We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Ivy Rose Smith. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Ivy Rose below.

Hi Ivy Rose, thanks for joining us today. Are you able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen?

I worked in Higher Education for almost a decade before I began pursuing my artist career. I was a first generation college student so being able to provide students with an empathetic hand to embark on such a vulnerable journey was important to me. Although this may be a noble cause, I realized that I was spending so much time taking care of others that I had lost my sense of self.

Last March, I knew that I needed to honor myself and truly take the time to lean into my authenticity. I was tired of being a ghost in my own life. So, I started my art business, Ivy Rose Art, and became the person I always dreamed of becoming.

I had a lot of big dreams in the beginning which, don’t get me wrong, was very invigorating, however; being able to refine my goals and actively focus on the nitty gritty allowed me to become a better artist and business woman. I think one of the hardest parts of being an artist and running your own business is that you are your only motivator and when you have a lot of dreams but no idea how to get there, it can be extra overwhelming. I have a yearly manifestation planner that allows me to set yearly, monthly, weekly, and daily goals. This helped me to stay on track and remain motivated, especially with my neurodivergence.

For me, running the business end of things is just as creative as painting is. When one approaches the business end of things with a creative mindset, it makes oneself feel like an active working piece of art too. When I paint and I make a mistake, I take a break, reapproach, and repaint. The patience and trust that I have in myself to know that it will be something even if it is nothing right now is the same approach that I take with the business. The process takes as long as it takes and if you try to rush something, then it will never be able to live up to its full potential.

I don’t think there is anything that I would have done differently throughout the whole process other than have more respect for the mistakes I made. I truly believe that you cannot fully know how to do something right without doing it wrong first. Every time I make a mistake, it makes me better at my craft. There is no playbook for being a professional artist so giving yourself grace for not knowing how to approach something is normal and encouraged.

Ivy Rose, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Ivy Rose Art is about harnessing your inner authenticity and embracing art as a way of healing. My tagline is, “heal your heart, look at art!” As a business I have a full clothing line, facilitate “Paint and Sip” classes, create commissions, make prints and stickers, provide art lessons, and live paint. I love helping others find their inner artist and find joy in capturing love through painting wedding portraits. I am very passionate about the liquor industry and have even worked to create labels for beers!

Art has always been therapy for me. When I paint, I am able to safely process what is going on in my brain in the controlled space of a canvas. I always paint on black canvases because they feel infinite and vast. The only time my brain is quiet is when I’m listening to music and painting or drawing. My neurodivergence has gifted me synesthesia, which means I see colors and shapes when I listen to music or hear sounds in general. With all the noise of the outside world, I am very easily triggered by sounds so when I listen to music, it’s like all the chaos can be streamlined. That streamline produces my paintings and drawings.

I find a lot of comfort in the surrealist movement for this reason. Although Dali spoke extensively about creating from dreams, I don’t think that honors the full power of the movement. Frida Kahlo and Leonora Carrington, for example, painted as a way to process their trauma and shed light on parts of their brain that their survival instincts were protecting them from (like repressed memories). My art helps me heal and find authenticity and power in pain.

As a queer, neurodivergent, surrealist artist, my artwork is anything but normal and I love that about me. Everytime I create a new piece, I am always impressed with my ability to bring a dream to fruition, no matter how weird it is. My art is powerful and I hope that others connect to its power as I have.

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?

Stop telling artistic people that the only way to be a professional artist is to be a starving artist!!!

Yes, being a professional artist can be hard. Yes, being a professional artist means that sometimes you are not going to have enough money in your bank account that month. Yes, being a professional artist is a grind. But, being a professional artist is the most rewarding job I have EVER had. By scaring people into not becoming artists, you remove beauty from this world. Perpetuating the idea that one has to be a “starving artist” inherently undervalues art as a whole. If, as a society, we eradicated this idea, there would be more funding for artists and a deeper appreciation for their craft.

Some people go their entire lives wishing and dreaming that they could be an artist and are robbed of that journey because they don’t believe it’s feasible. Art is transformative, healing, and liberating. I truly believe that if we all felt allowed to explore creative avenues, there would be less division and hatred. Perpetuating the “starving artist” fallacy allows capitalism to tyrannically rule and put people in boxes they don’t deserve to be in. Creative people deserve support and to take up space. Being a professional artist is a valid career path and allows humans to connect on a deeper level to humanity, the environment, empathy, and so much more. The world needs MORE artists, not less!

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

I think the most important thing I’ve had to unlearn is control and perfectionism.

Feeling like you have to have control over everything all the time is exhausting. When I first started my business, I felt so protective of everything being perfect. But, I myself am not a perfect being so to expect that of myself was an impossible, unachievable goal. When you set impossible goals for yourself, you get stuck in a self defeating prophecy of feeling as though you will never be able to accomplish anything. However, if a goal is unattainable, then it’s unattainable! There is no need to beat yourself up for not being able to accomplish something impossible and self hatred only hinders your ability to fully lean into your authenticity and power.

Being the boss of my business has allowed me to be decisive, thoughtful, and confident about my decision making because even if that choice ends up not working out, I have learned to trust the process and put progress over perfection.

Nothing will ever be perfect and that is perfectly okay. The world is full of chaos and something will always go wrong, however; it is within the moments of imperfect breakage that we find the most beautiful geodes. Allow yourself to relinquish control and perfectionism and you will find true beauty and freedom.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.ivyrose.art
• Instagram: @artistivyrose
• Facebook: @artistivyrose
• Other: Email: [email protected]