The versatile hands of Terry Fan have given us yet another reason to wonder at the alternate universes that talent gives birth to. This US born illustrator studied at the ”university of the imagination” (The Ontario College of Art and Design), in Canada, where he now resides. He wields magic through ink and graphite while he colors his ideas in Photoshop.
Terry Fan‘s works !
His artwork reflects a complex variety of perspectives able to adapt in many areas: he successfully creates designs for t-shirts, drawings for children’s books, graphic novels and he also does screenwriting in collaboration with his brothers. He is a relentless kaleidoscope of concepts.
He is featured on a large numbers of sites that favor him as a talented and dedicated artist. Threadless printed 12 of his designs, and they also have an interesting interview about a joint project with his brother Eric, called “Autumn Chameleons”- design for t-shirts. Talent is a family trait and common ground it seems (his mother is a harpist, his father is professor of philosophy, his sister is a filmmaker etc.); they went to college together and admit to strongly influencing one another. The brother aspect of their relationship makes it easy to communicate and collaborate on many projects. As a result, their talents build up in rather similar ways:
Besides the great source of inspiration that the Threadless online designs represent for Terry, mainly because of the feedback it returns to the artist, Society6 is another site which offers a set of his works for archival prints, laptop skins or iPhone cases among other things. Some of the designs are also available for sale on online galleries, through partnership.
He also has online designs at designbyhumans and anticlothes; as for clients he works with Urban Outfitters, pelle pelle, Grant Lee Buffalo, Protest the Hero band, just to name a few. Now that’s a resume! And if he still hasn’t convinced you, I don’t know what will.
His t-shirt design was also featured on the American comedy sitcom Community:
In all of his works you can always notice classic oriental elements that remind him (and us) of his Taiwanese roots. He gives tribute to his family’s endeavors to follow a dream, while struggling to leave behind tradition. The idea behind “Journey to the west” is such an example.
Enjoy!
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