Life & Work with Neko Lynn of Lee’s Summit

Today we’d like to introduce you to Neko Lynn.

Hi Neko, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I have been a visual artist my entire life.

I fell in love with illustration at a very young age. Like most of my peers; I started off scribbling prematurely in life. The thing I fell in love with wasn’t really the act of mark-making but rather the magic of watching my Grandad draw. He would take my requests and manifest them from his pen to paper right before my eyes. It didn’t take long to realize that pen and paper were a ticket to endless freedoms. I would spend countless afternoons with my childhood best friend, Jackson C., drawing characters and monsters. I remember having so much fun seeing which one of us could create the coolest-looking character and story to go along with them. It’s as if my childhood was one big imagination exercise. Not to mention my healthy diet of all things sci-fi, cartoons and hot rods.

Not much has changed since then. I read a lot more books now thanks to my beautiful fiancé, Brooklyn! Even if most of them have the word “comic” in front of them, they still count!

I used to travel all around the country pin striping and selling art at different car shows but, after the pandemic started, I have been working from my studio. During this time some exciting new projects have been underway and I look forward to sharing more in the near future. I’m also working with a team to debut Neko Lynn Studios NFTs.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Artists will always have bumps in their road but I would say my path has been pretty smooth. I guess one of the bigger things I’ve struggled with is being an old soul. It’s something that can easily make you feel disconnected especially in today’s times. Luckily I found my way a while back.

In my early teenage years, I discovered a local car club that changed my life. If it weren’t for Todd Karnahan, founder of Los Punk Rods C.C., I don’t know where I’d be today. Unfortunately Todd left us far too soon and I never got the chance to thank him for what he did for this misfit teenager. He created a sense of community for all of us outcasts to come together and feel welcome. Todd also gave us an excuse to get together every year for the past two decades with the show “Greaserama”. I attended my first show with my Dad well over a decade ago and that was all it took. By that following year, I was driving into the show in my ’71 pick up with nothing more than my learners permit. I wanted everything Rat Fink & Roth Studios that I could get my mitts on. I was hungry to learn more about this whole new world I had discovered. It was an exciting time freshly discovering where you belong.

I still feel disconnected from time to time but, it’s reassuring to know that there are others cut from the same cloth as you out there. You just have to find them.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
There is a strange world where horror comics, hot rods and monsters live and that’s where I like to hang out. I also enjoy the history of these subjects and have dedicated over half my life to studying them. I prefer traditional mediums but find myself using digital just as much. I have been honored with calling some of the industry legends as my own friends. I have pinstriped beside the world’s best, Tom Kelly, chatted all things airbrush with world-renowned Tom Davison and, barked with beatnik artist Von Franco. I am extremely lucky to have so much knowledge at my disposal and I try to utilize it as often as I can.

Risk taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
When starting any project, I typically have a rough sketch on paper and an idea in my head of what I want the end result to be. There is usually a plan of attack but, you always want to listen to that little voice in the back of your head. Taking risks will always lead to growth and that is something everyone can benefit from. Especially if it leads to end results you never knew were possible.

Pricing:

• Illustrations $50 – $500
• Paintings $100 – $1000

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: https://nekolynnstudios.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/neko.lynn.studios
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NekoLynnStudios
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/nekolynnstudios