The minute I saw the art of Kippy Sage, I was entranced. There's a certain joie de vivre that glows from within her art; her creativity is extraordinary! Read on for more about Kippy, including inspiration, finding her art online, and a special project with the Smithsonian.

Without further ado, the words and art of Kippy Sage...

I’m Kippy Sage. I’m from Massachusetts, and am now a senior illustration major at Ringling College of Art and Design in Sarasota. I love animals, especially my dog, Milo! I would describe my art as stylish and upbeat. My main artistic interests include character design, fashion illustration, and book illustration. 

How long have you been an artist?
I’ve been drawing for fun all my life, but I started taking it seriously when I switched to an arts high school for my junior and senior years. From there, I decided I wanted to pursue art as a career, and now I’m studying illustration at Ringling College of Art and Design.

Do you have favorite places you like to create?
I do most of my work in my apartment. If it’s homework or a commission, I like to be able to focus on what I’m working on without any background noise or distractions. I create a lot of my work at school during classes as well. If I’m just drawing for fun, I go outside with my traditional media to work on plein air sketches.

What does a typical day look like? Is there a typical day?
Most of my days revolve around school. I have three to six hours of classes each day during the week. After school, I head home and make something quick for dinner. I like to take a break from art by playing my ukulele for a bit, but then it’s right back to work! I try to get as much done as possible on my school assignments. Once I’m satisfied with the amount of work I’ve done, I like to go roller skating in the evening. Then I’ll draw some personal art if I have time, Facetime my parents, and go to bed. On weekends I hang out with friends, explore the city, and get ahead on the next week’s assignments.

What materials do you prefer?
I do most of my work digitally on my iPad using Procreate. I like digital art as a medium because it’s portable and mess-free. I also enjoy watercolor painting and the classic pencil and paper. I always make sure to keep a sketchbook to draw whatever inspires me, and to practice drawing anatomy and portraits.

Where/How are you inspired?
I get a lot of inspiration from nature. I enjoy illustrating scenes with lots of flowers and plants, so I go for walks and visit gardens often. For my fashion illustrations, I browse clothing websites, Pinterest, and Instagram to see what’s trendy. Admiring other artists’ work, whether fellow classmates or professionals, makes me excited to draw and try out new techniques. 

How do you know when your piece is done?
I could keep editing a piece forever. I always notice tiny details that I want to improve, so sometimes I just need to let the deadline decide that I’m done.

Do you work on one or more pieces at a time?
As a student, I always have multiple pieces to work on simultaneously. I could be working on a children’s book illustration, hand and portrait studies, an oil painting still life, and a personal project all at the same time. This works great for me, because it means that when I get tired of one piece, I can switch to another.

If you were not an artist, what would you do?
Up until the end of high school, I wanted to be a biologist. Science of various forms always interested me, but I especially enjoyed learning about living organisms. I started realizing that art was just too important to me to stay a hobby, so I began considering scientific illustration which would combine both interests. There are so many different things I like drawing, though, so eventually I decided to study illustration in general. I think my love of biology has had an influence on my work, since my favorite things to draw include people, plants, and animals.

How can our readers find and purchase your art?
You can find my fashion and character illustrations on my Instagram page, @kippy_art. For landscapes, figure drawings, and studies, check out my second Instagram, @kippy_art2. 
My website is https://kippythecat.wixsite.com/kippysage. 

You can purchase various products featuring my art on my Redbubble shop: https://www.redbubble.com/people/kippythecat/shop?asc=u. 

If you are interested in a personalized digital commission, please DM me on Instagram, or email me at [email protected]. I offer portraits, character illustrations, and pet portraits.

Would you like to share anything else with us?
I’d love to share the exciting project I worked on with the Smithsonian Institute. Last spring, the Smithsonian American Art Museum reached out to the school to hire artists for their “Drawn to Art: Ten Tales of Inspiring Women Artists” comic series. I was among ten students hired for the project. The series celebrates ten women artists, some of whom did not receive the recognition they deserved in their time. I chose to illustrate for Maria Oakey Dewing, a 19th century floral painter and maverick of the aesthetic movement. 

From rough sketches to final polished illustrations, we corresponded directly with Smitshonian representatives and our professors to exchange ideas and receive feedback. It was a great experience during which I learned about working with a big client. I’m glad I had this opportunity to get real-world experience with guidance from my professors along the way. 

I’ve always been interested in Victorian era fashion as well as botanical art, so this comic was a lot of fun to create. I used a transition from full color, to sepia, and back to color to represent the presence of painting in Maria’s life. My favorite part of the process was illustrating all the colorful garden scenes. I am so proud of the work we have all accomplished with this series. 

All photos courtesy and copyright Kippy Sage, published with permission.