We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Andie Olson a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Andie, appreciate you joining us today. How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

I was not born a naturally gifted artist, but I was born with an insatiable urge to create art. I spent my younger years taking semi-private art lessons, and drawing and painting during my spare time. I even genuinely enjoyed my art classes at school. As dedicated as I was, I was never labeled as the artistic one in my yearbook or anything like that. Quite the opposite. I was actually seen as problematic to one of my elementary art teachers, as I did not follow her assignments. A drawing of a house would become a sculpture of a house or a black and white project would contain a rainbow of colors when I was finished. I was not doing this to be rebellious. I was painfully shy. I did it because that is what made perfect sense for me to create. It flowed out of me. I hoped to get into a prestigious art school for my bachelor’s degree, and in order to bolster my application, I took a summer intensive at there. I was told at the end of the course that my art skills were nominally above what would be considered elementary. That one stung a little. I did not receive admission to that college as you may have guessed. However, I was determined to master my craft. I attended another college where I spent every single day (and many nights) creating and building my skills. I still had a long way to go after graduation and I still see myself as honing my craft. However, I am now a technically skilled artist who sells my work regularly, shows in galleries and is involved in the art community. What I have learned along the way is that I have been practicing all of the skills that it takes to be a successful artist along the way. I have persevered through the doubt of my abilities as an artist. I continue to pursue creating artwork that directly matches my vision, no matter how unorthodox it may seem. Lastly, I have grit due to all of my trials and tribulations. The art world is not for the weak. Being a successful artist means believing in yourself when no one else does and being your unique self even if you need to stand alone in order to do so.

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

Art has always been a major part of my life. Coming from a long line of visual artists and creatives, I was lucky enough to be encouraged to make a life as an artist. I received my BFA in Painting from Moore College of Art in Philadelphia, PA. I recently moved back to Bucks County after living in Phoenix, AZ for seven years. I am active in the art community. I exhibit my art in galleries, sell my artwork and create commissions. I teach private art lessons and host sip & paint events. I also assist several local artists with marketing and general tasks. I am available for hire for any of these items!

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

I read a quote recently on social media that said, “As you binge watch your thirteenth entire series or read a book or sleep to music, remember. Remember that in the darkest days when everything stopped, you turned to artists”. Society can best serve artists by admitting and realizing that they are essential. Art is not superfluous. In fact, one of the things that makes us human is our ability to create. The value of art is not always properly or easily monetized. But just like everyone else on the planet, artists need money to survive. That is why grants and funds for the arts and art education are a must. Art education is so important because even though not every one of us will end up becoming a full-time artist, every one of us will consume art in some form on a daily basis our entire lives.

Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?

The main resource that I wish I had known about earlier in my career is the most important one of all – community. Art making, especially the fine arts, tends to be a solitary endeavor. We spend a lot of time alone. As many of us art introverts, we really like it that way. However, the adage “It’s all who you know” may be more important in the arts than in any other field. This is because growth in this career is extremely organic. There is nothing even close to a direct path to success. In fact, there are as many paths to success as there are artists. This can be very confusing and intimidating to a young artist. So, how do we navigate that? Through building personal relationships with anyone that is involved in the arts. These people include art advocated, fellow artists, collectors, art journalists, art educators, community project leaders, etc. Say you paint seascapes. These are the people that are going to tell you about a gallerist who is looking to exhibit work this month that portrays variations on waves, or about a collector that is starting to decorate his new house on the Jersey coast. It is true that there are (thankfully) a lot more resources on the internet now for things like calls to artists and artist residencies, but it’s the personal connections that will get you the ins that you won’t find through a Google search.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.andieolson.com/
• Instagram: @andieolsonart
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AndieOlsonFineArtist