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

Hi C.C. , thanks for 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?

I had been living in Costa Rica for a little over a month when my new friends passed by the house I was staying at and saw me painting out front on my patio. They came up for a visit, as was common in town, and said they noticed I was always painting and wanted to know if I could paint a couple signs for their new beachfront bar and restaurant. I had recently decided I wanted to stay down there and make it work living full-time so I accepted the opportunity to make some money.

My tools were old road signs and a sad collection of spray paint, house paint, roof paint, and random brushes and rags. I sat in the restaurant’s courtyard by the recycling and an old fan that reminded me of my Grandpop’s beach house and did the best I could to make something eye-catching and easy to read. I believe I got paid maybe $20, two beers and tacos. I was sold after that. I put a simple business plan together and became the painter in town for a little over two years full-time before moving back to the States.

I think about several milestones I reached in my career down there, the momentum it gave me and the dichotomy between that time and the last eight years in New York City. Funny how in a place where everyone takes things slow, my career blossomed at a tremendous rate, and here in the City that never sleeps, my career rambles on like retirees in Central Park. (I say that with love. I walk with them.)

I’m starting to think of it all much differently though. That time at the start of my career that I hold to the highest regard wasn’t a high point, it was the base camp, if even that. A better comparison would be that my career is entering its junior high school stage. Those moments at the start were monumental because I learned how to talk, how to walk, how to get along with my peers, But over time in New York I’ve learned how to read and write and dive deeper into social studies, math and other special interests, if you will.

It’s nice to reflect on those humble and heartwarming beginnings. As I reassess the current business model of my studio art and public outreach, I remind myself it doesn’t have to be so complicated. I remember the simple practices I did to earn and keep earning my dollars, or colones, in a little fishing village in Costa Rica. If I can make it there I can make it anywhere.. maybe even in New York.

Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?

For me, the most impactful “resources” have always come from the presence of mentors and like-minded peers. Having an in-person network is one of the most invaluable resources you can have in life. That’s not to say you should go around collecting people to use; but when you create and maintain meaningful, authentic connections and you’re surrounded by people who want to create with you or share a bit of life while you both create, respectively, that’s a beautiful thing.

Truly, the best lessons have come from my mentors, both formal and informal, and they tend to recommend books, music, essays, etc. that always expand upon their wisdom in a particular way. For that I am grateful. Beyond that, I love to indulge my interests by reading into whatever I’m reading – if the author was influenced by another author, I read that author, and so on.

I don’t consider my thinking and philosophy to be fixed at all, it is continuously evolving; but I am mindful of who and what I allow to influence it.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

The ability to bring something into existence out of nothing. In art and in business you’re constantly taking ideas and bringing them to life and I sometimes forget how truly magical that is. It’s a real blessing to be able to develop and use that skill.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.ccczerwinski.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ccczerwinski
• other: [email protected]

Image Credits

Professional photo by Lisa Pavlova (IG: @lisapavlova)
1.-2. Sign painting in Costa Rica
3. Photographed at Miami Art Week with Shepard Fairey by Badir McLeary (IG: @artabovereality)
4. Mindful of Sitting, Mindful of Walking, Mindful of Painting
Workshop, School of Visual Arts, New York City
5. Moon Beams and Pollen, Oil on linen, photographed at outdoor studio