We recently connected with Emma Levitz and have shared our conversation below.

Emma, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Are you happy as a creative professional? Do you sometimes wonder what it would be like to work for someone else?

Whenever I experience financial hardship, I consider what it would be like to have a “regular” job. After some romanticization of the ideals of consistent paychecks, benefits, and “clocking out” when you get home, I still circle back to remembering why I do what I do. Recently, somebody asked me what was my most fulfilling job, excluding being an artist, and my mind went blank. I thought back on all of the jobs I had worked over the years – waitress, assistant wedding planner, bronze foundry worker, jeweler, barista, baker, etc. There were many things I enjoyed about those jobs (and many things I did not), but in the end, I always felt that I was working to fulfill someone else’s dreams.

I have known since I was young that I wanted to create for a living; I was not always sure what it was I wanted to create, as my passions have ranged from poetry to painting to sculpture over the years, but I knew I needed to be a maker of some sort. While in many ways it would be easier and “practical” for me to get a “regular” job, I think I would spend my whole life wondering what it could have been like if I had instead pursued my passions. Sometimes the riskier option just feels the best.

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 background and context?

I am an artist, stone carver, and the sole owner/operator of Little Mountain Stoneworks. I carve sculptural and functional objects from recycled, locally-sourced marble and limestone. Little Mountain Stoneworks products are all made by hand in my studio in Cookeville, Tennessee. I make functional artwork for the home such as mortar and pestles, bowls, plates, salt dishes, spoon rests, and other vessels. These pieces are made to be used but also meant to be special, decorative pieces within the home that last a lifetime.

In my sculptural work, I explore concepts of mental health, disorders, dreams, and memory, often through altered forms of the human body. These works are carved from marble, limestone, or soapstone. My sculptural carvings can be found at Chauvet Arts in Nashville, TN.

Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?

I don’t love the term “non-creatives” because I think the majority of creativity is learned behavior. Nearly every person has the potential to be a creative; it often just depends on which skills and values were either nurtured most in your upbringing or throughout your life. People who do not consider themselves creative will often say things to me like “I wish I could be an artist” or “I am so jealous that you get to do this for your job”. I would like to help the people who say things like that understand that they can be an artist if they want to. Creative talent is not innate. I have been working my entire life to develop artistic skills, and I went to college to study this subject. People often do not realize that creativity is a teachable skill – my arts education was not only in the making process but also involved learning how to see and how to reframe your thinking. Learning to be the artist is the same as learning to be a teacher, a scientist, or any other profession. While some people may have natural tendencies to be interested in certain subjects, we are not born knowing this stuff, and it doesn’t come to us automatically. If you want to be an artist, all you need to do is put in the time and the work.

Alright – so here’s a fun one. What do you think about NFTs?

Love this question! As I stone carver in 2022, I often think about where I fit into the “post-net” art world. I think digital artwork is just as valid as any other art made in any other medium, and I think the rise of digital artwork is only natural, as art is a response to the current world we are living in.

As far as the tech goes, NFTs are also silly to me in their current state. I think they will have a lot of real-world, practical applications as time goes on that have nothing to do with artwork, but as of now, I see them as overpriced URLs.

That being said, I think NFTs, specifically, are kind of silly in their current state, and not necessarily art. I think of them more in the realm of baseball trading cards or collectable designer goods. In my opinion, most “art” NFTs I see lack context to art theory & art history, and they feel more like commercial products than works of art. In capitalism, the distinction between commercial products and artwork can be blurry sometimes. I think NFTs in general will have a lot of real-world, practical applications as time goes on that may have nothing to do with art, but as of now, I see them as expensive, collectable URLs.

Contact Info:

• Website: littlemountainstoneworks.com
• Instagram: @littlemountainstoneworks
• Facebook: facebook.com/littlemountainstoneworks
• Other: TikTok: @littlemountainstoneworks