Artworks by Deke Wightman

ART WITHOUT DEADLINES

I'm Deke Wightman, a lifelong artist and visual storyteller with more than 35 years of experience in animation for Disney, Warner Bros., FX's Archer, Peanuts TV specials and many, many more.

I've always loved exploring different visual styles, techniques, and ways of telling stories. Today, that curiosity takes my art in all sorts of directions-from expressive portraits and Japanese ink painting to landscapes, collage, animals, and abstract experiments in all kinds of mediums.

I loved working for different studios, always storyboarding or animating to a new style and a new design, but after a career spent working to deadlines, production pressures and the demands of commercial creativity, the constant stress took a toll on my health. Today, I approach creativity differently, being an introvert and having suffered from severe career burnout, I've come to appreciate the restorative qualities of drawing, painting, experimenting and simply spending time with the creative process. The simple pleasure of slowing down and making art, following an idea and seeing where it leads.

For me, exploration is the point.

I don't believe that creativity needs to fit into one category. I just want to keep exploring.