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

Hi Rachyl, thanks for joining us today. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.

When I decided to start painting murals full time I was in my first year of law school. I had just become a single mom and Covid was raging. One day I was driving to class when I saw a man painting a huge mural on the side of a comedy club right down the street from my house. I pulled over to quickly tell him the wall looked great and that I was an artist as well. We had a conversation and he told me how much he was getting paid for that wall. The amount would cover my bills and my son’s bills for a year. Over the next month or so I could not stop thinking about art and the potential for me to become a muralist. To be able to spend more time with my son. I found myself sitting in Constitutional Law class updating my art website. I had a small side business painting peoples dogs and babies etc. I scrolled through my website. I thought “wow I am pretty good at painting and my resume is extensive.” Finally, after first semester ended and I passed my exams. I decided to drop out. My parents and my sisters were… scared. And so was I. Four years later, It is the best risk I have ever taken. Besides having my son of course.

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?

My name is Rachyl M. LaGrone and I go by “Loba”. I am a single mom to my son Wolfgang. I was born and raised near Denver, after college I traveled overseas before landing near LA. Now I paint murals full time all over the states. That sentence “Now I paint murals full time all over the states” almost brings me to tears. Finally… my dream job. I created art for 13 years before I found the mindset to go full time. In my opinion, thats all it takes. The mindset. I worked every job from barista to nanny to hostess while I maintained a side hustle selling my art. I painted shoes for TOMS, I painted dogs and babies, and I published a children’s book. Then I had my son at age 28. After he was born I realized I wanted a better life for him. The hourly pay and long hours was not going to give us what we needed. So I went to law school. I was excited and scared. I worked really hard to get into Belmont Law. I took out huge loans and pretended to be a law abiding student. The night before my first semester finals, I stayed up all night spray painting an octopus on a huge canvas. At 4 am I drank some red bull and studied a little. I passed my finals. Then I dropped out. I thought, if I can get into law school, pass final exams, all while raising a baby alone… and I still cant resist painting I can find a way to paint full time. Four years later my business, Murals by Loba is thriving, my son is happy he gets to be with his mom more, my heart is full and I’ve painted over 80 murals across the United States.

Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

I wish I had known earlier in my career to use a contract and take a deposit. Do not work without a contract and do not work without a deposit. It is your job as the artist to guide your clients in the process. A person feels more motivated and invested in achieving a goal if they have invested some money and agreed in writing to work with you to achieve that goal. In my case, I want to give my client a mural that they absolutely love and are beyond satisfied with. Therefore we need to communicate ahead of time about what exactly they are wanting and what I need to give them that. In some cases you may want to trade your art for something and that is a good idea as long as both people feel like they are winning.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

My mission is simply to feel present and to help others feel present. I am not a goal oriented person. When you reach a goal, you are quickly looking for the next thing. I am a process oriented person. All we have is today. When you are walking down the street or driving and you are thinking about this or that, stressing about the next thing, I hope you glance over and see a beautiful mural that takes your breath away, feel your feet on the ground and the breeze in your face and remember for a moment, that life is a gift.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.muralsbyloba.com
• Instagram: @muralsbyloba.com

Image Credits
@ellejacksonphoto @nadia__joelle