Employee Artist Series: AJ Kesler & All Day IPA
We recently reached out to the supremely talented artists on our team and asked that they submit their portfolios for a chance to create some original work as inspired by Founders beer. We selected Detroit taproom bartender, AJ Kesler, and commissioned him to bring All Day IPA to life. Read on to learn more about AJ and his amazing path as an artist:
Hey AJ, where are you from?
Raised in White Lake, Michigan and currently residing in Detroit.
How long have you been creating art?
I have been drawing regularly for at least 10 years, but I started taking art more seriously after I graduated from Oakland University with a BA in Studio Art in 2015. Since 2013, I’ve been selling work and exhibiting around Michigan on a regular basis.
How would you describe your aesthetic?
I choose the line as my tool in creating quirky drawings – filled with meticulous patterns and fine touches of detail. Rather than depicting the world around me, I render worlds of my own, often depicting whimsical juxtapositions of the seductive and silly.
How did All Day IPA inspire you for this piece?
I used my own style to recreate the classic imagery for All Day’s label. The color scheme and subject matter are basically the same, except my version of this landscape creates a narrative between a canoe and a magic river as opposed to a station wagon and a trail. This new version is meant to help evolve the image and meaning of America’s staple session IPA.
What are some other projects you’re working on?
I just finished new skateboard graphics for the Michigan skateboard company, Good Do Up Skateboards, and you can find those in your local skate shops. I also just finished a mural in Ypsilanti on a skate shop called Olympia Skate Shop. My next painting gig is live painting for Michigan’s premier flow festival, Great Lakes Flow Festival, August 1st through 4th.
What’s your ‘what if’?
“What if you’re exactly who you’re supposed to be?”
Check out the other submission in our employee artist series from Cincinnati sales rep, Luke E., here.