We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Ryan Savopoulos a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Ryan, appreciate you joining us today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

I started drawing graphite portraits when I was in high school. I had taken a few art classes and discovered my knack for realism. I started off drawing pictures of my favorite band members and other pop culture legends. By the time I got to college I started drawing pictures of my friends just for fun. My grandma, who has always been one of my biggest supporters, said to me one day “You should start charging people to draw pictures for them.” It had never occurred to me to do it for anything other than just fun, but when I started advertising myself on Facebook the messages just came flooding in. My first ever commissioned piece was for a girl on campus and I charged her $5, not knowing the value of art. I remember feeling so accomplished and proud of myself, like I was a “real” artist now. Seeing people be so pleased and in awe of my work felt amazing. Since then I have continued to advertise my portraits on social media.

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’m a 28 year old artist from Virginia. My journey started in Art 1 when I was 15 years old. I had to take the class as a prerequisite for photography. We started off learning the basics, shading, shapes, drawing objects on the table, drawing our hands. I remember drawing my hand and it kind of just came naturally to me, but I thought it can naturally to everyone. I remember looking around at my friends’ drawings and it clearly did not. They all started telling me how good mine looked and that I was a great artist. We continued to learn how to draw different parts of the face and eventually worked our way up to a full self portrait. I had taken art classes before and I knew I wasn’t as artistic in other forms, but portraiture seemed to be my thing. I just continued practicing and practicing, getting as much advice from my teacher as I could, until I got better. Each portrait was just a little more detailed and a little more precise. Looking at my old work now, it’s clear to me that my work only looked good in comparison to my friends’ drawings (no offend to my friends), but after all the work I put it I got to where I am now, which proves anyone can be an artist if they want to. You’re not born with it. Now I do commissioned work for people, drawing their friends, family, and pets. To get to a point where other people want to pay your for your craft is so rewarding. As an artist you become your own worst critic and you see the flaws and you don’t think you’re work is good, but that counteracts all of that self doubt. I think my favorite part of what I do is the people. A lot of times people will ask me to draw their loved ones who have passed or their childhood dogs, and to sort of bring them to life through my art is so beautiful to me. The look on their faces when they first see the drawing is always so exciting for me and I love providing that for them.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

Most of the time, my commissioned pieces are used to give as gifts and I personally love giving my art as gifts to people. There are so many local artists and businesses that you can buy personalized or handmade gifts from and they are so much more meaningful and valuable than any name brand piece of clothing or materialistic gift you can give. Buying from local artists and businesses also reduces the use of fast fashion and packaging waste. You’re supporting your community.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

You’re going to face difficult people no matter what you do and no matter where you are. While I have had immense positive feedback on my artwork there have been a few negatives. There was one potential client in particular. Once I had learned, not only the value of art, but the value of MY art, I had increased my prices. It wasn’t anything crazy, I believe it was $10 an hour for my portraits. I had a potential client who was incredibly rude to me, criticized the way I spoke and told me my art wasn’t worth what I was charging. Even after saying all that to me she still wanted a drawing and sent me a photo she wanted me to recreate. I, of course, did not end up doing a drawing for her because I will not do work with people who refuse to respect me and my worth. I never left that experience bother me or affect how I saw myself. I knew whatever she had to say about me and my work, said more about who she was a person and I knew in my heart I was a good artist (which I guess is why she still wanted a drawing).

Contact Info:

• Website: https://ryansavopoulos.wordpress.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ryansavopoulos.art?igsh=MXR3MWJkZG9ic3kycg==
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/100083924184628/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryan-savopoulos

Image Credits

Braylee Schmidt