Setting his sites higher

To a creative visionary like Joey Kilrain, art is found in the unlikeliest of places – including trash bins. One day while strolling to the bank, he noticed a window frame jutting from a receptacle at the corner of Iseminger and Shunk.

Kilrain, then a college student, snagged the discarded item and reconstructed its wooden portion to create a fully usable canvas. His first painted masterpiece was such a success that he scoured his former hometown for additional wooden frames, eventually producing more than 20 canvases.

His motivation? Saving a bundle on art supplies.

"I was always trying to find ways to be more cost-effective," says Kilrain, formerly of the 2600 block of South Iseminger Street.

As they say, one man’s trash is another man’s treasure.

It is that sort of out-of-the-box thinking that has made Kilrain, now a New Yorker, one of the most sought-after Web-page designers in the business.

Within the past year, he and a friend cofounded Gigapixel Creative. Kilrain, 30, has won scores of awards for designing Web sites that are visually impressive yet simplistically functional.

Some of his company’s current and past accounts include Nextel, Pfizer, Time Warner and MBK Entertainment, whose label features rhythm-and-blues songstress Alicia Keys.

Kilrain strives to set himself apart from the field’s fierce competitors.

"There are many talented people out there that are doing this sort of work," he says. "But they make me realize if I start to look like them, I’m not being me."

Yet Kilrain’s artistic nature has sometimes led to isolation, a feeling that was exacerbated by his parents’ divorce and more serious losses.

He now says every experience has helped shape his character.

"All the struggle and the pain I’ve gone through have paid off," says Kilrain. "At times when I thought all was lost … I am now able to realize that it wasn’t that bad."

GROWING UP, KILRAIN worked on his art in every possible situation. When his buddies were into the break-dancing craze, for example, he drew on the cardboard boxes that they would boogie on.

"It would break my heart afterwards because the boxes would get torn up and I would have to draw it all over again," says Kilrain, whose mother introduced him to the arts as a kid.

As a student at A.S. Jenks Elementary, 2501 S. 13th St., and Stella Maris School, 814 Bigler St., Kilrain resented teachers who prohibited his doodling, which sometimes occupied space on the back of his tests.

He later joined a summer arts program at Hallahan Catholic Girls’ High School, 311 N. 19th St.

After receiving an airbrush kit from his mother’s former boyfriend, Kilrain churned out specialized T-shirts.

"People would provide me with the tools and I would learn it on my own," he says.

But one group of Kilrain’s pals began mocking his artistic abilities. He was ridiculed after showcasing a colorful painting of a red muscular man against a black backdrop with gold streams.

"The time when I needed the most support, the people that I called my friends were not being supportive at all," Kilrain says.

But he insists the criticism only made him stronger and pushed forward with his art. His three favorite artistic subjects are "his friends, corporate America and his life."

Concealed somewhere in his paintings are the words "I want it all," a motto Kilrain has kept close to his heart, even during trying times.

While he was attending Roman Catholic High School, his parents divorced, sending him into an angered state.

Though he "hung out with the wrong crowd," Kilrain says he never experimented with drugs.

"I always thought it would take away my imagination, and I needed to draw," he explains.

Kilrain continued to find solace through art and community service, volunteering at local soup kitchens and as a Big Brother.

"I always wanted to have an older brother and I thought that if I had someone older to give me confidence, I could achieve more," he says. "It made me see that I wasn’t the only one who had problems when they were younger."

After graduating from the Art Institute of Philadelphia in 1994, Kilrain was hired for his dream job as a graphic artist for Devon Direct. But he had other priorities when his girlfriend of two years, Cecilia, was diagnosed with neuroendocrine carcinoma – a cancer that affects hormone-producing cells.

"I made a promise to myself and God that I would stay with her until the end," he says.

THREE MONTHS AFTER Cecilia died at age 19, a grief-stricken Kilrain, then 22, opted for a change in venue. He moved to the bright lights of the Big Apple with nothing more than "$700 in his pocket, a trash bag full of clothes and a backpack full of canned goods." His family was vehemently against his decision, but remained supportive. Kilrain has a sister, Amy, 26, and brother, Kevin, 22. Another brother, Robert, died in November at age 24.

In New York, Kilrain took on numerous jobs related to his field, but says he met less-than-stellar bosses and colleagues along the way.

In 2001, he left for Europe with laptop in hand. Traveling from country to country, Kilrain funded his stay by completing Web projects for various organizations and companies. This mobile operation lasted until 2004.

"When I finally settled down from traveling, I wanted to start a business because I knew what I wanted to do with my life," says Kilrain.

He joined forces with a female friend he met through an online dating service and soon, New York-based Gigapixel Creative was born.

Combining cofounder Yao-Hui Huang’s business sense with his creative mind is a match made in heaven, Kilrain says.

"The best thing about having your own business is getting the work done and knowing it’s going to get done without some boss breathing down your neck," he adds.

The design company uses such tools as photorealism and flash animation to make attention-grabbing sites.

In June, Kilrain and Huang received the 4 Elements Award for their company’s Web site and beat out companies such as Coca-Cola and Volvo to snag the prestigious Web Award in September.

The recognition is a testament to perseverance during life’s trying moments, says Kilrain.

"If I stick it out even during the roughest times, things will be OK when the sun comes up."

To view some of the sites created by Joey Kilrain’s company, log on to www.gigapixelcreative.com.