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Sed ut perspiciatis unde.
SubscribeWe caught up with the brilliant and insightful Kathy Lajvardi a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Kathy, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?
Life is an adventure, a story that unfolds all around you every day. When I find myself in a comfortable spot, I ask the question, “Is this really all life has to offer? How can I strive for more?” I begin to brainstorm about the myriad opportunities that are out there waiting to be discovered, and I think about the different seeds I can plant to get to where I need to be next. Once an idea is born, I tackle it one bit at a time. It helps me not to look at the big picture, but rather at each step that I must take before getting to the next.
In 2018, I took that risk and partnered with I Like This Grape, a wine/lifestyle media platform, to put together an experiential event called “SOMMX: Kanye West’s Music Interpreted Through Spanish Wine.” I created the new “KW” series, which included five original pieces, each one inspired by a Kanye song. The artwork then inspired my collaborators to pair five Spanish wines, which in turn inspired five original dishes created by Chef Brian Huskey from Bravo’s TV show, Top Chef! The 125-ticket event quickly sold out. They were dazzled by a sumptuous sensory experience that included a spoken-word artist and ballerinas intermingling with the crowd.
This risk delivered an exciting reward: I sold my first piece of art. It changed my direction, leading me to create a four-piece series called “California Love” for Chef Brian Huskey’s new restaurant, Tackle Box, in 2019.
Since then, I have followed my risk-taking philosophy at every turn. My journey now includes frequent risks to take me to the next step and embrace any opportunity that comes my way. In the process I meet new people full of passion and wisdom, and I learn valuable lessons. I also practice gratitude and try to remind myself to enjoy and embrace the journey and grow from the mistakes made along the way.
Kathy, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
Sure! I currently work as the creative director at a global ad agency, Razorfish, and lead the creative team on
Samsung.com. My professional career took me through the world of advertising, film and entertainment. My work includes concert graphics for Madonna & Beyonce, commercial graphics for Lexus, Disney and Apple, and movie graphics for Iron Man and Transformers. The advertising industry gave me the freedom to paint while providing stability.
I fell in love with painting at an early age. That love grew and took on a life of its own when I went to college. I entered Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles with a major in Digital Media Design and a minor in Painting. The conceptual thinking that I practice daily in my career and the skills I have developed in the last 23 years as a designer and creative director have deeply informed my work as a contemporary mixed media artist working in many worlds, from reflective resin to large-scale paintings. I love making art that’s conceptual, captures a story and raises awareness.
My latest series, “Unbreakable Queens,” is very conceptual. In a profound way, it reflects and comments on my life as a woman growing up in Los Angeles and being influenced by the vibrancy and vitality of its music and culture. I remember the deep impact that Madonna, Janet Jackson, Beyoncé and the iconic Iranian singer Googoosh had on my life when I was growing up. Each of these women broke through barriers and personal struggles to create and perfect their art. Their drive and desire to win is very powerful, and I drew inspiration from them at various stages of my life.
We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?
It’s funny, now that hosting events has become part of my journey I am always thinking about social first when hosting. I make sure that my video/social team is present at my events. If you hold an event without producing content, you just missed out on an opportunity to add to your portfolio. The events bring me tons of social media followers who engage with my content and are true fans. I also make a point of trading social profiles with people that I connect with. My years of experience creating motion graphics has given me the skills to create exciting reels of my work. Posting videos on social media is a crucial way to keep your audience engaged. I’m also very strategic with the hashtags I choose and tagging people who are relevant to my post. I aim to build a community of like minded people who engage and become part of my community.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
It’s really rewarding when I deliver an art piece to a collector’s house, help install it and see how it transforms their space – how it completely changes the vibe of the room. It’s powerful every time, that “aahhh” moment. I also love it when I’m showing my work publicly and people become engaged with it. They start asking questions and want to hear about my conceptual thinking, knowing there’s more to the story. They see my passion. They can feel it viscerally and they’re moved by it. That’s a deeply gratifying moment.
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