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

Julz, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Earning a full time living from one’s creative career can be incredibly difficult. Have you been able to do so and if so, can you share some of the key parts of your journey and any important advice or lessons that might help creatives who haven’t been able to yet?

I began my journey into earning a living as a full time artist 2 years ago. I believe that my whole life has led me to where I am today. Over the past two years, I have worked to create various streams of income for my business that align with values and dreams. I am a muralist, a teacher in the community and my studio, an illustrator, and I run a retail and wholesale business selling stationery, ceramics, swimwear, and various other products that spark joy & play.

As I have moved thru the various forms of creating and selling my art to make money, I have remained curious and always followed my intuition. When my daughter was born, I realized that things needed to shift away from me making every item that I was selling. Becoming a parent changed my entire perspective on life. My art & teaching became rooted in the idea of slowing down: being present and looking deeper as a means for discovering the magic that surrounds us daily, and the brilliance that we each have within ourselves.

During my daughter’s life, I began working as a freelance illustrator/designer for clients. As a way to personally make space for my own creative practice, I began a 30 day project of showing up to make art every day. Following that project, I decided to paint everyday for an entire year. During that year long project, I gained confidence in myself and my artwork shifted – by the end of that year, I was painting a large mural. While showing up daily, I noticed a style emerging. I felt empowered. I later started Hummingbird Art Camp in our backyard to teach girls & non-binary youth creativity working with nature. During my last project, I created 100 days of patterns. Showing up and making art that you enjoy creating invites more of that work into your life.

Before jumping into full-time self-employment, I was a Surface Pattern Designer for three years. I used the portfolio of work that I had created during all of my personal projects and freelance side jobs to get hired. My job as a pattern designer helped me gain more confidence and save money to go out on my own full-time. There are months that realistically, I need to borrow from my savings to pay bills. I also have months where I have higher paying job that allow me to offset the slower months. I’ve been fortunate to have friends and a community that support my art and creativity by hiring me, buying my products, and sharing my business with others. As I have continued growing the Julz Clementine brand, I have learned along the way to be patient, stay true to my values, and keep believing in myself.

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?

Julz Clementine is an artist living out her dreams in Portland, Oregon. Her colorful artwork includes whimsical characters and sincere messages to inspire joy, creativity, and play. She earned a BFA with a focus on Communication Design from Texas State University. Before creating her own line of products, Julz worked as a graphic designer in print & apparel, an art director in advertising & product design, and as a textile designer.

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Community and collaboration have always been at the heart of what I do. I have spent my life creating and connecting with others through art and embodying the importance of play. 

Currently, my experience as an artist includes community building with murals, teaching kids/adults in my studio and in a public setting, running a retail/wholesale business selling stationery, swimwear, & small batch ceramics as well as working with other brands to create illustrations to help tell more of their story.

My hope is that my art may help others to step out of their comfort zone and try something new, embrace the imperfections and enjoy the process and play.

I look forward to many more collaborations, big ideas, and dreams brought to life for beautiful people all over the world to enjoy.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

Community and collaboration have always been at the heart of what I do. I now dedicate my life to creating and connecting with others through art and sharing ways to play and seek out the magic in everyday life.

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

I have had to unlearn perfectionism. As a recovering perfectionist, I am working to find balance in letting go. I do this by teaching workshops and creating art with cut paper play and in the show that I show up to play with clay and paint murals with community. I’m realizing that done is better than none. We simply need to put the idea out there and not worry so much about the fears that will undoubtedly come up when you’re creating something new. When we are sharing our voices in the world, others relate to the imperfections because these imperfections are what make us human. An artists job is to create the unknown and continue to embrace the feelings and fears that come up while sharing a piece of ourselves in the world. We are forever a work in progress.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.julzclementine.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/julzclementine/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/julz-clementine-94681a92/

Image Credits

Kim Oanh Nguyen – photo with paintings in studio https://www.instagram.com/photosbykim/