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

Anika, appreciate you joining us today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

Despite being passionate for art my whole life, the idea of pursuing it as a career didn’t occur to me until my late twenties. Not because I didn’t want to, but because of the believe system society has taught us. That is: Making money from art is not possible, better keep it as your little hobby you do in your free time. Back then, I didn’t have the confidence to think otherwise, so I started a job in healthcare. Working as a dietician was great, but left me with very little time to create art, and after some years, I noticed there was something missing. I felt stuck in my path, without goals and dreams I could go after. At the same time, I saw all the artists on social media that I admired so much, and how they were making a living with selling their art online and in person. After working on my confidence and mindset and with my 30th birthday coming near, I figured out that I had only one life, and if others could do it, why couldn’t I? So I told my boss I wanted to reduce my hours to 50%, which was a huge step for me, and started painting as a business October 2021.

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 an oilpainter living in Munich, Germany. Besides my high school diploma in art, I have no formal art education and learned how to paint basically by myself. In my first year of being a professional painter, I took on various commissions, mainly for friends and family. My main goal however was to find a subject matter and style that reflects my voice as an artist. As I always had a fascination for moody landscapes, clouds and especially mesmerizing waterscapes, I worked on these topics as my personal projects.
My turning point was in September 2022, when I was on holiday at Tegernsee, a lake within a one hour drive from Munich. I like to paint from my own reference photos, so I took my camera with me and got up extra early to shoot the lake in the morning hours. That was it – I took hundreds of photos and I knew, this is what I want to paint.
With my work, I want to take the viewer to these exact moments, making them pause in their busy lives to rest their mind and get lost in a calming world. Most of my paintings show either sparkling, soft moving waves, or a foggy landscape, with the mountains of my bavarian home rising behind a lake. I sell my original paintings as well as giclée prints, which I also do by myself. You can find and purchase my work directly on my website.
And anyone who is interested in seeing my progress, check out my Instagram!

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.

I think one big misconception that non-creatives have, is thinking that talent is something god-given, something that a few lucky people have naturally. Which is sad, because they might want to learn how to paint or play an instrument, but society had taught them that they are just “not talented enough”, so they don’t even try. Or they tried once and then gave up because they didn’t get the results they had hoped for. In my opinion, this whole myth about talent is not true at all! Those who we consider as being gifted, might have fostered their passion and skill from a very early age on, leaving the impression that they are born with these abilities. But anyone at any age can start, especially in arts, because there is no physical limitation like in sports. It just takes dedication and many hours of practice.

How did you build your audience on social media?

In my opinion, the biggest skill you need to build an audience on social media (or anywhere else) is perseverance. In the beginning there will most likely be no one interested in you and what you do. I started my Instagram in Ocotber 2021 and it took more than six months to get even a thousand followers, despite of already posting on a regular basis. My mindset was: If I do it long enough and good enough, I will eventually make it! I learned how to do good reels, they brought me the most audience. Today I have more than 100 K followers. So, for anyone just starting: Just do it, share your creative process, your ups and downs and your personality on a consistent basis – it doesn’t have to be 7 posts per week, but find a schedule you can stick to. Of course we want to provide high quality content and you will get better at it the longer you do it, like with art. Try to not just post for the sake of posting, but think about what your audience (and potential clients) would like to see.
This is an ability you can learn! If you need help, don’t shy away from taking a course or do a consultation with an expert. I personally took courses for Instagram by Natalia Karpman, the founder of Yes!Artmarketing.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://asimeth.art/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/asimeth_art/