We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Duachaka Her a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Duachaka, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.

As creatives and artists, life is about taking risks, whether we want to or not. In my experience, it has been the only way to move forward and get yourself out there. I feel like my art career has not been linear in any sense. I went from graduating college back in 2015, to a working a full-time day job, to leaving my day job in 2017 to be a stay-at-home mom and trying to start my art business, to going back to work a part-time day job a year later. Although working a day job met my financial needs, there was always a part of me that wanted more personal fulfillment. I knew that if I wanted to grow my art business, I had to be spending more time building it.

Around late 2023, an art opportunity came my way that I could not deny. I had the opportunity to create a piece of work as part of a children’s museum nature exhibition. The only issue was its tight deadline, which would require me to leave my part-time job to commit more time to it. What was difficult was, although I appreciated the stability of a regular job, I knew I had to leave it in order to pursue more artistic opportunities. After much consideration, I finally left my part-time job of four years to pursue art full-time again. Financially, it felt risky, but I did had a cushion (savings), and my gut told me to take this art opportunity and run with it…and I did.

After finishing up my project with the children’s museum earlier this year, I ventured into other opportunities, which included vending at art markets and events, doing a school author visit, completing my first solo art exhibition, teaching a comic workshop, and much more. I said yes to a lot of opportunities, and I’ve never worked so hard on my art business. If there was something I learned about taking risks, it’s that you never know where it would lead you.

I am not sure what is in store for 2025, but I am ready to take on what comes my way!

Duachaka, 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?

My full name is Duachaka Her, but I mainly go by Dua. I am a Hmong-American cartoonist and illustrator from Wisconsin. For the most part, I create comics and illustrations inspired by my Hmong culture, but I also do children’s book, editorial art, and run my own online shop where I sell my work.

I grew up loving Japanese anime, cartoons, and manga, but always felt a disconnect with my own culture. As I got older, I saw there was a lack of representation in the art world with characters and experiences that were similar to mine. I felt there was a need for more Hmong artists and Hmong-inspired art. Thus, began my journey of creating works inspired by her culture and everyday life.

As a Hmong artist, I strive to connect to my audience not just visually, but emotionally. A lot of my work features kids and characters with emotions and feelings. When people look at my work, I want them to feel some sort of emotional connection. I play around a lot with making characters expressive, whether that be through their body language or facial expressions.

Some of my proudest works have definitely been my comics “Tradition,” “Then and Now,” and “The Collection.” Unlike single illustrations, a comic allows readers to be immersed in the world of the characters. Readers get to experience emotions, listen in on dialogue, and go on an adventure while still being able to make their own judgments and interpretations of the story. A lot of my stories are inspired by life and my upbringings. I love to connect with readers on an emotional level, especially stories reflecting on small and subtle moments we often don’t think about.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

For me, aside from making beautiful, fun, and fulfilling art, I LOVE it when I am able to connect with another person through my art. Whether my work reminds them of someone or helps them feel heard in any way.

I also LOVE connecting with other Hmong artists in my community! It gets better too when we become friends! I chat almost daily with a few artist Hmong friends and it’s been the best. We share our struggles and successes with each other, which makes everything feel so real. I feel every artist needs a friend or two who just “gets them” without having to explain much.

Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?

I listen to a lot of “3 Point Perspective” art podcast where three professional artists talk about how to make art, a living, and an impact with it. This podcast really sheds light on the ups and downs of the industry and what it takes to be an artist today. The artists do not sugar-coat anything. They’re authentic and share their personal and professional experiences with listeners about how they navigate the artist life, not just as an artist, but as a business person.

(Podcast: https://www.svslearn.com/3pointperspective)

Contact Info:

• Website: https://duachakaher.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/duachakaher/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/duachakaher
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@duachakaherart