Blake Mcfarland: From Baseball Player to Tyre Sculptor
How passions come in all shapes and sizes
Growing up many people dream about playing sports for a career. They love sports, their parents love sports and so on. Some say it’s just in their DNA. But, what happens after you’ve lived that dream? Chill in a villa in Spain, go hiking across the world?
Blake McFarland decided to go down a different path. No, it wasn’t the yellow brick road, but it was just as unique. He decided to make sculptures, out of… tyres?!
Read on and discover how Blake went from a baseball player to a tyre artist.
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Can you tell me about your background?
I am from San Jose, CA. Born and raised. I would always make things and draw when I had any downtime when I was young. I played many sports throughout my childhood and excelled in baseball. I received a Scholarship to San Jose State University and played there while getting my BA psychology degree. In 2011 I got signed by the Toronto Blue Jays and ended up playing eight seasons in the minor leagues. During my off-seasons, I would create my artwork for work. I recently retired from baseball in 2018 because of a shoulder injury, and now I am pursuing my second passion for being a full-time artist.
2. What is your passion and how did it come about?
My passion has always been sports. It was not until I had time on my hands in the baseball offseason where I picked up artwork. I created my first tire sculpture in 2012 and was lucky enough for an art gallery to take it in. It was a very influential time in my life because from then on I knew that I could try and create more unique sculptures. I feel like I may have too many passions now. I am an avid spear fisherman, surfer, weightlifter, and artist. I should probably narrow my scope of practice down in the future haha.
3. What does Passion mean to you?
Passion is something that you love and gives you joy. It can be as simple as reading, hiking and so on. I think it is crucial that everybody has at least one passion that he or she can pursue. A good passion takes your mind off everything else going on in your life and focuses you on the task at hand. That is why I love sculpting, surfing, and diving. You cannot think about anything else but the task at hand.
4. Have there been any obstacles in your journey to discovering and working your passion? If so, what and how did you overcome them?
I have had many obstacles along my journey. I started art by painting ocean landscapes. I quickly realised that selling art is extremely hard, and I knew I needed to do something different. That is where my tire sculptures came in. I knew by doing something so unique it would give me a niche that nobody else had. My failure as a painter lead me straight to tire sculptures which are what I mostly still do today.
5. What advice would you give to someone who wants to pursue their passion instead of the normal 9-5 job but is nervous?
If somebody said, he or she wanted to pursue their passion instead of their day job I would tell them that if you are truly serious about it, then do it. First I would advise that they come up with a plan on how they would make a living and tell them that the art world is not easy to get into. They should have a pro’s and con’s list and see if it is feasible. I genuinely think that if they are passionate enough about what they want to do, then they can make it happen.
6. What is your favourite thing about art and why?
My favourite thing about my art is that I get to work with different materials and figure out different ways of using everyday items. I have created a larger than life Buck out of basketball leather for the Milwaukee Bucks which I never thought I could do. I have learned so much along the way, and I have a much broader scope of knowledge after doing so many sculptures. I am always excited to think about what I will be sculpting next.
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Blake is a shining example of how passions can push you to great things. If you can be brave, be prepared and work hard, then you too can live your dreams.
So make a hot drink, sit down and think “What job would make me happy and fulfilled?”. Next step, plan, prepare and execute!
Be bold. Be brave. Be you.
If you want help developing your passions or finding new ones, then head over to PassionDig where we believe in running the marathon with you, every step of the way.
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