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

Katie, appreciate you joining us today. Let’s start with what makes profitability in your industry a challenge – what would you say is the biggest challenge?

It’s that old school mentality that some outsiders looking in still see “starving artist”. I can confidently say that’s something that I have always tried to prove wrong! You can make profit from being an artist, but that also comes with a lot of drive and willingness to put in the hard work. You cannot just expect to draw or paint something and have it immediately be seen and make money from. The biggest challenge is being seen. You would think with the world we live in now where social media is all over it would be easy. It is not anymore! Everything has changed throughout the years with social media. You have to make sure you post at the right time, show content that draws attention, and the hardest part for me is to make sure I don’t just jump into my painting and not hit the record button.

Getting my name out there has been challenging but with my work and style I am slowly starting to see a change. I’m putting in more effort than ever to get seen and with the great word of mouth and my abilities, I am creating full time and loving every minute.

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.

My name is Katie Tyler “KT” and I have been creating art with my business ‘Kt’s Art and Design’ for almost 14 years. I grew up in upstate NY and a little over a year ago I moved to a little town just outside of Nashville, TN. Before I moved I have to be completely honest and say I struggled to get my artwork seen and have any profits. I did ok, but where I lived was definitely a set back. Moving to an area where my murals are in demand has been so fulfilling.

My services that I’m known for are pet portraits and murals/window painting. With doing pet portraits, it give me the pride to know my clients trust me to paint something for them that is close to their heart. I’m a huge animal lover and enjoy painting them in my studio when I’m not out painting murals.

Mural work has blown up for me and that was always the road I wanted to take in my business and I didn’t have that opportunity up in NY being in a very rural town. Being close to the major cities in Tennessee, I have been very busy painting for short term rentals, home owners and businesses. This gives your space a unique look and draws attention for booking, potential clients and even if your child wants a fun space in their room!

My ideal work and style I am passionate about it is realism. I’ve always loved painting something and making it look as realistic as possible, I’m all about the details! But if I have a client come to me for a mural I rarely turn them down, and that’s because I’ve never limited myself. I have never gone into a niche style. I love all art and have always been passionate to learn every style of art. So for most of my murals for the rental owners I paint a lot of punchy, colorful graphics and I enjoy that!

Don’t get me wrong, I know when to say no to work. I’d never take something on I know I cannot do. I usually will refer another artist. But if it’s something I would love to try out I’ll be transparent with the client and explain it, and I have never had a client upset with the outcome.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

So as you all know as a business owner, it takes a lot of hustle. I have been working for myself since 2010 and to say it was easy is a lie. You have to want it. But you also have to know when you might need to change your direction if needed.

About 4 years ago I had someone tag me in a post for painting furniture and this business was looking for some help. Am I a furniture painter? No. Do I want to be a permanent furniture painter? Maybe? Haha but I was open to all options as you just read. I tend to get bored easily and love to switch things up, but the one thing I don’t get tired of is painting. So, when I started to have a slow few years and was getting a little upset that I was trying so hard to just paint paintings and continue my business and honestly it wasn’t going the way I planned so to keep a float I tried it out. I went there and painted my first buffet stand for them with some direction but they told me to just do what I do. I painted this buffet in a fun turquoise color with tons of dimension using different colors and when I was done I felt a feeling I haven’t in a while, passion. Painting furniture was a blast. I did it for almost 3 years. The idea of working for someone else was challenging at times but they allowed me to use my talent and I always heard “do your thing!” So I never felt controlled. That was the best decision I made for me and my journey. Yes it wasn’t the typical canvas or blank wall for a mural but it allowed me to continue painting and constantly learning! I quit that job in 2022 when we moved to Tennessee but still to this day I enjoy painting some furniture.

I will always be creative, that’s just who I am. And I will always try new things to keep that passion going and never give up. Sometimes you will have slow weeks or even months but that doesn’t mean you give up. Sometimes pivoting to a different direction for a short period of time could be your thing!

Can you talk to us about how your side-hustle turned into something more.

When I met my husband 14 years ago I was working that typical retail job that I dreaded driving to. Making very low income and living pay check to pay check. When I was working then I was always creating in the side. I painted paler portraits for years for clients, and never thought I could do it for a living. Thankfully before we got married my husband told me that it killed him to see my talents go to waste by working all these long hours for nothing, when I could be creating and expanding my business… so I quit!

I didn’t have money saved up. I was terrified it wouldn’t work, but I was raised with a father who owned his own business and seeing the ups and downs of that lifestyle I knew you had to hustle. And that’s exactly what I did. I created all the business pages, websites etc that could get my name out there. I did and still run all socials myself and even my website to cut cost. Someday I hope to hire on for that stuff but for now this still works for me.

I took that leap to focus on my business and it was a challenge. It was a long road with it being 13 years late but I can proudly say I’m still going! This year I am making enough to be the main income in our family and we’re not struggling. We worked very hard as a team to get here and I owe that to my husband for believing in me but I also always knew I would do it. 2023 has been my best year but I cannot wait to see what 2024 brings!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.KtsArtandDesign.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/ktsartanddesign
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Ktsartanddesign

Image Credits
Katie Tyler