We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Ell Treese a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Ell, thanks for joining us today. I’m sure there have been days where the challenges of being an artist or creative force you to think about what it would be like to just have a regular job. When’s the last time you felt that way? Did you have any insights from the experience?

As an artist, I’m happiest when I’m creating, but I’m also processing a lot of intense emotions while I paint. I think the happiness comes from being able to tune everything out and just feel no matter what comes up. It’s a very meditative process and a spiritual experience for me. I do find myself struggling sometimes with the life of an artist. The fickle nature of selling my work in markets or on social media is taxing, but like so many artists I know, I have a job on the side to help me sustain my studio practice. Thankfully this job is in the art realm and allows me to foster creativity in others, but I truly couldn’t see myself in any other field than art. Being an artist isn’t really a job, it’s a state of being. I feel deep in my soul that I must create, in whatever way I can, and I hope my work can inspire people to create from their soul too.

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

I think it’s important to note that I’m a queer, non-binary, neurodivergent artist from the Ohio. Most people think I’m from California because I have a mellow vibe, but I grew up in the early 2000s in a small community having little representation for people like me in media, arts, culture etc. A big reason why I want to note that is because the art world, although very queer, still favors cisgender heterosexual men. I want my art, although not explicitly queer at first glance, to show the wide variety of queer and trans creative expression and be representation for others like me. My work is spiritual for me, as is my identity. Both aren’t about what you see at first glance, it’s the process of reading between the lines and it’s a vision of a reality that’s beyond a binary. It’s challenging our preconceived notions of what a painting should look like, what rules a person should follow in art and in their expression of their gender. My work holds memories of my childhood, my pain, our collective energies, ancient codes, queer love and more. I want people to understand that they don’t have to “get” my work, and they don’t have to “get” me. I want them to feel my work, to resonate with it, to resonate with me. Don’t think, just feel what’s coming up inside you? Notice those feelings. My work has no choice but to evoke these things and I follow along beside it. I call myself an intuitive artist because I want to remind people that creating is an intuitive super power we all innately have inside us, we just need to trust it and follow it. I use my intuitive abilities as a tool in my paintings, my teaching, and my life as a whole. My queer identity and my art is a manifestation of my surrender to my inner knowing and sometimes I don’t understand what I’m creating at first. I do know that it’s part of a whole larger story that’s unfolding and I’m excited to witness that story along with you.

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

I believe society needs to lean more into the importance of the arts and creative expression. Creativity moves throughout many avenues in our cultures and lives, and we don’t even stop to notice it. I know a large amount of people who don’t consider themselves artists, that say they aren’t creative or wish they could be an artist. I think that’s very telling of how society makes being an artist some ethereal or unattainable way of being that only a select talented few can embody. This simply isn’t true! Every human being has the potential for creative energy and we see it daily! Scientific discoveries, medical research, small businesses, and even large companies of all kinds have creative teams and artistic thinking involved in some way. I believe we all possess an inner artist that is just waiting to be given permission to express themself. You don’t have to paint a masterpiece to create something that makes you smile, solve a problem, or give a friend a homemade gift. Creativity doesn’t belong to anyone, it’s an energy that can be accessed no matter who you are, what skills you have, or what you’re needing the energy for. To maintain a thriving and abundant ecosystem we must all accept that humans are inherently creative and we as a society need to foster that through self reflection, artistic programming for all ages and backgrounds, funding for arts education, creative spaces, and beyond! I really believe this is possible.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

My ultimate goal in my creative journey is to inspire others to create. I think there are a bunch of goals that I have that change and evolve as I grow and move through life as an artist, like work with brands, entertainers, businesses, museums/galleries, mentoring/teaching, etc., but behind all of those achievements is the ability to share my work, my story, my process with others and have them see themselves in it somehow. I want people who witness my art and process to think about their inspirations in life, what they do with them, and how they want to communicate their creativity to the world or even just to themselves. To awaken that inner artist inside the collective so we can all create a better world for all beings. I hope to achieve that in this lifetime.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.elltreese.com
• Instagram: @ell_tree