We were lucky to catch up with Chad Rea recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Chad , thanks for joining us today. How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

Put simply, I learn from doing. One can think and research their way into paralysis and start to believe they’re not ready yet. Or they can get to it. We’re all ready already. The more I try out new ideas, experiment with different techniques or mediums, and push myself past my comfort zone, the more I learn and grow. It’s part of the reason my collections differ, sometimes dramatically, from one another. Going that extra step past “finished” often leads me to an unexpected path that I explore until the next one appears. Also, you’ve got to put in the hours. As an advertising copywriter and Creative Director, I was trained to generate hundreds of simple, surprising ideas on demand every day. I don’t think any other career could’ve trained me better for being able to prolifically make and promote conceptual art. That said, I’m pretty clueless about how the art industry works and how to get into influential galleries in bigger art markets. I mean, shouldn’t someone be rich off my art by now?

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I was never comfortable with the title “artist”. I could easily call myself a writer, a creative, an idea guy, a performer, a maker, a musician, a teacher, an entrepreneur…but never an artist. All the artists I knew were next level. In many cases, they’re the ones we advertising folks were inspired by and would hire to execute our vision in a way we could not. I mean, I was a wordsmith, not a painter – despite painting over 100 wordless paintings in 172 days during my first year as an artist. I wasn’t handy enough to fabricate my ideas – or so I believed – and hiring others to build them felt less than. Then, I went to a workshop on the topic of “Purpose”, and I walked out of there convinced I was a f-ing artist. For me, I think the thing that clicked was that an “artist” is all the hats I’ve ever worn all rolled into one. There’s freedom in knowing that everything you create – at any level – is art because you’re an artist and you made it…or had someone else make it a la Warhol and Koons.

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

When I started making art professionally in 2017, I was creating activist art or artivism. My themes explored American gun culture, mental health, climate change, and the like. My goal was to create a shared upset and inspire action. I remember talking to people at my exhibitions and them saying things like, “Wow, this is powerful stuff. I feel awful.” Success! The Austin Chronicle even named me “Top 10 Visual Arts” in just my second year as an artist. Then, just as my art career was gaining momentum, COVID struck, and several exhibitions and fairs were canceled. I took a journey inward and enrolled in a 2-year Spiritual Psychology program. A year into the deep dive, I started feeling disconnected from all of my unshown activist art that was now collecting dust. I was no longer feeling upset or compelled to put more negativity in the world. My clenched fist and heart were opening up as I began to see the world through the lens of compassion, joy, hope, and love. Today, my goal is to create shared joy through what I call “Heartivism”. My first solo show under the same name featured my previously-created activist works but now with positive phrasing graffitied over them. In many ways, it was a conversation between past and present, dark and light, at a time when two halves were made whole. My follow-up solo show is called “Happy To Be Here” and expresses the messy, ironic beauty of the human experience. Now, when people attend my exhibitions, they walk away feeling good about the world and themselves. And I couldn’t feel happier and more energized to put more positivity into the world. My hope is to continue to inspire others to embrace their imperfect truths and show them that they already possess everything that advertising tries to sell them.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

For me, creativity has always been about self-expression – my voice. As a latchkey kid who often sat alone in a corner with art supplies, it was how I communicated my feelings. Making things for others was my love language. And I interpreted how people responded to my craft as a reflection of me. If they loved what I made, they must love me, right? This (false) belief carried into my professional life in advertising, as well. When co-workers or clients didn’t like my work, or I had to compromise my vision, I often took it personally and that really sucked the joy out of the creative process. As an independent artist, I get to create my own initiatives and no longer have to navigate the gauntlet of opinions or approvals to connect with an audience. I finally have the freedom to authentically express myself without compromise. Of course, this freedom is self-funded and without the media exposure that only big brands can afford. But that seems like a fair trade-off to me. And by the way, I’m finally at a place in my life where I could care less about what people think about my work. That is unless they love it. ;-)

Contact Info:

• Website: www.chadrea.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chadrea

Image Credits
Unplug Hate, Never Abandon Yourself, Stand Tall, and Congrats Human Experience by Alexis Ramirez. Happy to Be Here by Amy Scofield. Weight of the World and Thoughts and Prayers by Scott Van Osdol. Out of Site, Out of Mind by Chad Rea