By Roxanne Brown
Groveland Artist Jason Granger Turns Doodles Into Ink Worlds
Sometimes Jason Granger knows exactly what he wants to draw.
Other times, the 18-year-old Groveland artist stares at a blank sheet of paper for 30 minutes waiting for an idea.
Eventually, one comes.
Jason starts small, sketching a rough layout before moving to a larger surface and adding the layers of faces, figures and details that have become a signature of his work.
His elaborate compositions can bring favorite musicians, movie villains, celebrities and cartoon characters together on a single page. Jason describes his style as a culmination of influences, including graffiti and large-scale murals.
Some pieces take up to a month and a half to complete.
Most begin in pencil, followed by ink pens for the strong black outlines prominent throughout his work. He uses alcohol brush markers for color, sometimes adding colored pencils or paint markers for texture.
Jason’s fascination with filling blank pages started at age 2 when his grandmother gave him paper to doodle on while she babysat him. His parents soon noticed he wasn’t simply scribbling; he was drawing recognizable eyes, noses and faces.
“I feel like my family has definitely been the main reason why I kept drawing,” Jason says.
Hundreds of sketchbooks followed.
Around age 8 or 9, encouragement from his dad and other people who saw his drawings made Jason realize his talent could become something more. He also found inspiration online in VEXX, a street-art and doodle-style artist whose densely packed illustrations helped show Jason what was possible creatively and professionally.
By 16, he was exhibiting work in Oakland. He later joined the South Lake Art League, where his pieces were featured earlier this year in the league’s downtown Clermont window.
Now, the recent Hope Preparatory Academy graduate is a student at Savannah College of Art and Design, where he hopes to pursue sequential art, including comics and storyboarding, while exploring concept art.
He’s ready for the new challenge.
Jason says a piece can bring anxiety as it develops, but those emotional ups and downs make finishing it more satisfying.
His advice to other aspiring artists is considerably simpler.
“Just create no matter what,” Jason says. “If you feel that in you, you should do it.”
Photos: Nicole Hamel
Tell us!
Tell us!
Tell us!
Originally from Nogales, Arizona, Roxanne worked in the customer service industry while practicing freelance writing for years. She came on board with Akers Media in July 2020 as a full-time staff writer for Lake & Sumter Style Magazine and was promoted to Managing Editor in October 2023—her dream job come true. Prior to that and after just having moved to Florida in 1999, Roxanne had re-directed her prior career path to focus more on journalism and went on to become a reporter for The Daily Commercial/South Lake Press newspapers for 16 years. Additionally, Roxanne—now an award-winning journalist recognized by the Florida Press Club and the Florida chapter of The Society of Professional Journalism—continues working toward her secondary goal of becoming a published author of children’s books.
