We recently connected with Jackie Koenig and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Jackie, thanks for joining us today. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?

My husband and I sold our house, packed up our family and moved to the coast of NC during the pandemic in 2020. We had lived in the Outer Banks many years ago before we had kids but we always dreamed of going back and raising our family there. I knew when we moved I wanted to continue to grow my painting business but it would require me being bold and vulnerable in ways I had not yet experienced. We were living in a rental cottage by the beach, homeschooling our kids and didn’t know anyone local yet. Everything was new and we were on our own but I knew that no one was going to make this happen for me. I decided to email several different businesses down in the Outer Banks asking if they were open to hanging or selling my artwork. I got only a few responses but one of them was my now friend, Whitney. She and her husband own a very successful frozen yogurt shop and she was an art major herself. I did not expect she’d even reply but she did and from that initial email we almost became modern-day pen pals. We finally got together in person and since then we have become dear friends. Not only have I sold several paintings through the exposure on their walls but I have gained a dear friend.

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 was fortunate to grow up the the same city as my grandmother, Stella Thompson, an accomplished oil painter. As a young girl I would go over to her house to work on different projects. Over the years my painting skills developed and love for the arts grew. I went on to take art classes in high school, minored in fine art at Christopher Newport University and continued to paint wherever I moved.

Soon after I got married my husband and I moved to the Outer Banks of North Carolina. The landscape of this area heeded endless ideas and inspirations- dunes, waves, wildlife, beach goers and marshes. Three years later we moved to the northwestern part of Montana. I found myself again in a place filled with natural beauty and color, furthering my desire to create.

I first learned to paint in oils and haven’t stopped using them ever since. I paint fast and messy. I am impulsive and hardly have time to clean my brush before I pick up the next color. I love the fluid nature of oils and their ability to change a painting so quickly. For me there is always great satisfaction in seeing colors and shapes come together to form an image that reflects something beautiful. I believe that it’s in God’s character to create and value beauty and He has given us all gifts and talents to reflect that.

What began as a hobby has now turned into a full time business. My family and I currently live in the The Outer Banks of NC and I work from home as an oil painter doing commissions, landscapes, abstracts and coastal scenes. I have also developed a variety of merchandise such as hats, prints, stickers. journals, mugs, towels, ornaments and more that are more accessible to visitors when they vacation on the Outer Banks.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

I remember when 2020 hit in March and we hardly knew what to do with ourselves. We all had our own set of fears, worries, emotions and feelings towards what was happening but as an artist I felt like there was something I needed to do about it. I distinctly remember a conversation with a good friend about some of the fear I was dealing with and how healing her words were at the time. After our phone call I decided to paint a series of “quarantined women”. The first set was painted in watercolor and the women were seated in all kinds of downcast positions. I decided to share them on social media and they sold immediately. A whole new series was born and I ended up leaving the coastal landscapes to paint a large collection of these nude, sad, stressed out “quarantined women”. I’m thankful for the pivot and the sales but I’m more grateful that many women have something tangible that they resonated with and marked that season of sadness and fear.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

Social media sometimes feels like a toddler that I have to babysit and I have mixed feelings about it. I have been pretty consistent at posting, sharing, responding and so on but let me assure you that the algorithms will always change. Ive accepted that I simply cannot keep up with every change being made.

My advice is to stay rooted in what you do and continue to create for the love of it. Stay connected to people whether it’s clients, friends, people you meet at art markets or acquaintances who know and respect what you do. People and connection will always hold more value to me than social media. If you stay the course and continue to do your craft consistently, your social media presence will grow. There aren’t shortcuts. Good things take time and hard work.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.jackiekoenigpainting.com
• Instagram: @jackiekoenigpainting
• Facebook: Jackie Koenig Painting

Image Credits
Paige Daniels Mike Leech