Meet Sean Starr | Artist & Sign Painter

We had the good fortune of connecting with Sean Starr and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Sean, what role has risk played in your life or career?
I think over the last few decades risk has been confused with recklessness by some people. By the very nature of being alive, we are exposed to risk daily. Just crossing the street contains an element of risk. Some of the most rewarding experiences of my life and biggest leaps forward with my business as a creative have been when I took risks. Earlier this year we teamed up with the Dallas filmmaking duo Sarah Reyes and Daniel Driensky of Exploredinary to shoot a film in Nepal about traditional craftsmanship. When we got on the plane in late February, no one knew at that time the impact Covid would have on 2020, but we knew there was a risk of getting into a complicated situation as well as the risks involved with using motorcycles to travel through the Himalayas and camping on mountaintops to document half of the film. But we went, we shot the film, and even with running into multiple complications, we made it home and now are in the editing stage of what is shaping up to be an amazing film.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
My entry into art was born out of necessity. My father started a company called Starr Kustom Paint in San Antonio in 1977 and as a teenager, I started working in the shop, doing pinstriping and graphics on old hot rods, trucks, all sorts of vehicles. My father had an incredible work ethic and his children were expected to work just as hard. This led to sign painting and when my father died in 1994 I took a job at a sign shop in Seattle. It wasn’t until 2005 when I moved to San Francisco and started my current business Starr Studios, that I really started to love my work. That was the point that I decided I didn’t care if I was broke and lived off Ramen noodles, I was going to do all hand-painted work and have my central focus be on working creatively. I came back to Texas about 11 or 12 years ago and the business really took off when I got back here. It was about five years ago that I realized that the focused intent that I had set in 2005 had veered off course and I wasn’t enjoying my work as much. As my business grew I was getting busier and making more money but doing less creatively. I started looking for ways to get back to my original goal of working creatively and made some changes last year that allowed that to happen when we relocated our studio to the tiny town of Calvert in Central Texas. There was some worry that not being in the hustle and bustle of DFW might affect our business, but we not only kept our relationships throughout the Dallas area, but it increased the business we have been doing in Houston and Austin as well. By making that change we actually helped the business and were able to purchase an old historic building as a live/work studio which has allowed me to be solely focused on creativity again. This has also opened up the time and focus for other creative opportunities like going to Nepal to shoot a film on hand craftsmanship with Dallas filmmakers Sarah Reyes and Daniel Driensky of Exploredinary. I have also had the time to make original artwork inspired by the thangka painting I was exposed to in Nepal and added gold leaf work on Buddhist and Hindu statues to our services offered here in the studio. For the film, I had the privilege of interviewing and receiving artistic instruction from a genuine thangka master named Tashi Lama who has a thangka school at Boudhanath Stupa in Kathmandu which was built in the 14th century. I can’t describe how good it feels to be back focused on the goals I set out for myself creatively.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
The Dallas area food scene is incredible. Believe it or not one of my favorite stops is the food court at H Mart in Carrollton. It’s an Asian grocery store and there are about 10 food vendors in the food court and it’s all amazing. I also love a place called SpicyZest in Carrollton, which is a Sri Lankan fusion restaurant. In Dallas proper, I really like Kalachandji’s which has a great vegetarian buffet and if I’m downtown the food at Mercat Bistro is top-notch.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Without a doubt, huge gratitude goes to my meditation teacher in Denton, Texas, Becky Klett. There are people that come into your life at just the right time and are game-changers, and that would be the case with Becky. A major shift in my creative process and outlook on life can be traced back to meeting her five years ago.

Website: www.starrstudios.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/starrstudiostx/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/starrstudiostx
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCloVQ2q01kan_qiw24r2nyQ

Image Credits
Photos by Exploredinary