About Me:

My name is Jacob Neal. I am Secondary Visual Arts Teacher, Freelance Graphic Designer and a Practicing Visual Artist residing in Denver, Colorado. My love for visual arts was cultivated at an early age. One of my first memories of being captivated by art was being introduced to a book called ‘The Rainbow Goblins’ by Ul De Rico. The book, although having a dark theme, is filled with these amazing painted illustrations that seep vibrant colors from each page.

When I think of my relationship with creativity, I am reminded of the lyrics from a San Francisco Bay Area band, Jawbreaker. There is a line from a song titled ‘For Esme’ that reads ‘Never trust an artist who tells you they have a choice’. For me the act of creating is more instinctual and/or habitual. Creativity is more of a necessity than a luxury.

Currently, I spend the majority of my professional time as a Secondary Art Teacher at Kunsmiller Creative Arts Academy (KCAA) in Denver Public Schools. My position at KCAA, over the past  has evolved from solely being a visual arts (specifically Digital Media) teacher to an Academic Program Developer, a Career Counselor and a Resident/School Graphic Designer. More information about this position, included sample lesson plans and examples of student work can be seen HERE.

In addition to teaching, I am also a part time Freelance Graphic Designer. I, since the Spring of 2017, have been working, exclusively, with Crazy Mountain Brewery. Our creative relationship began with the painting of a mural in the Denver Taproom’s beer garden. That initial collaboration opened the door to a variety of other projects, some of which can be seen HERE.