Chuck Ingwersen is a freelance cartoonist and comic artist from Chicago who specializes in funny greeting cards that "fly off store shelves (when tiny motorized wings are attached to them)". Besides that, he creates the funny webcomic "Captain Scratchy" and posts uplifting comics on Instagram every day. Chuck told Bored Panda that he loves animals, so the majority of his cartoons and comics focus on the animal kingdom. However, one can also find "some ridiculous humans" in his work.
The artist was previously working as a newspaper journalist (reporter, columnist, editor and page designer) and enjoyed it a lot, but he wanted to be a cartoonist ever since he was a kid. "I drew constantly as a kid, and I've hand-drawn countless funny greeting cards for friends and families ever since I was very young."
Chuck left his work as a journalist and began his freelance cartooning career in 2008. First he created a website called "Words and Toons", which featured his cartoons and humor writing. A few years later he created his Captain Scratchy site, which is "still going strong." When asked how he comes up with ideas, the artist told Bored Panda that he has always had a creative streak and a love for cartoons, comics, humor writing and humor in general. "The Far Side was a huge influence for me, along with so many others. I have what you might call an overactive brain, so I'm constantly thinking up comic ideas throughout each day." Even though we previously presented Chuck Ingwersen as an artist who creates fun comics, he himself likes to think that his comics range from uplifting to seriously dark. "I try to explore the human condition in a humorous way, and very often I explore it using animals as stand-ins for humans."
It can take anywhere from an hour to four or five hours to create one fully finished piece of artwork. It depends on how intricate the illustration is. "I don't often delve into very long-form comics, so most of my work falls in the three-to-four-hour range."
Seeing "Captain Chuck" comics appearing on Instagram every day, we got curious whether the artist ever feels burned out by doing creative work. It is, however, not the case for Chuck. He revealed that he generally controls the pace of his work. He tries to complete at least one finished cartoon or comic every day, and some days he goes well beyond that. As his following online has increased, he is even more motivated to create new content! Chuck has now more than 4,700 followers on Instagram, and the number is growing!
We noticed that sharks appear a lot in Chuck's comics. He shared with us that he is a huge fan of sharks, partly inspired by one of his favorite movies of all time—Jaws. "It helps that sharks are relatively easy to draw. And you've got to love those teeth! The response to my shark comics has been great, and I've focused on them much more in recent months."
Chuck Ingwersen loves working on the composition of the comic and getting the facial expressions just right. He said that after coming up with an idea that he thinks is worth drawing, it's gratifying to make it come to life through the art process. "It's also a real kick to add some extra touches even after the whole process is essentially finished."
The artist posts his cartoons and comics on Instagram, @captainscratchy, every day. He has his own website, captainscratchy.com, and he also sells his artwork online (primarily on Zazzle). Chuck does freelance work, creating funny greeting cards for several major card companies, including Hallmark's Shoebox cards and RSVP Cards' Wicked Funny category.
