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

K’era , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

I was a junior in high school when it became apparent that I wanted to investigate a creative path further. At that time I hadn’t internalized the fear or stories about the life of a “starving artist” nor faced deterrents from my family about pursuing a creative career. I remember the intense time period that happens when you start thinking about colleges and the application phase begins. My friends and peers were discussing what schools they were applying to and what course of study they would most likely pursue however nothing that they were sharing sounded very compelling to me. I don’t even think I realized I could go to art school or that was a thing until I started having conversations with my high school art teacher and my photography teacher about colleges. They were the ones that shared that studying art in school was absolutely an option and in fact, wrote my recommendation letters when I shared that I would be applying to art schools.

I knew I wanted to go college and I had the grades but I didn’t want to spend 4 years learning something that wasn’t of interest especially if this is what I was “supposed” to spend the remainder of my life doing it. College presented an opportunity for the first time that allowed me to pick and choose my course of study and thus the course of the rest of my life. I was very excited at the prospect of learning about something I had a natural curiosity for and created a sense of wonder and fascination for me.

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.

I’m a Los Angeles based painter and textile designer. I launched my current brand, k-apostrophe 6 years ago, shortly after returning a regular studio art practice. This was after a long corporate career in communications and a previous small business/creative venture I had with a partner. I currently have a growing collection of decorative home goods that includes table linens, pillows, throw blankets and tapestries. However, I am a painter first and as such, regularly exhibit my work in gallery shows and have a growing fan base of collectors having sold work that resides in private residences and commercial spaces across the U.S. and Europe. My paintings are the basis for my textile work and often the textile collections are driven by my curiosity to see my 2-d paintings expand or live beyond hanging on a wall to provide a different type of tangible experience. Luckily, there have been other creatives and brands that have this same type of curiousity and vision along with an affinity for my aesthetic which has resulted in various licensing deals, one-off commissions with interior designers and brand partnership opportunities to create products I’ve only dreamed of.

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

The times when I realize that I was the example for someone that needed a model or the encouragement to pursue their own passion as a creative professional. Life doesn’t have any easy routes however there is a collective story that has been passed down for eons in our society and that is– living the life as a creative/artist is hard, its impossible and only the rare few are able to do it successfully. Therefore, I believe many people forego their passion if it happens to be something creative in hopes of seeking security and stability and ease, which makes a lot of sense. I made the same choices for a variety of reasons until I realized what I was doing wasn’t sustainable for my wellbeing.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

Remaining realistic about what I can achieve on a day to day basis to not only maintain the status quo as a working artist and business owner but pushing it and myself further. I wear many hats within my business even though I have a small yet mighty team. For a long time, I was very ambitious about what I “needed to” accomplish day to day and week-to-week but often found myself either working to almost exhaustion or ending up frustrated because I wasn’t able to do all that I had set out to do. It was creating stress and anxiety. It wasn’t until I had a session with my trainer when he gave me great advice about work and life, which is most of us can complete 3 and no more than 5 tasks a day and do them well. Less than 3 and you feel like you haven’t done much and more than 5 things start to get stressful and the output is subpar. When I looked back at what I was trying to juggle, it became very clear I was trying to do too much all at once. When I paired things back I experienced a shift within myself and my work. I still have remind myself of this regularly because I’ve been trained to juggle, juggle, juggle which is a necessary skill but also understanding what ball can I let drop because it will bounce and the one I can’t because it will break.

Contact Info:

• Website: k-apostrophe.com
• Instagram: @k_apostrophe
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keramorgan/

Image Credits
Photo of me painting: Lily Glass Photo of blanket + artwork: Kat Hennessey Photo of pillows: Caca Santoro Photo of drum light shades installation: Hunter Kerhart All other photos by K’era Morgan