Check Out Saige Shuquem’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Saige Shuquem.

Hi Saige, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I started StopGap in 2019 when I wasn’t in school, between jobs, and had no idea what I wanted to do. The term “stop-gap” literally means “a temporary way of dealing with a problem or satisfying a need”. My problem was that I was unemployed, out of school and severely depressed after the ending of an important relationship. I needed a creative outlet to fill my time and feel productive and capable, thus StopGap by Saige Shuquem was born. I started posting simple digital drawings I had done on Procreate to my Instagram. I eventually refined my style down to line work with pops of color and began to design tattoos for myself and family members in that style. Then, after just a few months of posting on Instagram, I was asked by my friend MaKenna Schmit to design a logo for her hair and nail business, Polished and Styled. The popularity of her logo encouraged me to continue to refine my style and post regularly on Instagram. Throughout 2019 and 2020, I created tattoos, logos, and portraits for a small network of friends and acquaintances.

Alongside my work for StopGap, I also worked with collage and mixed media. I began creating collages in late 2017 and it quickly became my favorite medium. I created greeting card and postcard-sized projects that I sold in packs. I then moved onto bigger pieces, creating my collages straight onto glass frames to make “floating” frame collages, cardboard, wood, canvas, and any other surface I could find. I did these pieces mostly for fun and for gifts until early 2020 when a mixed-media series of mine was selected to be a part of the Femme Fatale Exhibition put on by Caitlyn Swift, Alexandra Lund, and Paige Pflueger at The Cube Colony in Tucson, AZ. The gallery was sadly moved online due to the pandemic but I was still able to have my art shown in a virtual gallery alongside 20 other amazing female-identifying artists. Around the same time, the same series of mine, called Overgrowth, was selected to be published in Scottsdale Community College’s yearly publication, Vortex. Though I mostly just do my collages and work on StopGap for fun, I have been so lucky to be recognized locally for my work and am continually working on plans to expand my small art business into something bigger.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
My biggest struggle along the way has been my own lack of motivation to create. I’ve struggled with Major Depression Disorder and Generalized Anxiety Disorder since I was 15. When I am severely depressed, I have no motivation to create and also no desire to share was I do create with anyone. When I’m doing well and create something I’m proud of, I’m excited to share it and often get very positive feedback, but those times are few and far between. I hesitate to take on bigger projects because I need the instant gratification of completing a project in one sitting, which is nearly impossible to do with the bigger more complicated pieces I want to try. For the better part of the three years that I’ve been producing art regularly, I’ve been stuck in a rut of only doing the same postcard-sized collage pieces and over-simplified digital portraits. They’re easy and fun and well-liked, but I have bigger ideas that I just haven’t been able to bring to fruition yet. My four-piece series, Overgrowth, which was featured in a gallery and a small college publication, was created during a time that I was doing really well with my mental health and had the patience with myself and my process to let myself create something new. I feel like throughout my career as an artist, I have been my own greatest obstacle.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am a collage artist, and I also do digital tattoo and logo design. I’ll tell you a little bit about each individually. Firstly, as a collage artist, I specialize in greeting cards. I make small postcard-sized pieces that I adhere onto blank cards and sell in packs of four. Each one is completely unique and handmade by me. I also make bigger collage pieces on glass, wood, cardboard, canvas, etc. I love collage because I am able to take completely unique images and make them a part of something bigger and even more beautiful. Paper is my favorite medium to work with and I love the endless ways it can be folded, cut, overlapped, etc. to make something unique and brand new.

As a digital artist, I have a unique style of line art that I do completely by hand. I use the Procreate app and an Apple Pencil to hand-draw images. Drawing is not my strong suit, so I start most of my pieces by tracing a reference image. From there, I add my own unique details and pops of color. I’ve sold tattoos, logos, and portraits (of individual people, families, pets, etc.) to friends and customers I’ve met through my Instagram page, StopGap (@stop.gap).

Because both my collages and digital drawing are done completely by hand, there is no replication. Every piece I make is completely individualized. I don’t reuse designs or make copies of them. I don’t sell prints, so every piece I make and sell is an original, which I think makes everything I make that much more special.

Any big plans?
My ultimate goal is to have a physical shop in which to sell my, and all my friends, art. I’d like a retail storefront/makers space where local Arizona artists can create and sell their work all in one place. Until then, I am hoping to expand my audience on Instagram and create an Etsy shop. StopGap was never meant to be a full-time business, in fact when it began I expected it to be a short-term project. But since it’s started, I’ve really grown to love tattoo and logo design and hope to reach more clients that are as proud to be represented by my art as I am. As for my collage work, it will always be my favorite hobby and I am constantly looking for new and unique ways to make it more popular.

Pricing:

• Collage Card Packs: 4 cards for $15
• Floating Frame Pieces: starting at $25
• Cardboard, Wood, and Canvas Pieces: starting at $15
• Tattoos and Logos: starting at $40
• Portraits: starting at $20

Contact Info:

• Email: Saige.shuquem@gmail.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/saigeshuquem/
• Other: https://www.instagram.com/stop.gap/