We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Lee Ellis a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Lee, thanks for joining us today. The first dollar you earn is always exciting – it’s like the start of a new chapter and so we’d love to hear about the first time you sold or generated revenue from your creative work?

I started out in public art. I was fascinated with Banksy and the work of street artist. Working for a country club during the summers I would occasionally create small murals on the pool deck out of chalk for the members to enjoy. It had gotten to a point where members would start to say, “you should get paid for that!” One summer I started to send thousands of emails to every outdoor festival in north east Ohio purposing my chalk art to help “enhance” the experience. I had about two photos of some work I had done for fun and I used them to try to convince the organizers of these events that I was legit. Thankfully it really paid off, I got to work for jazz festivals, museums, and even 5k runs. It was at this moment that I honestly felt that I could start calling myself and artist.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I’m an American contemporary artist from Cleveland, Ohio currently based in the south of France. I Started working primarily as chalk muralist, then transitioned to create a less public practice around 2020 where I found myself drawn to smaller works. After being forced inside during quarantine I began creating a series of works where I put hundreds of Post-It notes with individual drawings on to a canvas. I have thankfully participated in multiple groups shows working with curators from New York to Chongqing, China. The goal of my work is to show the power we have together. Alone we can only have so much of an impact, real change starts small but spreads to become much bigger than ourselves. I hope to create larger and larger work and have the ability to show this work around the world. I feel honored to be featured in international exhibitions and am constantly working to expand the influence my work has on others.

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?

Nothing happens overnight. Theres this stigma of “overnight success” or “they came out of nowhere”. You hear these statements made when artist reach a point of success that brings them into the public eye, however everyone started somewhere and most of the time spent many years of continuous work to get to where they are. Just like a pro athlete or a salesman practicing his pitch, learning to improve your craft and having the right people see what you do takes time. Just because it’s something you love doesn’t make the journey easier or faster, more enjoyable some would say but you will be tested, you may want to quit and give up. It’s in those moments that you understand if this is the life you really want.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

I love when people connect with the work I do, especially my wife. To be completely honest if every work I made my wife 100% loved, theres no doubt in my mind that its gonna be a success. Thats also why when my wife does truly connect with a piece I feel that I’ve really tapped into something deeper than even myself. With every work that artist create theres a piece of themselves in it. Honestly I feel that most artist start to see their work being notice more the more they let themselves be vulnerable within their practice. That’s the reason why connections with strangers mean so much. In my work I mostly work alone, and when others are able to feel something through all those hours being alone, I start to understand more and more that I’m not so alone.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.nairblee.net/upcomingevents
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nairblee/?hl=en

Image Credits
All Taken by the Artist