Hi I’m Connor Mclinn

I am an 18-year-old self-taught, self-proclaimed illustrator and graphic designer originally from Brooklyn, NY. The focus of my art is on using highly saturated and deep vibrant colors to create designs that center black and brown people being themselves and enjoying life. I would describe my style as a mix of cartoonish line art with a more anatomically correct body type, while I would describe my coloring as controlled chaos. Layers upon layers of the same color in different hues create a feeling of depth and texture not likely seen in other illustrations.

I see myself as one of those people, even though I am young, that find it hard to grow up and leave the past behind, and because of that, my art is heavily inspired by the vices of my childhood. Initially, I wanted to go into the animation field in any way I could, inspired by the Disney and Pixar movies I watched hundreds of times back to back, but I quickly came to the realization that the draw of these movies for me was the unique and lively characters and I quickly switched my focus to character illustration. My biggest influence however would have to be the band the Gorillaz, their music has been playing in my ear while I create almost every one of my pieces, but more importantly, their music videos were the first place I could see animation gear towards Adults and the character designs of each of the band members is so stylized while also being cohesive. They made me realize I could create art in any style with adults as the subjects and audience.

When in high school I would always get asked the question “what does my art mean?”, and I would always respond with the same “my art has no meaning, it is just art for art's sake” but after being on my own a bit more and having the time to think I realized my art is just about the simplicity of life. All my illustrations are of stationary subjects doing nothing but enjoying the moment they are in right now. There is no overwhelming background or wild Props in the foreground, I rely on extreme colors and interesting poses to catch your eye.  

I know I am a new artist that has a lot to learn about myself and the art I create but I am willing and excited to see my next evolution moving forward.