Alan O'Regan, Illustrator and Writer
Apart from the 9-5, which pays the bills, I am a writer and illustrator living in Dublin. I've had plays staged in Bewley's Café Theatre, Theatre Upstairs and Cork Arts Theatre. My second love is drawing.
After an early career in Animation and Graphic Design, I now mainly draw and design for myself (along with the occasional caricature for others). In addition, I drink up to six cups of tea a day.
What is your favourite social media platform, and why?
Instagram, for inspiration and dopamine.
Tell us about you and your current role or area of interest.
I won't bore you with the day job. It is what it is and allows me to indulge in those silly frivolities like bread and milk. It does, however, come with a decent amount of work-life balance and is flexible enough to allow me to work on passion projects. I suppose I'm interested in clever arresting design or the type of illustrations you can gaze at.
Art and creativity, for me, are not a pastime; they're a reason to be. It's how I tell the world who I am. As an introvert growing up, that was crucial. That I can't really do it for a living is something that I've come to accept, along with grey hairs. But, it also means I create what I want.
What do you like about your career or area of focus?
You lose time when creating. You're neither here nor there - just lost in that liminal abstract space where (if you're creative) you know you are meant to be. I always say I love drawing when I'm doing it, but I love 'having done' writing. Writing is a more painful a process for me. It bleeds out of me where art flows through me onto the page/tablet.
What is the best advice you have ever received?
Dabit deus his quoque finem.
What inspires you, motivates you, or helps you to move forward?
Silence, hope, sunshine, man’s humanity to man, the utterly carefree way children draw, horror movies, the choices people make when they are cornered, a blank page in a yellow legal pad, a blank stage, tea, books, dogs of any variety, my partner, my sister, anything paranormal, the Unexplained Podcast, meditation (TM or guided), the band Everything Everything, the strength of women, chocolate and the knowledge that the elephant can only be eaten one bite at a time.
What are you proud of in your life so far?
That I have survived an unstable life in a harsh world. The very fact that anyone washes dresses themselves, and leaves the house at all is a huge achievement. Unfortunately, the world generally doesn't acknowledge this.
I believe that 90% of life is just showing up. We need to congratulate ourselves on the difficulty in getting there. "Life is pain," said the Dread Pirate Roberts. "Anyone who says differently is selling something."
What is your preferred way to meet new people/network?
I'm not terribly good at this. But, ironically enough, the advent of meeting by zoom during the pandemic has been a help to people like me who aren't good at the old small talk. It allows you a bit of distance to breathe. So, generally, the advice I give to people (and sometimes even take myself) is to surround yourself with people who like what you like.
If you join a life drawing class or a writing course, you instantly have something to talk about. Creative people are special people. Chances are you are special too. Writing and creating can also be quite lonely pursuits, so you become acutely aware of the need for time with other people. This can be difficult if it doesn't come easy to you. I firmly believe all humans should be taken to the park once a week to socialise the way dogs are.
What skills or qualities do you feel have helped you?
Determination - I will not rest until I get the sentence or the shape on the page that is in my head. I hate re-drawing and re-writing, but I force myself to do it. If it doesn't work, erase it and start again. What you come up with next may be the one that's perfect (for you) and frequently is. I'm also a good listener. This helps in taking design briefs and sniffing out subtexts.
Finally, I have an overabundance of empathy. This is a pain in the backside a lot of the time but 'feeling deeply, and a lot is often the fuel that lifts the rocket and the key to the creative locker (to mix metaphors). You know that Americanism 'get out of your own way'? - well, that's true too. Just sit down and begin, no matter how you feel. You'll be out of your own way and creating in no time.
What do you wish you had known when you started out?
Although Ireland sells itself as a country that appreciates its artists and writers, it's still an uphill battle to get gainful employment in this field. Luckily the artists and writers I have met along the way have been incredibly generous with their time and advice. And the fact that we punch well above our creative weight as a small island on the world stage shows just how determined and talented Irish people are. If I had my way, art would be a viable apprenticeship, not an Everest ascent.
Who do you most admire in business, academic or creative circles and why?
I don't care if it's a cliche - the answer is Banksy. As far as I'm concerned, he's the master of clever, thoughtful art. Every time I think I've got a handle on who he is (if he is indeed a he), he spins expectations and once again knocks my jaw open. I don't know how to describe what he does - fully caffeinated? Genius? Whatever it is, it scratches some deep itch in me that I never knew was there.
Myself and my partner painted a Dublin Canvas box once in the style of a box of Tic Tacs; only it said 'Don't use nasty TacTics' - the reactions of passers-by during those few days were a real eye-opener. When you present people with art that makes them think, they reveal themselves in the oddest ways.
Outside of your professional/work area, what hobbies or interests do you have or what other areas of your life are of real importance to you?
I love old tech - old tape recorders and typewriters. I bought my dream typewriter, a yellow Adler Tippa S, a couple of years ago, the make and model Kubrick used when writing The Shining (nerd). As mentioned previously, dogs are basically the meaning of life, and I am fascinated with Victorian and Edwardian Ghost Stories.
Has the pandemic had a positive or a negative effect on you and/or your business, and how have you managed it?
Not on my creativity per se (as I do a lot of digital stuff), but personally, it has had a negative effect. Going into the first lockdown, I thought to myself, "this will be a piece of cake for an introvert" - Not so. It affected me just as badly as it did your average extrovert but in a different way.
It's possible to be too much in your comfort zone, and when the restrictions finally lifted, it was a bit like coming out of hibernation. Luckily live music is a great help to pull me back into society. I'm just thankful that most of the coffee shops I love survived pandemic. We lost an incredible book shop in Dublin, though. Heartbreaking.
Do you have a mentor, or have you ever mentored anyone?
The director of the first play I ever had staged was the closest I've ever had to a Mentor. He's a legendary Irish actor, and I'll always be thankful to him. I've never thought about mentoring someone, but I could probably do it creatively speaking. I've never been asked that question before. It has me thinking.
What advice would you have for someone looking to get into the same area of work or interests?
I could literally plaster my walls with rejection letters (and e-mails). Don't be afraid of rejection. If someone says you aren't good enough yet, thank them politely for their feedback and go right back to creating. People paint and write and create not because they want to but because they can't not do it. It's who they are. At no point did I ever create something to chase a trend or because it's commercially smart (unless I was being paid to).
I listen to the voice inside and do what it tells me to do. No matter if it's sculpting, sketching, writing, painting, film-making, toy-making, whatever the medium - I make it because it's what I want to make. If you stick to that, you'll have a unique voice. So, by all means, seek inspiration and hone your skills but always ask, "what do I want to do?"
What do you feel is the most common reason for people failing or giving up?
Oh, there's a temptation to say that if someone gave up on something, did they ever really want it? But life is more complicated than that. Life gets in the way. Mental and physical health issues can rob you of the precious time you need to succeed. This sounds twee, but it's true - if you never give up, you can't fail.
Just google Terry Gilliam's journey to making Don Quixote or how long it took Proust to write In Search of Lost Time. I'm sure their lives were a daily negotiation with failure, but they wrestled with it till bedtime and started again the next day. So, ask yourself the question, "Is a lifetime of trying a life of failure?" I don't think so.
Is there a phrase, quote or a saying that you really like?
Onwards... (stolen from the great Karl Shiels).
What companies, brands, or institutions do you like or do you think are getting it right?
Global Citizen, Dogs Trust and (with all due respect) Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
How do you define success, and what lessons have you learned so far that you could share with our audience/readership?
Success is getting out of bed every day. Success is also not beating yourself up if you can't get out of bed some days. I find it hard to remember my successes, so keep a diary, and take pictures of things you've created or events you were a part of. Then, make a note of it. It's very difficult to say 'I'm a failure' when you have concrete evidence to the contrary.
In terms of lessons learned? Understand that not everybody will like your stuff; not everybody will even understand your stuff. This is not a cause for alarm. Take a breather for as long as you need to,` and remind yourself why you like what you like. It's ok to be jealous or envious of other creatives when they knock it out of the park (as long as you don't express it outwardly, that's so unattractive). It just means that you have passion, and you strive to be great as well. Celebrate others' achievements (even if you are green inside). Artists support other artists; if someone is arrogant or dismissive of your work, just leave them off. That's their own journey. You are your own flavour.