We were lucky to catch up with Julietta Bekker recently and have shared our conversation below.

Julietta, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you take us back in time to the first dollar you earned as a creative – how did it happen? What’s the story?

While earning my undergraduate degree in Spanish, I was fortunate to have opportunities for musical and artistic inspiration. The first time I was paid for creative work was as a member of a small choir headed by then-graduate conducting student, Mark Doerries. Doerries’ project, Luminescence, paired light design and music in a synesthesia-inspired multi-sensory performance at the Philadelphia Fringe Festival. It was truly a stimulating experience for all of us.

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 a visual artist, writer and Spanish tutor with a professional background in Spanish teaching, curriculum and academic program design. Every inspiring childhood memory I have involved observing deeply or creating something from my imagination. Although my career path for decades veered away from creative work, I am excited to embrace this lifelong leading now! While at home with my baby during the pandemic, I found ample inspiration and space to create again, sketching daily and writing poetry and fiction to process and transmute that layered experience. My humorous greeting cards and prints draw from my experiences as a millennial mother with anxiety and a curious observer.

I have experience creating custom hand-drawn illustrations for small businesses, and would love to find more opportunities like those in the future. You can find my greeting cards for sale in NE Portland at Rose City Book Pub and The Wiggle Room. I am currently working on a children’s book and an illustrated book of original poems.

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

I especially love to experience the openness or “flow state” from which ideas, illustration, and writing emerge most freely, and I am grateful to find myself able to access that state of mind more often. It is an attitude and mental space of “yes,” in which all creative material is welcome, and my inner critic is not invited. For the first time, even the rote part of my job feels fun and meaningful. While creating and maintaining my weekly schedule, packaging my inventory and driving to and from small businesses with which I’ve partnered, I feel empowered and grateful to be building a new identity as a working creative.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

Throughout my life, perfectionism and anxiety have impacted my creative process and willingness to share and prioritize my creative work. For many years I’ve centered product over process, seeking to create high-quality illustrations without taking time to test out new techniques in quick sketches and through free-writing. I continue to unlearn this, and have started to embrace an attitude of play. In a recent comics class, instructor and artist Audra McNamee provided ample opportunity for students to engage in playful sketching and learning. I now use social media (including @miepartist on Instagram) to share fresh poems of mine, including first drafts.

Contact Info:

• Website: miepart.com
• Instagram: @miepartist @juliettabekker
• Facebook: Julietta Bekker
• Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/julietta-bekker