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

Ama, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

The most meaningful project I have worked on to date has been the “100 Women Artists in Art History” traveling exhibition project, founded by artist Alicia Campos. The premise of the project was to create an interpretation of a work of art created by a female artist. Each participating artist was assigned a female artist in history. We researched the artists’ works and, for most of us, had an opportunity to learn about a woman artist we had never heard of before this project. I was drawn to participate in the project because of the obvious void that exists when students learn about about the great artists in history. I only remember learning about 2 or 3 women artists in my undergraduate art history class, compared to the voluminous material I learned about male artists.

This project allowed for an opportunity to have a small number of women artists to share the spotlight. I think this project opened the door for many more women, historical and contemporary, as well as women of color, to be seen and studied. In the process, the participating artists, who were all or mostly women, had the opportunity to meet each other and in some cases collaborate on future projects.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I am a graphic designer who, until the pandemic shutdown in 2020, worked full-time as an attorney. I had earned an undergraduate degree in graphic design, but I ended up in the legal field due to a limited number of available graphic design positions in my geographic area. As a result, I eventually went to law school and have been a practicing attorney for over 19 years. During that time I rarely used my creative skills except for random events which called for someone who knew how to draw.

I chose to reconnect with drawing and designing during the pandemic as a way to unwind from stressing out about covid, the shutdown, etc. I started out doing hand drawings and then eventually became acquainted and reacquainted with design apps.

a.Appiah Designs, LLC was started with the intention of having a foundation from which to develop my own brand of art products (wall art, household items, greeting cards, etc.) and art-related projects. I also loved the idea of seeing where this process would take me. Once I opened my mind to the possibilities, there were so many other creative avenues I wanted to try, like interior decorating, photography, etc. Fortunately or unfortunately, I was limited in what I could jump into right away because of the pandemic shutdowns.

I am still a practicing attorney, but I enjoy creating portraits and other fine arts pieces for clients, as well as designing social posts, marketing products, newsletters, etc. for businesses and organizations.

Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

There really isn’t any resource I wish I knew about earlier in this creative journey. I feel I learned new things at the time I was meant to experience them. Looking back, insights and opportunities to learn about various resources came at times when I had the time to fully engage and then implement them into whatever designs or projects I was working on. I still have a lot to learn, so I just tend to go with the flow and trust that resources will be available at the right time. That’s what makes this an enjoyable journey for me.

Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?

I was surprised and really impressed with all the YouTube videos that exist to help with any problem I encountered in setting up various e-commerce platforms to sell my artwork. When I first set up my Etsy store, for example, I knew nothing about about all that should have been involved with creating a listing. I thought you put up a picture of the poster or drawing, came up with a description, a price and shipping details, and that was it. I didn’t know anything about the research that should go into finding and using keywords. I didn’t know anything about creating mockups so customers can see how your art could look in a home setting. I have learned so much just by taking time to sit and watch whatever video I needed, and taking notes to make sure I didn’t miss an important step.

Now I highly recommend YouTube videos to anyone who is trying to set up an e-commerce platform, and recommend dedicating as much time as you need, in whatever topic you need, for whatever goal you want to reach.

Contact Info:

• Website:www.aappiahdesigns.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/aappiahdesigns
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/aappiahdesigns
• Twitter: www.twitter.com/aappiahdesigns
• Etsy: https://aappiahdesigns.etsy.com/