We were lucky to catch up with Denise Taillefer recently and have shared our conversation below.
Denise, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Are you happier as a creative? Do you sometimes think about what it would be like to just have a regular job? Can you talk to us about how you think through these emotions?
I am supremely happier as an artist than when I had a regular job! After graduating from USC in Los Angeles with a BA in psychology, I worked a corporate job for 2 years at Cruise Fairs of America, selling cruises vacations. Although I earned a decent salary and always made the monthly sales bonuses, I need this experince to show me how a controlled and structured environment was not best suited for me. I decided to go to massage school in 1994 and loved working in the healing arts for many years, I was able to create my own schedule, slowly building a private clientele and a disciplined work ethic.I learned to show up and run from appointment to appointment to make ends meet. I thrived as a LMT in Los Angeles with fabulous clients for over 15 years, painting in my spare time, but not making art front and center in my life….yet. After serious physical burn-out and meeting , dating and marrying my Brazilian first husband, my life took a complete 180 turn. I moved from LA to Rio de Janeiro for 5 years. This complete change in life and lifestyle allowed me the opportunity to rethink my goals and dreams. I dove into my creative passions and finally had the time and dedication to cultivate the skills as an artist. When I moved back to the US, back to my hometown of Atlanta , now a Mom and an emerging artist, I was disciplined and passionate about my life as a full time artist. I created a home art studio and show up every day to create. There are not enough hours in the day to make all the projects deep in my heart, but I am beyond grateful that I get the opportunity to create every day. My clientele has grown over the years and I am honored to sell my art and am now embarking on teaching my mixed media process in online and in person art classes.
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 am Denise Taillefer, a mixed media artist living in Sugar Hill, Georgia, a suburb north of Atlanta, Georgia. My follwers also know me as Doodle-D Art, a nickname given to me many years ago. I have always been artsy ever since I was akid. But it wasn’t until I lived in Brazil for 5 years in my 30’s that I was able to give the artist in me the time and dedication to hone th skills needed to emerge with confidence to make art my vocation as well as my purpose.
I am primarily a painter. I paint large acrylic paintings on canvas as well as mixed media paintings on wood panels.
Some would say I paint dreamscapes, that are part abstract with some imagery and have a dream like quality. I paint from my imagination and let the canvas tell me what comes next, with many layers that culminate in a sort of treasure hunt when the piece is complete.
I also have a love for mosaic art. I create mosaics on tables, furniture, backsplashes, stair risers and wall pieces.
I is a completely different process than painting and it is fun to create such different types or art. I also like to make my own ceramic tiles in my mosaics firing them n our home kiln.
I have recenly embarked in teaching my mixed media style. it is truly a joy to guide others to find their creative voice and to honor a sense of play in art making…helping people discover their own sense of self through art making. We are always looking for expression and not perfection.
Is there mission driving your creative journey?
My mission driving my creative journey is freedom and expression. I feel that art is a form of resistance. Living my life creatively and expressively hopefully allows others to feel free and not stuck in old ideologies. Free people can’t be controlled and it is so important to resist rising discrimination. Art is subversive by nature even when the subject matter is not political. My goal through my art is make views think about the world arond them, questioning their assumption and beliefs.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
The most rewarding aspect of being an artist is living on my own terms. I make my own schedule and am not dominated by a boss or anyone telling me what to do. I have a strong work ethic and am disciplined so I make a great boss for myself and am happy to be self employed. I am constantly learning and evolving as an artist. I work hard and am able to take time off to explore the world when I want to, always using my travel experiences as inspiration for my next art pieces. Feeling free to be me and live my life on my terms allows me to be the happies most joyful expression of myself. Hopefully this way of liveing can inspire others to live more freely and fend theirs sense of joy and expression as well.
Contact Info:
- Website: http://doodledeeart.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/doodle_d_art
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/doodledart
- Other: @denisetaillefer.bsky.social
