We were lucky to catch up with Chantelle Rodriguez recently and have shared our conversation below.

Chantelle, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Let’s kick things off with talking about how you serve the underserved, because in our view this is one of the most important things the small business community does for society – by serving those who the giant corporations ignore, small business helps create a more inclusive and just world for all of us.

I’ve been working with underserved communities my entire career starting with after-school care programs dating as far back as 2005. Throughout my seventeen year career as a teaching artist I’ve taught at many different schools in a variety of communities and I’ve always preferred working with underserved or “at-risk” youth. In 2021 I was awarded a small grant which allowed me to run my own summer programming free for the community, for the first time. This program consisted of four two hour art lessons which focused on collage, painting, clay and screen printing. We created a large scale mural on cardboard along with creating pinch pots and printing our own t-shirts and tote bags. The students were able to gather with their friends and family in a casual gallery exhibition at the end of our classes. It really meant a lot for me to be able to provide a series of lessons which incorporated not only my passion for art but meaningful lessons about how to become active citizens in our communities with an emphasis on equity and social justice. In hindsight I couldn’t have asked for a better time to be able to serve my community after a long year where students were unable to meet with their friends in person. There was a strong positive response from the students and their family members that translated to more creative art making in the home, which is an art teachers dream come true.

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 began my most formidable art making practices in first grade which included drawing, painting, clay, dance, and learning to read music while playing violin and piano. I didn’t enjoy practicing violin and piano or taking “chair tests” in middle school so eventually I dropped out of orchestra by 8th grade and picked up bass guitar. In high school I started learning guitar playing briefly in a garage band. After college I’d moved on to composing songs in garage band starting in 2010 and playing synthesizers in 2013. During high school around 2000-03 I started taking photography classes and was in AP art working on my painting skills with both oil and acrylic while also using the first digital cameras ever invented, which looked like bricks compared to cameras these days! I learned dark room photography during this time as well.

It wasn’t until I started teaching in undergrad at St. Edwards University when I started to learn the value of discipline. As a natural born rebel at heart, I finally learned that working within a given set of boundaries created a container where some of the most liberating works of art could be made. I believe that every piece of art or music I’ve created was an attempt to unburden myself from something, a thought, a desire or a dream.

Since then I have predominately focused on making t-shirts, zines, stickers, prints, original collage and mixed media paintings. I also have the occasional music drop on bandcamp, spotify and apple music.

I think what sets me apart from others is that I’ve tried to make all of my hobbies into a business. There’s the music making the aspect, art making and teaching. Everyone has always told me to “stick to one thing” and to “focus” but I’m just not made that way. My brain works in a way where I have to explore and try to do it all, at least once just to test it out and see if it works. Even if it doesn’t work, I’ve challenged myself to learn a new skill and every skill combines to make a dynamic creative solution.

If anything I consider myself an explorer of the arts, forever curious and insatiable. Teaching is the area where I shine the most. Both music and art can be created in isolation and only get to be shared in specific situations. However teaching always requires a willing participant, I like connecting on that level with my students. I feel like what I really have worked at the most is inspiring others to create more with what they have and to boldly and confidently move forward with that innate spark. Sparking creativity in others sparks joy within me and my community and it’s always a blessing to provide this kind of service to my community.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

My mission is to provide goods and services which spark joy. I believe that you stand a little taller in life when you recognize your life’s purpose. One thing that I’ve become especially good at is sparking joy and igniting a passion for art making within others. I truly believe that self-expression is a cornerstone of happiness and art helps take us there. We all know that life is full of bumps in the road but if we can use those bumps as inspiration to create something unexpected from our pain and sorrows it makes life not only more tolerable, but full of wander and magic again. I’m interested in the transformation that happens when you allow your mind to expand beyond what it had previously thought of to be written in stone. Art is a safe space where we can break all of the rules and limitations within our own minds and reality. It’s essential to our existence to leave a mark and to be proud of our legacy. A lot of what we hear on the news today and even from our own families is about discord and violence, what’s wrong with the world and society. However, when we are able to take charge of our own faculties and to step back and truly perceive from a distance what is really going on we are able to remember all the love, beauty, and magic and how it resides within us at any given moment just waiting to be tapped into.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

The biggest lesson I’ve had to unlearn is that there’s no “right way” to do anything. It takes some time to not only find your own voice but to follow it without question. I’ve learned that it’s important to trust and follow your intuition and gut feelings above all else. It will save you a lot of pain and heartache in the long run. For years I’ve been sustaining jobs that have left me financially, physically and mentally exhausted. Which leaves little to no room for my passion projects. If you find yourself consistently being burnt out on the same type of career moves over and over again, I feel you! It wasn’t until I talked to my career development counselor that I realized I was a round peg trying to fit into a square hole. It just wasn’t going to work the way that I was going about it. I feel like now that I know where to put my focus and energy, I can prioritize what will be most effective for my future growth both as an individual and business owner without sacrificing any of my passion projects along the way. It’s all about finding that balance which only your personal intuition will tell you. Trusted friends and allies can only point the way but ultimately it’s up to you to find it and make it work for you.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://linktr.ee/Harmonymoon
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/modesty.music/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/harmonymoon
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/harmonymoonpi

Image Credits
Alexandra Kacha