Margo is joined by artist and designer for the gift & home decor industry, Jennifer Brinley. Jennifer has been in the industry for over 20 years with a degree in Studio Art from UC Santa Barbara and she believes well designed products can bring moments of joy. Her creative path took her to graduate school for architecture before promptly dropping out after learning advanced math was involved to pass “structures.” She then bounced around with a variety of jobs to save money to go to Europe for 3 months with a childhood friend. After Europe, came the quandary of what to do next and decided she would go back to school to become an art teacher. A want ad looking for a T-shirt designer led to quickly creating a fake portfolio and she began designing T-shirts for Crazy Shirts as well as getting a business license to sell her own T-shirts. She met her licensing agent by chance making color copies at Kinkos and today her designs have been on everything from tableware, gift mugs, kitchen textiles, rugs, fabrics, placemats, trays, coasters, gift bags, flags, art poles and planters.
Margo and Jennifer discuss:
- Finding inspiration in nature and how one of her best selling products is a nature inspired design
- Balancing creativity and business in the art world
- The importance of staying informed and interested within one’s industry
- Fueling passion through seeing others’ work and new trends
- The impact of art and design on behavior and well-being
- The benefits of engaging in art daily for brain stimulation
- Biophilic design and nature’s calming effect on the brain
- Studies on neuroaesthetics (the measurable changes that occur in the brain while looking at art, design, architecture, interior design, etc)
Connect with Jennifer:
https://www.instagram.com/jenniferbrinley
People Inspiring Jennifer:
Ingrid Fetell Lee (Aesthetics of Joy)
Annie Selkie (she’s created a long lasting company that continues to offer fresh design and bold color.)
Max Humphrey (Pacific Northwest designer with a clean Americana style with a Northwest twist)
