If I wanted to create the ideal fictional woman I would base it on Émilie Boisvert. She’s a beautiful and talented Québécoise who was raised in exotic international locales. She loves to take risks and have fun. And of course, she loves animals. As hard as it may be to believe, Emilie, unlike Black Canary’s boobs (See below), is real and she’s an artist.
She’s an artist and it’s important not to forget that. If you interrupt her during the creative process Émilie might just rip your head off your neck and feed it to the dogs. Actually, I imagine she just flashes you a quick smile and from that smile, you understand that your presence is not required or desired at that moment and you back out slowly bowing as you go. I was lucky and Émilie was gracious enough to answer a few questions for the Shirt List. Learn more about the person behind the talent.
About Émilie Boisvert
I think I saw on Facebook that you were based in Quebec. Born and raised?
I was born in a small town in the northern stretches of Quebec, Canada. I was raised overseas in Central America and East Africa.
What is your typical day like?
My typical day starts with a slow morning wake up. It’s the one luxury I permit myself in my field of work. A grumpy Artist is a sorry Artist. Once everything settles, I start with some warm-up sketches – a speed comic of no more than 20 minutes – which I post on my social media pages and share with my followers.
Sometimes working on big projects can be long and drawn out so the one morning- sketch I permit is a sort of playtime I grant myself before getting to the grind. That way I’m not fighting the urge to rebel against myself and lose the discipline I need to complete those bigger projects that require a lot more care and attention. Once that’s out of the way and I feel great about a mini accomplishment, I get down to work in my studio on the real stuff. I am ruthless about studio time and keep interruptions to a minimum.
What do you like to do in your free time?
Sports, taking walks, camping, spending time with friends… I live near some great horse farms and it would seem that I have a natural affinity with horses. They are a blessing to spend time with and I always feel refreshed and recharged after spending time with animals I connect with. I am also a bit of a thrill seeker so I am a big fan of skydiving, cliff diving, roller coasters and anything of a similar nature.
About the Artist
When did you start creating art?
As long as I can remember. There is a photo of me drawing on some paper before I had the ability to walk.
Apart from t-shirts, are you involved in other art/design projects?
I work on character designs, illustration commissions and I’m branching out into comic books. I used to work as an Art Director for a children’s education interactive platform.
Were you influenced by any particular artist or style?
All of the greats – da Vinci, Van Gogh, Picasso, Dali… a lot of my work can be traced back to Alphonse Mucha; some modern artists include Loish, Alex Grey, Marc Brunet, Jason Latour… its a long list.
About the Tees
How did you first hear about daily t-shirt sites like TeeFury?
A friend of mine was wearing one of them and it started the conversation.
Do you remember your first print? If so, what was it and how did you feel?
My first print was the “Cheshire Express” – printed by QWERTEE. Like every print, it was a good feeling. Knowing people will have the chance to get a good quality t-shirt for that kind of price makes all of the hard work worth it.
Do you wear t-shirts that you have designed?
I do from time to time, mostly to get a sense of how my designs fit on the fabric, how they look on a three-dimensional surface, how they feel to be worn (because drawing something and drawing it to be worn are two very different things) and what can be done to improve upon them.
How did the shoe on TeeFury come about?
The Cheshire cat is a personal favorite of mine, and the opportunity to make purple shoes was something I couldn’t pass up. I mean purple… the best color! The idea of walking through the adventure of your life with a favorite iconic companion seemed to be the perfect fit for a shoe.
About the World
Do you have any role models?
Yes. They tend to be fictional superheroes though. Wonder Woman is a personal favorite.
What is the most exotic location you have been to?
People seem to think having lived in Africa was exotic, but for me, it was home.
Where would you most like to visit? Why?
Bhutan – the mountains and the preserved “out of this world” culture.
About Other Designers
Which tee designer(s) do you admire the most?
Huge art crush on Medusa the Dollmaker, I appreciate Beastpop‘s support for some of my works in progress (he’s good at spotting that extraneous line here and there), and Bamboota’s charisma really shines in both her work and her as a person.
Who would you like to see featured on the Shirt List next?
Bamboota. She’s lovely to get to know.
About Tee Design
Any advice for other designers/artists?
You’ll stumble and fall. The difference between success and failure is a love for what we do. When we love what we do, we tend to gloss over the hardships – it’s funny: you may have completely bombed it, but the amnesia that comes with passion will convince you to keep on trucking as you can’t see yourself doing anything else.
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Photoshop or Illustrator?
All of the above.
