Meet Kearin Ever | Illustrator & Muralist

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

Hi Kearin, is there something you believe many others might not?
One piece of conventional advice that I’ve heard a lot is to go to school and get a stable job with healthcare. That sounds fabulous, and for some people it is, however… In a lot of ways I think that is just a load of baloney. I really think there is no point in spending every day of your life doing something you don’t enjoy just to be able to buy stuff you don’t need. I think that the way you spend your days is the way you spend your life. So many people spend eight hours a day doing something they don’t enjoy, and… That’s your whole life. I wish more people would stop believing in this and start doing what they love, because in 2021 there is no such thing as a stable job anyway.

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.
Recently what I am most proud of is how I’ve been able to scale up my work- because I have been wanting to paint big for a while. Being able to take something and transfer it onto a twenty foot wall and make it look great has not been easy. But I love dong it! I owe a lot of my professional connections and work experience to people I met in school and in NYC. I worked really hard to impress my professors, get good recommendations, and to make people want to hire me. So… I owe it to myself for putting in the work but I also couldn’t have been a part of some of the amazing projects I have without other people’s trust in my abilities. One thing I have learned now that I’ve started working professionally is that the type of work you make is what people will hire you for. I knew this in my senior year of school, but now I’ve been able to see it play out in real life and it is much more true than I even expected. It’s been very trial and error. I’ve realized that I really need to be picky about which jobs I accept. If I accept a job for a logo design, which I really don’t enjoy in most cases, word will go around that I design logos and then all of a sudden I have three more logo design commissions. It snowballs like that so quickly. This seems like a good problem to have, but I can get thrown off in the wrong direction so easily and so quickly. I want to draw and focus on creating illustrations and murals that are exciting and fun, that’s the direction I want to go in.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
This is perfect timing because one of my best friends just moved to Houston without having ever been here before! If I’m thinking about when she got to town… One of the first days they were here we went to Tacos A Go Go. That is my favorite taco in town. And then… I took her to the Guild Shop. She needed house things and we both love antiques and weird stuff and The Guild Shop has the best of both of those. We also went to Mango Beach together- classic. Another one of the first things we did was go to see the bats under the Waugh bridge. Just one of the best things you can see- not just in Houston, I’m talking about the best ever. Who doesn’t love bats? Hundreds of thousands of them.

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?
I think other people are more than somewhat responsible for my artistic success so far. I’ve gotten so much support from other people… But if I had to choose one person who has done a lot for me, it would be John. High school and college were probably the most difficult times for me, and the times when I grew the most as an artist. He was there with me through all of it. He has always been my biggest fan, and he has just been cheering me on every single freaking day. Every time I question myself or feel lame, or I think I’m not going in the right direction, he knows exactly how to make me feel better. And it’s not just kind words to make me feel better- he does it because he genuinely thinks I’m the best artist he has ever met. And I believe him when he says it! Which is the best feeling ever. Having him around just believing in me and my talent every day has helped so much.

Website: kearincook.com

Instagram: @kearinever