We recently connected with Peter Walls and have shared our conversation below.

Peter, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Are you able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen?

I do and always have earned my living as a full time creative, but not how I had thought I would. After receiving my MFA from LSU in Baton Rouge I believed I was on track to be a University professor and I did teach adjunct for 3 years before leaving Louisiana and heading back to New England.

While teaching, and not making much money, I started working with a local decorative Artist Christy Diniz Liffmann and what started as a side source of income became a passion for the decorative Arts and murals. Once relocated to New Hampshire I continued this line of work and eventually joined an Interior Design firm in Vermont as a lead designer and lead decorative Artist. All the time creating studio Art and showing at galleries.

A move to Maine in 2016 after leaving the interior design position meant starting again as a decorative Artist with my wife Allegra and our new business Two Itinerant Artisans. We built our brand and client base and were making a decent living by year two, but in 2020 Covid paused everything. Allegra went to work at our local hospital pursuing her interest in food and nutrition and I started selling Art online and managed to keep a few decorative projects moving with the backing of incredible clients.

Flash forward to 2024 and my business revolves around grant writing, public Art, and a thriving studio practice. I teach public Art workshops and look to collaborate with other local Artists to shine together with the attitude that we ALL can make a creative living by working with and not competing against one another. Connecting with Artists, communities, and individuals has become the real joy and success of my Art business and has led to my first museum exhibition in 2025 that I am currently working on in the studio.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I have always been an Artist and since I received my first “award” at age 6 for a local poster contest I was hooked. Growing up in a small town in Western NY State meant little exposure to Art but that never swayed me and I managed to get into NYSCC at Alfred University after high school with what I now know as a very skimpy portfolio. I was allowed in under special conditions to the liberal Art curriculum of the University and after barely making it through year one took the advice of a professor, and eventual friend Mary Lum, who said either I take on my Art as my full 100% focus or I should change my major.

After receiving my BFA in Printmaking and Sculpture I stayed on as a Printshop and 2-D Department technician until my ‘boss’ , teacher, and friend Joseph Scheer said it was time for me to go to graduate school.

Almost 25 years later I have done many things to survive as an Artist. I made frames, furniture, was a decorative painter, a muralist, a delivery runner, a graphic designer, an interior designer,  a teacher, among many other things. All of these things gave me the skills and eventually the confidence to put myself “out there” and become the Artist and person I am today. I am hired on creative projects for my problem solving skills and ability to collaborate without putting my ego first. I am always looking to work with others,  share my skills, and learn from others what I do not know. This has made for a fulfilling Artistic life thus far and am looking forward to the next phase.

Have you ever had to pivot?

Of course 2020 and Covid was a big pivot point for many including myself. With my private clientele backing out of projects and galleries closed it was either give up or go all in. I used the “downtime” to start a new body of work that I had neglected to approach, started an online gallery,  put myself “out there”  through social media,  and applied for my first grants to create Public Art. Four years later I have created over 7 large scale public murals through grants, percent for Art awards, and private clients. I have become Public Art liaison for Waterfall Arts in Belfast, Maine and last year we created our first large scale 33 Artist collaborative mural as well as started a relationship with our local health care system and hospitals to create murals within the medical campus.

I am a different person now with confidence to share, collaborate, and create public work that matters.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

The most rewarding part of being an Artist is being myself and being able to connect, create, and collaborate with my community. After 25+ years of being an Artist I now understand it is the relationship with people that is what matters, not necessarily the Art itself.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.peterwallsstudio.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/peterwallsart/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wallskuhn