Featured Artist Haylee McFarland

Artist Haylee McFarland shares her portfolio of delightfully colorful animals, created by combining watercolor with pen and ink. View more of her portfolio by visiting her website.

 

 

After a long hot day at a job where I was underpaid and unhappy, I sat on the couch drawing next to my boyfriend. “If I could do anything, it would be to draw,” I said jokingly. Next, he said some of the sweetest words I have ever heard, “Then you draw, and we will figure this out.”

 

 

Within a few months we had quit our jobs and began pursuing art full-time. We had no idea how to make a living creating art, but thankfully my amazing boyfriend willingly volunteered to go on this crazy journey with me and take on the role as manager, which really meant keeping me fed and booking art shows. After a year of studying the market and learning the ropes at local art and craft fairs near our home in Southern California, we took to the road nationally.

 

 

My subject matter tends to lean towards drawing animals. I feel that everyone has a spirit animal they can relate to or that gives them strength, one that reminds them of a loved one or a certain time in their life—or, more simply, an animal that just plain makes them happy!

 

 

Although I do take some of my ideas from requests I get from my patrons, the majority of my work is selected from whatever makes me happiest at the time!

 

 

I’ve always loved little details. I remember once in high school I had drawn some patterns and details in the margins of an assignment that had to be turned in. When I got the paper back there were the words “not productive” written in red next to my drawings. The teacher was right, I should have been paying closer attention while watching the movie “The Great Gatsby.” It might not have been very productive then.

 

 

Everything I do is freehand. I never use rulers, compasses, magnifying glasses or computers. I primarily work in watercolor and pen and ink. My goal is to make the two mediums complement each other.

 

 

I love the loose, almost messy watercolor mixed with the intricate details that I hand draw on top. My pieces are typically 18 x 24 inches, and take me between 55 to 70 hours to complete.

 

 

In my short time as an artist, I have been honored to have been featured on two magazine covers, an artist’s feature on OvernightPrints.com and asked to design a poster for Tucson’s 4th Ave Street Fair. Some of my favorite experiences vending have been the Ann Arbor Art Festival, Deep Ellum Arts Festival and the 40th Annual Haight Ashbury Street Fair.

 

 

I love that my “job” now is to draw, travel to the country’s best art shows and meet amazing people. I get to make people happy with something that I’ve created by hand.

 

 

You can find my boyfriend and me traveling in our decommissioned ambulance van to some of the top art shows throughout the country. This year we will do about forty art shows in fifty-two weeks! I hope to see you out there!

 

Artist Haylee McFarland invites you to follow her on Instagram.

 

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