We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Megan Stelljes. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Megan below.
Megan, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Are you happier as a creative? Do you sometimes think about what it would be like to just have a regular job? Can you talk to us about how you think through these emotions?
I love being an artist. To be fair until very recently I didn’t think I was capable of following any other route. Being an artist is an incredibly tough road, one paved with financial insecurity and big gambles with money, time, and ideas. It is also incredibly satisfying and has allowed for me to exist inside a beautiful community and be true to myself in ways many other careers could never allow. My first thought was to type that to be an artist is freeing, I stopped myself because while allowing for a freedom of self expression I find myself in a place feeling chained to the parts of my practice that are necessary evils: self promotion, staring at computers, hustling to find money when sales are slow. I have recently made the decision to go back to school with the aim of becoming a talk therapist. To be clear, I am not giving up on my art career, however I have found the pressure to create with the end goal being money, drastically negatively affects my making. Previously I have worked for others for financial support allowing my work to be supplemental income. As I’ve gotten older jobs in glass are less available and my body is less capable of some of the demands required in my field. My goal is to have a part time Therapy practice that can provide financial stability while supporting my art and making.
Megan, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I knew I wanted to be a glass artist at 15. My mom told me there was a glass shop that opened up in my home town and suggested I go and visit. I was absolutely enamored and started as an apprentice. The shop closed months later, but I had made my decision to pursue glass and at 18 attended Emporia State University and received a BFA in glass forming. While in college Karen Willenbrink-Johnsen came as a visiting artist, I skipped all my classes to work with her, and she invited to work with her in Washington. I was thirsty for technical skill and began TAing (teaching assistant) for Karen and other professional artist who I wanted to learn from. I used the time given by the craft schools while TAing to start making work, I couldn’t afford the expensive glass shop rentals, slowly building a body of work. I am most proud that I have stuck with it. Being a glass artist is an extremely challenging road, physically and financially. I think this persistence along with combining color, humor or playfulness, and a bit of realism are what sets me apart.
We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?
A big lesson I had to unlearn was working yourself to the bone is not always the most fruitful. A deadline is a great way to light a fire under my ass…although I make my best work while emotionally regulated. Learning to take breaks, to choose what to say yes to, to take care of my mind and body first has been a journey. It feels so counter intuitive, lazy even, and then when I think back to days of working so hard I crash for weeks at a time I remember I’m in it for the long haul and that requires genuine self care.
Have you ever had to pivot?
Ten years ago I was working at a glass production shop and injured my hand. I was physically forced to take rest. Outside of glass, my only other life skills were from working in a restaurant in high school. I was a bartender in college, but I was terrible and honestly never really learned to make a good drink so it didn’t feel like something I could revisit. A friend owned a sandwich shop and graciously hired me to work the counter. My whole career I had been told I should work in my field, without exception, that I needed to have my hands on the material as much as possible. To be fair this allowed for quick technical growth, but I also left me injured, exhausted, and uninspired. While working at the sandwich shop I began to long to make again and my creativity returned stronger during this rest period. The ideas I came up with during this time are still threads I work from today. I will forever be grateful for this time, and the lesson in rest. I think it’s important to take time away from our studios, to yearn for more rather than beat your creativity to death. Time away allows me to keep my passion as a maker ignited.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.meganstelljes.com
- Instagram: @meganstelljes
Image Credits
Alec Miller
John Kieltyka