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

Alicia , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

Honestly, I had never given art a thought as something I wanted to pursue. I didn’t think I even had any artistic talent. Few years ago before the pandemic my mother was telling me about this fun game that she was always doing with my son about painting rocks and hiding them. I assumed like geo caching. It didn’t seem that interesting to me at the time but, they were so excited about it. It was my sons new favorite thing. Every time my mom would come and visit she would bring rocks for them to paint. She always tried to get me involved but of course I’ve always had something better to do. What would you paint anyways? I had no clue. Then spring break 2020 my son left to spend the time with my mother out of town and thats when quarantine hit. I was left alone in my house for months looking for anything to entertain me. I had found a pile of my mom’s rocks she had left from a previous visit and decided to see what all the fuss was about. I started painting random things like cartoon characters, animals, just whatever came to mind and I would send the pic to my mom. She was amazed. She thought they were fantastic. Which she’s my mom of course she would. But then she had me posting them on the Facebook group page and instantly I was getting so much feedback and people wanting to actually pay for my rocks. I had people that were messaging me and my mom wondering when I was going to hide them so they could get a jump start. It was crazy. It blew up so fast and next thing I knew I was constantly getting requests from people wanting me to paint. I would always tell them I was new at this and had never painted but I was always willing to give it a try. Then I got my first request of someone asking me to do a portrait. That one intimidated me a bit. They were offering to pay me but I was afraid that I wouldn’t be able to pull it off. Portraits are scary. One simple line can age someone 10 years. Hesitantly, I accepted the challenge but made sure they were well aware that it would be my first attempt. I was shocked to see her excitement when I showed her the result. That feeling of accomplishment was all it took. After that I began pushing myself and seeing what I was actually capable of. I’m still learning and growing with it as I’m sure I always will be.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

I’ve always been a very career driven woman working in hotel management for 15 years. Art was never something I considered as a career path. My busy schedule with working, being a single mother, and playing softball kept me plenty occupied and not let my mind open to any new possibilities. I was reaching close to 40. If I had any talents I would have assumed they would have been long discovered before then. The more I painted the more confident I started getting in what I could do. Just seeing the reactions I would get from the photo I would send was so fulfilling. That feeling alone made me want to pursue this path so much more. It was never about the money. Just seeing so much emotion come from something so simple that I was able to create for someone it really moves me. When I’m painting a portrait it’s like I’m learning about them. I can hear their laughs. I can tell this is someone who is loved. I feel like I’m painting more than just an image but I’m capturing their personality. It’s like they come to life. With each stroke and every layer of color down to the twinkle in their eyes I just get lost in the moment.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The most rewarding aspect for me has always been the emotional reactions that come from clients. I have clients send me videos of reactions from when they gift the portrait to others. Everyone has always told me I do not charge enough and I’m crazy for my prices but the feeling that I get from seeing someone get so overwhelmed with emotion off of something special I was able to create for them is priceless.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.

Never doubt yourself. I believed for almost 40 years I was a non-creative. My mind would always just go blank when I was told to use my imagination, be creative. Artist was never a word I would have have listed when describing myself. Start small and just keep to adding to it. There’s so much you can do with colors. Layers and layers of different colors do so much to something so simple. I always start with a simple base color and start adding different colors and blending until you find what you are looking for. With painting you don’t have to worry about making a mistake. You can always paint over it.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: Alicia’s_rockart
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063838531588&mibextid=ZbWKwL
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alicia-rodriguez-49603853
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@alimicrod1