In this solo episode I touch on why a community is essential to achieve your goals and see success in your career as an artist and creative. There’s no progress in isolation and a community can help you step out of your bubble, unveil your talents, and get you there where you want to be FASTER & WITH MORE EASE. In this episode, I explore why community is important by giving examples of my own experience and the dozens of artists that have been on this podcast. I also leave you with a few guidelines to build or find the one that works best for you and that will support you along your journey.
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Thandiwe Muriu is a photographer born and raised in Nairobi, Kenya. As a female artist operating in a previously male-dominated field, she is passionate about celebrating and empowering her fellow women. In her CAMO series, Thandiwe showcases Africa’s unique mix of vibrant cultures, textiles and beauty norms. Through her work, she celebrates her African heritage and tackles important issues such as identity and self-perception using the rich colours and vibrancy the continent is so well known for.
Drawing inspiration from African textiles, everyday objects, and traditional hairstyles, Thandiwe explores how the individual can lose their identity to culture. In her work she not only explores who she is as an artist, but also as a black woman.
She shared every single piece of tactic and strategy that got her where she is right now, thriving as an artist and commercial photographer. We touched on mentors and how to find them, getting clients and keeping them, contributing to the community through your work, and following your creative call.
Whether you’re an artist that is just starting or you’re a creative that has been in the industry for a while, this episode will give you insights and tools that will stay with you forever.
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Doing great work is at the heart of every creative career, and is what most artists and designers invest a fair amount of time in. However, that is just one part of the equation – putting the work out there and getting noticed by the right people is equally important. In this episode, we’ll discuss on 3 strategies that you can use to showcase your work, not just for the sake of it but in a manner and in a place that connects you with dream opportunities and clients.
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Jordan Metcalf is a South African-born, Portland-based graphic designer, creative director, and artist.
After over a decade of independently designing brands and exploring new ways to help tell stories through diverse and experimental lettering projects for clients like Nike, Apple, National Geographic, and others, he made the move to a full-time position in a brand studio in 2019 to focus on larger scale projects and collaborations.
He currently spends his days as a creative director helping craft identities, spaces, and experiences for projects ranging from independent hotels to animation studios. He invests his free time getting dusty while trying to become a less amateur woodworker.
In this conversation with Jordan, you’ll hear about his unique creative path that starts as a graphic designer for small studios, to becoming one of the top lettering artists of our time and working alone, to taking a different position in his professional life and joining a team. He shared how he found direction for his creative career by using experimentation and curiosity while staying humble and detached from his work.
What I especially loved about this show is how Jordan steered the conversation toward other important aspects of a creative career which have to do with solid values, honesty, and empathy for the people you work with and for.
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In this solo episode I touch on getting better at your craft and strategies to find the time to produce work and build a portfolio. Doing great work has always been at the core of my career as an artist, and I’ve seen that happening repeatedly with many of the artists I interview on this podcast.
I advocate for this approach with my students, the members of my coaching program, and with every assignment that I take on: doing your best work is priority.
But getting really good at your craft takes time and life keeps getting on the way, so in this episode I provide you with a few strategies that you can use to clear up your way and start seeing real progress in your craft.
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Petra Eriksson is an artist and illustrator born in Stockholm. Petra took a journey via Dublin. Malta, Berlin and Barcelona and her work is littered with the eclectic references she picked up along the way.
Petra studied graphic design at the renowned Bergs School of Communication before venturing into the world of freelance illustration. Her bold and colourful work, often dotted with confetti and other abstract compositions, have become her signature style. She is especially renowned for her portraits of women.
In this conversation with Petra you’ll hear about her long and winding road to discovering what she wanted to do creatively and the steps she took before going full time freelancer.
She spoke about the things that gave her leverage as an artist, how she got her first assignments including the specific wording she used to do client outreach.
Petra relocated cities several times and gave insights into the challenges of joining a new creative community as well as the various gains she had through that, in both her professional and personal life.
In this episode, you’ll hear from an artist, self-described as an introvert, that nevertheless managed to put herself out there and gain a strong place in the contemporary scene of commercial illustration.
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Karan Singh, an artist and illustrator living in Melbourne, Australia. His distinct work is a contemporary and playful combination of op-art and mid-century graphic design. Through restricted yet vibrant color palettes and hypnotizing patterns, he explores and exploits our perception of depth and movement.
His art lives in an eclectic variety of mediums, including prints, animation, video, augmented reality, puzzles, sculpture and clothing. Over his professional career he has lived in a number of cities including Tokyo, New York, Amsterdam, Malmö, Sydney and Melbourne; where he has worked with the likes of The Oscars, NASA, Apple, Louis Vuitton, The New York Times and Nike.
I’m so happy to be kicking off a new season with arguably one of the most interesting conversations I have had on this podcast. Karan is not only an exceptional artist but also a person that has traveled the world and gone through tons of experiences. During the show he shared his journey from being a self taught artist, to moving countries several times, through battling cancer and finally doubling down on his call to become an illustrator and creating an extraordinary bulk of work.
Karan spoke about how pursuing authenticity and being genuine helped him create long lasting connections and attract the right opportunities in both his personal and professional life. He was really open to talk about imposter syndrome and how to overcome it, and even shared his own tactics to land dream assignments.
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In this podcast I have interviewed dozens of accomplished artists and creatives to basically answer one valuable question “How did they get where they are?”. Now, while we prepare for all the greatness that is coming on season 3, I’m releasing these special recap episode which features some of the best moments of season 2 in one place, so you can always dig deeper an go listen to one of these episodes.
Listen: Apple Podcasts · Spotify · Google Podcasts · YouTube
Mentioned in This Episode - Instagram: @martinaflor
In this podcast I have interviewed dozens of accomplished artists and creatives to basically answer one valuable question “How did they get where they are?”. Now, while we prepare for all the greatness that is coming on season 3, I’m releasing these special recap episode which features some of the best moments of season 2 in one place, so you can always dig deeper an go listen to one of these episodes.
Listen: Apple Podcasts · Spotify · Google Podcasts · YouTube
Mentioned in This Episode - Instagram: @martinaflor
In this podcast I have interviewed dozens of accomplished artists and creatives to basically answer one valuable question “How did they get where they are?”. Now, while we prepare for all the greatness that is coming on season 3, I’m releasing these special recap episode which features some of the best moments of season 2 in one place, so you can always dig deeper an go listen to one of these episodes.
Listen: Apple Podcasts · Spotify · Google Podcasts · YouTube
Mentioned in This Episode - Instagram: @martinaflor
