We were lucky to catch up with Kristin Murphy recently and have shared our conversation below.

Kristin, appreciate you joining us today. Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?

I was always drawing, painting, and creating art as a child. If you gave me the option between a coloring book and a blank sheet of paper to color on, I always chose the blank sheet of paper. My mother is an artist and she also had a custom framing business in the town where I grew up. The local artists would often have her frame their artwork and sometimes they would give art classes in her shop. I spent a lot of time there, so I was often surrounded by artists and art. Often times when an artist would come into her shop for framing services, they would critique the artwork that I was working on. I didn’t realize it at the time, but those quick critique sessions really helped me as an artist. As I got older, I entered art shows and attended art classes in the summer that were taught by local artists. I gained a lot of knowledge and painting techniques through my mother as well as local artists. I developed my skills by practicing what I was taught.

Most of the classes I took as a child were watercolor classes which is why I’m so drawn to watercolor today. Watercolor is my preferred medium though I do dabble in acrylic.

I never considered art as a career path mainly because selling art wasn’t as accessible as it is now. I loved the idea of going to school for art, but at the time I felt my only option would be to teach art and that didn’t quite pique my interest, so I chose Graphic Design as a career path. Though I’m not in the industry anymore, I don’t see my time spent in the field as an obstacle to my art path because I learned many skills that I use in my business daily.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your background and context?

I accept watercolor commissions of pets, homes, and wedding venues/churches. I also have a line of art prints and greeting cards. During the holiday season, I offer custom hand-painted pet ornaments–those are a lot of fun to paint.

For most of my 20s, I didn’t paint. I didn’t make time for it and I felt incredibly guilty because I felt like I was wasting a talent. In 2017, I decided to begin focusing on art. I started painting regularly and posting my work on social media. I never intended to grow a business, it just sort of happened organically. In December 2017, I posted a watercolor of a golden retriever and someone messaged me asking if I could paint their dog. There’s an idea, I thought. I painted her dog and she loved it! This began my journey of working on commissions. In 2018, I began painting house portraits at the request of another social media follower. In 2019, I began creating and selling art prints online, and in 2020, I went full-time with my business.

The commission work I create is so special to my clients. Often times I’ll paint someone’s first home, their beloved pet who just passed away, or the venue where they got married. I am very sentimental, so I love painting a piece of art for someone that they will cherish for the rest of their life.

Attention to detail from start to finish is very important to me when providing work for my clients. I make sure I have all of the details sorted out before I begin painting a portrait. I love including small details in a painting such as rocking chairs on the front porch or a bird bath in the yard.

Seeing how my work has evolved from 2017 to now is incredible. It makes me wonder what my work will look like in a couple of years.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

Artists are so important to society and they are often underappreciated. Artists and creatives have so much to give, not only through the work they create but also through their knowledge and insight. They can provide a different perspective because they see the world from a different perspective. You don’t have to spend a dime to support your local artists. Attend an art show (they are often free to the public), share their work on social media, tell them how much you love their work (artists are often their own worst critic), subscribe to their email list, or tell a friend about them.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.

Often times non-creatives think that I paint all day and that’s simply not true. I would love to paint all day, but because I have a small business, I’m often doing admin work, fulfilling orders, taking photos for social media, updating my website, ordering supplies, managing social media accounts, and communicating with clients. No matter what industry you’re in, you wear many hats as a small business owner and that’s something that’s not often discussed.

Pricing is often misunderstood and something artists struggle with. Depending on the complexity, an 8×10 painting can take me 5-6 hours to complete. That’s also not factoring in the time it takes to communicate with my client, process their order, photograph their portrait for social media, and package and ship their order. So much time and detail go into each piece from the time an inquiry comes through to the time a painting is shipped.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://kristinlmurphy.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kristinlmurphyartist/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kristinlmurphyartist/