We recently connected with Andrea K. Castillo and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Andrea K. thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear about the things you feel your parents did right and how those things have impacted your career and life.

My parents instilled a deep sense of self in me as a child, and surrounded me with the arts my entire life. I was given free range to pursue my creative pursuits, and immensely grateful to have received their support in my endeavors.

Andrea K., love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Hello there! My name is Andrea K. Castillo and I am a Belizean-American artist & entrepreneur born and based in Brooklyn, NY. Having been surrounded by the arts my entire life, my creative practice spans many mediums including music, visual art, dance, artistic direction, and writing. I am the founder of AKCreative, a one-stop creative agency with a focus in photography + writing, co-founder of Double Barrel Rum Club, a NYC-based rum culture club that hosts various tastings and special events, and The New Cari.com agency + print publication, which has a mission in uplifting the stories of Caribbean creatives across the diaspora.

Deciding to move forward with a creative career path is something that was inevitable for me. I graduated college in the 2008 recession with a dual degree in Music Industry and Fashion and was forced to take up many different types of jobs. Through being in staffing agency databases, I eventually landed a full-time gig in fashion in 2010, but my work was sales-based and not creative or design-based. It was at the desk of my first full-time gig that I started my blog A Life In The Day of Andrea where I shared my insight on fun things to do in NYC, concert re-caps, art reviews and more. I look back now and realize this was my first living portfolio of all of my writing, critiques, fashion styling, and photography. Taking this small risk really set the stage for what I would be doing over ten years later, on a larger scale.

I have experienced many setbacks over the years in the realm of employment. I constantly searched and advocated for full-time positions at large companies, but the magic for me has always been in the work that I have created with my own two hands in addition to creative collaboration with peers. I see now that if I am able to properly illustrate my concepts and pitch to the right partners, anything is possible.

Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?

In regards to resources, I wish I was more familiar with artist grants and residencies earlier on in my creative journey. I knew these things were available, but I thought I may not have been eligible because I did not hold a BFA or MFA degree from a prestigious institution, and for many years, I did not call myself an artist. I have always considered myself a creative person who was very focused on problem-solving, but I did not know my path, life experience, and education would deem me eligible to receive grants or residencies. On my path thus far, I have made it my duty to share all of the resources I find with fellow artists and creatives to make the process a little easier for the next generation.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

I believe my life story as a whole is one that has an underlying theme of struggle and resilience. I have had many great opportunities over the years that have been cut short by being let go from a company/project, an organization running out of funds and going out of business, and creative struggles. In all of these situations, I have been forced to look hard in the mirror, and take inventory of all that I have created with my own hands, and dial-in on all of those things. As I write this, I am in a similar space, so I am doing my best to take my own advice.

I really think of rejection as a means of redirection. Sure, I may have loved for a certain project with a big brand to work out, but being redirected to see and uncover the magic that I am sitting on is quite eye-opening. I believe it could have been quite easy for someone in my circumstance to have completely given up already, but the little voice inside me always tells me to keep going.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.andreakcastillo.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/andreakcastillo/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andreakcastillo/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/andreakcastillo
• Other: http://thenewcari.com/

Image Credits
Andrea K. Castillo Aspen Cierra Photography Neriah McBain