Jetpack Jesus is one of my favorite cartoon characters to draw from my childhood. I invented him in 2003 or 2004 and used to draw him quite often. The details of how he came into being are fuzzy now. He is the mascot of this blog because he defines the purpose of this website in a nutshell: daily renewal through creativity, or salvation, if you will. He’s a good guy and his existence is a little ironic if not idiotic. Creativity is all about having fun, stomping out fear, and exploring new frontiers whether they are awesome, quirky, or frankly repelling.
Why does he have a jetpack? you might ask. You might’ve asked the wrong question. Either way the answer is ‘Because I gave him one.’
Origin: When I was about the age of fourteen I was admitted to a mental institution in the children’s ward basically for having too much apathy for the nonsensical, extremely flawed school system that I attended. [At 22 I realize that the core of the problem was a lack of challenge on their part, a lack of drive on mine.] During my two week stay at the institution I made good friends with an eight-year-old girl. She was in the smaller-children’s ward and was there for lacking a will to live. I did a lot of drawing in those days and so one day I handed her a picture of Jetpack Jesus and told her that whenever she felt sad or that she didn’t want to live, to look at the picture and it would act as proof that she had a good friend somewhere. After I was free from that place I didn’t draw Mr. Jesus very often. In fact, this drawing here [scanned and Photoshopped of course] is the first recreation in eight years, give or take.
Creativity comes in many unexpected forms. This unlikely form resurfaced from long ago. I never thought I would draw Jetpack Jesus again, but at the suggestion of a friend he suddenly transformed into a worthy mascot for creativity. He’s got gusto! He’s got silliness! He’s got a jetpack!
Q: What is your favorite thing to draw from your childhood? What is your favorite thing to draw now?
jetpack jesus 
I used to draw these adorable little cartoon crabs on absolutely everything. I used to draw all of the time, actually. I remember getting rejected from the Middle School of the Arts on the grounds that my work was ‘too whimsical, unrealistic,’ which kind of made me feel like shit. I mean, I was a 5th grader. Can you really tell a 5th grader that their art is irrelevant? I mean, I’m glad that msoa exists to further education through art and creativity, but I hardly think I deserved to be turned away, much less have that kind of ego bruise/self esteem hit at 12 years old.
Now, I’m much less of a drawer, but when it comes to painting, I like to mix media on canvas, throwing in glue sometimes and mixing flour and salt in with paints to give them weird textures. I like to paint things that remind me of my friends, such as feathers and spiders. I’d say my work is still too whimsical and unrealistic, but it’s hard to really care when you’re not making it for other people, but in revelry.
I also paint music.
P.S. I love Jetpack Jesus and the story behind him.
Part of me is glad they rejected you because they would have ruined your unique sense of fun! In the long run, is not the the art that was too whimsical and unrealistic the more important art because it still makes you happy?