Today we’d like to introduce you to Alexis Ward.
Alexis, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I think my grandmother always knew I’d be an artist. She was a painter herself, and she must have seen some talent in me when I was really young. She encouraged me from an early age to paint and color and draw. In college, I tried out a more “practical” major before deciding on graphic design and illustration. I felt understood as an art major and loved spending hours creating instead of just studying (although there was plenty of studying, too).
After college, I was fortunate to land my dream job which was working as a designer at a record label in Nashville. I couldn’t think of a more fun and creative place to spend my days. Artists were in and out, covers were designed, photoshoots were dreamed up and executed. I loved it. After almost four years there, I went out on my own as a freelancer and formed The Visual Republic. I was really fortunate to find freelance work easily because most of the creative directors in Nashville already knew my work from the hundreds of albums I had designed. Every music store and book store was a literal portfolio of my work. Before long I was designing for all the Nashville record labels, creating more albums in a few months than I did in a few years at the label.
As with most things, over time I got bored of “just” designing albums. It’s hard to say that out loud because to so many designers it is the dream job. But I am also an illustrator and love to do lettering, and there was a lot more that I wanted to explore. So my client list grew, and I began to also do a ton of design, illustration and lettering work for publishers. I began creating book covers and illustrating spots for magazine spreads. My doodles turned into inside pages for books and journal covers. I started gaining amazing clients and doing work for Toyota, Oprah Winfrey, Saatchi & Saatchi and more. I’m happy to say that after 18 years of designing and illustrating, I’m proud of the projects I’ve worked on and the clients I’ve worked with. I’ve designed over 300 albums, thousands of album covers, dozens of book covers and hundreds of illustrations. I’m blessed to get to use my creative talents as a career, and I’m excited to see what the next 18 years will bring.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
I have always been fortunate to have work to do. I have found that the key to staying busy is creating great relationships with my clients, delivering quality work, being on time and being easy to work with. I will say that when I was younger, I struggled with being a female designer who wanted to do more edgy work. I was tired of getting the girly albums and wanted the rock bands. So when I created The Visual Republic, I used a lot of “we” instead of “me” to try to distract potential clients from my femininity. I guess it worked, but I don’t think it was necessary. As I’ve grown up a bit, I’ve become more comfortable with who I am and the type of work that comes out of me. And yes, some of it is edgy (I designed the album for Love & Death, a side project for Brian Head Welch of Korn), but plenty of it is soft and feminine. I’m ok with that.
Please tell us about The Visual Republic.
The Visual Republic is the creative work of me, Alexis Ward. I specialize in bright, beautiful graphic design and illustration that brings your brand to life. I focus on clean, thoughtful design and upbeat illustrations for record labels, publishers, and businesses. Some of my clients include Capitol Records, Warner Bros. Records, Toyota, Martha Stuart, Oprah Winfrey, Compassion International, World Vision, Lifeway, and Harper Collins.
Over the past 15 years, I have been nominated for a Dove award for packaging design, as well as had an early Grammy nomination for album packaging design. I have designed over 300 music albums, about 50 book covers, and so much more.
What were you like growing up?
I was a happy kid, easy-going and unique. Growing up, I loved all things creative. Yes, I loved drawing and painting, but I also loved to perform on the stage in musical theater and my school’s show choir. I didn’t want to be “typical,” so I picked up unusual talents like playing the harp. I never thought of myself as athletic, but I loved being outside and developed a love for rock climbing and camping and outdoor adventures in high school.
Pricing:
- $750 project minimum
- Book cover design starts at $2,000
- Album design starts at $3,000
Contact Info:
- Website: www.thevisualrepublic.com
- Phone: 615-310-2063
- Email: hello@thevisualrepublic.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thevisualrepublicdesign/
- Other: https://dribbble.com/alexisward
Image Credit:
Headshots by Jason Ward
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