We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Elayna Speight. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Elayna below.
Alright, Elayna thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Let’s kick things off with a hypothetical question – if it were up to you, what would you change about the school or education system to better prepare students for a more fulfilling life and career?
The major thing I would change about the educational system is I would want to teach students about overall financial wellness and life skills. I would want them to learn how to do their taxes as well as how to save money, budget, and safely invest. I want them to be able to be able to make smart decisions when it comes to money so that they can be more self sufficient. Along with that, I think there should be classes on how to run a business and all that entails (i.e taxes, marketing, business plans, and etc). Luckily I had the luxury of having the opportunity to take Life Skills and Entrepreneurship electives in my high school but I know that there are many that don’t have that option. And even with what I was taught, there were a few things missing like taxes, 401 k’s and the like. If given the choice, I would want more students to learn about that kind of stuff.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
Elayna Speight is a graphic designer and artist based in the DC Metro Area. Art has been a major part of my life since I as a kid. I remember picking up some scrap paper and a pencil to draw and haven’t stopped since then. Art became not just a hobby but a career as she sells her original artwork but also uses her artistic and creative skills to create the best graphic design solutions for her clients to get their businesses in front of potential customers.
In the almost 15 years since she began her career, Elayna has worked as both an in-house and freelance graphic designer for all manner of clients from non profit arts organizations to small businesses creating everything from logos and posters to brochures and magazines. She has also sold prints of her original artwork and her own merchandise online and at various events including the Spectacular Black Girl Art Show. Elayna was also a live portrait artist for 2 LensCrafters grand opening events here in DC, and has done countless custom paintings and illustrations for a variety of clients.
For her original art, Elayna names Black Women as the inspiration. Her goal is to show various skin tones, body types, and natural hair styles in the hopes that Black women will see themselves in her art and see themselves as beautiful in a society that screams at us otherwise.
How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?
As a graphic designer, what helped me build my reputation, is creativity and efficiency when it comes to completing projects. I am also a great communicator; able to express my ideas clearly but also responsive to feedback and critique.
My artwork speaks for itself and it is well loved by my audience.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
What is most rewarding for me as an artist is when I am at a vending event or other event selling my art and customers gush to me about how they love my work. It makes me feel good to see people connecting with my art and have such a visceral reaction.
Contact Info:
- Website: ThinkInkedDesigns.com
- Instagram: @thinkinkedart
- Facebook: Facebook.com/thinkinkeddesigns
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elaynaspeight/
- Tiktok: @thinkinkedart
- Pinterest: @inkeddesigns
Image Credits
All photos by Danielle Flowers Photo. Artwork is Pink Takeover 3 by Elayna Speight.