We recently connected with Jolynn Forman and have shared our conversation below.

Jolynn, appreciate you joining us today. Earning a full time living from one’s creative career can be incredibly difficult. Have you been able to do so and if so, can you share some of the key parts of your journey and any important advice or lessons that might help creatives who haven’t been able to yet?

Yes with multiple galleries and shows. But, 8 years ago, my 13 yr old daughter came home in tears that her art teacher had just quit and begged me to come and teach for the rest of the year. I walked into that job and found that I loved it! So, I cut back on my galleries (only have 2 right now) and started to teach middle school then later, high school. I, shockingly, enjoy teenagers! Oh- there are days when I want to strangle one or two, but not seriously. The hard part is trying to keep a foot in the teaching world (that uses up all my energy) and a foot in the art world. I work 8-10 hour days teaching then drag myself to the studio for another 2 hours of painting or mosaics. It is hard! And I have four kids so life is crazy. I honestly wish I had known I liked teaching so I would have started earlier but I needed that art experience to make me a great teacher so things worked out for the best

Jolynn, 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?

I do not have any fear when making art. Spiders and heights freak me out but you can throw any medium at me and I’ll figure out how to use it! I currently love glass mosaics, even with the finger cuts, and oil paintings with cold wax. Textures and colors are my thing and you can see it in a lot of my pieces. The secret to getting seen in the art industry is getting good in skill, THEN sharing it the best you can. Most wanna be artists start posting about themselves too early, trying to be seen. Get good first! People will then find you easily and stay!

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

Honestly, art school is worthless (No hate mail please). But it is expensive and I learned so little there except how to pat myself on the back and sound smart. Want to learn how to be a great artist? Go find an artist you LOVE and talk to them, mentorship with them and learn from real artists. Be an intern and sweep their floors so you can watch how they make art. Then, meet their friends and start networking. When you have learned all you can from them, find another artist. THAT is the secret to learning quick.

Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?

Talent only gets you so far. I have taught incredibly talented kids that I know will never make it. Why? No passion or work ethic. Seriously, forget talent…anybody can be an artist if they work for it long enough. You put in those thousands of hours and it will happen eventually. Talent can speed up the process a bit but the passion and work is what makes people great.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.jolynnforman.com
• Instagram: JolynnFormanArt
• Facebook: Jolynn Forman Art Page