Meet Dylan Fowler

Today we’d like to introduce you to Dylan Fowler.

Dylan, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I’ve always had a connection to design and visual arts one way or another growing up, but I didn’t really “get started” until I was a college drop out working a dead-end job at the age of 23. Sometimes we have these moments in life where we look around and realize we aren’t really where we want to be but don’t know exactly where to start. So I did the responsible thing. I bought a laptop that I got with a credit card, found some bootlegged adobe software and just started making stuff every night after work. Looking back on it, it was all really bad and aimless work, but it was a start.

After a while, a good friend of mine got me a job washing out screens and doing prep work at an apparel print shop. It was there that I got my first taste of doing some semblance of design work while on the clock, and I was immediately hooked. Eventually, I landed a full time design gig at A Small Print Shop here in Denver. It was there that I really started to dig my heels in and learn more about different styles and approaches to illustration and design. I learned a lot at that shop and will forever be grateful for my time there.

After about six years working in apparel design and being somewhat self-taught, I started to feel really stagnant. I had learned a lot and even started to develop my own personal style and perspective with illustration, but I wanted to become more well rounded. I think a lot of that stems from the lack of formal education and training, so I left ASPS and spent some time in freelance when I landed a couple of projects with a design studio in Denver called Consume & Create. At C&C, I have learned so much and even un-learned a lot of bad habits as well. Im still learning a lot till this day and love working on various types of design and illustration projects.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
There have always been various challenges along the way. I can’t imagine it will ever be smooth sailing. This is really not the career for a person who wants to relax and coast along. You either have to kick your own butt or get your butt kicked. For me, not knowing what I don’t know has kind of always been my biggest downfall, and I will always be trying to learn new things.

Dylan Fowler Illustration & Design – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
I have always considered myself a designer who specializes in illustration. The reason being is with design. You are always trying to solve a problem. Sometimes illustration is a good solution, but it is not always the best solution. What am I most proud of? I think for me personally, it is my long-haul mentality. I completely missed the boat on being some young hotshot right out of the gate, but I think that has somewhat afforded me the ability to be patient with my career. If Im still doing this and loving what I do at the age of 75 then my truest career goal will have been met.

What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
I think for me, 2019-2020 came with some really great projects, and new insights. There were moments when I could truly look back on the last ten years, and feel proud of what I’ve accomplished. I’m 33 now, and I think 23-year-old Dylan would be pretty pumped with where I am today. Have I “arrived”, probably not, but that’s ok. I just want to keep growing, and learning.

Contact Info:

• Website: dylanfowler.net
• Phone: 303-506-0656
• Email: hello@dylanfowler.net
• Instagram: dylan_fowler

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