We recently connected with Kate Raneri and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Kate, thanks for joining us today. Do you think your parents have had a meaningful impact on you and your journey?

As a little kid, I was extremely shy and had to deal with selective mutism. Selective mutism is a type of anxiety disorder that makes it incredibly difficult for the person to speak with the people around them. Fortunately, my parents recognized this and had me begin art therapy when I was 5 years old. My mom says she chose art therapy specifically because I was always drawing and painting on an easel my older brother had. Not only did the art therapy help me conquer my anxiety and learn how to deal with it, it also encouraged my desire to create. I spent a lot of time expressing how I felt in a visual format. I would spend a lot of time creating characters to represent my emotions, or taking scribbles and turning them into stories. Therapy reinforced the comfort I found in visual art and without that experience, I’m not sure I would have continued to pursue a creative path as I’ve grown up.

It’s not just me either, my two younger sisters are artistic as well and one of them is pursuing a musical theater degree in college! Clearly, my mom and dad are doing something right because my siblings and I are out chasing our dreams. My parents don’t have “artistic” careers themselves, but they are definitely creative! Both of them are very musically talented and my mom loves interior design and making our home aesthetically pleasing. Because of their own talents, they know how valuable art really is.

I’m incredibly grateful for the support and encouragement from my parents, I don’t know who I’d be or what I’d be doing if it weren’t for them.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I’m Kate! I’m a 22 year old artist from Long Island, New York. Currently, I’m a senior illustration student at Savannah College of Art and Design. Growing up I was always creating, so it seems only natural for me to pursue a creative path. To be honest, I have no idea what I’d be doing if it wasn’t this. Despite being a senior, I feel like I’m just now getting a footing on the kind of art I admire the most and what I want my visual language to look like. For schoolwork (due to time constraints), I’ve primarily been creating artwork digitally, however after graduation I plan on revisiting more traditional methods for creating!

One of my fascinations is music, and my favorite kind of art is a combination of visuals and music. I spend most of my time with headphones on listening to all different kinds of music. It’s impossible to pin down a favorite genre but some of my favorite artists at the moment are Lady Gaga, Lucy Dacus, Dazey and the Scouts, and a lot more. My favorite work to create comes from direct inspiration from musicians.

My dream assignment would be to work for musicians and create their merchandise designs, album art, gig posters, concert visuals, and just about anything else they would need designs for. Visual communication has been what I’ve been doing since day one and I want to collaborate with musicians and assist them in creating their vision for themselves and their brand.

A great way I’ve gotten the chance to practice this is by starting a band with some friends! I’ve been in an all girl punk band called Girlfriend From Hell for about a year and it has been a blast. My friends and I have always wanted to be in a band so we just decide to sit down and make it happen. I primarily play the guitar, but I also assist with back-up vocals and am hoping to one day do lead vocals for some songs. Being shy growing up, I never pictured myself having enough confidence to scream on stage in front of a crowd of people but here we are!

One of the best parts of this experience is the ability to have direct access to creating artwork for my band! I’m proud to say that I created our logo and our best-selling piece t-shirt design so far! I also had to privilege of creating our gig poster for our first headliner show.

It’s honestly such an honor to be part of something really special, and I’m super proud of myself and my fellow bandmates! Our instagram is @girlfriendfromhell.band if you want to see more!

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

I think the best way society can support artists and creatives is to start actively acknowledging a creative career path as a real option. This is talked about a lot but it’s true that creative jobs are looked down upon and not seen as a wise decision in terms of being employed and making money. Myself and my peers have been asked how we’re planning on making money, or that art school is a waste of time, or asking what are we going to do for our “real” job.

Whether people realize it or not, this can be so discouraging and aggravating to hear as an artist. A lot of non-creatives don’t realize that design and creativity is all around us and in everything that we do. In a time where STEM is taking over, it’s important to remember not to discredit other people’s career choices just because they aren’t fitting the mold of what’s often expected of us. Creatives are just as valuable to the workforce, and world, as any other job.

The best way we can support artists is to encourage them, give them a place to figure out what they want to do and how to do it. We should collaborate with others to create even better things. Two heads are better than one!

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

This might sound silly, but Pinterest has been really helpful in figuring out what art I personally like. I’ve been creating boards for just about anything visual I can think of and my favorite board is my “art inspiration” board. It’s helped me realize what sort of traits I want to appear in my own artwork. It’s also great for finding photo reference for artwork too.

It’s only been a very recent realization, but if I had been utilizing Pinterest since I started taking art more seriously (like junior year of high school), I wonder where my art would be today.

All art is inspired from somewhere and I believe art can only get better the more saturated your inspiration is. Pinterest is perfect for that.

Contact Info:

• Website: kateraneri.com
• Instagram: @kateraneri / @girlfriendfromhell.band
• Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/kate-raneri
• Twitter: @kateraneri

Image Credits
Victoria Cooper (Girlfriend from Hell photo) Kazimir Skye (Solo guitar photo)