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

Alright, Kaitlin thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us 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 have been able to earn a full-time living from my creative work for the past ten years. In 2008, I completed a graduate degree in medical illustration from the University of Illinois Chicago. Most graduates go into animation, front end development or illustrate for textbooks or patient education work. I was on a similar tract, but soon after graduation I became pregnant and had severe prenatal complications. My son was born very early and unwell. As a stress reliever, I started to paint the things that were going well in his body, rather than focusing on the problem areas. I focused on making things look lovely and beautiful, sometimes even abstract, rather than clinically beautiful.

After things settled down, I decided to make these paintings available on Etsy. And they took off! I had hit upon a target market that was as fascinated by anatomy as I was. They were seeking paintings that would show off their passion but, importantly, would offend or overwhelm nervous patients. Enter: Lyon Road Art (this was what I named my business, as Lyon Road Art was where I lived when my son was sick in the hospital).

I was fortunate to be one of the first to this abstract anatomy market, and was quickly able to make a living off of selling prints and original work. However, I now realize that being first to a market means nothing in the long run. Countless competitors have entered the field and I have to spend more money and time on marketing than ever before. About five years ago, I had to stop relying on luck and start putting about half my day into the ever-changing marketing landscape. Leaning into the daily grunge work of SEO tweaks, listing photography, social media growth and online presence was the greatest challenge, but that shift marks my greatest milestone as well.

It has now paid off! I now have four employees, and am lucky to have my art sales fund my new venture into opening an art academy for my local community.

Kaitlin, 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?

Technically, I got into my field thanks to my MS in biomedical visualization (essentially medical illustration). But really, the desire to paint anatomy was years in the making, from the time I was young, a simple combining of my two passions. I have thought of myself as an artist for as long as I can remember. I painted or drew every day of my elementary school life—and that’s not hyperbole! Learning anatomy has also always been a passion. The stories inherent to our bodies are a point of endless fascination for me, anatomy courses feeling more like story time than structured learning! Although starting pre-med in college, I quickly changed course when I discovered that a career combining these two subjects was possible.

Today my bread and butter is selling prints of the fine art anatomy paintings I’ve completed to providers, patients, and large medical conglomerates. I also have a constant queue of commissions I’m working on. I’ll shamefacedly admit that I get frustrated with this queue, as I miss painting from my own inspiration and ideas, but I do realize how incredibly lucky I am to be an artist in demand! I still sell art on Etsy, but most of my sales come from my own website, lyonroadart.com. I also like to attend a few art fairs a year, just to interact with the public and expand my reach. When I have time, I enter my art in shows and exhibitions around the nation, and have been lucky enough to win a few awards with my original anatomical art.

I have a few parts of my career of which I’m particularly proud. The first is that I was a pioneer in fine art anatomy and in taking an abstract or “loveliness” approach to portraying clinically relevant anatomy. While now the market is relatively saturated, I was one of the first to hit on this idea. I’ve had so much inspiration for this topic, I’ve been able to complete over 500 paintings to date—all while raising three children!

My second “proud point” is my book. I’m so fascinated by anatomy, I actually wrote 100 anatomical poems! These funny and whimsical poems, coupled with my art, were published this year in my book, “Anatomy is Beautiful: A Collection of Anatomical Art & Poetry”. The book is selling well enough that I will have to order a second edition soon.

Finally, I’m proud that I’ve taken my success and paid it forward with the opening of an art academy this year. Entitled LRA Academy, I’ve hired two more teachers and rented a 4,000 square foot warehouse and we now bring the joy of painting to the local community.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The joy of it. And then learning to spread that joy. I’ve struggled with anxiety—a lot of it—over the years. Mine manifests as an inability to sleep, which has periodically wreaked havoc in my life. But even in the depths of the hard times, when I would turn to paint, the anxiety would be pushed out of my brain. I would get so focused on my work, I wouldn’t have room to worry about sleep, or worry about worrying. Painting is a balm to me, a natural therapy that has a profoundly positive affect on my mental health. When a decided to teach a few classes on the side, I was struck by how often my students said the same thing during class. Seeing others find the same joy I’ve found in the creative arts has become one of the greatest unexpected rewards of my career.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

My goal used to just be working as hard as I possibly can to create the best art I’m capable of (while still being a good parent). And it still is! However, after my teaching journey of the past few years, I’ve added another mission to my career: I want to bring art to the lives of others, in order to bring about positive mental health changes. The tagline of my art academy journey is Make Art and Be Happy, and I truly believe that’s possible.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.lyonroadart.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lyonroadart
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lyonroadart
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/lyonroadart.com
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@lyonroadart
• Other: Academy website: www.lra-academy.com