Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Angel Carboni. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Angel, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Has your work ever been misunderstood or mischaracterized?

I’ve been unfortunately mischaracterized more often than not.

When I became a model at 18, I wanted to do every concept under the sun. There’s so many different types of modeling: fashion, editorial, boudoir, product, cosplay, etc. When I got into my tasteful nudity art era, there was a big misunderstanding of what I was doing. What started as artistic nudity ended up being misconstrued as “e-girl” or “OF model” activities.

It opened a Pandora’s box of DMs of sexually charged comments and requests. These requests were sometimes from fellow “professionals” who had seen my previous work and wanted to do similar concepts, but I said that I don’t actually do nude modeling, which to them felt contradictory based on my work. I would have to explain the art to them and how it differed from these mood boards of boudoir concepts they would send my way.

Aside from the entitled requests, this began a series of fake accounts using precious art I created as their backing photos. This is a plague on various platforms, where these scammers make fake accounts using pictures of people and linking to various sites like OF, Fansly, etc to steal money from people who essentially subscribe to nothing.

What I took from these experiences is to not give up.
I kept doing risqué concepts. I kept dealing with the annoying messages. I kept blocking and reporting the fake accounts. I was and still am passionate about the art of modeling. I know that at the core of every project I’ve done is that it has a meaning and it may not resonate with everyone. This is not a role I wish upon anyone, but it is a mental load to consider when becoming a creative of any discipline. Any art you release may be misunderstood or mischaracterized, but don’t let it stop you from creating.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Do you remember or know of the golden age of malls when model and pageant recruiters would have kiosks in the middle of malls trying to stop any little kids with their parents? Well, my parents would get stopped and asked if their daughter (me) would want to try modeling. They would always decline and carry on. I would then hold onto this until I turned the legal age of 18 when I could sign my own contracts to start modeling haha.

I had a great friend and mentor during my formative years as a model who helped me learn everything I needed to get into the industry. About two years into modeling, I truly came into the realization about how important it is to understand all sides of production. I wanted to learn how the other side of the lens worked, so that is when I picked up my first camera and haven’t looked back since. From there, the same line of thought about understanding all sides led me into marketing and becoming a digital specialist. I was and am still able to self sustain all parts of production from modeling, photography, and then creating all digital assets needed to run marketing campaigns.

Aside from learning these skills for myself for over a decade, I do provide all of them as services to fellow creatives as well. From simple resumes or social media posts to full mentorship, I am confident in being able to assist creatives of all disciplines to bloom into their best versions. I have helped others start their modeling careers and/or grow their businesses,

Once I’ve tended to your needs once, you have me as a supporter for life whether monetarily for my services or just as someone who wants to see you succeed. At the start for one great creative, they needed help with pricing their services efficiently and nowadays we work on full productions together routinely. I truly believe that no one is competition and that you are only trying to “0ne up” your past self always. The creative community is built around simply that: community. My work is to be an aspiring inspirer for others in our community.

Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?

Creativity never was a talent for me.

A lot of times people equate artists to talent, but what they don’t see is the amount of years and effort that went into building you as a creative. I was not always great in front of cameras. Could you believe I was camera shy and did not know how to do any other pose than a peace sign?

I put hours into researching about modeling when I first started. I would make faux homework assignments for myself to read articles, watch interviews, and challenge myself styling my closet. I would spend chunks of time in front of the mirror to practice facial expressions, so that I could muscle memory my way into remembering how certain “emotions” felt on my face. Fortunately, walking in heels came easily, since my mother got me into fashion at a young age, but what I still had to practice was my formal runway walk.

Even after my formative years as a model, I still take the time every quarter to do a deep research dive into anything new I can find, but also practice old material as well. I constantly seek other art and media for inspiration and love to analyze my own work to do better on the next project.

All of this research and practice has accumulated into the creative I am today.
It was never an innate talent, but a refined skill that I’ve put effort and time into.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

You do not have to monetarily support your favorite creatives. Engagement is free.

Your one like, comment, repost, and share does not seem like a lot to you, but it means EVERYTHING to that creative. It helps them get into better algorithms with the beast of social media. It tells them that you care about what they’ve decide to share with the world. It lets other people discover them which in turn may open the door for more motivation. All of the engagement adds up into one big lump eventually. Your comment may one day go unread, but you should wish that for your favorite creative. You want them to be successful, to sell out, to be popular, so that they can keep doing what they love: art.

To create a thriving ecosystem, we do need to invest monetarily into each other.

Collaborations and self-funded projects can only go so far in a community. We need small businesses and fellow creatives to come together to fund productions on a larger scale. No more simple “here’s something for a tank of gas”, we need to be paid for our time and our efforts. Can’t afford to work with someone you really like? Just like you would for that new phone or apparel, you can save up for a creative. Save up the money to pay someone properly. In the meantime, support them freely with engagement.

I truly believe no creative is competition. We are a creative community. Communities help each other. The only competition at the end of the day is your past self, so you should always be growing and doing better than yourself.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://angelcarboni.carrd.co
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mistletoad/

Image Credits

All images were by @komorebilens on Instagram