Megan Berkheiser and Mike Caldwell are two artists who own an illustration company called 'Pushart' where they are constantly pushing the limits of their creativity to create amazing illustrations.

Pushart specializes in creating 3D conceptual illustrations constructed using everything from paper, photos or any object that the duo thinks is fit. The illustrations created are used for editorial, advertising and marketing purposes by different companies and brands.

These 3D illustrations are a unique blend of hand drawn illustration, photography, digital imaging and installation art. The best thing about these illustrations is their detailing like shadows and features - everything is perfect.

Megan is a New York-based illustrator by profession who has done her masters from the School of Visual Arts and Mike is a theater person who helps Megan with all the behind-the-scene work.

Pushart has made illustrations for big names like the Times Magazine, Penguin Publishing, The Wall Street Journal, etc.

To know more about Megan, Mike and their company Pushart, read on our exclusive interview with the duo.

Happy reading!

1. Hi Megan, please introduce yourself and Mike to our readers.

Mike and I are two artists whom come together to collaborate, build and create three-dimensional illustrations for editorial, advertising and book markets. Megan's background is in illustration, as she earned an MFA from the School of Visual Arts, and lived and worked in NYC for 12 years.  Mike's background is in theater as he also works as a stagehand.

2. What is Pushart? What inspired you guys to come up with it?

Pushart is the name of our illustration company. The concept behind this name is two artists pushing the limits of conceptual image-making. Also, the name Pushart is easier to remember than our longish different last names.

Pushart illustrations are three-dimensional tabletop sets, which are meticulously constructed bit-by-bit and piece-by-piece with an eclectic array of photo's, handmade elements, and found objects. If an element Pushart needs doesn't exist, they fabricate it. It is Pushart's own completely unique blend of hand drawn illustration, photography, digital imaging and installation art. Each completed set is carefully lit and photographed. The shadows that give the images such depth come directly from the lighting of the set. Megan Berkheiser and partner, Mike Caldwell, along with their four bad cats, collaborate to create three-dimensional conceptual assemblage style illustrations for the editorial, advertising and book markets.




Mike is also a musician and Meg enjoys alternative forms of image making. Megan creates Photo-transfer images as well as three-dimensional illustrations.

4. One thing I must say, your illustrations are amazing. How do you choose the subject of your illustrations? Do you like to work on a specific theme?

Thank-you for the compliment. The subject of our work is somewhat determined by the content of the illustration assignments we receive. Depending on the publication and art director we have more freedom with some illustrations than others. We often try to weave symbols that have to do with nature as well as contemporary lifestyle into our work.

5. One of my personal favorite is the Wish Upon A Bubble. What is the story behind this illustration?

Wish upon a bubble was an illustration assignment we received from Orange Coast Magazine which was about breast augmentation… we first wanted to find an appropriate metaphor to convey the theme of breast augmentation. Second we hoped to create an image which would capture the viewers attention and ask them to read the article and decide if breast augmentation was a good thing to pursue without coming across as preachy in any way but in a way which leaves the decision up to the viewer after learning about the risks involved.


Hmmm…. I think we both love to work on commissioned projects which we can breathe new life into, or work on them in a way which is personal onto our own experience and visual vocabulary.

Well, I think one of the best compliments we received was just after our poster was installed in the subway in NYC, one of the conductors from the MTA called to ask if the train car indeed had a conductor inside the car and was the conductor a man or a woman. I guess this meant the piece was successful not to only artist but also to train people.

7. Lets have a rapid fire round:

Are you guys a tea or coffee person?
Mostly “peppermint tea” however depending upon the hour coffee is also a good thing. 

Your favorite genre of music?
Meg loves independent alternative, mike is a rock and roller. 

Which of your creations is your absolute favorite? (This could be a hard one to answer)
“Smarter, Greener, Better” our MTA poster due to the content and sheer challenge to create.

Well, we both love the artist's work we see sold through Etsy and wanted to be a part of the creative community which makes up Etsy. And, we do have a link from our website to our Etsy page.

9. What sort of activities do you guys like to pursue in your free time? Which of these do you find to be most de-stressing?

We do not have much free time ever, however we do have five cats whom we love very much as well as hunting around thrift shops to see what we can find as well as visit MOMA & The Met.

10. If you guys could peek inside the studio/toolbox of any designer/artist/photographer, whose would it be and why?

Alexander Calder when he created the circus due to his inventiveness.

11. What are your future plans as an artist?

Mike and I hope to continue to create artwork for illustration as well as branch out into creating installations as well.

12. What would be your most valuable advice to budding artists?

Never stop dreaming.

Thanks Megan and Mike for taking out the time and doing this interview with us. We'd like to wish you both all the best for the future.

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