Meet Chris Kasmar | Graphic Artist & Illustrator

We had the good fortune of connecting with Chris Kasmar and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Chris, why did you pursue a creative career?
For me, it wasn’t really ever a choice. From a young age, my parents encouraged my twin brother and I to be creative. Once we realized we could do that everyday, AND GET PAID, there really wasn’t any other decision to be made.

From there, being a creative has been my North Star that has ultimately guided my path. I think I would be pretty lost without my creative endeavors.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
My work “title,” if you’re into that sort of thing, is Graphic Artist. For the most part, I think it’s a pretty good descriptor until someone comes up with a better one.

I mostly do commercial illustration and graphic design to make signage for a regional grocery chain. I am also a co-founder of Route 8 Studios in Stow, Ohio where I do comic book illustration.

If I were to describe what sets my art apart from others would be my “Jack of All Trades” approach. I work in traditional and digital media giving me the ability to choose the best of both worlds to get a project done. I have a pretty well rounded toolbox of experiences to pull from. I have done murals, portraits, caricatures, hand lettering and typography with graphic design from branding to apparel design and back.

I am most proud of the fact that I have honed many of the aforementioned disciplines to a point where I feel comfortable moving in and out of them and even blending all of them together to create something new.

What gets me excited? The next project. I feel like my life is one big meme where the girl in the red dress is my next big project and I’m always caught looking while my current projects (the girl next to me) are wondering, What is wrong with me?”

And how did I get here? I’d say a lot of luck and quite a bit of hard work. But in all honesty, I think it is a blending of the two with a hint of building great relationships.

I made a ton of mistakes early in my career. I chalk most of that up to inexperience and immaturity. I was so focused on getting a job as a creative that I didn’t build a foundation of solid relationships and often time squeezed the life (and subsequent joy) out of the few opportunities I got early on. I call this pulling a Lennie (in reference to Of Mice and Men). No matter how good my intentions, I just kept smothering my opportunities. That was a huge blind spot for me. I didn’t realize that there were levels to being a professional at the time. I did a lot of freelance, I had a cup of coffee as a temp, then ultimately got my big break by complete luck.

I think there really is something to the old adage, “Work smarter, not harder.” While looking for my next creative opportunity, I was working at a Get Go gas station in Canfield, Ohio. I was on break searching through the internal job portal. I kept typing in “graphic design” to no avail. Then it dawned on my to type “art” into the search and there it was! A part-time Graphic Artist position in Green, Ohio…only an hour drive away.

Long story short, I got the job but I still had a lot to learn. I was truly fortunate to be able to cut my teeth at that position and learn how to be a pro. I knew how to show up, on time, work hard and be kind. I just needed to learn the soft skills that would lead to lasting success. Luckily, I did. Building relationships (a new skill) and being able to back them up with solid work ethic (had in spades) became my secret sauce.

Unfortunately, that job only lasted two and a half years before I was downsized. But in that time, I developed a good reputation for quality work, built lasting relationships and even got my brother hired at another location. I took my talents elsewhere and continued to round out my skill set as an artist. Three years later, I was rehired at a bigger, better store and I pretty much continued where I left off. I’ve been back at it for six years now. I have also found that those skills have grown my personal brand and business.

The ultimate lesson: Always work hard, do the best work you can, build relationships and do it all with integrity. Be the rock star that you know you can be.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Since I have called many places in Northeast Ohio my home, I would have to take the region as a whole. If a friend is coming for a week, I have no shortage of things to do, especially foods to eat. I currently reside in Akron so pretty much everything is within an hour drive so we could tackle a ton of things in a week. I’ll do three areas with food and things to do.

Breakfast, I’m going with the Molly Brown in the Ellet area. I love a good diner breakfast to start an adventurous day. After that, I really enjoy going out to Kintaro in Montrose/Fairlawn. You can get all you can eat sushi, hot pot, or hibachi. Dinner, I’m going with a pizza from Twisted Tomato down on Main St. in Akron. They have a lot of great specialty pizzas.

Events for Akron, I’m starting with thrifting. I love a good deal and Akron has some of the best thrifting. My personal favorite is the Village Discount Outlet on Waterloo Rd. Next, I really like the Akron Zoo (mostly because I have a six-year-old son). It’s no too big and you can do it all in 1-2 hours. If time permits, hit up Hoppin’ Frog Brewery for a beer. Lastly, I love going to baseball games, so I’m doing a Rubber Ducks game at Canal Park.

I’m from Trumbull County and went to Youngstown State so I have to go there. Breakfast, I’m going to Canfield to White House Fruit Farm. The Blueberry Donuts are a must. I prefer them plain. Lunch, I’m going to Jib Jab in Girard for a chili-cheddar dog and family chili-cheddar fry. Definitely not counting calories. Finish the night at Sunrise Inn for stuffed deep dish pizza or anything on their menu, there are no bad choices.

Places to go in this area, White House is kind of a two-for-one. The donuts are great but the market is also fantastic. They also have some events throughout the year. Next you have to go to Mill Creek Park. Check out the Wetlands boardwalk or the Mill, you can’t go wrong. Next, live baseball with the Scrappers at Eastwood Field. You might catch a theme here.

Last area, Cleveland and surrounding areas. I don’t normally do breakfast up this way so I’m going straight to lunch at Melt in Lakewood. Dinner in Broadview Heights at Salted Dough (I am biased because I may have done the murals there) but it is AMAZING.

Things to do…you guessed it, baseball at Progressive Field. My wife loves the Botanical Gardens, I love Brewdog in Cleveland. So there you have it, there’s WAY more to do but that’s what I’d pick.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Pretty sure that in life, no one gets where they are on their own. It is so very hard to choose just one person to dedicate this Shoutout to. My mother would be the first and foremost. Her continued support is the bedrock of everything I do. That being said, I could not see myself where I am without the guidance of Leslie Wilkinson and Steven McCallum. Leslie, for her support from kindergarten and beyond and Steven from my first day at Youngstown State to this very day. I accredit these three folks with much of my success. I appreciate you all.

Instagram: @kasmardesigns

Linkedin: Chris Kasmar

Twitter: @kasmardesigns

Facebook: facebook.com/kasmardesigns, facebook.com/route8studios