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

Alright, Paige thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

I can pinpoint my artistic beginnings on one very specific event: reading the Warrior Cats series in elementary school and wanting to draw my own character. I say this in complete seriousness, and I think it is an absolutely hilarious way to tell people when they ask how I got my artistic start. A silly YA book series about talking cats in the forest actually paved the way for the entire rest of my life and my career path, and has led to me having (soon-to-be) 2 degrees in art and pursuing a career in concept art and character design. It was probably when I was around 14-15 when I realized that I was actually really serious about wanting to be a professional artist and started taking my art a lot more seriously and practicing constantly to improve. When it dawned on me that I could make money and earn a living doing something I did just for fun in my free time, I knew that it was the path I wanted to take,

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

I’ve always loved all things fantasy. My entire life has been spent reading and playing video games and making my own stories and characters up. It isn’t a surprise to anyone that I went into a creative field, as it has really only ever been the option for me. What I think sets me apart is the uniqueness and diversity of the things I create. I have characters and concepts rooted in traditional fantasy, sci-fi, and even modern realism, and the styles differ from concept to concept to match the vibe and aesthetic. Some are light-hearted and goofy, and others are dark and serious. I myself am interested in a wide range of subjects, which I think really helps to diversify my portfolio and ideas. Primarily I do concept work for characters and worldbuilding, but I also do environmental concepts, full character sheets, and asset sheets. Beyond the conceptual work, I also do a lot of pet portraits and make stickers!

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

No matter what you do, you will always hear that you shouldn’t compare yourself to others. This is twice as important in the artistic industry, and it is also twice as hard. For so long I compared myself to other people, both my peers in school and artist on the internet. It didn’t matter if they had much more experience and training than me, I still compared myself and felt frustrated and disappointed when my work wasn’t as “good” or “impressive” as theirs. This is something I’ve had to unlearn, and something I’m still unlearning today. I’ve found one of the most helpful things is to have a supportive community around you. I’m lucky to attend an art school where the people of the illustration department are amazing, both student and professors alike, and are always in your corner. I still catch myself comparing my work to other people’s and I probably always will, but I’ve learned how to stop that line of thinking and turn it around so I don’t dig myself into a hole of discouragement and disappointment.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

For me it’s sitting back after finishing a project and getting to go “hey, I MADE that.” It will never get old. Even if it is something that doesn’t come out quite like I wanted to or something that I wish I could have done things differently on, there is still the satisfaction and pride of knowing you made something with just your artistic skill and the ideas in your head that feels rewarding. So often too, you will have something you might not like or think came out badly, but then other people will see it and be astounded by it and absolutely love it and not see the flaws that you think are there. In the end, that’s what is important and what makes it all worth while; getting to create something entirely new and your own and sharing it with people and seeing them get excited about the thing you were excited to make.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://artbypaigeillustrations.com
• Instagram: @paigewilliams_illustrations
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/paige-williams-946624215/