We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Grace Nande a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Grace thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?
I knew I wanted to purse a creative path professionally after graduating University in 2021. At that time, I needed to find a job in my home country Namibia but as I send in my CV I was not accepted. However, I understood the circumstances because there aren’t enough jobs in Namibia but the opportunities are there to start a career. I choose to mix together my Psychology degree and art(hobby). I feel this decision saved my life as I had something to do at home that I love and also could earn an income. Moreover, there are still more improvements I need to make but I am excited for the journey.
Grace , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
My name is Grace Ndeshi Nande, I am known as graysbygrace on YouTube, Instagram, Tik tok and WordPress. I am a Namibian Digital and Traditional Artist. After graduating University in 2021 with a Clinical Psychology degree, I decided to find ways to use it with my hobby. That’s when I found out about non clinical art therapy and decided to focus on making art based on spirituality. Through my art I explore my own identity and use it as inspiration to create my illustrations. Moreover, I use a mixture of various mediums such as Gouache, Acrylics, Inks and Oil pastels to create my illustrations. I am also exploring Animation and currently developing my webtoon “Pixel” which is a Sci-Fi African comic focusing on two adults who explore their identities. In 2022, I decided to open up my online store and sell my art through Art Markets which was a major step in my Art career as I needed to move away from my introverted box. I also joined sessions held but BESO Media a digital & creative agency in Namibia which gave the necessary step to help me further pursue Art. Adding on, there are still some improvements needed or milestones that I need to reach as my initial goal is to create an Art supply store and a friendly environment for creatives to meet in Namibia. I want to see more opportunities such as art grants, scholarships and residency available. Apart from this, in my store I sell traditional original art prices and digital products such as wallpapers. I hope in the future I can develop my store and sell a variety of items that reach the goals of my dream art supply store. Lastly, I think this is my biggest accomplishment taking the necessary steps to find my purpose and pursue my purpose through art.
Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?
While setting up my social media, I learned that I am not a content creator rather an artist trying to market their business ( Kelsey Rodriguez is a good youtuber to watch frequently when your in your creative Journey). This helped me set up the type of videos I want to share with my audience and make this aspect fun.
Not compare yourself with other artist as their experience is different from yours. See them as an inspiration and try to see what you an do different.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
I think the most rewarding aspect is seeing the various perspectives that people have towards my art. Something that you thought was bad is something amazing to another person. Adding on, Art is very subjective and that’s something we cant take away from our audience. That’s why not everybody is going to like what you make and that is okay they will find another artist that they love (let’s not be alone at the top). Think of it this way, genres are similar to styles and not everybody will like the genre you listen to or watch.
I love seeing the support that is quite genuine from people who would like to see me go far.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://gracendeshinande.wordpress.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/graysbygrace/
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/channel/UCmi2mjC4u8KPe-VYx1wfrTg
- Other: Tiktok: tiktok.com/@graysbygraceblog