movie, comic, or artist that “unlocked” the horror/spooky side of your work?
I loved anime growing up especially the darker gorey ones they would play on HBO late at night. I also wanted to be a tattoo artist and that never really panned out because I lived in a small town and it was all tribal and biker shops. So I always think there's a little bit of those two things in my work that still shows through. I also loved horror comics and old gross out action figures and just the absurdity of them I love to include into my work. I got into a lot of this stuff in the 2010s thanks to Kyle Crawford's clothing company Electric Zombie, man that guys work is still a huge inspiration to me till this day.
Keeping your work fresh when you have such a defined subject matter is no joke. What's your process look like?
Well basically the biggest chunk of the process is just me thinking of the idea and composition. I always try to push myself to try new weird and different things instead of you know “Here's a pumpkin on a shirt, that's all you get”. I used to do sketch and ink on paper and then scan it in but now most of my client work i just sketch on the computer before inking it and it saves me hours. I still do all my work on Photoshop because I'm a old stubborn geezer and refuse to use new programs, plus all my good brushes are on there (wink wink!) Then i have a bunch of color themes I've saved throughout the years i experiment with then when its done I like to add some old paper effects to really hit that vintage feel, that's the good stuff baby!
There's so much tonal variety in Halloween imagery. How do you decide when to be playful and when to let the darkness in? Do you have a vibe that you lean towards?
I will always love the grandma whimsy Halloween style the most, but its fun taking it to weird and unexpected places. For example, why not have a classic old ugly witch, but her pimply butt is on an old wooden fence with a Jack-o'-lantern face painted on it, and she's sitting next to Jack-o'-lanterns from yesteryear. You get that warm feeling of old 50s Halloween postcards but with a small taste of smut erotica. The only really Halloween art I don't care for is Haunt art, like sharp-toothed clowns and pig-mask-wearing killers. Its all very corny to me; I get a shiver of cringe down my spine whenever I see a Terrifier cosplayer at shows haha
Does your process change at all in the lead-up to Halloween, or is it kind of Halloween all year round in your studio?
It's always Halloween for me. It's funny because usually the only time I take a break from it is in October just so I can enjoy myself.'
You want to draw dinosaurs? Draw some god dang dinosaurs, heck give them some Halloween costumes while you're at it.
What does a dream brief look like for you right now?
Let me do concept art for a new Goosebumps movie; I promise I can single-handedly save that movie franchise. Seriously, call me Sony Pictures!
Do you remember your first True Grit encounter? How did you find our tools?
Yes, I think it was an ad on Instagram I saw when I finally started to work on a drawing monitor. I wanted to do vintage Beistle-style Halloween art but with vintage comics halftone, so the brushes really helped me achieve that. I think without Beat Tones my art wouldn't have stood out from everyone else's Halloween art when I started. I'm very appreciative of that brush set.
I say just keep it fresh and fun for yourself, who knows what you might create. Halloween can be whatever you want it to be so don't feel pigeonholed into doing what's popular with the Halloween community.
Which True Grit tools are basically on speed dial for you? Any ride or die brushes you reach for without thinking?
I use Rusty Nib and Beat Tones for every drawing I do. Debaser and Kraftone are also some of my favorites to experiment with.
How do you keep your work unique and avoid blending into generic “spooky season” clip art?
I wish I knew how to answer that; I doubt myself after every drawing I do. Hey, but my designs are being stolen and copied weekly, so I must be doing something right! I say just keep it fresh and fun for yourself; who knows what you might create. Halloween can be whatever you want it to be so don't feel pigeonholed into doing what's popular with the Halloween community. You want to draw dinosaurs? Draw some god dang dinosaurs; heck, give them some Halloween costumes while you're at it.
TRY SOME OF AUSTIN'S FAVORITE TOOLS FOR YOURSELF
What's something in the horror/macabre space you haven't explored yet creatively that you want to?
I cant give away those secrets, I want to be the first to do them, but nice try!
When the pumpkin spice flavored well runs dry, what gets you back into a creative headspace?
There's a small group of other Michigan-based artist friends that keep pushing me to work harder and tell me to try my stupid ideas. Also, my wife is an avid horror movie watcher and is always down to help me brainstorm out an idea. I can usually tell by her response if its a good idea or not. Thanks Casey!
What's the best piece of advice your younger self wouldn't have wanted to hear?
Get off Myspace and take art seriously because no one wants to join your “Scene Train” XD RAWR
Go-to horror movie you rewatch every October?
NIGHT OF THE DEMONS EVERY HALLOWEEN NIGHT!
What do you listen to when working?
Creepcast and Last Podcast on the Left mainly, or I put on Ghost Adventures because, for some reason, that's a comfort show.
What are you excited to explore next in your work?
I want to do toys and make my own blowmolds; I won't stop until this happens.
FAST FIVE
Slashers or Supernatural?
Supernatural Slashers
What's the first spooky thing you ever drew?
Probably Casper
Sketch on paper or straight to digital?
Paper
Favorite horror movie art-direction-wise?
What's your creative superpower?
Knowing when to call a piece done
