Who is Tayo Jisi?
‘Ello, I’m Tayo Jisi, the one-woman show behind Sweetart Comics and Sweetart Comics Emporium.
Sweetart Comics Emporium is my lovely little gift shop. You’ll find my own vibrant, whimsical, and heartwarming illustrations on a range of products including greeting cards, art prints, mugs, tote bags and you’ll even find some hand-poured soy wax candles!
Sweetart Comics is a creative service where I help people bring their ideas to life. Find out how I can help you today by clicking here.
“Life is absurd, let’s have a laugh”
Mental Health Advocacy
Mental health and wellbeing is an issue very dear to my heart; there’s a substantial amount of people battling for control over their minds and, unfortunately, not everybody wins.
You might’ve heard of The Myth of Sisyphus but if you haven’t then lean back and relax while I tell you a little story…
Don’t relax too much, open your eyes!
Basically this dude, Sisyphus is cursed to push a boulder uphill only to see it roll to the bottom each and every day, for eternity. Sounds depressing, right? Pretty meaningless, and positively absurd.
Far from a myth for some people, life can feel like an endless cycle of boulder-pushing making it hard to find joy in, well, living, particularly when you’re struggling with mental illness.
Albert Camus’ Myth Of Sisyphus stuck with me. In short, he proposed that the most rational option is to accept the absurdity of life and live boldly in defiance of it. Instead of searching for absolute meaning to our existence on this dusty rock -which is absurd in itself – to find joy where you are and redefine your own meaning.
Easier said than done but I’ve decided to find value and meaning in my ability to use humour and a whole lotta heart to bring stories to life; stories I hope will help people feel less alone and ashamed.
And that folks, is how I came up with my personal philosophy: life is absurd, let’s have a laugh.
Sweet beginnings
Sweetart Comics started as a weekly 3-panel webcomic in 2016. I was using MS Paint and a mouse so as you can see, my drawing skills were primitive (at best) but they received enough positive attention for me to keep going.
Some of the situations depicted in the comics (like the one above) have happened to me in real life while others are an outlet for my over-actively wild imagination.
You can check out some of my earlier webcomics here.
Ethics
Equality, compassion, community, and environmental responsibility are also very important values I hold and you’ll find examples of this in all areas of my work including how I operate Sweetart Comics Emporium.
For example:
- Sweetart Soy Candles are made with 100% pure soy, cotton wick, and essential oils bought from local small businesses such as Nuff Naturals
- My tote bags are printed by Wild and Kind, an ethical independent garment printing company that use waste-reducing printing methods as well as using their profits to tackle loneliness and isolation.
- I’ve also minimised the use of single-use plastics. Biodegradable bubble wrap is used to protect fragile items.
- Greeting cards are used with FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified paper.
Get in touch
If you would like to contact me about freelance work, collaboration proposals, questions about how to send me snacks, or if you’re Daniel Kaluuya, please use the form below, I’d love to hear from you!