We recently connected with Joan Fullerton and have shared our conversation below.
Joan, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Are you happier as a creative? Do you sometimes think about what it would be like to just have a regular job? Can you talk to us about how you think through these emotions?
Because my art and my painting workshops are based on curiosity and play, my life is incredibly happy and meaningful. I’m always digging deeper into things and imagining new ways of seeing a situation. My Dad had these qualities, and my mother was a responsible parent with a quick wit. I’ve embraced their attributes to build an evolving art aesthetic and dynamic teaching career.
There have been life challenges, and I’ve made mistakes, yet all my dreams have come true! I wanted to be a mother, a teacher, an artist, and I wanted to travel. I envisioned meeting exciting people and studying big ideas, philosophy, psychology, physics, and the meaning of life. Now that I’m 70, I am doing all this and savoring it more.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I’ve always made art, and I’ve always taught art. I was praised for making drawings and paintings from a young age. The intrinsic joy of creating something that also pleased others captivated me.
I grew up in the 60s in rural Wyoming with little culture and no art education until I was a high school junior. In my first art class, I observed our art instructor and realized I could do that!
I pursued art and art education in college until I married and had children. With three young children, I made sure to reserve one day a week to have a babysitter and paint. I taught children’s art classes in our home, was a K-12 substitute art teacher, and taught several courses for the community education program. After the marriage ended, I completed BFA and MFA degrees in painting and was then able to teach at the college level.
Teaching art at a community college for 13 years likely fits the “regular job” category, and it’s the only job I ever wanted. Although I had an art exhibition in Japan before getting hired and was invited into several galleries, I was thrilled to have a regular paycheck with health benefits!
When my children went to college, I took a sabbatical to Italy for four months and then an art class in Taos, NM. During this time, I was discovering how my art could evolve. This desire for change grew, and I eventually quit my beloved position at the college for unknown adventures in NM.
In Taos, NM I formed a small art school with a couple of artists and taught an occasional workshop, but I was mostly focused on a more personal painting style and philosophy.
A second marriage in Taos ended, and I moved to Denver. My self-promotion included contacting newspapers to do interviews, taking on painting commissions, hosting an open studio in my home, offering to do demos for art groups, and the most significant help: hiring a social media representative to do consistent posting.
When I had long teaching days and teenagers, the note on the fridge said: “Do good work and be kind”. I still try to keep it simple. Then and now, nothing is better than when a student says my class made them feel valued and changed their life or when a patron writes of how they look at my painting every day, and their sorrow fades. This is everything for me. I want to uplift others with my art and with my workshops.
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
As I study the value of living a creative life, I hope to encourage more people to discover artmaking’s healing, joy, and spiritual connection.
Putting the best of our life force, our love, into a painting, a dance, a novel, or our song heals us personally and our audience.
Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?
Through the years, most of my feedback from teaching and painting has been positive, but I’ve had a few unfavorable evaluations, and I know I’m not for everyone. Not everyone thinks I’m funny, believes my approach is worthy, or values my art.
I’ve been rejected by shows and galleries, ignored by consumers and critics, and I’ve painted demonstrations that were disappointing.
These situations have been the stimulus to unlearn that debilitating desire to please everyone. I never gave up and I learned how to please myself and let the right audience find me.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.joanfullerton.com/dataviewer.asp
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joanfullertonart/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/joanfullertonart
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-JdPZbOVRWR9ZNOvaZp–Q
- Other: https://www.joanfullertonworkshops.com
Image Credits
All photos are my own.