We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Lara Kempke a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Lara, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Do you manage your own social media?
Up until about 6 months ago I handled my social media–and everything else–completely by myself. It’s part of the gig of fighting to get your art out there: you’re also your own publicist, accountant, photographer, advertising exec, social media specialist, and so many more things. And it can be thoroughly exhausting, especially when some of those things are not in your natural skill set (I’m looking at you, accounting).
Last summer I had my first solo show at TAG Gallery in Los Angeles, which was exciting on several levels. And within an hour I was approached by a stylish woman who said “I’d like to work with you.” She told me she was an agent. After I finished looking around to see A) if she was actually talking to me; and B) if there were cameras around filming what was clearly a scene from a movie…I asked around about her, sought out artists I trusted. Everyone I spoke to used the most glowing terms: wonderful person, kind, ethical, and well connected.
So that’s how I met Dale Youngman, and she is everything people said about her. Aside from being the warmest, kindest person who knows the Los Angeles art scene backwards and forwards, she is incredibly flexible about what aspects she can take over for me, and works with what I can afford. So she now handles most of my social media, and among other things, has curated me into two art shows in the past 6 months. What that has done for me is taken that mental load off, and all that energy that I was putting into “what clever way do I need to think of to connect people to my art today” is instead spent in actually creating new art. Absolutely invaluable. I think it’s one of the best decisions in my career I’ve ever made.
Lara, 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?
I’m now a full-time artist working under the banner of Lara Eve Studio, supplementing art sales by conducting workshops and teaching art classes for adults or kids. I combine my passions for music, art, and nature, often integrating all those elements. I paint 2D art in acrylics and oils, often adding three dimensional elements like epoxy clay and the creative use of resin. My 3-D wall sculptures created with reclaimed musical instruments. Old violins, their cases, guitars, tambourines (and most recently, a battered trombone), are uniquely modeled into birds, bunnies, turtles and more, utilizing acrylic paint, epoxy clay, and sealer.
My path to being an artist was very winding, with lots of side quests. Growing up there were three things I loved and was good at: singing, art, and writing. Music was a constant in my family–my grandfather had been an opera singer, my mother is a classically trained vocalist and a music teacher, and pretty much everyone played an instrument or sang. So even though in my spare time I was always kept well supplied with crayons and pencils and sketching materials (thanks Mom and Dad), music seemed like the direction I was going to take. I had sparkly dreams of Broadway for a while. Except…I hated music theory classes, and though I loved performing, it didn’t feel like the perfect fit. So I got an English degree, to maybe do something….Englishy. And then marriage and 2 kids happened, and all of that got back burnered.
Meanwhile, every chance I got, I was making art just for me, or as gifts for the people close to me. The fateful day my mom asked for my help painting a rocking horse for a cousin’s new baby turned out to be the gateway to a whole new concept of painting on 3D objects. So while my kids were little, I started an Etsy shop, started painting personalized furniture. During the kids’ nap times I would consult with the client about colors and themes, and they would give me a torrent of meaningful details like “we have a Scotty dog and also there’s this cool clock tower we like and I like coffee and powdered donuts.” I’d go away and wrack my brains for a few days, and then it would all come together in a visual story, and I would paint that on a chair, or a footstool, or a dining table. And after I’d been doing this a little while suddenly it clicked for me–what I’d seen as this scattered, chaotic path from music to writing to art was actually all part of the same whole: I’m a storyteller. Everything I do is about communicating an idea or a feeling or a scene. That was a moment of beautiful clarity for me.
Once that came together, things started falling into place more quickly. I really started pushing my boundaries in art, and reaching farther and higher. First owning my identity as an artist without feeling like a fraud–I didn’t go to art school, was I allowed to call myself that? Then being accepted into a local gallery, then another, then a few festivals. But my next big epiphany happened during the pandemic. The world went quiet, and I had a lightning bolt of an idea in the middle of cooking dinner: what if I combined my art and music? What if I took an old violin and turned it into a bird? That divine-seeming inspiration created a whole new aspect to my art, and was so deeply satisfying as it brought two of my passions together. Of course, I had a whole new set of problems to solve–the HOW of it. I had to teach myself to sculpt, figure out how to make it all work. I latched onto the idea of reusing as much of the original instrument and its parts as possible, so violin strings become anything from a rabbit’ whiskers to the chain of a pocket watch, and chin rests became tails or wings or whatever else I could think of. I love it when I can take a battered old instrument that has no music left to make, and give it a whole new path to keep bringing beauty into the world.
I have been steadily aiming higher, and trying new ways to get my art scene. Last year I teamed up with 3 other dear artist friends, and we opened a pop up gallery in a vacant space in a sleepy little mall. We had a two month run in the summer, and were asked back for the holiday season. This experience was immensely helpful and instructive in terms of curating a beautiful cohesive display of 4 different artists, and in terms of what it takes to run a gallery. We had the opportunity to do a trial run in staffing, event planning, marketing, and public outreach, and are planning more pop ups in the future.
Meanwhile, I have been showing my work in galleries throughout the Southwest. I am so fortunate to have my agent, Dale Youngman, assist me in so many ways with that, including featuring my work in her projects and also submitting /recommending me elsewhere. We currently have a show on display at The Loft at Liz’s at 453 South La Brea Avenue,LA 90036. Entitled Oceans 25: A Visual Love Letter to the Ocean and Her Inhabitants, this show is timed to coincide with Earth Month to highlight the beauty and fragility of the ocean, and runs through May 10.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
As the pandemic ended, every aspect of my life changed. My marriage crumbled and ended, I was forced to give up the home that my kids had grown up in, and suddenly I was thrust back into the workforce after 20 years of being a stay at home mom and small business owner. It was such a struggle to keep my art going around the edges of a work day and parenting, knowing that it was my true calling. It was like a crucible, testing my resolve and determination to be an artist. Trying to find the energy to create, promote, apply to shows, etc. After two years of fighting to balance everything, I finally decided that there was never going to be a right time to leap, and I quit my job. I’m now a full time artist, and it’s scary and exhilarating and I’m happier than I’ve ever been. I’m not sorry for the choices I made or the events that occurred, because they’ve all led me here, to this moment.
What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?
I’m still trying to find that magic recipe to get my work in front of prospective collectors! I have a newsletter I email out every month or so, I collect contact information with a guest book at exhibitions, and of course…social media. Each of them is effective at different times, but oftentimes the element that needs to be present is me. Me, talking about my art, telling my story or the story behind a piece, connecting with someone. When I have done summer festivals, for example, I collect far more contact information when I am present in my booth. This can be really challenging and uncomfortable to “sell” myself, as that doesn’t come naturally to me. One of my hacks I’ve learned is to be working on a piece–that’s more approachable for clients, and helps me get past any awkwardness I feel. But when I can find that sweet spot and just talk to people, let it unfold, that’s when I gain new followers that often turn into clients. It can be more difficult to forge that connection through social media, so I try to vary my approach, sometimes showing my process, or me at an exhibit opening, or through a reel where I just talk about a particular piece. Sometimes, selling yourself is the first step in selling art!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.laraevestudio.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lara_eve_studio/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LaraEveStudio
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lara-kempke
