We recently connected with Megan Wimberley and have shared our conversation below.
Megan, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?
One of the most important things to know and embrace about being an artist is understanding that it is a journey. So many artists start their career and expect immediate success, whether in their craft or their business success, and it just typically doesn’t happen that way. Developing your artistic style and skill requires coming back to it day after day, week after week, year after year. There is no such think as speaking up your learning, but there are things you can do to help you in your journey and learning process.
One of the most powerful things I began to do when I began pursuing art seriously is repeating the mantra, “trust the process, it will all work out.” So often paintings go through what we call an “ugly phase.” The painting may feel like a messy blob. When you are just starting out, it can feel really stressful. You may begin to doubt yourself. Especially when you are trying to make a living with your work, and the risk is higher. That negative voice, full of doubt might start telling you that it’s never going to work out, that you aren’t talented, or that you can’ make a living doing this. When this would happen to me, I would just repeat the mantra above, take a deep breath, and just go for it. Over time my skills improved and my confidence increased.
Now I rarely ever feel that. I trust myself, and trust the process. I just know that it is going to work out.
Learning to trust the process isn’t just about an individual piece. It’s also about trusting the process in your career and artistic journey. There are no shortcuts. If you are going to develop your own style you have to take the time to play, and explore, and experiment. For the longest time, I tried to draw very tight, realistic drawings. I thought that’s what showed I was a good artist. Of course, drawing is the foundation, but art is about the individual artist and the unique vision they bring. When I first started experimenting with color I was working with soft pastels, but I eventually switched to acrylic. My earlier acrylic works were’t super accurate, the were about playin and experimenting with color. I liked them, and they sold well. They weren’t amazing. but they were really important. They were the first step to what has become at this point a seven year journey. I could not have skipped that step and gotten to where I am today. When I look back at those pieces it is so clear how that experimentation lead into what I’m doing now.
Finally, surround yourself with a community that inspires and encourages you. When I first started experimenting with color, it was because I had a friend who was a jewelry maker. She was also in the western world, but her decorating sense was so different than anything I grew up with. It was sleek and beautiful, but also had a colorful quirky personality. Her freedom with her style made we want to play with color and experiment- to not be so worried about the “perfection” of realism. She was also one of my first, and now biggest collectors. Having friends and community like that are so important. We can grow so much more when we are together with other artists. That a founding principle of Cowgirl Artists of America, an organization I founded. Community is so so important.
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 am a contemporary western and wildlife artist and the founder of Cowgirl Artists of America. I grew up in the western world, experiencing partnerships and friendships with the animals I grew up with, and seeing the hard work of the men and women working in the western industry. These experiences influence my work, and understanding of my subjects.
My wildlife paintings explore the emotionality of animals and our connectedness to them. They are meditations and are deeply personal reflections or narrative in nature, with animals representing themselves and reflecting our shared experiences back on us. I utilize a mix of realism and color play to emphasize elements of the subject and create a mood and personality for the painting and subject.
I am also, very slowly working on a series titled, “Women’s Work” that features cowgirls. Women’s stories have not been the dominant ones, and increasing awareness of the work women do, and have done, in the western world is a passion of mine. This is part of the reason I started Cowgirl Artists of America- to empower cowgirl artists to pursue their career with resources and support they need, and to increase opportunities and representation for cowgirl artists.
I am one of those lifelong artists, who grew up with a pencil in their hand. I also received a BA in Fine arts from Wayland Baptist University and an MA in Art Education from Boston University. I got really serious about my art career in 2016, and my business was growing when I started becoming increasingly ill. I was forced to take some time away from my work. Finally, I learned what was causing my issues– Rheumatoid Arthritis. I was lucky and had a fantastic rheumatologist who diagnosed me when everyone else was telling me there was nothing wrong with me. Thanks to his treatment and and a holistic approach to my health I’m now back to work.
Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?
I wish I would have known how important community is. It’s so easy to feel like you are out in it alone, and I think society often perpetuates the myth of the misunderstood, loner artist. Art making often is an activity done in solitude, so finding time to connect with other artists is so important. When I was first getting my career going, I was living in Oklahoma City. It might surprise some people, but Oklahoma City has a very vibrant and supportive arts community. I joined two local organizations, The Paseo Arts Association, and the Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition. Both of those communities were so wonderful. I ended up in a couple galleries in the Paseo Arts District as well. I just can overstate how amazing being able to connect with those artists and access the learning opportunities was. (If you live in Oklahoma, you should definitely join those organizations.)
Besides being able to take advantage of all the camaraderie and knowledge of the other artists, it provided really important networking opportunities, and helped me grow my reputation in the community at large. It led to really cool opportunities to do things like an artist demonstration at the state capital.
Community is an immensely powerful thing. It’s been so awesome to watch Cowgirl Artist of America grow and to see how that community is helping artists all across the country, and even across the world. Don’t neglect your community. If you don’t have one, find one. Even if you live in the middle of nowhere you can find communities, like CGA, that have online meetup opportunities. If you are serious about your career a professional community that comes with prestige associated with it is important, but get immersed in your local community groups that include hobbyists too! You just meet so many fantastic people. Maybe that is one of the biggest lessons I’ve learned, there are so many wonderful people in this world. It’s easy to get down with all the bad things happening in the world, but when you have a good community you know that there is so much goodness!
In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?
I think one of the most important things society can do to support artists and creatives is to two fold: First, be aware of what you are consuming and what might be missing in that consumption. I find it really interesting that even the instagram algorithm can have an ability to leave people out. On our CGA account we follow mostly women and mostly like posts by women. Yet, our discover page for “western art” is 98% male artists, and frequently when it shows a female artist it goes suddenly from a bucking horse to a floral piece. (This is one of the reasons we mostly engage with women made content only. To try and help push the algorithm in a different way if possible.) There is nothing wrong with supporting big name artists, they are super talented, and have incredible stories to tell, but just be aware of what you might be missing.
Art makes meaning, it interprets, it shares, it tells stories. If you go into a show or gallery, or your IG discover page and it is only 5 or 10% female artists, native artists, black artists, etc. Then there is a huge chunk of that story not being told. Try to make a conscious effort to search out those artists whose voices are missing. There are so many talented artists who deserve to be just as supported and to sell their work for just as much money. You never know, maybe you’ll discover them first and end up with a piece that grows exponentially in value!
The second part is supporting artists. This is more of a macro level, but still super important. Of course buying an artists work is one of the most important things. But not everyone can afford that. You can support artists and creatives in so many ways that are totally fee. Follow them on social media, like their content, comment on it, share it. All of this helps get artists move views and hopefully more collectors. If you know people who collect art make sure to share artists with them. Also showing up to an artists exhibition is a great way to support that artist. Finally respect artist copyrights and photo requirements. If an artist does allow photos of their work or if you take a photo and their work is in the background always state who the artist is and make sure to actually tag them so your followers can see their content. Basically, be an artists biggest fan and you can make a huge difference in their career.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.cowgirlartistsofamerica.org | www.meganwimberley.com
- Instagram: @cowgirlartistsofamerica | @megan.wimberley
Image Credits
Brittany Colt Mullins Editions