Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Etta. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Etta, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with 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?

None of my stories are very straight forward. And I have a hard time translating thoughts to verbiage at times, that’s why I paint. But here goes.

My relationship with my mom was.. well most of you have a mom, you might know. Especially around my love for art and creating and being nonconforming or kind of out there since Day 1. Loving art was always encouraged, we frequented museums, galleries, events, family trips always had culture mixed in. If fact, my grandfather, her father, was an art collector. Go figure I was the way I was. But art as a way of life, as a career? No way. The classic, “there’s no jobs for artists.”

None the less, I still always painted and created and dreamed and plotted and took comedy ideas too far. I also begged to re-design my own room. Obviously no. No paint would ever touch those walls. Just posters and photos and doodles and my own paintings and magazine cut outs and Barbie’s with handmade clothes hanging like marionettes.

Thus formed my dream of becoming an interior designer. A career in art! See!? I even interviewed at the better known design school. Unfortunately, Miss Mom talked me into believing it would be a waste of time and money because I would just change my mind and never finish. She was pulling from some valid experience certainly, I was ADHD and blah blah blah, and “back in my day,” people didn’t pay much attention to that (no pun intended), or know how to, or really understand that it needed extra care. My mom, my teachers, my doctors, all just thought I was a f*ck up. Labeled early on, soon mastered in proving them right.

Instead of focusing on my passions and skills like a normal person out of high school, even if it didn’t mean college, I just jumped into the work force so I could unburden my mom and do what adults were supposed to do.. I dunno. I still don’t really know about that logic, but that was my path.

Fast forward too much time, I want to cry when thinking about how long it took, I followed my heart to Port Townsend, Washington to live out my dream as an artist. I got the best barista job you could imagine, and got rolling on my art. Started showing, started connecting, started feeling like I was establishing roots, and my mom got sick. Really sick. Like she told me she had a month to live kind of sick. I quit my job and paused pretty much my whole life to take care of her and spend as much time as we had. But when one door (or several all at once) closes, others open. Someone asked me to paint their cat. And I did. And then they asked me to paint their other cat. And I did. And that time they paid me. Then, someone saw my cat portraits and wanted one too, and then another, and another, and then a dog, and another one of those too. People were paying me for art at a rate I couldn’t keep up with that was allowing me to continue supporting myself and spend the last few months of my mom’s life with her. She died knowing what I always did, and that is a gift that can never be taken back. Would you believe that since, I also turned her house into a living gallery soon available to rent? I already know that too.

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

I don’t remember a time where I didn’t paint. The boxes of art I rescued from my mom’s garage a few years ago confirmed that for me. No matter where life took me, through traumas, growing pains, identity confusions, dissociations, the only thing I have known to be true is I am an artist. My through line. The evolution of finding my style is a story still being written, but one important detail is for sure. My grandfather was an art collector. I grew up surrounded by the most amazing, colorful, whimsical, dark, Latin American art and artists. Much of our time together was spent enjoying museums, galleries. I do trust that was the spark I was born from.

Although I share a realm of hurdles like PTSD, ADHD, grief, abuse survivor, etc etc etc blah blah blah with so many other humans, I have found my biggest challenge through it all is to find my voice in painting in a way that resonates down the spines of anyone other than myself. To share knowledge, to spread self love and esteem. But as I watch my being crystallize at the same rate as my hands whither, I have decided that my voice has/is/will forever be constantly expanding. Enjoy the ride.

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

Any creative knows that being creative is a creatively double edged sword. Between the blocks, draughts, life’s chaotic snowballs, you sometimes wonder if it’s worth it. I would have it no other way. I don’t really know any other way, but it is what keeps me going through it all. My oxygen, my heart source. My safe place to go to process, heal, grow, express, remember, love, live unshackled.

Also, it’s a lot of fun. Who wouldn’t want to spend their days painting pictures and finding the beauty in the ordinary things. Isn’t that kind of the point?

Alright – so here’s a fun one. What do you think about NFTs?

I chose this prompt cause I actually don’t know much about the topic.

What is an NFT? Why do so many people in my DM’s want to buy my work for NFT? What is the benefit? Shouldn’t I just make my own NFT from my art? Ok how? Again why?

I believe in science and technology, but there are some things I am hesitant to over-invest in because , big picture, it takes electricity to run. Like data, bitcoin, NFT, ai, I dunno what else. So.. like.. if there is ever a natural disaster or zombie outbreak or a plethora of other possible/impossible theories occurs during my life time.. all those things become worthless in my understanding.

I am counting on the value of human created art to withstand the test of time. Crosses fingers.

Contact Info:

• Website: Mixadventurous.com
• Instagram: @themixadventuresofetta

Image Credits
The photo of me was taken by Mark Sandvig The photos of my art were taken by me