Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to L. Kelly Lyles. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
L. Kelly Lyles, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?
Almost any of the questions would work for me, so I randomly chose this one:
I always wanted to be an artist, fashion-designer, or work in advertising, all of which seemed so glamorous as a tyke!
I wrote and illustrated my own newspaper and tried to sell them door to door to neighbors as a kid, copied and illustrated an entire book on the Beatles (when I didn’t know where to find a 2nd copy). Was thrilled to win my 1st art contest as a 7 year old on the Queen Elizabeth (we lived overseas ’til I was 12, & mom was afraid to fly so we always took ocean-liners).
My father was an executive with 3M (& head of 3M Denmark), appearances were everything, I had a very strict upbringing. But surprisingly my parents never discouraged my brother and me from focusing on the arts (he became a photographer), they were creative in their own right and introduced us to museums, theatres and dance, at an early age. Both my parents acted, both had radio shows, my stepmother had her own TV show, my cousin is a professional dancer/actor/choreographer. I’m lucky the arts were part of our family’s lives.
I taught drawing for 20 years at a local college, it was sad how many students waited until their parents passed away to take the class, as their parents had said “you’ll never make any money with art”. You don’t forbid a kid to play sports because they “won’t make a living at it”!
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I’m a former graphic designer and illustrator, so enjoyed working with clients and problem-solving.
But computers were fairly new when I was graduating from art-school(s), so I never fell in love with them, I missed the tactile of pencils, paper and paint. Designing online felt like more like a desk-job vs an art career, so I “switched horses” and focused on painting in the late ’90’s.
I exhibit in (various venues, including galleries and museums,) but also take on commissions. These are usually portraits, from people, pets, homes & even vehicles. Many artists dislike following directions, I on the other hand enjoy the collaboration and honouring (hopefully) the subject. On rare occasions commissions are frustrating (the 32 revisions on a single portrait, before she decided my original version was the best. Sigh, there’s no “command Z/Undo” for that…).
I drive an artcar, & for 25 years have produced a car show (THE SEATTLE ARTCAR BLOWOUT) where 50-75 decorated vehicles come from all over the US & BC to show for 3 days at a craft fair (though it’s equally famous for the 2,000 naked bicyclists parading).
I think of myself as a “one-trick pony” (painter), but that’s overlooking the assemblage decorating our vehicles. There are thousands of artcars all over the country (& the world?), we have a blast together, driving these daily is the ultimate public art!
Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?
I just wish art-schools taught about the business of an art career, and also how to live on less.
Being an artist is the 3 legged stool:
1 )marketing (which most of us aren’t particularly good at)
2) driving/schlepping, filling out paperwork, collecting $, the mundane
3) Creating the art itself.
I gave a talk to teens in an arts magnet-school, on how to follow your dream but live on less $ (trading for services: chiropractic, haircuts, car-repairs, dental, whatever), learning about & taking advantage of low-income programs offered by the city and state. Volunteering to get into any auction, party, concert, play, whatever, there’s so many ways to economize (esp not dining out, a small price to pay for personal freedom).
Can you share your view on NFTs? (Note: this is for education/entertainment purposes only, readers should not construe this as advice)
I’m an old fart, so “don’t get it”, NFT’s seem to be a flash in the pan, and already I’m no longer getting the weekly solicitations from (scammers?) wanting to use our art for NFT’s.
I have a hard-enough time keeping track on which was my 1st jpeg from shooting my art (since believe they deteriorate with every forward/re-sending?), there’s so many duplicates in my photos folders. I work on computers, running an arts listserve for 20 years, dabbling in Photoshop and Indesign, etc, but am still a relative luddite. I have no interest in NFT’s, Crypto, whatever, prefer to play it safe, the tried and true, until I have a better understanding of new technology (my artcar, the EXCESSORIES ODD-YSSEY, a tribute to women’s fashion, is a 1996!)
ion, is a 1996!)
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.kellyspot.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lkellylyles
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/L.kellylyles
Image Credits
JAMES CHENG
CHRISTOPHER CONRAD