Justin “Scrappers” Morrison
I believe in beginner’s luck. If you don’t know the right way to do things you also don’t know the wrong way. As long as you have a solid idea, a point of view and honest communication you will always make something more then decoration, you will make something culturally significant.
I believe eggs should never be kept in one basket. That’s why I’m a writer, who can illustrate and an artists who can art direct. Sure a person with one job title fits into corporate shoes more comfortably, but let’s face it a person who can fill more then one pair of boots can kick more ass.
I believe branding helps express personality. Whether you’re a business who wants to make money, or a teenager who wants to have fun, having a brand will help you find people with the same intentions. Brands help you cut the crap and get to the point. Unlike stereotypes, you’re in control of your brand. As an artist my brand is naked in the wilderness. As a writer my brand is a sincere conversation at the kitchen table. As a worker my brand is optimistic in the face of impossible obstacles. You see branding isn’t as bad as cattle say it is.
contact:
justin@scrapperstown.com
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
I live in Portland, Oregon. If you want to talk in person, that would be better then all this other junk below. However all this other junk is the way we make contact these days, so feel free to give me a poke.
resume
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
The Portland MERCURY (Portland’s only weekly newspaper)
Winter 2009-Now
Now this is “Art Direction”, right? Crazy ideas, low budget, fast pace, bare-bones crew and all the other magical things it takes to make sure nothing gets in the way of the work. It’s sooooo much fun to just have to solve creative problems and pull idea out of thin (very thin) air as fast as you can. I can’t tell you how much I love this job!!!
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Wieden + Kennedy (ad agency)
Spring 2006-Fall 2008
Dan & Dave are fiercely independent, creative, silly monkeys and the hardest workers I’ve ever had the honor to make stuff with. Although W+K is named after Dan & Dave, most folks don’t work with them directly, but I did. They were my Creative Directors because I was a writer/art director/illustrator on their personal favorite pro bono clients; Travel Oregon and The American Indian College Fund. I also got to work on Starbucks, Nike, Target and other clients, but working with these guys was my favorite. I learned many things from them and heard nearly all their stories (a couple times over, since old guys don’t care if they’ve already told you a story), but the most important thing I learned from them was to stay honest, friendly and to put the work first.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Spring 2006-Spring 2007
(This mural is made of push pins.)
In the 3rd year of the experiment disguised as a school disguised as an ad agency, I busted ass along side the most talented creative communicators in the world. We made a lot of awesome work together and we had solid intentions thanks to our teacher Jelly Helm. He started 12 to encourage Wieden + Kennedy (the company) to do good work for good clients. We thought that if the ad industry insisted on only working with good clients we could change the way business is done, change it for good. So we worked for a sustainable outdoor clothing company, Farm Aid, made global warming awareness TV spots for MTV, helped a magazine called GOOD get off the ground and just made stuff all the time. We may not have changed the way the ad industry works, but now that we’re out of the school we are all trying our hardest to make the industry more like 12 used to be.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Fall 2006-Now
Grass Hut is an Art Market that Bwana Spoons and I built by hand. We ran a gallery, a shop and a studio within the Hut. Over the years we helped solidify Portland’s art scene and give wall space to a lot of artist who are blowing up right now. Bwana and I collaborate with each other and many other artists (Apak, Martin Ontiveros, Le Merde to name a few). We managed the shop, curate the art shows and made advertisements that said more then “Hey, buy some art”. It was a lot of fun and it’s kept me connected to a creative community that spans the friggin globe.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
The Daily Vaguard
(Portland State University’s newspaper)
Winter 2005-Winter 2006
Sure it was just the school paper, but I was freaking nuts. While finishing up my History degree I worked within crazy weekly deadlines as the photography editor, an Arts& Culture writer and an illustrator. That means everyday was a constant rush to write editorials, interview awesome people, photograph random stuff, file manage, doodle and communicate clearly to make impossible things happen. It was a lot of fun
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Anything I did before 2005 was hard manual labor, service industry and crazy random stuff. For example I have danced around in a purple dinosaur costume at the LA zoo, I have gutted salmon for 20 hour shifts in Alaska and I sliced sushi.
a brief list of my other jobs:
-Writer
-Illustrator
-Painter
-Designer
-Sculpter
-Advertiser
-Farter
-Fun Seeker
-Nature Boy
-Portlander
-Music Junkie
-Curator
-Toy Collector
-Fern Licker
-Hipster
-Hippy
-Yuppy
-Retarded
-Stupid
-Engaging
-Interviewer
-Road Tripper
-Dog Wrestler
-Berry Picker/Eater
-Dreamer
-Wing Nut
-Hiker
-Biker
-Skater
-Master Baiter/Fishermen
-Good Tipper
-Grower
-Listener
-Looker
-Smeller
-Free Food Taster
-Can Opener
-Mess Maker
-Dish Washer (part-time)
-Thrift Shopper
-Father
-Husband
-Wife
-Son
-Fire Starter
-Camper
-Beaner
-Head Banger
-Heavy Lifter
-Lifer