This week we interview Crystal Marie, an artist and author with a passion for teaching others how to find and discover their own unique voice. Crystal has an established career as a professional artist with gallery representation, a published book on the art of collage, and she's currently writing a book about the intuitive voice. She teaches online workshops and runs a community for creatives called Canary Rising. You'll want to listen closely as Crystal share so many great insights about liste...
Sep 08, 2021•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 40
Nikki and Laura share some fears they both have in relation to their creative careers… and not just Nikki’s fear of running out of bourbon! Listen to 6 fears that can stop you in your tracks and some tips for getting past them. Do you relate to any of these? Share your experience with us in the Startist Society Facebook group! TOPICS DISCUSSED What if I'm not good enough? What if I have nothing original to say? I’m afraid someone will steal my work. I’m afraid to put myself out there and really ...
Sep 01, 2021•15 min•Ep. 39
In this week’s episode, Laura and Nikki interview artist, illustrator, musician, self-proclaimed mad scientist and D&D geek, Tyler Thrasher. Tyler has an undying love for nature and its respective curiosities, and there are few things Tyler's brain isn't obsessing over. Between his pursuits to crystallize the world, opalize everything and hunt down some of the most unique plants, his passion to combine art and science every step of the way is his fire and fuel. He applies his brand of hopefu...
Aug 25, 2021•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 38
Laura and Nikki talk about the limiting beliefs that can have a significant impact on the way we live our lives and can determine what's actually possible for us in our lives and art careers. If you spend all of your time worrying about all the things you don't have yet, what you can't do yet, or how you compare to other artists (and similar thoughts of a fixed mindset), it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. But if you approach things from a growth mindset, the world begins opening up and deliv...
Aug 18, 2021•14 min•Ep. 37
Laura and Nikki chat with Mary Beth Shaw, a fabulous artist, product creator, educator and author who Nikki met over a decade ago. Mary Beth has been a full time artist for 20 years; she's participated in indoor and outdoor art fairs, juried competitions and gallery shows. She's the founder of StencilGirl where she produces and sells stencils of her own designs and those of many other artists. She's also the author of Flavor for Mixed Media and StencilGirl , two books that she wrote, and is a co...
Aug 11, 2021•1 hr•Ep. 36
In this episode, Laura and Nikki talk about a question a lot of us are thinking about these days: Is it too late for me to start taking my art career seriously? Am I too old? After you hit the big 4-0 mark (or perhaps the 5 or 6-0!) you might question your relevancy in a world that is constantly changing and seems to reward youth, energy, vibrancy, new technologies, etc. You begin to wonder if you’re too old to learn all the tech needed to run a successful business or too old to grow a following...
Aug 04, 2021•9 min•Ep. 35
Laura and Nikki speak with the amazing Flora Bowley (who Laura met during her Bloom True painting retreat in Bali eight years ago). Flora is an artist, a gentle guide and author of four books, Brave Intuitive Painting, Creative Revolution, Fresh Paint , and The Art of Aliveness . Blending over 27 years of professional painting experience with her background as a yoga instructor, healer and lifelong truth seeker, Flora’s popular in-person retreats and online courses have empowered a global networ...
Jul 28, 2021•58 min•Ep. 34
Laura and Nikki introduce you to Liz Kohler Brown, an artist, designer, author and top Skillshare teacher who not only has 50 plus courses on Skillshare, but teaches others how to become a course creator. She's been painting, collaging and drawing since she was old enough to hold scissors and pencils without adult supervision. Liz earned an MFA in art in 2013 and since then, she's been teaching around the world online and in person. In this episode, Liz shares great advice about getting started ...
Jul 21, 2021•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 33
Laura and Nikki talk about whether or not artists should work for free. As artists, we tend to be generous and want to see our work out in the world, but others don’t always see our art as work – and we often don’t value our own work as much as we should. How can we reframe this view? In this episode, we talk about the impact of working for free and give examples of times we think artists might benefit from working for free versus when we won't. TOPICS DISCUSSED Should artists do spec work? Resp...
Jul 14, 2021•16 min•Ep. 32
In this week's episode, Laura and Nikki discuss the loaded topic of whether or not you consider yourself an artist. When someone asks you what you do, how do you respond? Do you feel imposter syndrome if you tell them you're an artist? Or do you describe yourself as something else? Nikki and Laura share their own stories on how they answer this question. TOPICS DISCUSSED How Nikki responds to the question, "What do you do?" (0:55) Titles that give Nikki imposter syndrome (2:14) Whether or not La...
Jul 07, 2021•14 min•Ep. 31
