Meet the Artist: Jamie Raezer

Originally from the Philadelphia area, Jamie is driven by sharing his passions for art, snowboarding, and rock climbing with his friends and family. His love for the outdoors, particularly the amazing places around the United States, inspires his creativity and desire to explore.

STORY

“In the winters when I was young I was fortunate enough to have annual vacations that took me west. I learned about snowboarding and the snowboarding culture from these travels. Over the years these trips became such an important part of my life that I knew I had to experience living in the mountains for myself but I was still years away from being able to do that. As high school and the first years of having a driver's license hit, I started going to the local mountain as much as possible. Just a small slope about 45 minutes away with a handful of runs, mostly all park. This is where I grew as a rider. After college and a year of working professionally as a designer, I decided it was time to make the move. So, my cousin and I packed up and moved west to Breckenridge, Colorado.”

THRIVING

After about a year of living in Colorado, Jamie was introduced to Thrive by Thrive Coach Emily Hearle. He instantly connected with the Thrive Accomplice Snowboard and shortly after met the CEO and founder of Thrive Snowboards, Doug Fagel, during one of the Thrive Community Meetups. This inspired Jamie to start designing towards the board he loved and a company he wanted to support. Jamie reached out to the Thrive Team with the first draft of what we now have as the 2018 Thrive Accomplice Graphic. He was then tasked with creating the artwork for the 2018 Poise and is now one of the Thrive’s lead snowboard artists.

INSPIRATIONS

“I come across most of my inspiration for artwork through my experiences living life in the outdoors. I've found that putting myself in places that I've never seen before really helps to initiate my creative process, it lets new thoughts and ideas flood my mind. Which, is how I came up with the inspiration for the Accomplice. I was on a road trip through the west where we spent most of our time in the desert. It was really that trip that gave birth to my Desert Coyote illustration. I could say the same for the Poise. Its design comes from two of my favorite spots to sit and think in Summit County, both are perched on a rock overlooking a high alpine lake and a mountain range.”

FUTURE

“Years down the road from now, I hope to find myself working as a designer in a city that has close access to the spots that I love for riding and climbing. For me, life wouldn't be whole without these things.”  - Jamie Raezer

Thrive Artwork by Jamie Raezer

2018 Thrive Accomplice Snowboard: Desert Coyote Illustration

2018 Thrive Poise Snowboard: High Alpine Illustration

Find Jamie on Instagram: @jaymeraez_art