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

Mary, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What do you think matters most in terms of achieving success?

Since I started my business, I’ve learned to redefine what success means to me, beyond the prescribed, you’re only as successful as how much money you make. Is it important to make money? 1000%. There’s no doubt that running a profitable business is the #1 goal, it’s just can’t be the sole thing to make you feel successful. If you make it all about the money it’s easy to give up in slow times or feel paralyzed by the pressure of financially succeeding right at the beginning. Success also looks like adding new contacts to your newsletter, gaining followers on social, actually meeting people in person and seeing how they’re effected, it’s the best feeling. It’s also important to recognize where you’ve come from and what you’ve built. Every event or market is a learning experience, This shift in perspective helps you persevere and to not give up when the times are tough. Mindset is a huge part to anyones success story.

Mary, 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?

Collage was always something I loved to do and did almost passively, growing up in California. It wasn’t something I thought about, it was just something I did with my hands. And it felt natural and fulfilling in a way that nothing else in my life felt. And so I came back to it after I graduated from college with a degree in Sociology. From there I moved to New York City where I started making work more regularly and really started to find my style of collage. While in New York I released a couple of zines, sold my first piece and curated a couple of group art shows. It wasn’t until I moved to Austin, Texas though, that I was able to start selling my artwork directly to consumers at in person farmers and makers markets. I know specialize in making original collaged shadow boxes and surreal art prints that I sell at in person markets in Central Texas as well as online. I have honed my craft over the years and have found a unique style that not only looks beautiful but hopefully makes you feel something. Whether that’s inspiration, nostalgia, sadness, or joy, the goal is always to make art that moves you.

We’d love to hear the story of how you turned a side-hustle into a something much bigger.

My side hustle became my full time job in June (2023), so it’s only been 4 months, but it took me 10 years to get here. I spent those 10 years, yes, making art, but mainly I was working at busy restaurants in San Francisco, New York, and Austin, in order to support myself. I knew I wanted to be a full time artist but I couldn’t figure out how to make enough money to pay my bills and live a fun life, and so I threw myself into whichever restaurant I happened to be working at. It wasn’t until I moved to Texas that I saw an opportunity in making art my full time job by selling my work at in person markets on the weekends. I could sell art prints and potentially make a living instead of only focusing on making original work for galleries. And so that’s what I did, every weekend I was at a market selling my art prints and every Monday- Wednesday nights I was working at the restaurant. After about 2 years of splitting my time between the two, I was able leave the restaurant and work on building my business full time.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

Markets have been very slow since June and I’ve learned to keep going. It’s easy to get discouraged and feel like giving up when you’re not getting outside validation, i.e. people buying your work, giving you compliments, etc. And so you have to find that in yourself. Give yourself the love and the belief, that you can achieve your dreams, you can push yourself outside your comfort zone and live the life you’ve always wanted. The only way it doesn’t work out is if you give up, so don’t give up. Don’t let the failures stop you. Easier said than done, I know, but it really makes a difference when you’re coming from a place of love and being resilient.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.marysnyderartist.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/marysnyderartist/