We recently connected with Ashanti Pender and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Ashanti thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?

My ultimate goal for my business is to make it a dreamer’s hub. Somewhere who inspires people to pursue and achieve their dreams, no matter what. I know it sounds cliche, but we all hit a point in our life when we forget how to dream or the world has beaten us so badly that we no longer can dream. When you’re a kid, dreaming is easy. The world seems so big when you’re young. Then as time goes on and we grow older, the world seems so much smaller, less special; when in reality, it’s the same world we dreamed of traveling at 5. Before I said, “Nobody can live my life for me. It’s my dream and I’m going to get it”, I was lost.

I had two dreams in high school, to be an athlete or to be an artist. Growing up, artists were high-class creatives that had millionaires dropping millions on just one of their artworks, though most of these artists had already passed on. Then on the other side, the athletes. The ones who earned admiration and respect from playing the sports they love. I took AP creative classes and played basketball during my last year of HS. I was more focused on sports, and despite the people who put me down on my journey, I had others who would lift me up. Just like any dream, you’ll have the people who believe in you and the ones who don’t. An injury killed my athletic dreams, and I became severely depressed. I had no idea what I would do at the time. I wanted to play at least for a small college, and those chances just left. Like that. Nothing I could do about it. I kind of began skipping classes and just hanging out in the art classes. I was really cool with my art teachers, I was in AP, so regular class block times would usually never be enough to finish projects we were assigned so I could stay in there, getting lost in the art all day, “completing projects.” It was easy to focus on creating what I felt versus saying what I felt when I had that season-ending injury my senior year. I reflected on the years I dedicated to basketball, what I learned from it, and what I have to accept from that chapter of my life. Doing art during this time helped me reflect. It took my mind off the boot around my ankle. The pain I felt when I walked. The comments people made. Yet, despite that, I came to later realize, I was satisfied. I didn’t know it at the time but I was satisfied because I did try to achieve a dream, it just wasn’t mine to achieve.

Losing one dream helped me focus on the other. I was, metaphorically speaking, reborn. Given a new life. New opportunity. A new outlook. One dream died and another was reawakened. I re-prioritized my art and photography as I did basketball. When I recovered, I found a love for working out. I still played basketball, either joining pick-up games or intramurals. I entered a major program at my college that best suited my goals and I thrived. I found a passion for working with small businesses also in my studies. Life has a funny way of giving you perspective when you least expect it.

Dreamers will continue to dream, no matter the adversity or setback. I want to curate my business on dreams. Through art, creating something you’ve never imagined. Or creating a visual or design that only you can dream of. With photography, capturing a moment. A dream that became a memory, except this memory, this dream, can be re-lived. I am helping entrepreneurs turn their hobbies and dreams into small businesses. There is no greater reward for me to see someone overcome and succeed in achieving their dreams. I think it’s beautiful and unique because everyone’s dream is different.

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?

My name is Ashanti Pender, I’m a digital artist, photographer, and entrepreneur based in Atlanta, GA. I was involved in the arts from a young age but I didn’t begin to really take it seriously until about 3 or 4 years ago. I began developing my marketing skills in 2018 and niche-focused more in college to help small businesses attract consumer traffic and earn sales.

I got into my industry by just getting into it. There are not really any guidelines to enter the field of art or photography. Just a need for a creator to produce and be creative. Social media allows us to have the luxury of showcasing our works and steadily building a following of people who like our pieces. I began my art page traditionally first, posting pieces I created in my high school days and other small projects I had done. I was trying to become accustomed to the digital art space before showing my work but instead, I decided to show my development through my Instagram. Which in turn, brought in more users to my page, who was also new to the digital art space or learning how to shoot photography. From there, I had people who trusted my creative ability and allowed me to create designs and/or shoot in my style for them, allowing me to gain more footing and confidence in my industry as I begin attracting audiences.

I offer hand-drawn poster art, I complete custom art requests, as well as design logos, and graphics. My photography is mostly natural shots and landscapes though I do also shoot events( formal, wedding, conference) and subjects (products, people/animals). This has allowed me to decorate client spaces such as offices, bedrooms, dorms, etc. with both my photography and hand-drawn designs making a room feel more complete and personalized when entered.

I am most proud of how authentic I am. Working in social media is draining. It’s a combined effort of work and pleasure but mainly work. I’ve seen people just completely lose themselves within social media. I am not that. I know who I am, and what my purpose on the platform is. I want people to like my work but I am not going to bend over backwards to beg them to like my work. In this day and age, being authentic is rare in a world full of deception. That’s the main thing I want people to know, stay true to yourself and you alone, there is nobody else in this world who can be you. I have my official brand name but it’s not yet registered, it will also reflect authenticity, creativity, and uniqueness to show that we are all works in progress.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

I began my business in 2020, as a broke college student. I continued to run my business as so. I, of course, used all the free resources I could find. I posted organically on social media, I watched YouTube for different areas, and googled everything about developing a business. I took advantage of positioning as a college student and asked my trusted professor her thoughts and opinions on my venture. I used all the considerable resources I thought could provide the most value for me and they did. At times I felt as though I was working hard for nothing, there were no payouts or results for my endless nights. Not yet anyway. It took grit and determination to have faith in something that might not even work. Throughout my development process, I didn’t spend a dime. I budgeted and saved the money I had for future endeavors after I earned my degree that spring. Summer came, I wasn’t in the position I wanted to be in and it was discouraging, but I persevered. I kept telling myself this wasn’t for nothing. I began looking for pop-up shops, I wanted to do at least two before winter in 2022. One of my goals for the year was to complete my first official pop-up shop.

I allocated money, found two events for October and I booked them. It was the first time all my planning and preparation came to fruition. It was my first official pop-up shop. I ordered and bought set-up materials and products over the summer since I couldn’t do shows. I continued to prep even when I wasn’t preferably prepared. That’s hard to do. It seems as though we have missed our goal when we really just needed to re-aim and re-shoot. Some people give up before the even re-aim.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

The most rewarding aspect of being creative is the ability to be able to create freely. We can create what we want based off of our interpretation or others, we get to free our mind from whatever has a hold of it by creating. Getting lost in your work is one of the best feelings you can have as a creative.

It’s even better to create and be paid to create. We are making money, doing what we will already do for free. Can we really count it as work if it’s something we already enjoy doing? My mind wanders now and it’s okay because the ideas I come back with, people are excited to hear and see them, especially if it’s never been done.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.etsy.com/shop/ArtbyMTK
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/artbymtk/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashanti-pender-882193240/
• Other: https://www.pinterest.com/ashantibyday/

Image Credits
@smilingeyesmedia_ (image taken was with the peace sign, that’s all)