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

Julia, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I am very proud to be a LGBTQ, Puerto Rican-German-American female figure painter in Texas today. For the past seven years I have been based in Houston pursuing an education in the arts. I graduated from Rice University in 2021 with a BA in Art History and Studio Arts. I am currently in my third year of my MFA Painting program at the University of Houston. This year I will have a solo show at Elgin Street Studios February 6th-16th, and be a part of the group Thesis Exhibition at the Blaffer Art Museum in late March. I currently teach Fundamentals of Painting at UH as well as a UH Public Arts workshop: Pastels and Poets, which I enjoy immensely.

My painting process is very meditative in nature, and I consider the final oil paintings to be ruminations of the female form. The figures in my work are uncovered, unabashed, and unapologetic, composed to form abstracted bodyscapes. I magnify intimate areas of flesh until the shapes feel independent of ownership and become fields of volume, light, and color. By dismantling ideas of traditional nude portraiture, and refocusing on formal painting qualities, the body becomes alluring through attentive methodology rather than sexual appeal. I create slow, delicate, deliberate lines that diffuse into large swaths of flesh. I also value the labor of painting in thin layers with smooth blends, allowing me time to intuitively capture my subject. I romanticize color and light to create sublime interpretations of a prosaic body. I hope to create a moment of serenity for my viewer, in which they can appreciate the organic shapes of the body saturated with color and care.

I sell my work online and can be contacted concerning commissions through my Instagram account, @j.kiddart , as well as from my studio on campus.

Julia, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Do you take vacations? How do you keep things going – any advice for entrepreneurs who feel like they can’t step away from their business for a short vacation?

I do take vacations. I think they are vital in maintaining a healthy work/life balance, as well as to find new inspiration for work going forward. We get so sucked into our daily routines, sometimes we forget about how important a fresh perspective can be. With newfound energy, enthusiasm, and inspiration, not to mention marketing opportunities, a vacation is more than worth it to yourself and your career. As artists we absorb information from all around us, and if that input becomes stagnant due to a repetitive routine, so will our work. Spending time abroad made me more experimental upon my return. After time in the desert, my color palette radically changed. When I go to the beach, my lines become softer mirroring the ebb and flow of water, etc. I understand how it can be difficult to rationalize taking time off when budgets are tight and deadlines are always on the horizon. What I find to be helpful is scheduling vacations long in advance as though they are also an important deadline to meet, and treating them as such. They need to be planned, you need to be prepared, and you must make them worthwhile by challenging yourself to try something new. If you do not use a vacation as another opportunity, then of course it will feel wasteful.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

Something I find is extremely easy to fall victim to and incredibly difficult to overcome, or unlearn, is imposter syndrome. Everyone gets it from time to time; I’ve personally felt it at every major stepping stone in my career, but being able to recognize when you feel this way, and move past it, is one of the most important things you can learn.

Advice that gets thrown around a lot is “fake it until you make it.” The problem with this statement is that it undermines all the hard work you have put in to get to this point. You are not faking anything! You worked hard to be here. You are deserving of a seat at the table. And you need to capitalize on any upward momentum in your career, not become stagnant because you can’t believe you’ve made it this far. In my opinion, imposter syndrome occurs because you are looking backwards at where you started, and approaching your new situation with the old mindset. My advice is to find ways to ground yourself in the here and now, and continue to look forward.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

There are so many rewarding aspects to being an artist. Having the freedom to work on your own schedule is a definite plus. On a more serious note, the ability to express something unique, and create a shared experience with my viewer is what I treasure most fiercely. When someone comes to one of my shows and they say it made them feel understood, or that my work captured their attention for “x” reason, I am incredibly honored. To have someone take time from their day to look at something I have made is always a humbling and cherished experience.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @j.kiddart
• Facebook: Julia Kidd

Image Credits
Kathrine G. McGovern College of the Arts and Julia Kidd