When Gary Hirsch was growing up he had a lot of nightmares. On these nights he would sit with his father in the kitchen and draw the monsters from his nightmares. They would stay up for hours and his Dad would help him name these creatures. One his father leaned over and said, " You know, If you can draw them, then you can also erase them." So Gary would draw and erase and after a while the nightmares came a bit less frequently.

These days Gary is obsessed with doodling robots...on dominos. These little guys are designed to interact with the viewer, to give you outrageous compliments (Joy Bot), tell you how much you are loved (Love Bot), Help you be brave (Brave Bot), etc. It's all about the story they tell the viewer, they help you have a conversation with yourself. Of course the Bots don't actually talk, but something about them allows people to imagine that they do, and somehow this helps them feel better, and that is what makes them so much fun to make.


Gary has shown his work in galleries, streets, and museums in Cleveland, Melbourne, Chicago, Seattle, and in his current home of Portland Oregon where you can see his large public works commissioned by the city. When not painting Gary runs a 12 person creative consultancy On Your Feet (www.oyf.com) that uses improv theater and visual art to help some of the world's most successful companies (Nike, Intel, Disney, and others) communicate and relateâEUR¦all while having a ridiculously good time. Held tightly in his hand are degrees in studio art (B.A.) from Earlham College and from Case Western Reserve University (M.A.E).