We recently connected with Jaleah Randolph and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Jaleah, thanks for joining us today. Let’s jump back to the first dollar you earned as a creative? What can you share with us about how it happened?

My first dollar was sold early of this year in January. My large watercolor and ink painting that I had displayed in my room since 2018, was sold to a dear family friend for $200 on a normal Saturday night. It started by welcoming my family friend into my bedroom to show her how creatively decorated it was based on my personality, when all of a sudden she gasped in awe by the huge 18x24in piece I had displayed on my wall. She was so amazed by the colors and composer of my painting that she decided that she wanted to purchase it. She asked me how much I wanted for it, and was dedicated to owning this specific piece no matter the cost. I told her $200, and she instantly whipped out her phone and sent me the money for it. She shook my hand with a smile, and proceeded to give me the deepest advice on pursuing my creative career and continuing to aspire to be great at what I love doing the most. I was so eager to make my first big sale on one of my pieces, and it felt like such a big rush to let go of something that was held near and dear to me for so long.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I am a young artist from Atlanta, Georgia who creates art to express myself emotionally and mentally. Physically it is very relieving to put a pen or paintbrush to a piece of paper and let it flow based on how I’m feeling. I create each piece based on an idea in my head or solely on inspiration by the people and events around me. My art is made to be interpreted in any way, shape, or form and I enjoy hearing the thoughts and emotions that run through the viewers’ mind when observing my work. My ultimate goal as an artist is to be recognized amongst a vast majority of others by my style, and represented by people who really do cherish the significance of art. I want others to come to me for a piece I have produced and want to purchase it not only for support, but also because they genuinely enjoy what I have created.

Can you share your view on NFTs? (Note: this is for education/entertainment purposes only, readers should not construe this as advice)

NFTs are something worth educating yourself on. I was introduced to NFTs by my uncle. He told me that I should consider investing in selling them to make another form of income for myself. It’s a very interesting way to make money, but the concept of having your art passed around and purchased around by other people with no form of recognization dawns on me. Whenever I create a piece I sign my name to signify who it was created by, but with NFTs, there’s really no telling who created the original piece in the first place.

Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

I wish I knew about art shows and local farmers’ markets in my area earlier in my creative journey. Farmers’ markets and art events are a great way to exploit yourself and get more local people to know who you are and acknowledge your creativity as an artist, they bring in more clients and helps build connections. I plan on inserting myself and my artwork into more local and communal events to branch out my name and existence as an artist.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jaleahelyse/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jaleah.randolph.94/

Image Credits
Jaleah Randolph