We recently connected with Josh Stebbins and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Josh thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

When I was very young I knew I had a love for art, whether it be drawing, painting, anything creative. In my teen years my ultimate dream was to be a comic book artist but as time went on I found that fine art was more my speed. Although I will say that learning to draw from comics taught me much more than any art class I ever took.

Josh, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

The real start of my artistic journey occurred in 2013; on a whim I decided to submit my art work to a big group show that took place at La Luz de Jesus gallery in Los Angeles. I didn’t have much hope because so many other artists were submitting work and the gallery was so prominent in the art world, but I tried and unbelievably I was selected to be in the group show and both of my pieces sold, one was even purchased from the gallery owner, so that instilled a much needed confidence in me. After that I built up a rapport with many other galleries, taking on as much as I could to get my name around, which is no easy task by any means. I try my best to maintain a strong work ethic in regards to creating, it really is a full time dedication; whether it be actually creating the work or the process of forming ideas, planning, researching, finding inspiration…it’s non stop and I rarely give myself a day off. The work I make has been considered “dark art” many times, which I’m fine with because I often deal with subject matter or ideas that many people shy away from, other artists included. I’m not one for making cuddly cute stuff, I want my work to be more serious in nature and tackle subjects that get people to think and feel more deeply. I’ve felt many times that I gain a close connection with people from my work because what I express is something they might find hard to put into words or think of visually; the feeling is there inside those people but they might find it jarring to bring it to the surface. Although I always try to stay as humble as possible, what makes me proudest is that I’ve had to simple opportunity to show my work at so many galleries and for the public to experience it, I say that because I never in a million years thought I would have that chance and also connecting with other artists have brought about friendships I hold very near and dear to my heart.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

In Junior High I took an art class that I learned a valuable lesson from, which I only realized years later. The teacher of the class told me I would never have a career in art of any kind based on what I like to draw as my subject matter. She said, “you have skill but you’re not going to get anywhere with it because of the stuff you like to create.” I’ll never forget that. It made me so angry because my dream was to be an artist, of any kind for that matter, and she completely crushed it. I remember thinking “I guess I should just give this up, she’s right, why go on pretending I’ll achieve anything? It’s all just a pipe dream.” But almost subconsciously I thought, “I’ll show her!” A determination grew inside me that not only was I capable but that she was incredibly wrong in what she said. The lesson is to never let someone determine that your dream is worthless, never give up. You can be realistic, sure, but you don’t have to give up your dream entirely based on some persons idiotic viewpoint.

Alright – so here’s a fun one. What do you think about NFTs?

Honestly, they are garbage. I appreciate some of the aspects that new technology has brought to the table with creating but it’s created an environment as such that anyone with an iPhone and app consider themselves artists.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joshstebbinsart?igsh=M29neGsycGg4NHpz&utm_source=qr
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/Ca2c6UPxkKuQCX7D/?mibextid=sCpJLy

Image Credits
Josh Stebbins