We were lucky to catch up with Ashley Scherer recently and have shared our conversation below.

Ashley, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Are you happier as a creative? Do you sometimes think about what it would be like to just have a regular job? Can you talk to us about how you think through these emotions?

Being an artist, to me, is much more complex than gaining joy from capturing a beautiful image. The act of creating is a necessity, it’s a means of coping and processing through all of my emotions, experiences and traumas. It is a very dark, lonely moment of reflection when coming up with my conceptual designs. Being creative brings me so much pride, joy and makes me feel like I am making a difference in the world. The connections I make with those through my performative, collaborative and documentative projects have left a lasting impact on me and those within my community. I acknowledge I have more than a skill, I have a gift and it makes me feel responsible to use it in a way that shifts people’s perspective. My work can be seen as controversial at times and the backlash that comes from diverging from societal norms can be overwhelming. I never wonder what it would be like to have a normal job, I fear it. I’ve solely been providing for myself as a freelance artist since 2020 as a single mother. I’ve come to a point in life where that it is no longer enough for me to get by and now, I have to find additional sources of income. I fear holding myself back from pursuing my passion and all that I have worked towards throughout my life by getting caught up in someone else’s dream. I fear being seen as a failure as an artist. I fear not being able to share my work life with my child and consistently provide her with the environment she was raised in. I fear others capitalizing off of breaking my body down for unrealistic and inhumane working conditions and pay.

Ashley, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I received my bachelor’s degree from St. Mary’s College of Maryland, 2019 with an art major and education minor. Over the past 9 years, my art has been exhibited in a variety of locations in Maryland, such as Colonial Beach, Baltimore, La Plata, St. Mary’s as well as Virginia. I am an independent contractor at The Yellow Line art studio for Carrie Patterson as the shop manager and draw, paint, sculpt educator. I work within after school art programs, summer art camps, community events, teach classes and host birthday parties. As an independent artist I provide live large scale community paintings, accept commission work, sell handmade jewelry, gifts and fine art. I am a multidisciplinary conceptual artist that analyzes and addresses sociocultural factors, trauma, queerness, alternative lifestyles, intimate relationships, and motherhood using two- and three-dimensional mediums. Whether a series is autobiographical or about another person(s), telling the stories of lives and creating a sense of narrative is a central theme. My work consists of text-based, documentative, collaborative and performative practices with emphasis on expression and the art-making process. Through collaborating with my child, students, family and friends’ art becomes communal and much larger than the self. My mission is to form a sense of connection, community and sympathy while addressing controversial and sensitive topics with my audience.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

My mission is to form a source for connection, resources, education and community while addressing controversial and sensitive topics with my audience. I am here to destigmatize mental health, postpartum depression (PPD), gender roles, sexuality, queer identities and alternative lifestyles. I am here to cultivate young minds with emphasis on creative thinking, community and self-awareness. I am here to inspire and motivate young parents to pursue their passions and find ways to incorporate their children. I am here to tell you; you can be more than what the world says you have to be. I am here to validate and discuss those hard unspoken truths of the world. I am here to make my contribution to the world as a mother and artist to bring change for the sake of new generations to come.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

Ever since I was a little girl, I knew I never fit in, I was an outcast due to the family I was raised in.

While other 4th graders were playing barbies and worrying about what dessert they were going to pick, I was playing with men over 20 years older than me and wondering how I could end my own life after watching my mother try to take hers in front of me. While other 6th graders were playing pranks on teachers and running in the sun, I would be passed out in class drooling from the drugs and wearing sweaters to cover the burns on a body I was just trying to get accustomed to. While other 11th graders only had to worry about applying for college and who was going to be at the next football game or ask them to prom, I had to worry about providing for myself and my younger siblings and figuring out which couch I was hopping on next. While I was a senior in college everyone was excited to move onto their careers and start their lives as a professional, I was being faced with the reality that I was going to be a single mother. When I was a single mother, I worked hard to buy my own home and renovate it myself only to have all the blood, sweat, tears and money I invested to be lost for nothing after having to sell my home and my car after quarantine. After building myself up for two years I am not being knocked back down being put back into the displaced status.

I’ve never had an easy life and every day is a battle that I don’t always think I will win. My artistic outlet has always been what kept me together and allowed me to process the emotions needed to recover through the trials and tribulations I’ve encountered but only through motherhood have I experienced the strength to fight like I never have before. Being blessed with the opportunities that have allowed me to cultivate her growth surrounded with art, culture, expression and an accepting environment has been my driving force. At the end of the day, I haven’t gotten through everything I have to give up now that I have someone else dependent on me. I hope to make a legacy for the both of us through our work within our community and our story.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://theartistheron.wixsite.com/website
• Instagram: a.a_theirlegacy
• Facebook: Ash Scherer