Meet the Maker: Keith Allen

…a paper-engineer is just a really fancy word for someone who loves to play with paper.

– Keith Allen

Since 2019, author-illustrator Keith Allen has been working behind the scenes to create one of the most eagerly anticipated, instantly recognizable, Instagram challenges of the paper crafting world—#PopUpTober. In the five years that have followed, his highly anticipated list of 31 prompts—one for each day of the month of October—have brought together a mix of aspiring and seasoned paper engineers, to create and share original pop-up spreads using the hashtag #PopUpTober.

Today’s spotlight is on a talented artist and paper engineer, the founder of #PopUpTober, Keith Allen!

Would you please introduce yourself, and perhaps tell us how you came up with your social media handle, @5am_popup?

My name is Keith Allen and I’m a Graphic Designer / Illustrator from Cleveland Ohio. I’ve worked at American Greetings in Cleveland for nearly 20 years and that’s where I’ve really developed a love for working with paper.

Through my paper-engineering interest, I fell in love with pop-up books and was amazed by a lot of their complexity. With my brother and grandmother, I self-published my first pop-up book in 2010, A Day in Rehoboth Beach.

I had been wanting to produce another book but found it hard to find the time between work and family.

In 2013 my son was born and he was not the best sleeper. My wonderful wife would be up with him most of the night but asked that I take over the morning shift with him. I would get up at 5am every morning with him. The sleep schedule became routine and soon my son would stay asleep and I used that early morning hour to work on my pop-ups. That’s how 5am Press came to be and was how I made my second book, What a Mess! A Pop-up Misadventure.

Keith Allen’s second pop-up book, *What a Mess! A Pop-Up Misadventure*

How would you describe what you do? What do you most enjoy about it?

When I do school or library visits, I tell the kids that a paper-engineer is just a really fancy word for someone who loves to play with paper.

My work at American Greetings is always changing, but currently I work on our Magic Moments line of greeting cards and decor. These cards are complex, displayable pop-ups.

There is always a design challenge that needs solving with pop-ups. I love that aspect of paper engineering. It can be frustrating at times, but when it comes together in the end and everything works, it’s very satisfying.

How did you come up with the idea for #PopUpTober?

In 2018, I took part in the month-long challenge #InkTober where artists make one ink drawing based on daily prompt words during the month of October and then post it to social media. I had been doing a lot of work digitally and wanted to challenge myself by illustrating traditionally for a month.

Not that I was doing the challenge simply for “likes,” but my ink drawings weren’t getting much attention until I made a pull-tab ink drawing for the prompt “drooling.”

Copyright Keith Allen, “Drooling” by Keith Allen @5am_popup [Oct 2018]

People seemed to respond so well to the moving ink drawing, that I decided to finish out the challenge making each prompt “movable-paper.”

It was suggested to me that I should begin my own monthly art challenge centered around pop-ups the following year. #PopUpTober was born and kicked off in 2019. The rest is history.

What do you most enjoy making?

I enjoy illustrating and working on products for kids. Since I was young, I’ve wanted to be a children’s book illustrator.

My career journey took me to Cleveland to work at a greeting card company which has been great for me, because I have had the opportunity to work on a lot of fun projects for kids.

I’ve been fortunate to have worked on four books where I was able to do illustration, design, and engineering. Those have been very special to me and it’s thrilling to see your passion projects realized.

What inspires you?

I honestly find so much creative inspiration from #PopUpTober. Through the challenge I have discovered so many amazingly talented paper-engineers that I otherwise did not know of. Seeing how others approach the same prompt in a completely unique and interesting way is inspiring and forces you to think differently.

What do you want people to know about your creative process?

My creative process involves a lot of trial and error. I occasionally start working on the computer if the pop-up is very technical, but my preferred method is starting at my drafting table and cutting paper manually. I compare building my pop-ups to sculpting. It’s a very hands-on process for me in the beginning and I like the freedom that brings. Being hands-on in that way leads to a lot of discovery.

What challenges and/or joys have you encountered during your creative (and/or professional) journey?

Self-publishing was a big challenge for me but was extremely rewarding when it all worked out. Jumping into that venture taught me a great deal about all other facets of developing and producing a product. It forced me to not only create a book, but to do fund-raising, marketing, sourcing, and all aspects of running a small business. There were definitely some big challenges to overcome, but that’s a story for another day.

How are you using light or electronics in your creations?

Combining electronics with dimensional paper can produce such a great result. I have done many pop-up greeting cards with music and sound for American Greetings in the past and they are some of my favorite designs.

I am very thankful to Chibitronics for offering to partner with #PopUpTober this year! It’s very exciting to see them get involved in this way and I’m really excited to see what amazing creations come out of this year’s challenge.

Last year, Chibitronics sent me some very easy to use lights and I built a pop-up ‘trick-or-treat’ house where the lights turn on when the door closes.