We were lucky to catch up with Alexandra Franzese recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Alexandra thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

I’ve always wanted to be an artist, but I became really serious about it in college. At first, I chose a school that wasn’t well known for art but had the major I wanted and quickly discovered my passion was stronger than just settling for a basic education. After two years, I enrolled at a new school, Ringling College of Art and Design, to further my education and have a more impressive resume. There, I worked incredibly hard on my skills to be good enough for the professional industry. Being surrounded by other students that also had the same goals helped propel my drive and gave me a sense of belonging. Art school really solidified my need to become a creative professional.

Alexandra, 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?

I am a graduate from Ringling College of Art and Design with a bachelors in Illustration. During school I discovered my love for creating designs for commercial products. I was never able to focus on one specific avenue in this field because I enjoy having a broad range of styles that fit different brands needs. During my time in the industry I have been able to create toy designs, greeting cards, coloring books, stickers, layout design, fabric pattern designs, shirt designs, custom portraits, and other fun marketing materials for my brand. I think having the ability to work on a diverse range of products allows me to succeed as a professional artist in this industry. I am most proud of creating my own brand and being able to be my own boss everyday. This gives me the freedom to take on freelance projects while I sell my own art and not get burned out from a regular 9-5 work week. Currently, I am selling paper products such as stickers in my Etsy shop: AllyArtPaperShop. I am also illustrating my own coloring books and selling them on Amazon. I have a Spoonflower shop: Allyartdesigns where I have my pattern designs available to be purchased on fabric and other goods. You can find me on every social media platform, I try to stay connected with my audience as well as get inspired by the current industry trends. As I stated before, I am also available for freelance projects both long term and short term too. I love the flexibility of my work schedule and the amount of freedom I have to explore the art industry.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

During my time in college I had strong goals of becoming an illustrator for the top design companies in the US. I decided I wanted this in the beginning of college and did everything I could to achieve this dream. There were many times my roommates had to console me when I got rejection letters from my favorite companies. I felt like I had failed as an artist because I was graduating without any job offers. Eventually, after applying to what seemed like a million art jobs, I got an offer at a design company doing exactly what I thought I wanted to do. However, I was there for a short time, quickly realizing that this job did not give me the creative freedom that I thought I would get. After working a few more jobs I decided I wanted to try working for myself. I never thought that was possible as a career option, but I had the opportunity to try. So, that is where I am now. I’m running multiple online shops and doing freelance jobs that give me the creative freedom I was wanting all along. Everyone told me in college that you might end up doing something completely different than what you originally thought. I didn’t believe them because I was, well, for lack of a better term, stubborn. Now I can say I am doing what I love everyday and that is all I can ask for.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

Being an artist is who I am inside and out. It is when I feel the most free and confident in what I am doing. The rewarding part is when I get to share my skills with others. I have mentored art students and have seen them grow stronger. I’ve created memorable personal pieces for clients that I know they will cherish for a long time. I’m currently creating coloring books for kids and adults and have seen how they positively effect the colorists who use them. Knowing that I can use my skills to help other people in different ways is satisfying. I feel like I have a purpose in this world. The art field is massive and always changing and I am excited to keep exploring it.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.behance.net/alexandrafranzese
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/allyartdesigns/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/693404891644508
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexandrafranzese/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-b4hxGVwTrZ-z51oKhiIaA
• Other: https://linktr.ee/allyartdesigns

Image Credits
i have all the rights to the images