My career path has taken me in various directions, but always related to animals and art. It is interesting to see the roots of ZooGraphix extending back to my college days, some 35 years ago.
T-Shirts for Conservation
My path for creating art for nature began back in the '80s and '90s, an undergraduate biology student at Ripon College. As a member of the local chapter of the National Biology Honor Society, I created a T-shirt design to promote environmental education and commemorate the 20th anniversary of Earth Day. My design was the earth surrounded by endangered species such as a bald eagle, humpback whale, harp seal and jaguar. We sold the shirts on campus to raise money to donate to the National Wildlife Federation (NWF). Jay D. Hair, President of NWF at that time, attended my graduation commencement to receive an honorary degree (the theme, coincidentally, was "The Global Environment"). At the ceremony he happily accepted our fundraising donation of $600 (nearly $1500 in today's dollars). That experience was so satisfying and really opened my eyes to how design can be used to raise awareness of environmental issues.
Wildlife Art - Solo Exhibitions
In late October 1996, my art instructor, now Professor Emeritus of Art, Eugene Kain, invited me to display my wildlife art on campus in the Caesteker Gallery at the C.J. Rodman Center for the Arts. It was my first solo exhibition (and sale) of color pencil and pastel wildlife art. I called the show "Impressions of Wildlife." There were 12 pieces in the show, which ran for roughly 6 weeks. Ripon College purchased one of them, a wintry scene with two bison entitled "Winter's Breath," and is a permanent part of their collection.
The show next moved to the Friends Gallery at the Kenosha Public Museum from early March to May 1997. After this, I continued drawing but never accumulated enough new pieces for another show.
Brookfield Zoo, Illinois
I was a zookeeper at Brookfield Zoo for 8 years. I specialized in birds -- parrots, raptors and penguins were among my favorites -- but I cared for many other animals while working in The Swamp (such as alligators, bats, venomous snakes, various fish and river otters).
I got hands-on experience in feeding, training, handling, capturing, transporting, breeding and hand-rearing. I've been bitten, rammed, growled at, licked, stepped on, poked, sneezed on and pooped on more times than I could count. I was also responsible for answering visitors' questions and giving talks, performing demonstrations and leading behind-the-scenes tours. There were many occasions to educate visitors about wildlife conservation, poaching and hunting, the illegal pet trade, habitat loss and pollution. Monitoring signs and graphics was part of the job as well. I was required to routinely inspect the state of all signs and animal graphics in my area, making sure all were well-attached and in good, readable condition. When animals moved around, signs would need to move with them, or be removed entirely if they left, or new ones created for recent arrivals. I worked closely with the in-house graphic designers to ensure ID information and descriptive text was accurate and complete.
Indianapolis Zoo, Indiana
At Indianapolis Zoo I was a zookeeper in the animal hospital, a member of the veterinary care team. In this role I worked alongside the veterinarians and technicians to assist during examinations, treatments, medications, physicals, surgeries and more. A major part of my duties involved the care of animals while in quarantine (upon arrival and before departure from the zoo). This was a more stressful type of zookeeping job, but I really enjoyed helping animals heal and recover. I got exposure to nearly every animal in their collection, from African elephants to lions to dolphins. Favorite animal: Pacific Walrus.
Milwaukee County Zoo, Wisconsin
I was as a keeper at the Milwaukee County Zoo, in both the aviary and the small mammal house. As a bird keeper I worked with many species, my favorites being the King, Rockhopper and Humboldt Penguins. In the Small Mammal House I cared for lemurs, marmosets, tayra, river otters, fruit bats and many others. Favorite animal: the Three-toed Sloth.
Book & Magazine Publishing
In 2006 I joined the creative department at Reiman Publications, as Art Director for Country and Country Extra magazines. I worked on other titles as well, like Farm & Ranch Living and Country Woman. This job was fast-paced and exciting, working on magazines, books, wall calendars, daily planners, special edition compilations and much more. It was here that I began making illustrated maps for feature travel stories. When I left the company in 2018, I founded Maps by Scott to continue making maps. Sadly, all of those much-beloved magazine brands have been shut down.