In childhood, and more than anything in school, being distracted was the easiest task to do and there were many ways to achieve it: one of them was to draw. At such a young age, all of this is seen as a simple way to pass the time faster and forget what the teacher says in class. But for Joe Whale, drawing was something more, it was his way of seeing things.
At just 9 years old, the English boy was taken out of his class for drawing doodles for hours, every class regardless of the subject. Joe’s parents, upon speaking with the school principal and understanding the situation, instead of challenging their son, made a decision that will change his life: enroll little Joe in an extracurricular art and drawing course at his school. From this, the life of Whale and his family changed completely.
Joe began his art classes with great enthusiasm, since he was finally going to have a space to express his ideas and share drawing techniques with others. In a short time, both his classmates and his teacher saw that Whale’s gifts were not common for his age, and that his talent was something unique and incredible. What they didn’t imagine was that he would end up being hired by none other than Nike.
Arrival to the media
At just 11 years old, little Joe continued drawing his doodles and impressing whoever saw them, but few knew him and his art, mainly his family and friends. It was then when one of his art teachers asked him if he could upload one of Joe’s drawings to his social networks, with his endorsement and name. Without hesitation, Joe accepted. In just a few days, the doodle had been seen by thousands of people, and the professor suggested he create an Instagram page where he could publish his work, with the aim of reaching more people and sharing his art. Having been created in October 2019, @thejoewhale has more than 150 thousand followers and hundreds of works uploaded and acclaimed by the public. Due to his age and Instagram rules, this account is managed by his father. As a curiosity, one of his works published this year (on May 13 more precisely), is The Obelisk of Buenos Aires intervened by Joe’s doodles, giving it a very original and different touch from the one we see every day on the 9 of July.
“I have been drawing and painting since I was three years old and art has been a very important part of my life: I drew, painted and did crafts every time I could and that has not changed until today” – says Joe in an interview from several years ago – “I have loved art since I was 4 years old, but I started drawing in a doodle and cartoon style when I was 6 years old and I love it when I doodle, I feel like the happiest person in the world because I can express myself fully, since there is no good or evil in art” is one of the phrases that best summarizes Joe’s feeling for art and, above all, for doodles, which are the reason for his nickname “The Doodle Boy.” Mainly, said doodles are of monsters, food, and aliens.
Collaborations, website and clothing line.
By 2021, The Doodle Boy was already a phenomenon throughout the art world, but mainly in his native country, England. There were many media outlets that told his story and gave him greater visibility. Newspapers, radio and television shows praised Joe for his dedication and love of art, which caused many brands to see gold in Joe’s doodles. All this repercussion made Joe Whale and his family create the page https://www.thedoodleboy.com/ , where his works are shown, some of them are sold, as well as a clothing line made based on his doodles. The page is available in several languages (including Spanish), has several currencies enabled to buy his work, and also has a section where The Doodle Boy is shown in videos creating his highly acclaimed murals.
The first major collaboration, curiously, was not with a clothing or children’s brand, but rather with cooking: The Number Four restaurant in the city of Shrewsbury has doodles of “The Doodle Boy” on its walls. As one of its most recurring drawings is food, the firm took advantage of this to have a unique style in its interior, but for Joe Whale, the best was still missing. Last year, in 2022, a mural by Joe where there were some children having fun and playing with each other, caught the attention of one of the most important brands in the world. With an ocean in between, the American Nike set its sights on The Doodle Boy, offering a contract to manufacture a line of footwear. Just weeks ago, it was confirmed that the first pair of this collaboration will be released in 2024, called “The Doodle Boy x Nike”, which is being highly anticipated not only by the public of Joe’s drawing, but also by lovers of Nike sneakers. Nike.
Joe Whale, “The Doodle Boy” is an art and internet phenomenon, but he is also an example for many children and young people around the world. When we like something, nothing else matters, doing what you want is always the best, and with effort and dedication, we can achieve all our dreams. From nothing, to glory.
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