We were lucky to catch up with Jane Steelman recently and have shared our conversation below.

Jane, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

I’ve always known that I was most interested in the creative process and explored many media from high school to the present. I was pursuing a double major at Appalachian State University; one of which was art.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I have been interested in artistic endeavors since elementary school and started exploring different methods and media in high school and college. Unfortunately, as so often happens, life got in the way and I took an alternate career path to earn a living. I also had my daughter and was much more interested in her than trying to pursue my art. Once she was older and my first career in education was coming to a close I was able to focus on my art business full time. I have been a member of several galleries, had opportunities in leadership roles in art organizations, and been fortunate to exhibit in many venues across the state.
I am most proud of my ability to explore various media and teach others about them. I enjoy different media and styles and while that is seen as a detriment I feel it is beneficial. Every media has certain commonalities and each one informs the other. What I learn in pastels helps in oils and watercolors and vice versa.
I am also very proud of the portraits I have created for people throughout the years. When I can unveil a portrait of a loved one and see the look on the face of my clients it is very rewarding. I hope to continue to work and grow in that area.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

My goal is simply to compete with myself and become better as time goes by. I have found that comparison to other artists if futile. I just need to focus on what I want to accomplish and do it to the best of my ability. I do set yearly goals and work toward those. In 2022 I was awarded an art grant from the United Arts Council of Wake County to explore writing a children’s book. The grant allowed me to take classes and begin the book and illustrations. This is still in process but a project I am deeply committed to and will continue to work on.
This year my goal is to practice portraits and explore creating portraits in oil. To that end I am involved in a mentoring class with J.J. Jiang which proves to be exceptional.
I also have a project that I am working on this year which will culminate in an exhibit at WakeMed North. I have created the smaller studies in acrylic for the 30×40 canvases in acrylic and oil.
All of these things in addition to the commissions I receive keep my very busy.

Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?

I think that people don’t understand that the creative process is beneficial for everyone. Everyone is an artist in some respect. What is difficult for many to grasp is that the final product is only one small aspect of the process. It takes years to find one’s voice. It takes hours, days and weeks to develop and project. That two hour demo that people see that makes it look easy actually tool a very long time and much practice to be able to create something consistent and meaningful. It is hard to put a price on that. Many find the price of original art high because they are only considering the cost of supplies and the time it may have taken for that one piece of art.
I struggle with finding a balance between creating those pieces that are larger and impressive but costly and smaller pieces that people are willing to purchase. I can find items to create that people are able to purchase but then feel like a production artist and I don’t want to do that. That is a part of the conundrum; production for sales or creating art that is meaningful and lasting. I see it as something many artists struggle with because unless you have a large following of buyers (not lookers) you may struggle making a living in this field.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.steelmanstudios.com/ or http://www.artnc.me/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/steelman_studios/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/janesteelmanart/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-jane-davis-steelman-9809952/
• Other: Email: [email protected]

Image Credits
Image credits For “Caroline” Averette Photography [email protected] 5716 Barham Siding Rd Wake Forest NC,27587 919-345-1306