We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Kiki Slaughter a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Kiki, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?
Appreciate you joining us today. Risk taking is something we’re really interested in and we’d love to hear the story of a risk you’ve taken.
Creating my fabric and wallcovering line was a big risk for me. Developing the patterns was a major financial investment and took a lot of my time and energy. I am a fine artist who is obsessed with interiors, but didn’t know how my painterly textiles and wallcoverings would be received. I’m happy to say that the risk paid off, as I am about to launch my second collection! It has been a really fun way to expand my brand and express my art through a different medium. It continues to be an investment in time and money but I am happy I took the leap of faith.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I grew up in Charlottesville. VA and currently live in Richmond, VA with my husband and 2 children. I received a BA from The University of Virginia with a double major in Studio Art and Art History and a MA in Contemporary Art History from The Sotheby’s Institute in London.
I am an abstract painter inspired by the very act of painting – I like to say that my method is my muse. I strive to create dynamic compositions that are rich in color and texture. I am also inspired by my surroundings, abstractly expressing the essence of the places around me. The Blue Ridge Mountains of my hometown are a particularly strong inspiration and can often be found in my paintings.
Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?
I had the honor of creating work for Jean-Georges Marigold restaurant at Keswick Hall. The exposure that has come from that opportunity has been amazing, both expanding my client list and boosting my reputation as a fine artist. Having your work in a business that gets a lot of visitors or press is ideal, but even word of mouth from potential clients seeing your work in the homes of past clients is incredible (and free) marketing. Working with designers has also been a great way to expand my client base because their clients are usually in the market for art and they often become repeat buyers.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
I struggled with health issues from post delivery complications after my first child to Ebstein Barr Virus and Lyme Disease for about 6 years. At times it was debilitating, preventing me from going to my studio or having enough energy to do anything but live in survival mode – just getting the bare minimum accomplished. It was an extremely challenging time, but gave me a new perspective and stepped up my drive. I never take my job or health for granted. Being able to spend time in the studio and have the energy to be creative is a gift.
Contact Info:
- Website: kikislaughter.com
- Instagram: @kiki_slaughter
- Others: https://mail.google.com/mail/u/3?ui=2&ik=c2fd362335&attid=0.5&permmsgid=msg-f:1776836713155659705&th=18a89793978407b9&view=att&disp=inline&realattid=f_lmgacsyq4