Officially the longest Move to Tacoma Podcast episode to date, this meandering interview with Tacoma enigma RR Anderson covers he and his wife Ms. Darcy’s journey from Alaska to Tacoma- and tells the story of their lives as artists, parents, activists, and entrepreneurs in the City of Destiny. It can be hard to know whether you’re hearing RR Anderson the passionate Tacoman or RR Anderson the gleeful instigator of local drama- but figuring that out is half the fun.
RR Anderson is a unique (and sometimes controversial) character on the Tacoma arts, business, and political scenes. Whether he’s starting fights on the internet, making controversial political cartoons, or staging a fake occupation of the doomed Luzon building- RR Anderson is never boring.
“I draw stuff to purposefully provoke passion… I like to draw things that you don’t normally see to shock people.”
“I am a political cartoonist so I like to…inject it wherever possible.” says RR Anderson of the origins of his weekly political cartoons. “There was a need for a cartoonist to make fun of local politicians.”
He’s come a long way from instigator and freelance artist to established (and beloved) local business owner since opening Tinkertopia with SpaceWorks. “We just lucked out. The planets aligned and we got the best space ever,” says RR Anderson of Tinkertopia’s choice Pacific Avenue location.
“You can start something here and it’s possible to grow it into something and you don’t have to bump elbows constantly with like the mass- like the crazy tech bubble in Seattle… I think it’s just silly the people that are like, “Keep Tacoma Feared!” or “Don’t bring those jerks here!” kind of thing are people who have come here and then staked out a claim and claimed something and now they don’t want competition for that thing.”
Show Notes:
Tinkertopia – RR Anderson’s amazing creative reuse store on Tacoma’s Pacific Avenue
Tacomic – RR Anderon’s weekly political cartoons
Spaceworks – The non profit that helped RR Anderson and Ms. Darcy find space to open their shop and provided business counseling.
C.L.A.W. – The Cartoonists League of Absurd Washingtonians (secret society that promotes the radical cartoonist agenda)