We were lucky to catch up with Jackie Riccio recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Jackie, thanks for joining us today. Naming anything – including a business – is so hard. Right? What’s the story behind how you came up with the name of your brand?

My studio is an interdisciplinary space of craft and creation. It takes all forms, while bouncing around in identity all the time. One day being a fanny pack production line, to a sign painting workshop the next, followed by a drafting space for installations, and a dressing room for costumes for performers. It truly lives up to its name. I realized, when I was living a really modest life out of a tiny art studio in Berlin, that my practice was guided by this piece of logic: We GET to be alive. This reminds me continuously that being alive IS the Land of Plenty. Throughout each day I find inspiration within small moments, interactions with people, skies, color compositions, emotions, situations, and objects. Each of those moments are relational to our experience of the world and these pieces coalesce to create installations, sculptures, paintings, and costumes to display that experience of being alive.

The name itself was the title of an installation I made in 2014, and then it became a mantra, a working title for all the things I made after that. I grew into the name of my studio over time, understanding its depth and complexities the more I worked within it. Having limited means, I look to manifest the “Plenty”. It is not only the studio itself, it is a way of life, a mindset, abundance, a feeling, active support, an experience, it is the world that I want to exist in.

Jackie, 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 have seen myself as an artist my whole life. All of my memories from childhood were rooted in various forms of creativity. My formal art education renewed my already-known desire to create art-objects for this world, validating it as a career path. And for the past ten years I have continuously found avenues to keep making objects- some practical, some playful. I have found myself living in a number of cities, in countless studios, and traveling to a variety of residencies in different countries in order to surround myself with inspiring people who are also taking creative risks and seeking authenticity.

My practice functions in a duality. One part is through original works, focused in textiles, sculpture, and painting, which has historically summated in installations, or performative pieces. I’ve worked collaboratively with musicians, dancers, and circus artists all over the world. Although, having a creative practice for me is not solely measured in exhibitions. It is about making things, whether or not anyone is looking. I shoot a film photo every day to exercise my ability to find beauty in the mundane. Anything I need, I first attempt to fabricate, in order to feed innovation, which in turn informs my practice. I am proud that I have been able to sustain a practice that I am passionate about over time. Finding ways to keep it fueled, and simultaneously challenge it to grow in unforeseen directions— because I believe in it.

The other part of my practice involves taking commissions and holding clients that have a continued demand of creative contract work. This looks different for each client, but typically I utilize a craft-based skill. For example, carpentry, rug tufting, or mural painting— which then is adapted to fit their needs. Regardless of the content of the job, I approach the work informed by my lifetime of creative problem solving. I am propelled by my interest in genuinely learning, so that I am able to properly produce a knowledgable and high quality result. Whether I am doing work for a client or for myself, my visual vocabulary, my aesthetic, is distinct. It is what sets me apart.

Can you talk to us about how your side-hustle turned into something more.

Whether or not my side hustle ever officially becomes my full time ‘job’, I will always be a career artist. I don’t know if anyone will ever look at my life and think “She’s made it”, but to me it’s not about that. It’s about honing my craft, living my truth, authentically engaging with other people along the way and making objects to enrich the lives of others. It’s about the journey of learning by doing.

In that regard, It’s all side hustles. I am a conglomerate of side hustles. With creativity you have to try everything, you don’t know what it will be until you’ve created it, and even then, sometimes you’re not sure what it is or how it will be received. In the field I work in there is no roadmap to success. Without expectation, my path has been carved by invitations and opportunities.

When I began making and selling fanny packs at art markets in 2021 I was terrified and had no idea if anyone other than me would want to strap one of these wild satchels onto their body and call it fashion. Turns out, 2022 was a great year, between in-person and my website, I sold much more than expected, and I received the most amazing feedback from friends and customers.

I don’t want to have to capitalize my creative practice, but there are no other solutions trying to live as an artist in this society. Whenever I make new things and monetize them a little piece of me feels conflicted. So, I have solved this problem by diversifying my income streams. This always keeps it interesting and It keeps my work from losing its meaning by engaging in a variety of side hustles over choosing the monotony of one job.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.

So many creators before me have worked to fabricate the world and the culture we live in now. I stand upon their shoulders and continue to build, but I feel as if I may never be compensated for my cultural contributions because folks can consume the content that I create and post online for free, at any given moment. There have been times when the obstacles were enough to make me want to turn back and pursue another career path. Though wrought with challenges, ultimately, this is what makes me happy. It’s what keeps me going. Its my purpose and I only hope to shine a light onto the value of my labor.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.jackiericcio.com, www.landofplenty.co
• Instagram: @landofplenty_studio

Image Credits
Ezra Weill, Savannah van der Niet