We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Belina Wright a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Belina, appreciate you joining us today. The first dollar you earn is always exciting – it’s like the start of a new chapter and so we’d love to hear about the first time you sold or generated revenue from your creative work?
For a very long time, I never thought of myself as an artist. Being self-taught, I didn’t believe I had earned the right to be called that. As I was learning to paint and developing my style, I showed my art to my family members. My cousins and I have a group chat where we discuss things going on in our lives. I showed them my paintings and they were shocked! They didn’t know I started painting. One cousin was drawn to a piece, and immediately said, “I want it!” I was excited, nervous and humbled because it never occurred to me that someone would want to purchase my work. I asked her how much did she want to pay for it? She said, “You are the artist! You set the price and don’t sell yourself short!” I told her the price and she purchased it! I was so overjoyed and grateful that someone was moved enough to purchase my work. She is still one of my biggest collectors. I really needed that encouragement to move forward with my work and take it seriously as a career.
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 acrylic artist of Haitian descent. I’ve been painting for 19 years and have been selling my work for the last 10 years. I began painting after seeing another artist on PBS give a painting demonstration. I purchased her painting material and began to practice. Of course, I was terrible, but I continued to practice. Painting soon became my hobby. I painted for nine years before I even showed anyone my work. At that time, I also realized I didn’t have my own distinct painting style. I prayed and asked God to help me find my style, and He did. He helped me remember my travels to Haiti. I was reminded of the images of women wearing colorful head scarves with large baskets on their heads. With Haiti’s beautiful countryside as the backdrop. I started painting faceless images of these women and their families. These became the subjects of my work. I used the bright colors that I saw all around as I traveled though Haiti in my work as well. I believe this sets me apart from other artists. I sell my work on canvas and as prints. Not only that, but I also have my artwork on pillows, mugs, masks and puzzles. I believe people purchase my work and products because they want to see a little piece of Haiti around them. I also believe they are drawn to the vivid colors and the figures. I remember being at an exhibition where a woman purchased one of my paintings. The piece had 8 Haitian women holding hands. She fell in love with the piece because she was reminded of her seven sisters. I was extremely proud that my work connected personally with someone. She saw past the cultural theme and perceived my message of family closeness. I want people to feel the warmth and happiness of the bright colors. I would love for people to learn a little more about Haitian culture. Soon I will be offering beginner courses on how to paint Haitian art in acrylic.
: Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
My goal is to create beautiful works of Haitian Art that shares the positive narrative of Haiti I have experienced. I want to highlight its resilient and hard-working people.
We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?
I had to unlearn even though I was not formally trained I am still an artist! I have so much respect for formally trained artist and the work they do. However, simply because I wasn’t formally trained doesn’t diminish my work in any way. Additionally, my mentors assured me that I WAS an artist. I also realized that beginning to paint for the first time at 25 was a God given gift and I should cherish it. I have seen my work bring joy and happiness to many people. It has evoked conversations about unity and culture. I’m glad that I unlearned the belief that I wasn’t an artist.
Contact Info:
- Website: Www.bwrightart.com
- Instagram: @bwrightart
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BelinaWrightArt
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/belina-wright-148769bb
- Twitter: @bwrightart
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/channel/UCdJO4leD2Qwp9a5m6iloNBw
- Other: Etsy.com/shop/bwrightart
Image Credits
All photographs of me and my work were taken by Jeff Phillips.