Jeff Daverman is an artist and a man on a mission to give people means to express their thoughts and feelings, with stickers. While much has evolved and changed over the years, stickers are still a medium that makes art accessible to everyone.
“My favorite thing about developing Root Concepts 30 years ago is that when someone displays a Root Concepts sticker it becomes an intentional creative expression that represents them in the world. I’m honored to be the conduit of that connection, it’s what an artist hopes to do,” Jeff explains. He first learned how to use a pencil from his grandfather, who gave him a love of art and designed Jeff’s “I Love Trees” sticker, one of his first.
Root Concepts turns 30
Jeff is celebrating the 30th anniversary of forming a partnership called Infamous Network with friend Jon Vander Pol and Root Concepts, the line of artwork they designed. Using a silkscreen process to print, they published their first catalog and started selling all over the country. In 2007 the company evolved into Infamous Network Custom Sticker Makers, and replaced silk-screening with digital printing equipment. “When we got the digital printing equipment, that allowed us to print full-color and die-cut stickers in any shape. That’s when we started Custom Sticker Makers, and that investment allowed us to offer custom printing to anybody who wanted it. We do a lot of special orders.”
Today they are preparing the new Root Concepts catalog with over two dozen new designs, to mail to 500 stores next month.
“Traditionally over the past thirty years the way that we’ve sold our stickers is by wholesaling to stores all around the country. We plan to mail our new catalog to independent bookstores, head-shop type stores, gift shops, import and natural food stores, and coops, stores that have a degree of consciousness or fun elements. For the first 22 years I traveled around the country meeting with store owners and buyers and setting up the line in their stores.
“I haven’t come out with any new Root Concepts stickers in eight years, and there are many reasons for that. My creativity has gone in a different direction, where I’ve done much more public speaking and spoken poetry, and I’ve just done other things where I moved a little away from what I did for 22 years.”
These days Jeff has also turned his focus to his art. Working in a studio in the Art Hive, he sells both his stickers and his original artwork. “It’s very satisfying to be able to express my creativity this way again, and to have a supportive community like the Art Hive.”
“With Root Concepts I feel like the thing that we’re putting out into the world is relevant, something that’s going to be well received, and I’m excited to see what the response is. One of the things I did at Fourth Friday last month at Art Hive was bring some of the new stickers and ask people who came in which ones were their favorites. It’s great to get feedback on what you’re doing before you’ve done it. It was interesting to see they all picked different ones. That’s the best-case scenario for me; it means that people are attracted to different things. It allows an individual to express themselves in a time where there’s an affordability crisis in this country and freedom-of-speech issues. No matter what your pay rate is, what job you work at, you can walk into a store or on the Internet and find a sticker that resonates with you, or as a gift for somebody.”
Living from the Inside Out
Jeff’s uncle Douglas Holwerda is a psychotherapist, author, artist and someone who has had a big impact on Jeff’s life. His book Living from the Inside Out, subtitled From Self-Awareness to Self-Acceptance, is essentially a guidebook for an individual who’s interested in knowing their inner self. “When my uncle came out with the book, I thought it would be a fit for a lot of the stores that sell our stickers, so I included it on the back inside cover of the new catalog. The Peregrine Bookstore in Prescott carries both our stickers and the book.”
“Our 30th anniversary comes with sense of deep gratitude for all the support we have felt through the years. If you have ever slapped a Root Concepts sticker on anything (I know that is a lot of you), thanks you for helping to spread the positive vibrations of Root Concepts for the past three decades.”
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