We were lucky to catch up with Hannah Stouffer recently and have shared our conversation below.
Hannah, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Are you 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?
I have always praised artists that have taken the risk to reap the rewards of being a full-time creative. For me, some of the difficulties that someone may face in doing so always far outweighed the other option of not taking that plunge. The biggest risk, is of course financial, so if your ideal is going full-time freelance I suggest either having a bit of a savings nest, as well as a couple sources of incoming already going. Whether this is existing clients, passive income from revenues like selling art or products or even other freelance or part time work, you can gradually step into your own knowing that you’ll be somewhat secure. If you’re an illustrator, but sometimes take on logo work that you wouldn’t include in your art portfolio, keep that option of having an additional output for your work- same thing goes for any existing clients, gigs or options that you may have. I can’t say that being a full-time creative was ever 100% secure, but having full control over my freedom, time ability to choose my own hours is legitimately priceless. I say do it.
Hannah, 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?
I’m an Art Director, Artist Agent and Visual Artist living and working in Los Angeles. From what I can recall, this path always felt like something I was born into. This incarnation always seemed like it had already been predetermined for me, I think we all have a purpose being here, the key is to discovering and molding that into the most fulfilling experience that you possibly can. Starting out, I identified as a fine artist, which rolled into commercial illustration as a way to make a means doing what I loved. That is something I was taught from a young age, and was super fortunate to have the mindset to be able to strive to make a living off of what I loved. Coming from what was a somewhat non-traditional upbringing, my parents, and specifically my father, instilled this in me, that I could and should find a way to make it work with what I loved, and that was always visual art.
I explored working both independently and with various Agents and Reps over the course of my visual art career, constantly learning from my experiences from a variety of professional in the field. As a commercial and fine art illustrator, I was maintaining a strong presence in both fields, simultaneously showing my work as an exhibiting artist while exploring my ever-ending pursuit of illustrating emotional transcendence. I ventured into a few curatorial and art writing positions, working with renowned magazines and platforms, published a few books and arranged shows and exhibitions worldwide. In 2015, I brought my creative vision and expertise to H+ Creative, as founder of the visual services agency. With H+, I aimed to create experiences centered on client connectivity through visual production with a very intentionally curated roster and direction towards the future in mind.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
Everything is centered around our 2 most valuable assets for me, our energy and our time- both limited and non-renewable. I’ve found that there was never a formalized job, position or arranged salary or role that felt worth committing my existence to. There was always an enormous risk in being determined to figure it out on my own, but the challenge and slight masochism in relying on my own drive and creative talent somehow always felt more fitting. That rush and reward from overcoming was always worth the struggle. It didn’t always work, and there have been balling high highs and wrenching, hungry lows. I’ve taken on strange non-committal gigs and sold my belongings more times than I can count in order to make it work. Though this life I chose, or that chose me, has also blessed me with the ability to lay in and absorb the sunshine, to travel for experience and bask in the discovery of self-awareness, personal growth and beingness that truly demands that time and space in order to achieve. It’s the self-sustaining freedom for me, the yolo with intention, no matter the cost.
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
The pivot happened when I shifted from being a full time creative, to starting something larger than myself, dedicating to support and uplift other talents. I began seeking this transition later on in my time as a commercial artist, knowing that there was strength in numbers, seeing how capable and incredible so many of my friends and creatives in my network were. Knowing that if we somehow banded together to take on more, we could truly all achieve this freedom. It didn’t actualize until around 2015, when this vision to curate a group of artists really began to take hold. This was for an exhibition we were planning at Art Basel Miami and was my first, very rough, realization of what H+ Creative could be. I was intentionally shifting from being in the spotlight as an artist to showcasing what I felt needed to be seen, what I felt drawn to and work that was on a higher plane from the rest. Looking back, I think it was a long time in the making, but that is also what made the transition possible. The artists I had met along the way, creatives I had admired and obsessed over became the focus of what I wanted to dedicate myself to. It was a shift from being on the creative side to now supporting on the side where all the logistics happen. I had been used to playing both roles as an independent artist at times and felt strength in the experience I had gained up until that point.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.hpluscreative.com
- Instagram: @hannah_stouffer
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hannah-stouffer-79107360/
- Twitter: @hplus_creative