Hi, my name is Ben. My art includes painting, illustration, and print making, but can range from watercolor cartoons to concert posters to sculptures to experimental isometric generative digital work. I’ve had several solo exhibitions and taken part in a variety of group shows around the U.S. I’ve sold artwork to collectors in the U.S. and Internationally. I plan to do more.
What I want to do:
I want to wake up every day and make something. I want to design and paint murals. I want to travel and create spontaneous art. I want to write songs. I want to paint signs. I want to continue to make art better every day. I want to make toys and sculptures. I want to create cartoons and narrative works. I want to write books. I want to output as much art as I can, all the time.
What I have done or continue to do:
I earned my BFA at the University of Nebraska Lincoln, with emphasis in graphic design, and spent nearly 15 years in the industry. I most recently worked as an Interactive Designer at Swanson Russell, a marketing communications company. I teach part-time at Southeast Communty College, in the Graphic Design | Media Arts department. I also taught at UNL for a few semesters in 2010-2012. I currently serve on the Board of Directors for BicycLincoln, a cycling advocacy group. I also served on the Board of Directors for AIGA Nebraska.
I am a musician. I play drums for the Killigans. I began college at UNO as a music major (I even had a Regent’s Scholarship) before switching to art at UNL. I have been musical since childhood, playing piano at an early age, and switched to percussion at about age 10.
I am the founder of eyeskull, an international sticker campaign/art project/design studio. We’ve sent stickers and art to 100’s of cities in lots of countries, and every continent. We have stickers on McMurdo Station (Antarctica) and in Saddam’s palaces (Iraq). I like giving people stickers because of the simple fact of human nature : people like stickers.
http://www.eyeskull.com
I once was a prolific poet, and wrote around 5000 poems in a year. I complied that into a book called Eleven Months. Go find it.
http://www.linkedin.com/in/benswift
Interview
I was lucky enough to be interviewed in High Fructose magazine about my art in 2010. Link: http://hifructose.com/2010/06/04/an-interview-with-ben-swift/
Exhibition History:
2015
“The 1%ers” – Pet Shop Gallery, Omaha, NE (solo)
2014
“The Neon Prairie” Paintings & Studies – the Hot Mess, Lincoln, NE
“Oodles of Doodles” – Screen Ink Gallery, Lincoln, NE (group show)
“Daniel Kroll and Ben Swift : Paintings” – Screen Ink Gallery, Lincoln, NE (group show)
“F-BOMB” – Spatium Gallery, Lincoln, NE (solo)
2012
“Wired to Distant Things” – Tugboat Gallery, Lincoln, NE (group show)
2011
“Suggested Drawings” Duffy’s Tavern, Lincoln, NE (solo)
“Owl Eyes” Emergency Room, Lincoln, NE (solo)
“Recent Work” & “Hot Trash” Screen Ink Gallery, Lincoln, NE (solo)
2010
“Swift (new paintings)” Spatium Gallery, Lincoln, NE (solo)
2009
“Swift X Eyeskull” Screen Ink Gallery, Lincoln, NE (solo)
“Swift – New Artwork” Box Awesome, Lincoln, NE (solo)
“We Ain’t Plastic” – custom vinyl toy group show – The Public, Lincoln, NE (group show)
“Monster Show” Puny, Minneapolis, MN (group show)
“This Aggression Will Not Stand, Man” – Signed and Numbered Gallery, Salt Lake City, UT (group show)
“Toys in the Attic” Minneapolis, MN (group show)
“All the Presidents Men”- Signed and Numbered Gallery, Salt Lake City, UT (group show)
“Freestyle 50” Screen Ink, Lincoln, NE (group show)
2008
“Art Show” Box Awesome, Lincoln, NE (solo)
“A la Carte”- Signed and Numbered Gallery, Salt Lake City, UT (group show)
“Tugboat Presents: 3 Saturday’s Art Series” – Bemis Underground, Omaha, NE (group show)
2007
“AKA” – Custom bandana art – Houston, TX (group show)
“5th Annual Lebowski Fest – Art Show”, Louisville, KY (group show)
2002
“3 Guys”, Doc’s, Lincoln, NE (group show)
2001
Senior Show, Eisentrager-Howard Art Gallery, UNL, Lincoln, NE (group show)
Professional History
I have been a professional designer since 1999. Click here for some work samples : http://design.benswift.com
Independent artist and designer (2014)
Swanson Russell – Interactive Designer (2011-2014)
University of Nebraska at Lincoln – Temporary Lecturer (2010-2012)
Freelance website design (2010)
Pickering Creative Group – Graphic Designer (2009)
aijalon Inc – Senior Interactive and Graphic Designer (2005-2009)
Williams Consulting Group – Website Specialist (2004-2005)
Freelance website design (2003-2004)
USDF – Marketing Specialist / Web Author (2000-2002)
CommGraphics Interactive – Flash Author (1999-2000)
Harmon’s Camera – Digital Photo Restoration (1998)
Awards and Recognitions
Garnered while working for different creative agencies:
Nebraska Addy Award (Silver 2x)
AIGA Nebraska “The Show”
AMA Prism Award
Summit Creative Award
Horizon Interactive Award
American Graphic Design Award
Webby Award
Education
University of Nebraska at Lincoln
Bachelor of Fine Arts • Emphasis in Graphic Design • December 2001
University of Nebraska at Omaha
Regent’s Scholarship recipient.
School of Music • Percussion Performance
1994-1996
Additional Training
Effective Personal Productivity • Leadership Resources • Lincoln, NE