We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jaime Shevat a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Jaime, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.

I was very fortunate to have the most supportive art teachers growing up. They taught me to try everything. If I had a wild idea, they backed me. Nothing was off the table. They gave me a fearless creativity. When I first started to sell my work, I constantly thought about “what would sell”, and that hindered my growth as an artist. Once I started creating pieces because they made me happy, told a funny story, or made me smile, I found my style and my voice as an artist. That idea to create without fear has become essential to me.

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 am not quite an emerging artist nor seasoned, but I’ve been successful since 2018. I am most known for creating vibrant and whimsical acrylic paintings. I love neon colors and taking something we see everyday and adding a spin to it! Such as, the iconic Pensacola Beach sign stands against a fire-breathing dragon or a mermaid relaxing in a bowl of ramen. One of my proudest accomplishments was when my work won the contest for Fiesta Pensacola’s Seafood festival in 2019 and 2020. I got to see my design featured on posters, t-shirts, and billboards.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?

I think artists are often portrayed as having a natural talent or something we were born with. Myself, and many artist I know, we put the work in. We practice, take classes, paint daily. We’ve worked to hone our skills. Be careful saying the phrase “Well I could do that”, you might not know the struggle it took for that artist to get there.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

I love the feeling I get when people walk into my booth and start smiling or laughing. I find happiness when I am creating, and I like knowing that people see that joy when they view my art.

Contact Info:

• Website: jaimeshevat.com
• Instagram: JaimeShevatArt
• Facebook: facebook.com/jaimeshevatart