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

Jessica Morrison, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

I’ve been doing creative things since I can remember. When I was younger my family would always tell me how well I could draw, and I think I just ran with that and focused honing in on my talents. I always took an art elective throughout my academic career, and I was always trying new mediums or crafts. It started with painting and drawing, to hemp necklaces (lol, I know I’m dating myself, but that was all the rage), to beaded jewelry, to charcoals, then sculpting, then a small sampling of photography, then manipulating metal jewelry, and eventually focusing back on painting.

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

Well, like I mentioned before I started drawing and crafting at a very young age. Anything “artistic” was appealing to me. It just kind of became apart of me, who I am, my identity. Unfortunately I’m not “properly” educated in fine arts. I had one year of art college at Columbus College of Art and Design (CCAD), where I hail from. Yes, I’m a transplant, lol sorry.

However, it became too expensive for me to afford on my own. My parents never went to college, so they didn’t really know how to help me search for loans or scholarships. We were a middle class family doing our best & I took on the responsibilities of myself, so it was hard to afford all on my own. I dropped out and later finished at a community college. I finished with an Associate of arts and have been a self-taught artist ever since. I’m always trying to adapt and develop my skills and even though I am my own worst critic and very hard on myself, I enjoy a challenge.

I’ve been getting pretty well-known for my pet portraits, but I have a fun cheeky side to me, so I throw in a few funny paintings every once in awhile. I have a series going that’s called “sweet destruction series”, it’s a few cute dessert characters I’ve painted with bites or licks out of them and they exclaim in horror. Like a fudge bar with a bite and it says “ahh fudge!”. I’ve also taken thrifted art and added beloved cartoon characters in the scenery.

Sometimes my art is self-expression or art therapy. While I am focused on self-improvement and self-love, I do suffer with anxiety/depression sometimes, and my art recently has expressed the perils of being inside your head too much. One piece I call “In my mind” shows the constant battle of self-hate/self-love. Second guessing your strengths, but trying to stay positive. Another painting I call “Unplugged”, is one that I’m truly proud of, it’s an oil painting of a brain floating out in the universe. In stead of a realistic spinal chord, it’s been replaced with guitar cords spreading out “unplugged” like tentacles.

I don’t really know how to define my work or my “brand”. I realize to some that may not be indicative of a “successful artist”. I know if you have a “brand” or specific style then people immediately know who you are and you may have a better chance of success. However, I like to get lost in my imagination and paint whatever I’m inspired by. It may be something in nature, my feelings, it may be a person, place, or thing. My hope is that someone sees it and it resonates with them. If you were to view my work you may say it’s has a bit of surrealism mixed with kind of a colorful, tattoo style art. That’s why my brand is A_BOLD ARTIST.

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

I had to unlearn that money isn’t the most important thing. I had to unlearn that not working a typical 9-5 is okay. Most that do, are forcing themselves to confirm because “everything that comes with it, is necessary” by societies standards. I had to learn to accept who I am and that being a creative doesn’t necessarily mean I’ll be rich and famous, but it’s also not about that.

It’s about sharing something moving, appealing, or awe-inspiring to stimulate conversation, emotions in someone, and make connections. It’s about sharing a talent you’re proud of and that’s all yours. It’s about finding your true self. I can’t imagine doing anything else, and if I don’t make much money doing it, it’s okay, because I feel whole. I’m happier being that stereotypical “starving artist” than working a 9-5 that I feel stressed, suffocated in, and I’m not being my true self.

When I was younger I felt I had to dropout of an art college to find a “more stable career” so my parents didn’t worry. I never really felt supported by my family going to an art college. Their concern was and I quote “that I couldn’t make a career out of it”. To which they’ve now apologized for saying, and I get why they felt that way.

You are at times a product of your environment and they didn’t grow up in a time or environment where the arts were really apart of their lives. They didn’t know the career paths that could become available, they were just concerned for their daughter. However, if you stop to think about it, almost everything you experience as a human being has been created for your enjoyment by a creative or artist. The food you eat, the buildings you visit, the ads you see, the decor you choose, the clothes you wear, even the gadgets you use in your home.

I wasn’t encouraged in my early years to pursue my passion and eventually I had to unlearn that all the money in the world won’t fill you. That it’s more important to pursue what you feel called to do even with challenges, even if it’s not the most lucrative, because you’ll be all the happier for it. Eventually all that pressure of what’s important for you to “have”, is white noise.

Have you ever had to pivot?

I feel I’ve always had to pivot in life. Wrong educational paths, wrong career paths, wrong relationships, lol. The largest pivot I experienced was actually 3 years ago, when I made the decision to move across country.

I was working as an Assistant Community manager at a prestigious rental property, that was expanding worldwide. I was making pretty good money, and getting myself in a comfortable financial state, but I had ended a five year relationship and I just felt lost and unfulfilled like something was missing.

Majority of my friendships were fading, we were just not as close as we all once were. Possibly because I was no longer working in the bar scene. I started dating again, but they were not right for me. I started to feel that I had nothing holding me in Ohio anymore. I had always wanted to move out of state, to experience something new, if at least for a year. Also, I didn’t want to grow old and say that I had never left the state I was born in, not when we have this whole world to explore!

Then a leasing position within the company came available in Colorado! I had been to Colorado once before, and it just felt like I could vibe out here, so I applied. Although the change paid-off (I met my now husband here) it was a HUGE adjustment. I left everything and everyone I knew to come here by myself. I took a pay-decrease and I was just starting to gaining traction as an artist in Ohio.

There were so many adjustments for me in such a short amount of time. I still can’t wrap my head around the magnitude of change I went through in one year. Moved across country, new property, new state, new city, no friends out here, got married, quit my 9-5, and now focusing on my art. I still don’t know many people, and I’m fairly new in the artist community out here. I’ve been blessed to be apart of the First Friday Art Walks with Petrichor Collective, but I’m looking to do more and make more connections.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @abold_artist
• Facebook: Jessica Morrison Abold
• TikTok: a_boldartist