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

Marisa, appreciate you joining us today. Do you take vacations? How do you keep things going – any advice for entrepreneurs who feel like they can’t step away from their business for a short vacation?

I don’t take vacations or plan or even consider trips. There are no memories of family road trips or vacations; they just weren’t part of my reality. When I started working, I usually took the payout because – well, money. I know the mindset is from not having or fear of not having. That isn’t something that you can shake off, especially as a freelance creative

If I am out, no one is making money or creating for me. Yes, I save for rainy days, and things are less lean than when I started. But to completely disappear? That isn’t how I was programmed. To be clear, it’s not bootstraps thinking; it’s scarcity thinking. That fear of not having motivates me more than the thought of “going away” does.

However, I do consistently work to disconnect and refresh with my family. I work to spend the weekends watching films, cooking time-intensive or complicated recipes, reading, writing, and napping. All the things that I’ve learned re-invigorate and inspire me.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My name is Marisa Osollo Montellano. I am a fine art photographer, archivist, and I first entered the business as a customer service person, at one of the first all-digital labs in Los Angeles. There, I made many friendships and connections with photographers and retouchers. Those relationships forged a new path for me to work directly for photographers, artists, agents, designers, and retouchers as full-time or project-based studio managers and/or project coordinators. When you work for a person or a small business, you tend to wear many hats. One of my strengths is my ability to pivot and focus on the issues and deadlines at the forefront without losing sight of the back-burner items.

That being said, I always worked on my craft in my free time. I am proud of having been a part of a handful of group and solo shows.

My art is heavily influenced by the North East Los Angeles of my youth. I wander around my side of town and shoot spaces that stand out to me. Utilizing photography’s connection to memory, I seek to explore and catalog something that I consider to be magic. The evolution of the area has changed the voice in my body of work from documentary to historian. I sought inspiration and related to people and places, whereas now I am an outsider observing. Now, the time has come for my work to pivot, and it’s through a process of reflection and research.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

The most rewarding part of being creative is when someone connects with my work. I am in my head so much during the creation and production of my work. It is such a personal and solitary process. To have someone I’ve never met or who has no connection to me appreciate something I’ve created is thrilling and a kind of validation.

Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

I wish I had taken the chance to reach out and connect with people I admired, both those around my age and those more experienced. There are plenty of resources available if you seek them out. Not everyone you reach out to will have the time or the inclination to help, but those who do will make it all worthwhile. I also wish there were mentoring programs like the Las Fotos Project available. It would have been an excellent resource for me and my like-minded friends.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://marisaosollo.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lostcharmsla/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marisaosollomontellano/

Image Credits
All photos by Marisa Osollo Montellano