One of the most daunting aspects of pursing a creative or artistic career for many aspiring artists is not knowing how to learn the craft. So, we asked some very talented artists and creatives to talk to us about how they learned their crafts and we hope their stories will help you in your journey.

Sophia Martin-Brown

Growing up in the vibrant landscape of Jamaica, I imbibed a profound lesson at a tender age – the transformative power of looking impeccable to evoke a sense of well-being. My academic years, marked by mandatory uniforms, necessitated meticulous care, including starching, to attain an appearance of crispness and sophistication. This practice instilled in me a lifelong commitment to always present my best self through sartorial choices. Read more>>

Alex Sandoval

As a new artist manager, there have been a lot of things I have had to learn and that learning never stops no matter how experienced you are. The music industry is a very complex industry to not only enter but to remain in for an extended period. Because of this, I need to know how to do my job as best as possible, which entails thinking constantly about how I can improve the career of my artist. The digital world has made collaboration and learning about certain topics much more accessible with things such as podcasts, e-books, and educational videos all being immediately available online or on our phones and this has helped me tremendously. Read more>>

Coldgamesixx

Learning the craft of music is something that I feel I’ve subconsciously always done since birth, whether it be hearing new music as a child and knowing I liked the beat, playing various instruments and singing throughout my life up until now where everyday is a learning experience. Every song I listen to, spending hours listening to beats passively or purposely, all of that has led me here. Read more>> 

Jessi Mason

I’ve been writing songs since I was a little kid, which ultimately really helped me. I think when you start learning something at a young age, there’s so much more freedom to explore. You haven’t developed that critical inner voice telling you you’re not good enough, it’s total creative exploration. I was able to develop my songwriting like that, and I’m very grateful that I started so early. I’m currently teaching myself to produce, I’ve started building out a little home studio and everything. Read more>>

Janak Panchal

My journey began as a Photographer before becoming a Cinematographer and Colorist. My father had a camera that I began using from the age of 14 and that is when I became fond of photography. Over time, my mind began falling in love with motion along with stills. I joined Whistling Woods International in Mumbai, India for my Bachelor’s degree where I studied and practiced cinematography. Read more>>

Conrad Faraj

I am a self-taught filmmaker and learned everything through trial and error. It was a rewarding process because I was always discovering something new. Growing up, I would always make 1 movie a week. I would gather all my friends and we would create something unique (or usually absurd) and have the best time. I wish I would’ve taken the craft more seriously then. I didn’t do that until my last year of high school, but I felt that every short film I made was a stepping stone into what eventually would become my career. Read more>>

Max Gruenberg

Learning the craft of making and playing house music can be split into two realms. Will let Mike (partner and other half of Echolocation) talk about learning how to produce and then I, Max, will talk about learning how to navigate the club environment, making money, making lasting fan base etc. So the production and performance sides and lessons that we learn from that. Read more>>

Sam DeCarlo

As working artists, we are constantly learning to improve our craft and much of that education is self-propelled. Read more>>

Bryson Howard

I learned my skills at a fairly young age. My grandfather was the worship leader in the church I grew up in, so he was always pushing me to sing. I’m glad he did, it helped me a lot with being on stage and singing in front of a crowd. I started learning guitar when I was around 11, I took lessons for a bit and learned the basics chords. I then decided I wanted to quit lessons and I started teaching myself. Read more>>

Emily Wright

Whats it like to learn to tattoo? Well its a trade so like any other trades it takes time. Ive been working within the industry for 7 years now and tattooing about 3 years. Read more>>

Tara Aiken

I was 35 years old when I started doing chalk art at home during the shutdowns of the 2020 Pandemic. Outside of a couple art electives in high school and college, I have no formal training. On top of that at that time, I had two kids under two years old (also at home with daycares closed), and a full-time job to manage. Read more>>

Ralph Lumley

We were made to reflect creativity, to be creative, and to express our thoughts, dreams and visions. It’s an innate sense, a longing to present something of ourselves through a creative vehicle. The expression may be wrapped within a story or a particular character that we wish we were more like, or the howl of an unhealed wound. Abandonment, betrayal, joy, love; they are all human expressions that can be presented in an unlimited number of ways. We were designed to reflect God’s nature. Read more>>

Adriana Baer

I’m a public speaking coach now, but I’ve also spent 20 years as a professional theater director. I knew I wanted to walk that path from about age 14, so I went to college and studied theater, arts administration, and dramatic literature. After that, I became the Associate Artistic Director of a theater in San Francisco (The Cutting Ball Theater) and then got my MFA in directing from Columbia University before getting hired as the Artistic Director of a company in Portland OR (Profile Theatre). Read more>>

Contrast High Gina Scordos and Jenna Conforti

Jenna: I’ve been immersed in art since I was a child, being creative has always been a part of who I am. Growing up with my father, an artist himself, I absorbed priceless lessons about self-expression, chasing my passions, and fully diving into all things art. I don’t believe there’s anything I would have done differently to expedite my learning process. It’s the process that is most valuable to me and I’ve come to appreciate the significance of every step and every experience. Read more>>

Madeleine Matsson

I’ve perpetually found joy in the realms of drawing, painting, and overall creative expression. Trees have consistently been my muse, weaving their presence into my artistic endeavors. Read more>>

Donna Gray-Banks

How did you learn to do what you do? Trial and Error Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? More Research Read more>>

Michele Van Leeuwen

I consider myself to be a self-taught musician. For the first several years of my musical journey, I just played what I heard. Eventually, I started using method books and online resources to gain a deeper understanding of music. Everything I learned was absolutely fascinating. My love for music grew exponentially. Read more>>

Martina Allen

I initially developed my passion for the arts through childhood art classes and creative lessons in school. As high school approached, I pursued my interest by applying to and attending Dillard Center for the Arts, a magnet art school. This experience exposed me to a diverse range of artistic skills and set the foundation for my artistic journey. Continuing my education, I earned a Bachelor’s degree in Studio Arts in college, further refining my craft. Read more>>

Kevin Mugabo

It all started in 2016. I always had a passion for photography, especially for Street /Urban art. So, I decided to purchase a Canon DSLR camera and started practicing with that. The first thing I learned was shooting long-exposure. After a year of just shooting Urban, landscape, and some Nature. I proceeded to learn how to shoot portraits. And to this day in November 2023, I am still practicing and learning as much as I can. Read more>>

Tom Szorady

The main reason I learned motion graphics was to further my career. I had been a graphic designer in Cleveland, Ohio for a good 10 years and it just wasn’t working out. It took a layoff at an ad agency to put my butt in gear and make a change. I signed up for an online class with the School of Motion while I did different freelance design jobs to pay the bills. Once I started working with clients for animation purposes, everything started to fall into place. Read more>>

Krishna Patel

Going from my career as an Instructional Design Manager during the day to managing my Etsy shop at night keeps me in a constant learning mode. Read more>>

Karyn Walker

Being a Creative is a process – much like being an Entrepreneur. If you think you have “got it” – you’re fooling yourself. Read more>>

Nana Boachie

My love of art started with making comics in my notebooks as a kid. They were the tiniest panels and drawings, probably because I already doodled in my notebook margins so often. This was also a time in which Flash was gaining traction. In the early 2000’s Web toons were popular through sites like Ebaum’s World, Newgrounds and Albino Blacksheep, but Newgrounds had so many users that submitted content. Read more>>

Elizabeth Maguire

Photography is such a unique art form! Learning photography is all about personal experience, trial and error, and finding your own style. It’s not something you can fully be taught, although learning the basics is extremely helpful! Read more>>

David Cacciatore

A lot of artists and inspiration have been passed down to us from our parents. We both learned music through listening and playing along to some of our favorite music including The Everly Brothers, The Beatles, and Jimi Hendrix as well as watching YouTube and playing with other musicians and friends. Our harmonies were something we serendipitously discovered from playing together so much. We eventually realized that our voices blended together very well, similar to that of our heroes. Read more>>

THE SOCIAL

We have been a band since 2019 and have learned that success comes from hard work, consistency and tenacity. With each opportunity and goal we achieve, its just another building block to the next step. We all come from different backgrounds and experience in the music industry. When we come together as a band we help mold each other and it has developed what the band is today. We all realize that The Social is more than just one or four individuals but a community of people who love to make music. Read more>>

Martin Arreola

Directing was a very fortunate “accident” for me. When I was in college, my friends were part of the musical theatre company of the school, they would go to rehearsals and had their shows and everything; me, I was more a sports guy, since I was a little kid, Mom used to take me to karate, swimming, soccer, gymnastics, you name it. One day all my friends were going to attend their audition and managed to convince me to apply. Read more>>

KC Grifant

There are several tips I find very helpful when writing creatively. The first is to make it a habit of prioritizing writing. Whether it’s a little bit every day, or a weekend writing binge every few months, testing out different methods until I found what worked for me at various points in my life was extremely helpful. Read more>>

Beau Lewis

Learning my craft in photography has been many years in the making. I first started by taking photos from my phone, found myself really enjoying this newfound hobby. Fast forward to five years later and now I have a hard time leaving my camera at home anytime I leave. there has been a lot of learning along the way. From taking photography classes, going to workshops and countless hours of just getting out there to shoot. Read more>>

Aaron Quinn

There are really four things that taught me how to write. The most important part of the journey was writing a lot. I tend to want to experiment with my prose and poetry, and that leads to a lot of mistakes- or lessons depending on what spot of the depression spectrum I am on at any given time. With all those risks being taken, I also had to get comfortable and slightly enjoy, critiques. Read more>>