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

Caroline, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Do you think your parents have had a meaningful impact on you and your journey?

First off I want to clarify that I was the last of four, so my parents had time to figure out how to raise a child. They’ve always been open and accepting with all of us, allowing us to pursue whatever we want and help us along the way if we had any problems. I can always remember from a young age my parents never forcing me to do things I didn’t want to do, and letting me decide what I liked and disliked on my own. When I was around the age of three I told my mom that Sunday I didn’t want to go to church anymore, and that was the end of it! They never pushed me to be like them or do the things they wanted to do (I did end up loving a lot of the same things they do, like music and comic books). As I grew up and art became a passion of mine, they allowed me to do that whenever and however I wanted. I had time to myself to practice and experiment with art which allowed me to figure out that is what I wanted to do with my future. My house has always been an open and loving house which I’m eternally grateful for. I could type pages and pages about their love and acceptance, especially them helping me deal with my mental illnesses, applying to university, learning how to be an adult, etc. They’ve always been my best friends and have allowed me to grow into the person I wanted to be.

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

I’m Caroline Mills, and I’m a Philadelphia born and raised Illustrator, Printmaker, and artist. I think growing up this was the only thing I was truly passionate and skilled at, so I decided to pursue it fully. I took all the necessary art classes in school, went to art school, and learned all the processes and skills I felt I resonated with most. I majored in Printmaking which allowed me to still use my illustration skills but learn how to produce them in mass amounts and in different ways. I think art school really helped me build and perfect my style. Even though it’s always evolving, I still learned how to find what I was passionate about making and how to make it in a successful manner. I started doing commissions really young, around age 15/16, so I thankfully got to learn the trials and tribulations of client based projects early on before I went to school for it. My dad taught me a lot about owning a business (he used to own his own printmaking business), so that helped me figure out what I wanted to do career-wise.
I think most of the journey to building my career had a lot to do with luck in social media. Building up an audience/following helped me build a business and figure out what pieces of my career were the most successful. Social media also helped my work get out to potential clients and allowed me to start working in industries I was interested in. Recently, I think my main projects have been running my online shop, making custom clothing, and doing freelance work on the side. It takes a while to figure out how much work you want to do for certain clients and how to balance that out in a way that can make you feel comfortable/successful. I try to prioritize jobs I feel I can do without any complications, although I do recommend taking on a difficult job every once and a while to add it to your skillset. Building up a skillset is super important, as a lot of clients expect you to be able to do a number of things for just one project.
The further I get into this career, the prouder I am of my ability to put myself out there. It takes a lot of guts, especially if you’re introverted like me, and I think putting yourself and your work into the public can be a really scary moment. There’s a lot of intimacy with art and a lot of eyes seeing it nowadays due to the Internet, so you have to be confident in yourself and your work. My work is just pieces of me and how I’m feeling whilst making that piece. I work a lot with the idea of nostalgia, mental illnesses, and trauma, so all of my pieces are very personal.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

I’ve always seen making art as a form of therapy for me. It’s allowed me to express my feelings in a way that feels comfortable while also allowing me to work through certain things. It’s extremely cathartic. As I start to dive deeper into the professional world of art, I still want that to be my main goal when I make pieces. I’ve learned a lot of people feel the same way as I do and relate to my pieces through different perspectives which is really rewarding for me as an artist. I make stuff to create relatability in feelings and experiences and I think as I continue my career I want to dive deeper into that.

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

I feel like a lot of society doesn’t realize how much art impacts our day to day and how it influences us to make certain decisions. Art is everywhere. I think artists need to be treated the same as any other craftsperson. It takes time, energy, and a lot of brainpower to create pieces. I feel like going the creative route career wise is commonly looked down upon, and it shouldn’t be. It is still a career like any other.
I do think AI is ruining the creative scene and making things ‘easier’ for a lot of companies when in reality it is putting down artists and also ruining the environment and this wonderful planet we live on. Hiring a real human artist provides originality, warmth, personality, and rawness that cannot be compared to. Let artists and creatives work for you!!! We don’t bite!!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://carolinemills1998.com
• Instagram: carolinemills