Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Jordan Young. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Jordan, 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?

Starting an art business has been the greatest risk I have ever taken, I have encountered different challenges and hurdles not faced before but it has given me the opportunity to pursue my love for creating art. Coming out of the pandemic I was looking for a new job, the last thing I wanted was a regular job where I wasn’t able to be creative. It was at this time when I decided to go all in and sell my art for a living.

I began my small business in 2021 selling my ceramics at craft fairs, this soon evolved to attending bigger and more prominent shows in Southern California. Another important focus is entering art into galleries for exposure. Having your art recognizable to the public eye can be a challenge, this is why I create unique one of a kind pieces to stand out from the large ceramic art community in Southern California.

The risk I took to start an art business has really grown in the last two years. Now I have a professional online art portfolio, I show my art in galleries, I opened up an Etsy shop online, and I also now teach art at a few local ceramic studios.

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.

Originally I was attending school to become a firefighter, while finishing my final classes it was required to take one elective class so I signed up for beginning ceramic art at Orange Coast College. While finishing my education I ended up taking every ceramics class the school offered, this is when my career path truly changed. It was at this time when the ceramics professor encouraged me to attend a University and continue my education in art. Soon after I transferred to California State University Fullerton and received a Bachelors in Fine Arts in ceramics.

Since college graduation I have been working on ideas in the studio attempting to push the boundaries of what I was taught is possible with ceramics. The past few years I have been focusing on working with colored clay and combining them into a beautiful flowing pattern. I make a variety of shapes and sizes of vases, mugs, and bowls for everyday use. Every porcelain art piece made is completely unique giving each piece individual meaning as the same exact design cannot be achieved twice. I am proud of the recent work coming out of the studio, there have been many failed attempts to achieve the new designs but I believe this new line of work is the best ceramics I have ever created.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

One of the largest factors for small businesses and local artists is support from the public. Every time I sell art at a market I support another vendor and buy one of their creative pieces. It is important to consider the time and effort artists put into their work, as well as the time it took them to become so skillful. When shopping for a gift, think about going to your local craft fair instead of going to a large retail store.

Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?

There is an incredible site online for artists trying to get work into galleries local or internationally. Call for entry (callforentry.org) is a free website that artists can use to search for art shows to enter their work.

Contact Info:

• Website: jordanyoungart.gallery
• Instagram: jordanyoungart
• Other: etsy.com/shop/jordanyoungart