We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Renee Hunt. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Renee below.
Renee, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?
I knew I wanted to pursue my creative career during my freshman year of college.
I had entered my first semester majoring in Architecture but I quickly discovered that I had no passion for it, especially compared to my classmates. During that time I was required to take a drawing course that I loved and was counseled by my friends and professors to switch my major. My drawing professor said to me “Artwork pours out of you”.
Renee, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
Since graduating with my Fine Arts degree in 2015, I’ve been working as an illustrator. I’ve always gravitated towards storytelling in my artwork. I’ve worked with fantastic independent authors and organizations. This includes Vera Institute of Justice, MSG, and FISA Foundation.
I am an illustrator and fine artist. I primarily make illustrations of character-based black stories.
A project that I am proud of is with Vera Institute where I assisted in creating an online training toolkit that illustrates victimization tactics experienced by people with disabilities. I try to point my artwork in the direction of spot-lighting those who are disproportionally unrepresented or victimized in society, and in this project I feel my passion was fulfilled.
We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?
A lesson that I keep having to unlearn is “life should be comfortable”. I know this is not true, but at the first sign of inconvenience, I used to crumble. Even now I tend to run from risk and run towards comfort in my career and relationships. But this is not how you grow.
I struggle with crippling fear when it comes to expressing myself in ways that are not within my terms. So when I began to upload a drawing per day to Instagram for a year, that was completely out of my comfort zone. Even though it was uncomfortable, the exposure led to many gainful professional relationships.
I learned that to grow and move towards my goals, I need to get past my fear and get out of my comfort zone. I am still learning this today.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
There are so many rewarding facets of being an artist. A few of them include the confidence that comes with having a unique skill and the enjoyment of a lucrative hobby. The most rewarding aspect of being an artist is having a collection of work to look back on as proof of my growth.
Contact Info:
- Website: ReneeAshleyHunt.com
- Instagram: @Reneeashleyhunt
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/renee-hunt-9a04a9118/