A young Case Jernigan attended art school in a romantic, disheveled Victorian home in Charleston, SC. It’s now a popular brunch spot. A local painter took him under his wing and encouraged him to draw, draw, draw. He travelled to Italy, graduated from William & Mary, taught high school kids, and wrote three quarters of a boring novel… but he continued to draw. In the countryside of Connecticut, he knew his paintings and drawings lacked urgency. So he packed his belongings and settled into a East Village walkup, where he kept company with some friendly mice. He attended the New York Studio School and met inspirational figures. He painted in the historic studio of his hero, Philip Guston, and in the evenings he could convince himself of the presence of that great artistic spirit.
He began to play with paper, with shape and layering and accumulation. He moved into a cold but light filled studio in East Williamsburg. A true child of the 80s and 90s, early influences upon his drawing came back with a vengeance. Cross section picture books, early studies of Greek mythology, classic video games, animation on Saturday mornings, and comic books. He decided to make his paper figures move. Fast forward a few years, and he still works in East Williamsburg.
He has made cutouts for the New York Times, a mural for Adidas, and illustrations for fashion brands like kate spade and Fairplay. He’s crafted stop-motion and drawing based animations for soccer teams like Chelsea FC, the LA Galaxy, and the Portland Timbers. With his buddy and soccer teammate, Josh Giunta, they formed Make Savvy, a small but friendly animation and sound company. They’ve teamed up to make work for The Guardian, Nike, NYCFC, and Juventus FC. Their videos have been featured as Vimeo Staff Picks and even praised by the great Ronaldinho himself.
Other Projects: Off-Foot Soccer and Make Savvy Studio
Selected Press
'Relearning the Art of Soccer,' Communication Arts, Fall 2016.
'Case Jernigan - Off-Foot,' Rob Alderson, WeTransfer, June 2016.
'In Conversation with Football Artist Case Jernigan,' Matt Stanger, The Set Pieces, May 2016.
New York Artist Releases Unique Short Animated Film Detailing History of Soccer, MLS Sideline, July 2015.
Football Art: Case Jernigan Provides ‘A Brief History of Soccer’ in Beautiful Stop Motion Animation Form,” Who Ate All the Pies, July 2015.
“Lionel Messi’s Latest Masterpiece Recreated in Charming Animation,” Adam Hurrey, The Telegraph, June 2015.
“Our Favorite Things this Week: From Zinedine Zidane to Ugly Wallpapers,” The Guardian, November 2014.