We recently connected with Rosy Cortez and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Rosy, thanks for joining us today. What’s something you believe that most people in your industry (or in general) disagree with?
I think the stereotype of the “starving artist” has plagued artists long enough! This feels like a hard one to break through because it’s embedded in us, not only as artists but among the general public as well. There’s a romanticized idea of the artist creating for passion only. Feels like you are either considered a saintly artist who is humble and paints for the right reasons OR a greedy one who’s art loses authenticity. I like to think I can remain passionate and still make a living from my art. While I think it’s perfectly okay to keep art as a hobby, I would love nothing more than to continue to sustain my career as a full-time artist. Art is a real job and it’s time it gets treated as such.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
My name is Rosy Cortez. I am a Chicana artist based in Riverside, CA. I mostly create oil paintings and murals but I consider myself an all around creative. As a kid, I remember my older brother’s drawings of elephants and thought it was magic! I have wanted to be an artist ever since. I studied art wherever possible eventually getting a bachelor’s degree in painting. But, after graduating I had convinced myself I didn’t have what it takes to become successful at it, so I abandoned my dream until about two years ago. I realized it’s what I always wanted to do, so I committed to the pursuit of it. I quit my job to become a full-time artist and now find myself doing all the things I ever dreamed of. I get to be in art shows, make murals, make paintings and connect to people and community through all of it. I am in an ever evolving process of finding my voice and creating the art I want to see in the world.
Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?
Right before I took the plunge into a full-time artist. I got really into self-development books and videos. The first book I read was “You Are a Badass” by Jen Sincero and Elizabeth Gilbert’s Ted Talk “Your elusive creative genius” on you tube was like religion. Then I went down a path of reading every book in that genre even from a philosophical, spiritual, or scientific lens, they all essentially say the same thing. As cliché as it may seem I had to really look inward, change my belief systems and realized I had to take a chance on myself. It affected how I market myself, how I value my time, and business as an artist. I still read those books to maintain a “can do” attitude. Nowadays I am re-reading The Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rick Rubin.
What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?
One of the biggest things I had to overcome was my mindset around business and sales. I feel a natural cringe towards those words. Most because I always equated sales, promotion and marketing to manipulation tactics of a sleazy car salesman. For the longest, I felt like my art should just speak for itself. I now realize if I wanted to survive as an artist I can’t be afraid of promoting or speaking highly of my art and I can still remain authentic while doing so. If anything it helps create amazing relationships with clients that want to see me create more and that’s been incredibly rewarding. I also learned people love to hear from the artist when they see art. It adds another layer of appreciation and people value your art more when they feel connected not just to the art but you as a human.
Contact Info:
- Website: PaintedRosy.com
- Instagram: @PaintedRosy