We recently connected with Dare Harcourt and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Dare, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.

The biggest risk I’ve taken was last year when I decided to pursue art full-time. I started painting shortly after graduating from college. After graduation, I went through some serious health issues and began to paint as a way of coping. I quickly fell in love with painting and knew it was something I wanted to do for the rest of my life. After realizing the power of art, I decided to go back to school and received my Master’s in Art Education at Memphis College of Art. I always felt a strong desire to be a full-time artist, but there were so many risks and unknowns that kept me from taking that leap. I began teaching elementary art with the idea of slowly building up my art business on the side until I had enough knowledge and financial security to go out on my own. I also really needed a new car and began saving up every extra penny. Then the pandemic happened and all of a sudden everything changed. Everything became scarier, schools were very different, and supply chains everywhere dried up (including new cars). Covid brought a multitude of changes for everyone. For me, it helped put things into perspective of what’s important and how short life really is. Covid also changed teaching for me, and at the beginning of 2022, I started to really feel the pull to pursue my full-time artist dreams. I felt like there were so many things happening in my life that were telling me I needed to trust my gut and make the leap to full-time, and the only thing that was holding me back was fear. What if I’m not good enough? What if I fail? What if the economy gets worse? What if I can’t get the health insurance that I need? There are so many unknowns that come with starting your own business. Yet, at the same time, there were so many things that slowly lined up that would allow me to do this. I had saved for a car that wasn’t available, which meant I had some savings that would be enough to get me started on my business. I was not happy with things happening at work, and the changes in teaching due to covid perpetuated this feeling. All these little things (that seemed like inconveniences or disappointments at the time) were actually setting me up to have the courage to pursue my passion. My faith has always been a guiding force in my life. I began to realize that God was clearly calling me to do this and telling me to trust Him, and all I had to do was listen. So I decided to take the leap of faith and am forever grateful I did. I became a full-time artist in May. I’m now faced with a new set of challenges- learning how to own a business, create content, marketing and website design; but I am learning and have truly never been happier.

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

My name is Dare Harcourt and I am a full-time artist living in Memphis, Tennessee. Art is how I interpret the world. I’ve always loved the world’s abstract designs, and when I paint, it lets me interpret that design. I love to explore as many different textures as I can. By using a wide variety of mediums, it allows me to incorporate new elements that help bring life to what I am creating. I am passionate about art, and that passion drives my never-ending curiosity to learn more. I always want to explore art and push myself out of my comfort zone. I want to learn as much as I can from art and incorporate as many mediums as I can into my pieces. I believe that is one characteristic that sets me apart: I refuse to be put in one box. I never have stuck to just one thing; I can constantly surprise people with either the color scheme, texture, or theme. I am constantly evolving and exploring. That exploration feeds my passion and makes me want to create art for everyone. I am inspired by so many things in this world, and I try to use that inspiration to feed all sides of my creativity. My hope is to bring joy through each painting I create. Every painting is open to interpretation by the viewer. My hope is to make people stop, think, feel, and remember. I’ve gone through my life being moved by the world around me, and I hope to use my art to give that experience to others. I’m really proud of my ability to incorporate so many various mediums while still staying true to my style. I recently started incorporating clay into my pieces. I did an entire series that focused solely on texture being the star. For someone who loves color as much as I do, it was a challenge creating an all-white series, but I am really excited of how it turned out. The series added a sculptural aspect while still keeping the abstract design I love. I never think you can have too much texture!

Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?

Looking back, I do wish I had utilized more resources for becoming a small business owner. There is so much more to being a full-time, self-sufficient artist than just creating art. When you start your own business, even as an artist, you instantly became a content creator, competing with ever changing algorithms and platforms. You must have a social media presence, marketing skills, website design, accounting knowledge, health insurance knowledge…the list seems endless. I never took any classes in high school, college or grad school that taught me about owning a business, so it was fairly overwhelming at first. I think one of the biggest struggles for me has been marketing. It is so far out of my wheel house that I didn’t even know where to begin and still struggle with it. I definitely wish I had known how to utilize resources on building a social media audience and also using comprehensive marketing strategies. And a second struggle for me is time management. I’m continuing to learn how to blend the creative and the business sides of my brain while keeping on a timely schedule, even down to little things like remembering to check email!

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

The most rewarding aspect in one word: Joy. Through personal experience, I learned the power of art. I started painting as a way to cope with the aforementioned health issues. Art started as a place of healing for me, but it quickly morphed into a love that brings me immeasurable joy. Everyone has stuff they go through in life; no one’s life is perfect. Yet, we can still find joy in the imperfection. Often when we look back on times in our life, it is the gritty, messy, imperfections that make the greatest impact. Art embodies that. Art is vulnerable and beautiful. I want to remind people of their joy through my art. The greatest reward for me as an artist is the ability to create something that makes people stop, feel, and reflect. I love when my art reminds someone of a specific time in their life that they never want to forget; or when the title of a painting moves someone because it is the message of hope they need to hear that day. I once sold a painting to a woman I had never met. She walked by me at a show and stopped right in front of my painting. After staring at it for what seemed like an hour, she told me she had been going through a hard time and that the painting reminded her of spending summers as a little girl at her grandmother’s house. It reminded her of a time when she was carefree and brought back so many joyful memories. Another family commissioned a piece for their daughter, who was born with some challenges. They wanted the painting to grow with her, and to be a constant source of encouragement. The underpainting included letters from her parents as well as prayers and encouraging words. The painting serves as a reminder of her strength for years to come. And another source of great joy is giving back through my art, whether that means doing art therapy for families with kids going through health issues, or using my art to raise awareness and donations for things that I’m passionate about such as animal conservation. Art has given me that platform to be able to give back in a small way. There is an incredible amount of joy that I get when I create a painting. Each piece is filled with love, and hope, and brings a peaceful feeling that I hope translates to the viewer. I am so lucky to be able to pursue my dreams and do what I love, but the most rewarding aspect is being able to use my art to make a small difference.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://dareharcourtart.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dareharcourtart/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dareharcourtart
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dare-harcourt-7716983b
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@dareharcourtart

Image Credits
Photographer: Emma Clayton instagram: @emmareecephoto