We were lucky to catch up with Cassidy Barnes recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Cassidy 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 think I’ve always hungered for a creative life. A life of daydreaming and wild, free expression. In grade school my teachers were struck by the attention to detail and use of color in my drawings and school projects. By the time I was a freshman in high school I was singing in two choirs, playing violin in the orchestra, taking studio art classes, creative writing classes, and film production classes. The only thing I hadn’t tried yet was theater. So I decided to audition for the spring musical, Brigadoon. I had never acted before but I have a beautiful singing voice, so I was cast in the chorus and awarded a small solo in the prologue. On opening night, my heart pounding, I stepped onto the stage and immediately lit up. I was beaming from ear to ear. It was the most exhilarating feeling I had ever felt. Like a star exploding. I had found it. My one true love. I was going to be an actor. No, I was going to be a movie star!

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 identify as both an actor and a visual artist, which basically means I’m a storyteller. Acting enables me to tell stories through emotions and empathy, and art enables me to tell stories that are visual and tactile. I never imagined I was going to pursue both until quite recently. When I discovered acting in high school it changed my life and I fell, and fell hard for the craft. I was cast in every single production at my high school and I even ended up directing a couple of them. I was also booking roles in community theater too. The acting bug had bit me and I was hooked! After graduating high school I moved to New York City (cause that’s where I felt the “serious” actors went to study their craft) and got my training at The American Musical and Dramatic Academy. I had some amazing instructors who inspired me and molded me into the complex, skilled professional I am today. After my time at AMDA I jumped right into theatre. The first professional gig I booked was for a children’s theater company. We toured the eastern seaboard performing short plays based on literary classics for seventh and eighth graders. It was hard work, but I knew I was doing what I loved. I kept auditioning and booking work in theaters across the country, paying my dues and building a resume. In 2009 I finally made the big move to Los Angeles, land of the movie stars; and I was determined to join their ranks. There was just one problem, my resume was packed with theatre credits. I had to start over with improv classes, commercial classes, and on-camera classes. In a couple of years, I procured my first commercial agent and a talent manager. Thanks to their efforts I started booking costar roles on top shows for networks like HBO, Showtime and CBS. It was finally happening, I was inching toward my dream! Then the pandemic happened, followed by two massive industry strikes. Everything stopped. All the momentum I had going was gone. Like so many of us during that time, I felt incredibly lost. So, I did the only thing I could think to do, I started painting again. Why? Because if I’m not being creative, I’m not living. And unlike acting, I don’t have any formal fine art training (other than a few studio art classes in high school) so I felt a tremendous freedom to experiment and create whatever I wanted without judgment. I started making work that could be described as funny, and a little tacky. It’s a mixture of glam, pop, grunge, and humour. Sometimes it’s profound; but it’s always bright, bold, and probably covered in glitter. When I’m in my studio I’m mostly daydreaming. All my work comes from dreaming. And from those meditative moments I gather what I think I’ll need, and start creating. There’s usually no plan, just an idea and a few short notes. I let my instincts take care of the rest. Each work becomes what it wants itself to be. It evolves and adapts, like all living things.
Fast forward to 2025 and I have artwork in 3 different galleries and my work is selling! Moral of the story: you can have two life-long passions and be successful at both.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

Freedom of expression. Indulging in creativity (even if it pays me zero dollars) is so deeply satisfying I can’t imagine a better life without it. If we are not expressing ourselves and what we feel inside, we are just surviving. I think human beings were meant to do so much more than just survive. For heaven sake, we’ve been making art since the days we were living in caves! It is essential to who and what we are. It is our divine gift.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

We can vote for bills that protect art programs in schools and universities. We can fight to make art colleges and instruction, more affordable. We can buy that book that someone self-published, or that handmade jewelry at our local street fair. We can purchase an original artwork from an emerging artist at an independent gallery. We can buy tickets to the ballet, the symphony, the movies, or the theatre. And if we don’t have the money to spend right now, we can support and uplift artists on social media with likes, follows, supportive comments, and shares.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.saatchiart.com/account/profile/2365689
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/envoke_design?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cassidycbarnes?mibextid=wwXIfr
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cassidy-barnes-57a62a14?utm_source=share&utm_campaign=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=ios_appO
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@envokedesign7027?si=r-X_4W-V7zhp9vtl
• Other: My IMDB page:

  https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3552743/?ref_=ext_shr_lnk