Name: Kurt Dinse
Comics: One Year in Indiana   
Websites: www.pungentbasementart.com

QRD – How old were you when you first realized you wanted to be a professional artist? 

Kurt – I suppose I decided after I became a failed musician around the turn of the century.

QRD – What are a few highlights of your artistic career?

Kurt – I like to go out of state for cons, it makes me feel like a big time art guy.

QRD – At what age did you decide you wanted to become a father?

Kurt – That question assumes that I decided & was prepared to be a father, I was NOT prepared to be a father, but my wife & I thought it would be a good idea to have kids about seven years ago.

QRD – What are some positive & negative impacts your family has had on your career?  

Kurt – The negatives I guess are the standard parent stuff like time & lack thereof. I wouldn’t say there are impacts on my work due to my kids; I try to keep them first.

QRD – What are some positive & negative impacts your career has had on your family?

Kurt – I don’t let my work get in the way of day to day stuff, I may be gone for a weekend at a nerd-a-con, but I try to keep family first. The biggest positive is that my son loves to draw.

QRD – Have your children effected the art you make &/or are into?

Kurt – I am starting to like & know some awesome kids book artists like William Wallace Denslow & Tedd Arnold.

QRD – Have you had problems with the lack of steady money from an artistic career providing the security you feel necessary in your household?

Kurt – No problems, there is no steady money & my wife & I know that.

QRD – Given the limitations having a family has on appearing at conventions, would you have done more earlier in life if you’d known?

Kurt – I’d have drawn more with more confidence & had a wider perspective toward art & comics.

QRD – Do you think being a father or an artist has a bigger impact on your community?

Kurt – I haven’t used either that much for my community.

QRD – Would you rather see your children eventually become artists or parents?

Kurt – I think that they could do both if they wanted to. They are not mutually exclusive.

QRD – Both family & music seem like things that will take up as much of your time as you’re willing to put in. How do you end up dividing your time?

Kurt – Family & all the obligations from that come first, then art. When art demands more time then I will find that time. I have a pretty good balance right now.

QRD – What do your kids think of your comics?

Kurt – I let them see some of the pictures, but now my oldest can read so I got to kinda keep some of them unavailable. A few choice words from the book should not be used on the playground.

QRD – Do you think you could ever do a comic project with your children?

Kurt – You should ask them.

QRD – Any words of advice to young people?

Kurt – Something like “keep reaching for the sky” or “don’t just lick stuff”? I’d just tell ‘em don’t be afraid of anything.

Other QRD interviews with Kurt Dinse:
Mini-Comic Creator Interview Series - Kurt Dinse - One Year in Indiana & HURR (February 2011)