We recently connected with Eppie Bailey and have shared our conversation below.

Eppie, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you recount a story of an unexpected problem you’ve faced along the way?

I will preface this answer by saying I am not complaining! My life has been filled with the most wondrous ups and downs. I do want to answer this question for all of those creatives who come after me, and might benefit from the expression. Many artists are not built to create, AND promote, AND sell, AND keep organized records for an art business. Many artists need partners who can remind them to eat, stop and sleep, slow down and take the journey toward their dreams in slow, intentional steps. I think the biggest, most unexpected problem has been my own mind, how very much of the advice I had read simply did not work for me. I was identified as neurodivergent when I was young but did not know that I needed different support than more generic business advice. I wish I had known how my mind often sabotaged my goals. I wish I had known there were coaches, support, resources, and basically just help, available. I know that now and am building a better approach toward success, centered around accepting and appreciating who I am, as well as who I am not. I am understanding just how important it is for me to create, freely, not just for market, I need to create things that help me exercise flow, a place where I can relax and work through problems peripherally, instead of head on. My mind does better at seeing things if I do not look at them directly. The most unexpected problem I faced was that I tried to follow advice that was not helpful to me and, in fact, left me feeling quite battered.

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 the oldest of 13 children, mother of 4 and have been married for over 30 years. Much of my career has been balancing creative energy and ambition with domesticity. A lot of my work appears childlike, innocent and something else that people have described as ‘creepy.’ In about 2001, I began The Professional Bohemians as a collaborative with my (then) sister in law, Julie Barrett (Cataldo). We were passionate about joining with other artists to celebrate creativity, diversity, and Art as a vehicle for acceptance. We are both visual artists, writers, musicians, and performers and we used (and use) all of those talents to connect and support within our communities. As women, mothers, and wives, we created organically; products, writings, and songs connected to our life experiences. We built a small tribe around the importance of raising creative, curious, empathetic children. We both loved to sculpt and designed a line of handmade toys, that we marketed more consistently than our visual art or music. We quickly felt stifled as we met with what is typically considered success. Julie, not having as thick a head as I, realized her heart was not into production and she decided to focus on her original pieces. I tried to trick myself into consistently producing the pieces we had designed. Shortly after Julie’s decision to take flight, my husband was approached by his company about a project in Washington DC. We decided to accept the position and I would take the opportunity to go back to school. I continued to sculpt, paint, write, and record, but felt a little direction less as to my business. I was majoring in psychology and my studies were allowing me to see my artistic endeavors, and what they meant to me, a little clearer. To be honest, my push to convince others of the importance of creativity was a desperate attempt to convince myself. I was losing faith. I tried to keep myself focused on producing and selling the ridiculous amount of work my hands and mind explored. The pandemic hit and artists everywhere struggled. I saw us all returning to our roots, our essence, the reason we create. Art for me is not a product. It is the working out of mind and heart, trying to find balance and meaning. Art is a therapy where we can indulge in a stress free flow, that beautiful space where we are both challenged and fulfilled. I came to the absolute and full understanding that I cannot create to ‘sell.’ I simply sell things so that I support my creating and not put that financial burden on my husband. As I studied psychology, I began to understand that I do not have to become a therapist or doctor to help support and heal people. I support and heal people by showing up, being present with my creativity, and being fearless to create even when it doesn’t make financial sense. I allow and make room for others to create with me. I absolutely believe my close friends and family support and heal me, specifically by being their own bad ass selves! I want to contribute to my family so all of my family members are free to pursue their own paths to growth. I think a key to making money with my art has always been the ability to use what I have, in spite of my struggle to consistently produce and present the same products over and over. I want to encourage myself, and other creatives, to understand that making money from making art is a skill set separate from making the art itself. Many highly creative and talented people are miserable sales people. I appreciate social media and the opportunities it affords but it is oftentimes discouraging. Consistency, networking, and self promotion are important, but I hate that they are the most important. The past three years I have been sculpting, molding and casting dolls, as a focus, with my sister Tiffany. I absolutely love how creepy and strange and adorable silicone babies are to me and we could probably sculpt babies in our sleep, as many as we’ve raised. I LOVE the challenge of working through the visual and tactile decisions I need to make, while sculpting something solid that will be made very mobile and maneuverable in finished stages. I have been making those as my offering to the great god of financial sustenance, along with other types of art dolls. I continue to perform with my good friend and fellow songwriter, Steve Quelet, another less consistent revenue stream. I continue to sell at shows my paintings, jewelry and sculptures. I will leverage what I produce but I am trying not to focus on the business of making money any more. I am hoping multidisciplinary and multi passionate artists become more acceptable. I would love for people to support artists more as a celebration of creativity, not just a path to unique products. I am hoping we can each make a living as creatives, not factories, but I guess we need to carve out that living, creatively… but we are good at that!

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

Because I have more experience as an artist in more rural areas of the United States, I would like to speak specifically to that. Creative place making is becoming a buzzword in rural communities. Small towns are realizing that main street revitalization projects and community building efforts rely heavily on the involvement of creative entrepreneurs. The simple truth is, in the north central Pennsylvanian town that I currently live in, only creatives with consistent revenue streams existing outside of our community tend to thrive. Building consistent revenue streams demands a certain amount of networking, training, and encouragement. Society can best support artists by making it a priority to have public spaces available for creative gatherings. The cities often have many options, but rural areas struggle to find space for youth to safely gather and dream. Artists in rural areas often find it challenging to find places that are aesthetically pleasing and inspiring, to connect and to share their work. Open mics, art shows, poetry readings, and other consistent offerings rely on someone organizing and maintaining space and availability not connected to reliable income from the events. Coaches and therapists, trained to deal with problems specific to people who are creatively gifted, are difficult to find even in more urban areas. A creative haven that offers access to such a resource would be golden. I have spent countless hours of my time in meetings about how Art can benefit and improve the quality of life in rural community. Every artist knows this and agrees but without spaces that allow for stress free meeting we are forced to create the space ourselves, and do, but at the expense of our own personal work. The artists in small towns who feel obliged to engage with their community are often very appreciated but not joined in making efforts sustainable. They pay out of pocket for last minute expenses that they are stretched too thin to plan for, they do not often think to ask for help, and they struggle with executive tasks needed to keep things organized and working. So many organizations feel like they are supportive simply by providing funding to artists. Many of us wonder how, if we have the funding we still are not thriving. The creative community is best supported by the sharing of information, resources, and understanding through a diversity of creative connections. I think the best societal support is a good physical creative hub in every community, a metaphorical town square is the best support for a struggling creative community. A thriving community is, perhaps, best supported through assistance and incentives in offering opportunities for revenue, but if people are hurting they need connection.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

I have always felt a compulsion to find what is ‘true.’ Ideals were intoxicating, and I would always march toward them powerfully. When I was younger I felt like I could know what was true and then broadcast it to the world. As I have matured though, I have begun to feel we need each other to see what is true. I have begun to fully appreciate different perspectives and hearing how others experience life. We are each pieces of something purposeful and meaningful. We have purpose and meaning in us. I have always felt my mission is to be an illustration and example of an authentic soul seeking better, to encourage others to be their best selves. I love the idea of joining with others to make things more beautiful, more precious. I am one of those annoying people who feel working through the challenges of accepting and making space for diversity, instead of forcing everyone to a specific standard, is worth the stress. I guess my mission is to make room for people and ideas so that we all might ‘be better,’ to encourage people to engage, because I have found it such a challenge myself. I do this through communicating through songs and writings and creating worlds of diverse and strange little creatures! I hope that by doing so I am showing people that something, that at first might appear odd or off-putting, can be lovable, friendly, and valuable.

Contact Info:

• Website: Www.TheProfessionalBohemians.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/professionalbohemians we
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ProBohemia?mibextid=LQQJ4d