Today we’d like to introduce you to JJ Typography.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I started drawing since I was old enough to hold a pencil. I come from a very artistically gifted family who loves to create art for the sake of expression and love. Drawing has always been my passion but I was never fully accepted as a professional artist by my family especially coming from a family of Filipino immigrants. In their eyes art was too much of a risky profession and to them, I wasn’t good enough to make it. My parents wanted stability for me and often classified my passion for art as a pointless hobby and was pushed to follow a more “reliable” trajectory like becoming a teacher, nurse, or social worker that I would resist all the time. We would often bump heads and didn’t see eye to eye on a lot of things but at the day they did the best they could with what they knew and I did the same.
I wish I could say that I was able to block out those outside voices but I could not and I ended up trying out all different kinds of careers in the education to healthcare industry. I held 8 different entry-level positions throughout my early 20s, all in different sectors of those industries but after a while, I came to the conclusion that I could not see myself succeeding or flourishing in those institutions.
So, when my hours got cut as a Medical Records assistant during the pandemic, I decided that was my sign to really focus and get serious about my career as a professional artist. I began to see this detour in the road as an opportunity to curate my dream job and workspace. I began to save as much money as I could and began to really teach myself as many skills, I could think of that would level up my career as an artist. I started taking bigger steps in my freelancing until one day I saw I was making more as artist as I was as a Medical Records Assistant. I was constantly being overworked and underpaid until one day I had enough and put in my notice, I decided to take the leap, and quit my job to put all my energy into pursuing my dreams as an artist and I haven’t looked back since.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Absolutely not lol. It’s been rough as hell, following your dreams is a very rocky road and I don’t like to sugar coat it for people. It’s definitely not for the faint of heart because in my own pursuit of following my dreams I was faced with the harsh reality that not everyone is going to support you; most people are going to doubt you. We don’t live in a world where as a whole everyone is encouraged to follow their dreams and instead of seeing our dreams as tangible achievable goals, society as a whole scares people into believing their dreams are unachievable.
Not only there was a lack of support there was also a lot of inner stuff that was blocking me. My own self-doubts, imposter syndrome, and trauma would constantly get in my way, which was really difficult. I had to consciously work on trying my best not to revert back to my self-destructive tendencies because even though I was going through a lot internally, I did not want to lose track on the bigger picture of making my dreams come true.
Another struggle was accepting that my dreams are going to change and evolve over time and that’s okay. I had to learn to mourn some dreams that no longer served me and my purpose. With that, I learned to accept that it wasn’t a failure to have to let go of certain aspects of my dream but more of push in a direction. I had to detach from what I thought my dreams were supposed to look like in the physical world and become more open to the possibilities. Which was hella difficult but necessary in pursuit of my dreams. Dreams and goals are so much more dynamic and complex and there are multiple ways to get where you need to go.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am a professional digital artist who specializes in Typography and Illustration. But I don’t limit myself to a digital medium I like to try and do all things creative.
Overall, I think I’m most proud of how I actively take every opportunity to be express my creativity. I don’t really see art as a separate entity in my life rather than something I implement in my daily life. With this mindset, I have been able to teach myself how to paint/chalk murals, animate, shoot professional-level photography, work with mixed mediums, video editing, different drawing styles, etc. Right now, they current project I’m working on is finishing up creating a workbook with my mentor that is filled with coloring book pages, different exercises, and interventions on how to learn to love yourself more precisely. I am able to use my experience as a teacher, youth worker, advocate, and social worker to create a functional, aesthetic, and culturally responsive workbook. My goal is to provide womxn and non-binary folks a safe space to heal and record and value stories, themselves, and their voice.
What sets me apart from others is the amount of intention and heart I put into every individual project I do. From personal to collaborative or commissioned pieces I make sure to I add my own originality, uniqueness, and style. I also only take on projects that inspire me and say no to projects that do not. I guarantee every single one of my clients inspired, original, and quality aesthetically pleasing work and for me, I can only get there if I’m truly inspired by the project.
What do you think about luck?
I’m not sure if I believe in luck because the idea of luck suggests that things happened randomly without intention. I don’t like the idea of people thinking anything was handed to me and I was only able to get to where I’m at today because of luck or my talent. When in reality every move I have made in my career has been intentional and guided by my bigger picture of creating my dream job and workspace.
I however try my best not to overthink situations but I do make sure I am intentional with how I move forward and the decisions I make. I don’t believe luck had anything to do with my journey.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.jjtypography.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/jjtypography
