Meet Kit Gray | Natural Science Illustrator & Pet Portrait Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kit Gray and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kit, why did you pursue a creative career?
I am what you’d consider an accidental artist. I went to school for natural resources and I worked as an environmental educator and interpreter at parks and nature centers for several years. I was very passionate about my prior work and I still consider myself an environmental educator at heart today. The reality is that I am also someone who lives with lupus (a disease where the immune system mistakenly attacks any of the body’s organs and tissues). I spent my entire adult life trying to force my lupus to give in to the things I wanted and it took lupus threatening my life before I figured out that I couldn’t truly thrive that way. I had to figure out a way to coexist with my disability.

I took some time away from work in order to prioritize my health and during that time, my mom remembered that I enjoy drawing. She treated me to a large set of colored pencils — the kind I enjoyed the most when I was a kid and I drew regularly. I decided to watch some videos online and see if I could learn to illustrate wildlife and pets realistically and when people started asking to pay me for my work, I decided to try and see if I could make it work. The idea was that with this type of career, I might have better control over my workload, my hours, and being able to work around treatment schedules that sometimes get very hectic. It was all an experiment and it has honestly taken years for me to figure out the best balance that works for both my work life and personal life.

I consider myself someone who draws upon both science and creativity to work as a natural science illustrator and pet portrait artist. My mind is very science-oriented and I’ve found a lot of joy in studying subjects — their anatomy, their form, and their behaviors — and then learning to bring them to life on paper. Surprisingly, I don’t think creating art is the driver so much as my love of getting to know the subjects themselves. I love that having a creative career has brought my studies of the natural world — and especially of birds — to a new level. That brings me a lot of joy and I hope my work brings joy to other people who appreciate the natural world (or their pets) as much as I do.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
When I started my business, I relied very heavily on custom pet portraits and as much as I am honored to be able to create cherished artwork of beloved pets, it is very demanding of my time. As an artist who is trying to build a business that accommodates my health, I had to learn that it is not smart of me to take on constant commissioned work. It is very physically and mentally taxing, so I am proud that I’ve been able to rely less on commissions with each year that goes by. I still save a little bit of time for custom work, but I spend more of my time focusing on birds and nature now.

As for my story, I want people to know that you don’t have to be an ex-park ranger to appreciate the value of your local parks and open spaces. Use them, share them with others, and learn to care about them enough to actively conserve them. It doesn’t matter where you live — I’ve worked in a large city park that was teeming with birds and marine life and I’ve enjoyed backcountry spaces where there isn’t another human for miles. All of these places have value and it is up to us to care about them. I create drawings and paintings of the wildlife or botanicals I see in nature to try and bring the beauty of these things indoors, but the reality is that they can so easily be lost. We have to choose to play an active role in caring about this world. I hope art sometimes inspires people to care just a little bit more.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I always love making a trip up the Poudre Canyon for hiking, birding, or other activities (scenic drives, rafting, fly fishing, tubing). For food in Fort Collins, we’d have to stop at Big City Burrito for a potato burrito and Cafe de Bangkok for thai food. For local birding, we’d go to Pineridge Natural Area & Dixon Reservoir in Fort Collins or out to Pawnee National Grassland for a change of scenery. I also love going to the outdoor archery range managed by Fort Collins Archery Association and the City of Fort Collins. There is a field archery course that allows for a variety of different shots from varying angles and distances.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Folks that helped me along the way include: the Colorado Department of Vocational Rehabilitation, Rising Tide Society and Tuesdays Together (groups that help creatives connect and have community together), and my close friend, Kait, for always being someone who understands the challenges of working as an artist while chronically ill.

Website: https://www.kitgrayillustration.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kitgrayillustration/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kitgrayillustration

Image Credits
Kit Gray