We recently connected with Alessandra Guth and have shared our conversation below.

Alessandra , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?

At the start of this year, I was living in Austin and working a remote 9-5 job in marketing. My life felt still. My brain felt stagnant. I hadn’t written poetry in months, my content was getting promotional–I wasn’t feeling it.

I kid you not when I say an Instagram DM changed the trajectory of my year. I was planning to move to LA in June, but anticipated a new marketing gig to pay the bills. Instead, I chased a dream of working in entertainment.

In January and February, I manifested the crap out of the DM situation. Sticky notes everywhere. Dry erase markers, iPhone notes, you know the drill. I didn’t know what actions I needed to take besides maintaining a few side gigs I was doing to help my portfolio. I just thought about it a lot, scribbled it everywhere, and passionately believed it was going to work out.

In March I got a call. I flew half way across the country on a weeks notice to shadow the photographer who was seeking an assist. The whole thing went sideways, but in all the right ways. It could not have been a better situation to demonstrate the kind of person I want to be within the industry.

She ended up liking me. I flew back in April.

Within those four months, I neglected applying for any other jobs after I made the move to LA. Financially and mentally, that was a major risk. Money is real. But somehow, I knew I was going to be okay. I’m spiritual, for reference, and I just felt supported by the universe. I was always meant to be an artist.

Today, I’m her photography assistant and still pinch myself every time we work together. She is absolutely my role model.

Manifesting is real. When you get really good at it, you can sense when it’s safe to take that risk towards something you dream of. Something that flips your life upside down, and feels absolutely perfect.

Alessandra , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I started creating at the beach, turning wet sand into paintings and shells into sculptures. By 5 I was using tempera on paper and started dancing. By 10 I had my own pastel, watercolor, and acrylic sets. I also got my first camera. At 12 I wrote a poem that scared me because I knew it was really good. Around 14, I was competing in multiple art forms and self expressing in others. By the time I turned 18, I was a national winning dancer, a secret poet, an aspiring photographer, and headed to art school for oil and installation at Pepperdine University. I followed my fine art degree with a Masters in Strategic Innovation and Digital Media at Texas Tech University. I did freelance work in copywriting, photography, and media management for a year while living in Austin, TX.

Recently, I have relocated to Malibu, California and assist on set for fashion and editorial photographers. My sights are set on being an Art Director for either a magazine, or for feature films. I still offer photography, while camera assisting and working on personal projects here in the greater LA area.

Yes, I would love to take your picture. @alessandraguth

My work and my future brand will be extremely unique. Art Direction, to me, is partially a lens that someone can cast over a campaign or film. If this lens is weird and distinct enough, it becomes recognizable. My brain works in ways that I know are meant to be shared. Give it 10 years or less… By then I’ll have a movie.

Visually, I just don’t know how to describe my style, or if I even want to put it into words. I am evolving everyday and definitely in a season of growing and experimenting. I will say I find saturated colors, intense HMU, high contrast, unconventional angles, and shock value my favorite aspects within photography, and always have. I really just can’t wait to see where I am at a year from now. I never want to stop creating.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

While doing my graduate certificate in Advanced Social and Digital Media, we learned a lot of strategies to grow on social platforms. I wasn’t entirely sold that they worked, so I did a 6 month trial with all the tips and tricks I learned for IG. It worked super well, and I was pretty into it. In that time, I grew from about 1.7k to 13.3k just by posting pictures of myself, tagging brands, and basically pretending to be a content creator.

I downloaded TikTok after being super against it for years and that’s for sure what made me grow the fastest across platforms. The trick was that I was a brand new user/account, and to top it off I was posting unique content consistently. I grew on TikTok fast, and it definitely carried over to IG, which passed 20k in no time. Tip for TikTok: Live Streaming = Growth.

Overall, it’s about having the personality, the niche, or the consistency. Anyone can grow online nowadays. I recommend watching Fake Famous on Hulu. You’ll know where to go from there!

Is there a mission driving your creative journey?

I have a bumblebee tattooed on my stomach. I tell people it’s because I’m allergic (which I am). Irony is awesome. But the bumble bee actually symbolizes my uncle’s reincarnation, and my mission to complete the journey he started as a creative.

My uncles name was Drew Walker and he was a full on artist. He would design the holiday windows for big stores in Chicago, and designed runway fashion like see-through bubblegum dresses. He did so many forms of art, he was a walking creative inspiration. I only knew him for the earlier years of my life, since he passed away from AIDS in 2002. The day I graduated kindergarten. I used to say it was the day Drew graduated life. There are no coincidences.

Drew came to his own funeral in the form of a bumblebee. He flew exclusively around his Converse High Tops that were placed on a table in the lobby of the church. He wore those shoes religiously and was known for the pattern of it. I watched him in bee form fly circles around the shoes until my mom called me into the chapel for the start of his memorial.

The moment made me realize I had some things in life to finish for Drew. Even though he was in his thirties and I was a mere 4 years old the last time I saw him, we connected. Today, I am doing everything I can to “make it” in creatives. The first award I ever receive will 100% be followed by, “This one is for us, Drew!”.

Lastly, I must say it’s a relief he showed a piece of the world his imagination first. If it wasn’t for him and our clear creative DNA strain, I would think my mind is absolutely nuts.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.howdyprincess.com
• Instagram: @alessandraguth

Image Credits
Bella B Harris for @bazaarvietnam 🦋 . Model: Bella B Harris @bellabharris Photographer: Veronica Sams @veronicasams Hair: Ericka Verrett @ericka_verrett with @aframe_agency Hair Assist: Richard Verrett @rickyverrett Makeup: Preston Meneses @prestonmakeup Styling: Beatrice Balaj @beatricebalaj Production and casting: Rhiyen Sharp @rhisharp Production assistant: Michael Miller @mikedharma_ Lighting: Alex Bonelli @bonelliboy Lighting Assist: Derek Bonelli @pricelesscarpet Camera Assist: Alessandra Guth @Alessandraguth _______________________________________ cover for @harpersbazaarserbia with @mariannefonseca 🤍 . Photographer: Veronica Sams @veronicasams Muse: Mari Fonseca @mariannefonseca Wardrobe Stylist: Beatrice Balaj @beatricebalaj Hair Stylist: Richard Verrett @rickyverrett Makeup Artist: Ericka Verrett @ericka_verrett @aframe_agency Camera Assistant: Alessandra Guth @alessandraguth Booking & Coordination: Emily Blair Marcus / Emily Blair Media @emilyblairmarcus@emilyblairmedia _______________________________________ Cover of @juliamichaels for @composure.mag . Cover Story @carolinaogliaro Photography @daniel Creative Director + Post @veronicasams Makeup @archangelachelsea Hair @scottkinghair Stylist @beatricebalaj Camera Assist @alessandraguth Photo Assist @colin_treidler Content Editor @lee.a.min Production @veronicasams + @agency__cm Studio @theoctopuslounge