We recently connected with Rebekah Skovron and have shared our conversation below.

Rebekah, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

One of the most meaningful projects I have worked on is my hand-painted card business. It started really organically. For as long as I can remember, I have made cards for friends and family, especially around holidays. There is something about a handwritten, hand-painted card that feels extra special, especially in a time when so much is digital and fast. Cards are such sentimental keepsakes, but they have gotten a bit lost in the shuffle of texting and e-cards.

In 2023, when I was unemployed and had a lot of time on my hands, Valentine’s Day was right around the corner. I decided to turn something I have always loved doing into something more tangible. No storefronts were interested in carrying my work at the time, so I made the sidewalk my storefront. I found a broken standing table outside an NYU dorm, threw a little sign over it, laid out my cards, and just went for it.

It was so meaningful because it was pure. Just me, my art, and real human connection. I loved being able to offer people something last minute that still felt deeply personal. Something they could hold onto and feel the intention behind. Every card was a one-of-one hand-painted creation, and I always hope people frame them or keep them as small pieces of art, not just as a card for a moment.

Now that I have been doing this for three years, I have run into returning customers who come back asking for specific types of cards or one-on-one custom pieces. One person even bought a Valentine’s Day card years ago and later gave it to his now fiancée. Stories like that are what make it all feel so meaningful. It reminds me that a small action, like picking the right card, can become part of someone’s bigger story. It has taught me that you do not have to wait for permission or a perfect setup to share what you love. Sometimes you just need a sidewalk and a little faith.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I have always been a creative thinker, from day one. From 9 to 5, I work as a creative marketer on the new business development team for a really great social media company called Get Engaged. From 5 to 10pm, I am a full-time artist. It feels like living two double lives, especially in New York. What I love about my desk job is that I get to creatively use my brain in a different way, structuring business deals, pitching out-of-the-box ideas to clients, and using digital art to paint a bigger picture.

As a creative human, I think it is so important to keep evolving. When I am not working, I am usually picking up a new medium and challenging myself to learn something new. A few months ago, I took intensive sewing classes at FIT to learn the basics and give my mind a break from staring at a computer screen all day. One day I hope to merge my painting skills with sewing to create upcycled and reconstructed one-of-one pieces of clothing…and maybe even open an Etsy shop.

I have also been getting into live art activation gigs, which has been a really exciting expansion of my work. I have done live painting at places like Have & Meyer restaurant and The Tin Building, creating hand-painted wine bottles and cards during dinner and shopping hours. I have also painted one-of-one guest illustrations at engagement parties as a more personal alternative to traditional event photos. It has been a really lovely experience to move across different mediums and environments.

I like to consider myself a multi-hyphenate artist. I am always evolving and always picking up new skills to expand the ways I can connect with people through art. Whether it is a painting, a sewn garment, or a hand-painted card, everything I create is meant to leave a personal, lasting impression.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

A lesson I had to unlearn was the idea that things are not possible. Growing up, and even now, the starving artist narrative is something you hear all the time. It is easy to believe that if you cannot support yourself full-time as an artist, then you are not succeeding. But I have learned that is not true. Even though I work a 9 to 5 job, I still have the time and energy to go all in on my art outside of work.

When I first started trying to sell my hand-painted cards, I heard a lot of no’s. No storefronts wanted to carry my work. I almost let it get to me. But my roommates encouraged me to find a different way. That is when I decided to take my cards straight to the streets of New York, set up a makeshift stand, and sell them myself. It ended up being a huge success.

So now, if the answer you are getting is no, it does not mean the idea is wrong. It just means you might have to find a new way to make it happen. You do not need permission to go after what you want. I still have to tell myself this everyday!

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

I think the best thing society can do to support artists and a thriving creative ecosystem is to continue valuing human expression as something irreplaceable. We live in a world where technology can produce faster, cheaper, and sometimes even impressively convincing versions of creative work. But there is something about human creativity — the imperfections, the perspective, the soul behind it, that cannot be replicated.

Supporting artists means making space for the slow, imperfect, deeply personal process of making something by hand or heart. It means choosing to support the people behind the work, not just the final product. It also means giving artists the room to evolve, experiment, and try things that do not always fit neatly into what is trending.

Creativity is not just about producing things. It is about offering new ways of seeing, feeling, and connecting. To keep that alive, society has to keep choosing realness over convenience, connection over perfection. Even in a world full of endless digital options, there is still magic in someone picking up a brush, a pen, a sewing needle, and putting something into the world that has never existed before.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rebbypaints/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebekah-skovron/