From a party-hat-wearing “Silly Goose” to an upside-down tree floating away on balloons, Andy Natusch’s T-shirts are playful, sometimes irreverent, and unmistakably his own. “I get inspiration everywhere,” he says. “The ideas come randomly, like in-the-shower thoughts, or something I overheard, or even if I see a shirt I like, but think I could do a better version of it.” The local artist creates each design for Artisan Tees (opens in a new tab), the eco-friendly clothing brand he runs with his wife, Jessie.
Prior to the couple’s move to Charleston in 2011, Natusch was painting and selling oil and acrylic landscapes and seascapes from his hometown in Boone, North Carolina. His business took a hit in 2008 during the economic crisis, but he was determined to sustain himself by making art, while also keeping it accessible and affordable.
In 2011, he bought a printing press and taught himself how to use it, transferring his designs with water-based inks onto preshrunk T-shirts—to mitigate the common issue of shrinkage found across the market—and later tank tops, sweatshirts, and hats. The pair sold at festivals, on Etsy, and at the Charleston Pour House market until a T-shirt vendor booth opened up in the City Market five years ago.
Now, their selection has expanded from four designs to an ever-evolving selection of hundreds, some Charleston-related and others quirky images.
Andy and Jessie have printed more than 100,000 clothing items since 2021, and partner with One Tree Planted, a nonprofit that donates $1 from every online sale to reforestation efforts around the globe.