We were lucky to catch up with Nora Bruhn recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Nora thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

I have woven in an out of ‘wanting to be an artist’ my whole life. I remember being around 5-years-old and writing on a piece of paper ‘I want to be an artist when I grow up’. I don’t particularly remember loving art at that age, moreso, I think it probably just sounded fun. However, there was a spark in me at a young age that was drawn towards the unconventional.

In high school, I excelled in my art classes and had the support of an incredible teacher. He was one of those teachers who really cares about you and knows how to mentor budding curiosity. At that point the only language I had heard around artists either came from my cool, hippie aunt’s mouth when I saw her at holidays or the phrase ‘starving artist’. I wasn’t into starving at this point either so, I pursued the sciences at university. I studied biology which honed my eye for detail and an incredible appreciation for the intricate beauty we are constantly surrounded by.

Fast forward to age 24 and I am living in San Francisco. I had just dropped out of grad school studying Environmental Management. I was still super fresh to SF, having moved from Iowa City just a couple months prior. There I was, wandering around, no longer giving my waking time to school, free as a bird, and open- ready to absorb and be influenced. One evening, I found myself in Clarion Alley, an infamous alley covered in murals. I devoured the artwork. I was so inspired by the transformation of these gray walls and the opportunity to make big public statements. In that moment, I thought to myself, ‘This. This is what I want to do. Murals will be my new North Star ’.

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

Once upon a time it was March 2020, the very beginning of the pandemic, the height of freak out for most people. Blocks and blocks of buildings were boarded up in San Francisco because of the vandalism occurring amounts the chaos. People were really scared. My friend Max Ehrman and I were one of the first artists in SF to paint these boarded up businesses. I really went for it with my design, even though I knew these boards would eventually come down. I painted a luscious, over-sized, realistic peony set in a dark backdrop. For the first time in my life, I saw how essential art really is. The feedback was insane. I doubled down on the good vibes I was creating by giving folks flowers as they passed by the mural. The art was this reminder of life carrying on around us as we dealt with the pandemic. Life can get pretty crazy, but there is always beauty we can choose to tap into. My mural had a little viral moment ending up on the news a couple times. I have been riding a wave of floral commissions ever since.

To be clear, I am so grateful for my work as a muralist, but at a certain point, I yearned for more. I am one of those people who does a lot of stuff. Art is amazing, but what truly tickles my fancy is community. Sometimes rather than visualizing what I want to do during my precious life, I ask myself how I want my life to feel and use that answer to orient myself. Nothing brings me more joy than time spent with people I love and I constantly think about how one ‘creates’ community. What I have come to discover is you can’t force it, however, one can create the conditions for community to take root. A couple years ago I felt myself limited by my 2D creates. I yearned to design and build a container for people to share, laugh, create and most importantly, feel safe. I low-key kept an eye-out for storefronts for years. I was patient, knowing the right place would come my way. Then perfect spot landed right infront of me and I went ahead and grabbed it. That’s when Cafe Galaxy- A Community Art Space was born. I have now been in this space for a year. We host music, poetry, classes and impromptu hang outs. Everyday the same flow of neighbors sit at our parklet surrounded by my herb gardens. It’s so dang sweet. Tending this space while still creating murals is what my 2023 looks like and I feel really content with that.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

I love the work flow and freedom that it gives me. I typically get really focused on my work for three to four months and then take a month off. It’s really important that I give time to my other interests. This creates a sustainable spiral of inspiration and rest flowed by intense focus.

We’d love to hear your thoughts on NFTs. (Note: this is for education/entertainment purposes only, readers should not construe this as advice)

I am going to start using NFT’s as certificates of authenticity when folks purchase my work, but that’s about it. I am really not a fan of novelty culture nor anything that puts people more infront of a screen and NFT’s are examples of both.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.konorebi.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/konorebi/

Image Credits
Lisa Vortman