Meggy Kawsek
Storyboard and Concept Artist / Founder, Kawsek Studios

Can you tell us a little bit about what you do?
By day, I work as a storyboard and concept artist for game cinematics. By night, I make bad art. Sometimes people pay me to edit, illustrate, or art direct stuff.

How did you first become interested in art?
I was obsessed with cartoons and anime as a kid! The first drawing I could remember was an entry to a local competition to reimagine a car based off the Cartoon Network series “Wacky Races”. My parents were very supportive of my interest in drawing. They used to send me to formal art training school on the weekends, where I learned how to paint and draw the Classical way. However, after school I would spend almost all my time drawing the stories in my head through comics. Eventually this led me to an interest in animation.

How does art enrich a community, and what are some ways people can engage with art in Burbank?
We are lucky to live in a city with a lot of amazing artists! Art is a way to express yourself, to relate to other people, and to act as a catalyst for community. One of my favorite projects in Burbank are the Burbank Rocks. I don’t know how this started, but there is a group that likes to paint rocks and hide them in places around the city. I love how it’s a project that brings you out of the digital space we usually live in. If you find a rock, keep it or hide it elsewhere for someone else to find– or maybe even think of making one yourself!

If you could share with our community one thing about art and/or your creative process, what would it be?
There comes a point in every piece of art I make where I think it’s ugly, worthless, or not relevant enough to be shown. It is my life’s goal to consistently push against that lie. We are human and we make things that are often not important to anyone else but us. The courage lies in being ok with that.