Making It
Traverse, Northern Michigan's Magazine|December 2019
MEET THREE ILLUSTRATORS KEEPING THEIR WILDLY CREATIVE SPIRITS ALIVE BY BEING IN THE RIGHT PLACE (NORTHERN MICHIGAN) AT THE RIGHT TIME (RIGHT NOW).
Molly Korroch
Making It

EM RANDALL

“Grateful feels like such a small word,” says Em Randall, a Traverse City-based artist. We’re sitting at a lime green table outside of BLK MRKT, a coffee shop in TC’s Warehouse District. On the wall across from us, there’s a large mural featuring a woman’s face in black and white. Her cheeks are two bright red circles. The painting is one of Em’s.

Last year, she showed her work at 13 different art shows and markets. This year, it’s down to two. While she’s still hustling to build her business, her work has developed a more mature tone. The time and energy she once put into making, displaying and tediously transporting her work from show to show are now focused on larger custom projects like the mural at Warehouse MRKT or a brand redesign for Pleasanton Bakery.

“All that fighting. All that waiting patiently for people to care. It just slowly started happening. I feel like sometimes I’m an imposter and people are going to say ‘We’re sick of you!’ ” she laughs. While it may seem like it from the outside, her path to established artistdom was not a straight line.

Originally from Bear Lake, Em and her husband lived in Seattle and Olympia, Washington for five years before making the move back to Traverse City in 2016. While out West, she created her first company called Happy Grey Skies. She made whimsical plush creatures and dolls such as a piece of buttered toast with a face and a grinning rain cloud. The business resonated with her Washington audience but unfortunately fell flat in Traverse City.

“That was a big shock for me,” she says. “I gave up everything to do this for a living, thinking it was so successful, but then I came here and it was a hard halt.”

Denne historien er fra December 2019-utgaven av Traverse, Northern Michigan's Magazine.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

Denne historien er fra December 2019-utgaven av Traverse, Northern Michigan's Magazine.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

FLERE HISTORIER FRA TRAVERSE, NORTHERN MICHIGAN'S MAGAZINESe alt
Camping With Your Dog
Traverse, Northern Michigan's Magazine

Camping With Your Dog

Bringing your dog on your next outdoor overnight excursion? Oh, yes! With a little planning, your canine companion will enjoy camping just as much as you. These Northern Michigan spots are perfectly pet-friendly.

time-read
3 mins  |
April 2021
SWEET ON THE BETSIE
Traverse, Northern Michigan's Magazine

SWEET ON THE BETSIE

JENA MATZEN AND GREGG TRAHEY WEREN’T LOOKING FOR A BIG HOME UP NORTH. BUT THEY DID WANT STYLE.

time-read
3 mins  |
April 2021
REFRESH IN BLUE AND WHITE
Traverse, Northern Michigan's Magazine

REFRESH IN BLUE AND WHITE

ASKED TO MOVE A HARBOR SPRINGS HOME FROM TRADITIONAL TO TRANSITIONAL STYLE, INTERIOR DESIGNER GEMMA PARKER BUILT ON THE FRESH, TIMELESS ALLURE OF BLUE AND WHITE.

time-read
3 mins  |
April 2021
MAKING CONNECTIONS
Traverse, Northern Michigan's Magazine

MAKING CONNECTIONS

Explore Emmet and Cheboygan counties by foot, bike or hoof, thanks to this scenic trail.

time-read
1 min  |
April 2021
Please, eat the violets.
Traverse, Northern Michigan's Magazine

Please, eat the violets.

The wild violets that dot our forest floors are pretty enough to eat. Go ahead—let our six simple recipes fuel your culinary imagination.

time-read
3 mins  |
April 2021
OASIS ON ELK LAKE
Traverse, Northern Michigan's Magazine

OASIS ON ELK LAKE

ARCHITECT KEN RICHMOND DESIGNS A HOME THAT CAPTURES THE CARIBBEAN COLORS OF ELK LAKE WHILE FEELING COMPLETELY ORGANIC TO THE NORTHWOODS.

time-read
4 mins  |
April 2021
LOSS AND NATURE
Traverse, Northern Michigan's Magazine

LOSS AND NATURE

Leelanau's Cedar River Preserve provides peace and perspective.

time-read
2 mins  |
April 2021
GO WITH THE FLOW
Traverse, Northern Michigan's Magazine

GO WITH THE FLOW

Celebrating an unconventional trout opener among friends.

time-read
5 mins  |
April 2021
CHAMPION OF TREES
Traverse, Northern Michigan's Magazine

CHAMPION OF TREES

Archangel Ancient Tree Archive is the “most hopeful project on the planet,” says David Milarch.

time-read
2 mins  |
April 2021
DINING OUT NEAPOLITAN, BUT WITH STYLE
Traverse, Northern Michigan's Magazine

DINING OUT NEAPOLITAN, BUT WITH STYLE

American House—the Siren Hall spinoff—is making darn good pizza.

time-read
2 mins  |
April 2021