Hank Washington

Hank is an Art director, designer, and illustrator born and raised in the muddy backwoods of Mississippi. Hank grew up in a small town where creativity wasn’t considered a sustainable lifestyle. The morals of the town then were centered around either being a top-tier athlete or working in a job that solely focused on high salaries, which both weren’t considered bad things but the concept of having no ceiling seems like a fairy tale. Being a former athlete, the idea of playing on the next level came to halt at the end of high school.

Inspired by his older brother, Hank was introduced to the idea of creativity by watching his older brother collect music, comics, games, and illustrating doodles in a number of sketchbooks. Over time, Hank developed skills that sparked his interest in design and illustration. After studying design at Mississippi State University, he explored independent projects while working alongside a social media start-up. These projects were a variety of different demands that included branding design, campaign art direction, motion, illustration and more. The clients ranged from out-of-the-garage ideas to brands like Dick’s Sporting Goods. Soon, Hank ventured out to create Hank Designs Studio, a creative studio aimed to help small teams with branding and art direction, in 2016 and worked with clients such as Netflix, Instagram, Snapchat, Fiverr and more. 

In 2018, Hank was working his way back into illustration in the midst of heavy branding work with clients. While exploring digital illustration, he was drawn to the use of texture and vibrant colors. Through commemorative artworks and character exploration, Fuzzies were born. Named by the first client that encouraged that style, Round21, Fuzzies became a universe that allowed interpretation to run wild. Cheeto eyebrows, doughnut lips and geometric body structure were the repeated formula to build out the universe. Over time, the purpose of Fuzzies tied itself more and more to the impact of black culture. Inspired by the unique vibes of vintage cartoons like Doug, Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends, Shark Tale, and even shows like Dragonball Z and the Backyardigans that showed characters who weren’t clearly black but felt like they were part of the culture. Characters like Skeeter from Doug and Wilt from Foster’s Home inspired Hank in a way that culture can be colorful and expressive. Naturally inspired by other artists who interpreted leaders of the culture through different mediums like painting or photography, digital illustration allowed efficient flexibility to show figures in untraditional ways. The swag that Fuzzies embodies allowed each one to have its own attitude, principles, and relatability.  These tend to be reflections of people Hank encounters in real life. The similarities in body parts and differences in attributes of the Fuzzie characters combine individuality with commonality. 

Starting in 2018, Fuzzies didn’t have a purpose outside of being a personal project that didn’t have a purpose outside of Hank’s iPad at the time. After each creation, saving the image and sharing the Fuzzie to instagram was its sole purpose and pipeline; prior to understanding the motivation. With the evolution of NFTs and the crypto space, the opportunity to allow the rest of the world to hold pieces that resonated with them to grow bigger but traditionally evolution always happens on the back of Black culture. Whether it's vernacular, dances, or even music and fashion, the black culture tends to find itself as a stepping stone for others who are not born by or around the culture to thrive instead of the originators or descendants. This is what Fuzzies is on a mission to change. Utilizing visual boldness, Hank looks to create a universe that makes sure representation doesn’t get left behind or used as a stepping stone and being left behind. Hank’s intention is also to ensure the culture is created and fostered by someone from it. Culture is first.