We were lucky to catch up with Randall Garrett recently and have shared our conversation below.

Randall, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Earning a full time living from one’s creative career can be incredibly difficult. Have you been able to do so and if so, can you share some of the key parts of your journey and any important advice or lessons that might help creatives who haven’t been able to yet?

For over twenty years, I worked with Dallas College, as a gallery director and instructor in Arts and Humanities. During that time, I also opened Plush Gallery, and pursued my career as a visual artist. Having a salaried career gave me a level of comfort, but also held me back by never forcing me to push my limits. Two and a half years ago, the pandemic came, and I was laid off from my teaching job, and suddenly had to face the idea of rebuilding my career, when many of my colleagues were close to retirement.

I decided to look closely at what made my life as an artist meaningful, and came up with a system for self-development through creativity and self-expression. I began working with people who wanted to find greater fulfillment in their lives by accessing their natural creativity, and developed a holistic way of looking at oneself, one’s relationships and goals. By applying principles of creative expression, I started helping others to access their own potential for personal growth.

At the same time, I examined my own life. “Why do you have an art gallery?” I asked myself, and came up with this vision statement: “Our mission at Plush Gallery is to support emerging artists, to bring the best of their work to a receptive audience, and to encourage artist empowerment and career building strategies.” This kind of mid-career crisis I had experienced helped me to focus on how I could serve others, both as a creative mentor and as a gallery owner.

Almost immediately I saw my business grow, as new people came into my life, both as mentoring clients and patrons to my gallery. Last fall we offered Super Fresh, a new juried exhibition, and this spring, Emerge, an art fair for emerging artists. By focusing on the creative growth of my clients, and on the success my new artists gained, I was able to serve them and also grow my business. The focus on my artists and clients is a lesson which carried over from my days as a community college teacher, but one which I have learned to take to heart now, so as to find my own purpose in giving back to others.

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

In the first part of my career, I was an artist and teacher, as well as a seeker on a path of spiritual growth. These two things converged for me to develop as a creative entrepreneur. Over twenty years ago, when I was still relatively new in my career, I decided to work on myself through meditation, yoga, and self-reflection, to find a path for healing in my life. So, I was learning to bring greater mindfulness and attention into my life even as I was developing as an artist.

This focus led me to see how creativity and self-development go hand in hand. In fact, I can’t think of a higher calling than to access one’s own self-expression in a conscious way and bring it to the world. That is how we can impact our own lives and those of others on a profound level, by finding our core truths and expressing them more deeply. I think this emphasis on creativity and self-expression is what sets me apart from others who work in the areas of coaching and personal growth, as it brings in a real emphasis on finding and expressing one’s purpose in life.

Nothing lights me up like helping my mentoring clients to open their expression and find a new sense of freedom in their lives. The same goes in my art gallery, when I see my artists presenting their artworks to others. Many of the artists I now work with in my gallery are bringing their work out of the studio and presenting it for the first time to a formal audience, so they feel a great sense of accomplishment in this practice.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

In my opinion, we can better support artists and creatives by recognizing that creativity is at the root of what makes society function. Once we do that, we will build an emphasis on creativity into our school curriculums, and make it an integral part of how we live our lives.

In the US, a high value is placed on innovation in business, in fact, that is one of the things this country is known for. Well, that innovation comes from creative individuals, from those who recognize and pursue new pathways, regardless of what their field may be.

And in Mexico, where I spend a good deal of time each year, the sense of community is strong, the understanding that we grow as individuals by lifting up our community as a whole. This collaborative spirit is natural to artists, who are generally open to sharing their ideas and working with others to find solutions and new ways of seeing.

So, I think once we realize that creativity is not something which is exclusive to artists, but rather is beneficial and inherent in all our lives, then we will grow as a society. That we will learn to recognize and honor the gifts we all bring, to enrich each other through our creativity and self-expression.

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

The most rewarding aspect of being an artist or creative is to connect with my own natural self-expression and bring it to others, as a gift. By tapping into my own creativity, I feel a natural connection to the creative impulse of life itself. A corollary to this is to see that light go on in others, when your creative expression lights a spark for them to make that connection within themselves.

Creativity is the gift that keeps on giving. It causes the world to become a more expansive place, for people to see the possibilities in their own lives and also within the society in which they live. I really believe the impulse to create is a way of connecting with the archetypal energies of life, to that which makes this world a more livable and marvelous place to exist.

And so, whether I am in the studio making my own work, mentoring others, or presenting artists in my gallery, I am participating in the creative impulse of life, by connecting directly to the purpose I have for being in this world, and giving something back for all that life has given to me.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.randallgarrett.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/therandallgarrett/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/therandallgarrett/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/randallgarrett/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/therandallgarrett
• Other: [email protected]

Image Credits
03 – photo by Bill Bolin 07 – photo by Dulce Eme 08 – photo by Daniel Sunshine