From a standing start, artist / designer Gemma O’Brien flirted with risk to forge a global career with an A-list of clients from The New York Times to Tiffany & Co. COVID brought her to a major pivot point: she’s cancelled all her commercial work for now, bunkering down in her studio to draw daily and reconnect to her own artistic vision.

WHAT DO YOU DO?

I’m an artist and designer, creating illustrations, murals, and pieces of art for advertising and gallery spaces. A lot of my work centres around the written word, lettering and typography. I love language and how it relates to the human experience.

YOUR JOURNEY and INFLUENCES?

Painting and drawing was a big part of my childhood. My parents encouraged creativity. But I ended up studying arts/law at University of Queensland, only to get about a third of the way through before realising I didn’t know why I had chosen that path. Then suddenly I just dropped out.

Thank you message (2020) for Times Square Arts. Photo: Ian Douglas — Thank you message (2020) for Times Square Arts. *Photo: Ian Douglas*

WHAT HAPPENED NEXT?

I enrolled in a graphic design course thinking it would be an entry point to being an artist. I remember the day I went onto the computer and looked up ‘What is a graphic design degree?’ I remember feeling a sense of excitement and freedom in making that decision. I think it was the first time I had agency over my life.

TIMING WORKED FOR YOU?

I moved from Brisbane to Sydney and enrolled in the College of Fine Arts to study design. I was in heaven, I just loved it. I discovered typography and ran with it, I started a blog – For the Love of Type, and I even got invited to speak at a conference in Germany when I was 21. It was that Internet phase of blogging and YouTube. Typography was very niche.

Solo exhibition (2016) at Laguna College of Art & Design, California. Photo: Xun Chi — Solo exhibition (2016) at Laguna College of Art & Design, California. *Photo: Xun Chi*

CHANCE PLAYED A ROLE?

I’m now 33 and I've never looked back. When I graduated, I worked full-time at [leading digital studio] Animal Logic. That was incredible. I didn't really know anything about that world, about production or deadlines or working with other people, so it was a great starting point.

“Going out on my own was another moment of freedom.”

Poster commissioned by Another Planet Entertainment, California, for Tash Sultana show (2018). Photo: Tash Sultana

GOING ALONE, BUILDING YOUR BRAND?

After Animal Logic I worked at Fuel VFX*, a visual effects company. During this time it went into voluntary administration. I thought I could either find another full-time job in the design industry or I could go out on my own, which I did. It felt right, safe even, as I didn’t have to make the decision to leave a full-time job.

*Fuel VFX is now part of Animal Logic.

GEMMA O’BRIEN, THE BRAND?

Going out on my own was another moment of freedom and experimentation. It was the early stages of discovering my own voice through my work. I engaged [Australian-based agent] Jacky Winter Group and they started generating commercial work for me. Things really took off between 2012 to 2015. Later, I also signed with American-based representation Levine/Leavitt. I was creating so much work, really pushing myself, a complete workaholic, but loving it. I took on every job and just went for it.

Installation for Moda Atlanta’s exhibition (2017) Text Me. — Installation for Moda Atlanta’s exhibition (2017) *Text Me*.

HOW DO YOU FIND YOUR CLIENTS?

Social media played a huge part in finding clients. In 2012 Instagram was not what it is today. Then it was a place where I would put things out there, experiment, share them. Art directors would see my work and people around the world could see it. And my Australian/US reps definitely had connections too. I started to realise I didn’t have to say yes to everything and began steering the ship a little bit more in the direction of what I wanted to work on.

“Not really street art, not really gallery installations, but something in between.”

Solo exhibition (2016) at China Heights Gallery, Sydney.

ON BECOMING AN ARTIST?

Around 2013 I started working on large-scale murals, one for Fremantle Arts Centre in Western Australia sparked interest from commercial clients. I started to feel more like an artist. I loved that it was physical and away from a computer. Since then I became known for this fusion of graphic design and art. Not really street art, not really gallery installations, but something in between, working with brands like Optus and Kirin Cider (Sydney), Volcom Stone (California and Spain) and Adidas (Germany). Many brands sought out live-painting at events and shops around the world. It coincided with the boom in social medial and digital technology.

Other clients include: Google, Adobe, The New York Times, Twitter, Nike. Her poster and artwork clients include musicians Tash Sultana, Angus and Julia Stone, John Legend and Troye Sivan. In Sydney Gemma is represented by China Heights Gallery.

‘Joy’ wall painting for solo exhibition (2018) at China Heights Gallery, Sydney. Photo: Maddy Ritchie — ‘Joy’ wall painting for solo exhibition (2018) at China Heights Gallery, Sydney. *Photo: Maddy Ritchie*

YOUR BIGGEST PROJECT?

For Tiffany & Co. in Shanghai, completed in November 2019. I had worked on a smaller permanent installation for the Sydney flagship store in 2018 which led to this commission for their Shanghai space. It was huge, the stakes were high. That job felt like the pinnacle for me.

a GAME-CHANGER moment?

Getting an accountant and becoming a company. It’s been very helpful in that I can pay myself a salary, and superannuation, and it legitimises my practice as an artist. It’s helped me plan for the future and set goals. It’s also helped me to step back and look at my career. Now I’m going to the next level.

In the studio, making a drawing with charcoal from Australia’s bushfires for the Rise exhibition (2020). — In the studio, making a drawing with charcoal from Australia’s bushfires for the *Rise* exhibition (2020).

TURNING POINT?

COVID was a turning point. I had to cancel all my work and trips away and in that moment I realised what I really wanted to do was paint without the restrictions of time or someone else saying: “This is how I want it to be”.

“I’m trying to be more of a fully formed human, to think more about family and relationships and community.”

THE ROLE OF RISK?

I recently said to my reps: “I don’t want to take on any commercial work for three months”. Financially, in a pandemic, I think there is a little bit of risk in doing that. But it does feel like it’s the right thing. Could I be fearful of the idea of failing as an artist or failing in expressing a vision that doesn’t resonate with people? Maybe. I’m also trying in this period to be more of a fully formed human, to think more about family and relationships and community. You don’t have to be flying to six different cities around the world in six months to get joy. You can go to Centennial Park (in Sydney) and see a little plant that you’ve never seen before. Maybe I’m just growing a little more content.

Project wall installation for Tiffany & Co. store in Shanghai (2019). Photo: Maddy Ritchie — Project wall installation for Tiffany & Co. store in Shanghai (2019). *Photo: Maddy Ritchie*

YOUR BIGGEST CHALLENGE?

I want to be challenged in a way that is less about the challenge of a deadline or meeting the expectation of others. I want to be challenged by ideas and concepts and things going deeper.

WHERE TO FROM HERE?

I’m ready for an updated version of myself and my work. I’m focusing my energies on painting my biggest installation to date, here in my Sydney studio. It’s less about creating a product and more about the practice of painting daily. I want to bring back some spontaneity and experimentation in my work. To be less of a people-pleaser and just follow my own artistic vision from idea to realisation. Saying that is a big step for me.