We were lucky to catch up with Chelsea Miller recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Chelsea, thanks for joining us today. Have you been able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen? Was it like that from day one? If not, what were some of the major steps and milestones and do you think you could have sped up the process somehow knowing what you know now?

Being a creative and doing it full-time has been one of the most rewarding yet challenging paths to go down. I am very fortunate to say that I have been able to earn a full-time living from my creative work, however, I’d be lying if I said it was easy or that I’m not constantly still doubting myself and my art.

I do think I knew deep down from a very early age that I wanted to do something with art to some capacity. In middle school, I went to art history competitions, drawing competitions, and all kinds of stuff like that. I loved it. There was something about getting to draw and create whatever I wanted that felt so natural and right. After high school I took some time and went to a junior college near home to figure out what I wanted to do and eventually wound up at the University of North Texas in Denton, TX. This college has been known to have an incredible arts program so I was very excited to start this chapter in my life. I wanted to go for painting but my parents said no (typical ‘painters make no money’ speech) and found myself in the UNT Communication Design program.

Now this was a little intimidating considering I knew nothing about graphic design, computers, adobe, or drawing digitally. Also, UNT’s comm design program is known to be extremely tough and has an average of 200 students entering and 25 coming out. YIKES, those numbers were terrifying to me and almost steered me away completely. However, I went through the program and fell in love with design. Creating digital art really pushed what I could also create in the studio and on canvas. It was insane to see how much they drove each other in my creative process.

In college, I always had the “crazy” or “too bright” designs. I was told more than once that I needed simpler things in my portfolio. I knew it wasn’t meant to come off as judgemental but it did discourage me a little bit. My professors were all a bit more old school and favored simplicity but that was never me. Or what I wanted in a job. I kept telling my professor how I wanted to design alcohol packaging because of how fun and exciting it was and was told I’d probably never be able to make a living doing that. Truth be told come senior year of college I had no idea what I wanted to do. I took an internship at a company that makes medical devices and hated every second of it. There was no passion, no fun, or real creativity. I felt very lost at this point but tried not to let this discourage me.

At this same time, I had also been working at this cool restaurant/bar serving and bartending for a while. This place did this fun mural fest every year where they invited 6 new artists to come up and put their mark on their wall. This is when I fell in love with murals. I entered my application, got accepted, and got to blow my art up on a big wall for the first time. I was TERRIFIED for this experience. I knew nothing about murals and I typically painted portraits with oil. How was I gonna translate that onto a wall? I cried… twice during the 3 days we were given to complete our murals. However, this was one of the most rewarding and eye-opening experiences I had ever been a part of. I learned so much and met so many incredible artists during this time. This experience gave me so much courage and confidence and reminded me why I love art so much.

After college, I went through a lot of rejection and self-doubt. I got rejected from the jobs I wanted and also got rejected from the jobs that I didn’t want. But I didn’t give up and just kept applying, kept bartending, and worked at Painting with a Twist for a while to keep some creative juices flowing. Eventually, I heard back from this design agency in Dallas, TX and accepted a job. Now at this point, I hadn’t signed any paperwork or started yet but just verbally accepted the job. While I was waiting to finalize everything I heard back from this other place I had applied to – Bishop Cider. This was a Cidery located in Dallas, TX. They also had multiple arcade locations around Texas called Cidercade. I ended up interviewing with this place, because why not since this other thing wasn’t 100% official yet.

I have now worked for that company doing alcohol packaging and murals for 3 years. I have 10+ cans on the shelves and multiple murals that range from 400 sq ft. to 2,500 sq ft. I am very proud of myself and how hard I worked to get to where I am today. My journey here took a lot of rejection and a lot of people telling me that I couldn’t do something or I would have to change myself as a creative to get a “good job”. To be creative I think you have to be tough and know that it’s a hard path to always follow. I think being confident and embracing rejection is so important and can help project you further into your career. Being afraid that your work isn’t good enough or that someone won’t like it can set us back as creatives and hinder what we are capable of creating.

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 am currently a graphic designer and muralist who loves to create big, bold, crazy bright pieces! From an early age, I found joy in painting, drawing, and experimenting with various mediums. As I honed my skills and explored different avenues of artistic expression, I discovered my love for both graphic design and muralism. I specialize in package design and love creating pieces that pop off the shelves. I help clients create memorable designs that will elevate their brand/business and get others talking. Whether that means designing and executing a mural on the side of a building or creating a logo that helps visually communicate your business to others. What I want potential clients, followers, and fans to know about me and my work is that I’m deeply committed to creating art that sparks curiosity, jumps off the page, and leaves a lasting impression. Over the years my style has evolved and changed so much and I am proud of the range of mediums I have experimented with to get to where I am. I have learned so much and am thankful to be the artist I am and love to make others happy with my creations!

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

There is so much I love about being a creative and there are so many rewarding parts. For me, creating gives me a sense of purpose and makes me feel like I am impacting others with my designs. Especially when it comes to public art, I feel like I am elevating a space and bringing joy to others by doing that. When it comes to packaging design, selfishly, I think the most rewarding part is seeing something that I have worked hard on being sold in stores. That never gets old.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

I think by buying that cool t-shirt design or buying that cool print/original painting you are helping the creative ecosystem. It always seems easier to go to Target and get a piece that has been mass-produced to hang on your wall, but there are so many talented people around us, how could you not want an original? I think there are many ways to support artists and creatives but the simplest way to find artists that you enjoy and buy from them!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.chelsea-miller.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/its_miller_time777/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chelsea-miller-aab91b185/

Image Credits
Photographers: Shane McCormick, IG: @portrait_god | Kaden Buchanan, IG: @_kaden.b