We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Shannon Harfosh. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Shannon below.
Alright, Shannon thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you take us back in time to the first dollar you earned as a creative – how did it happen? What’s the story?
During my Junior year in college, I interned at Make-A-Wish Foundation and was working on a creative project offsite with an agency contractor. While there, I unexpectedly sold my first piece of artwork. I remembered being surprised as one of the contractors noticed my desktop background. He commented on how much he loved the painting I had created of Kanye West. Before I knew it, he asked to purchase this piece of work. I had already gifted this to my boyfriend and so I offered to recreate this piece with the understanding that no two paintings are ever the same. He really liked this idea and so we moved forward with the commission. After I finished the painting, he informed me that he was starting a music and art-filled store called Sound Monkey Music and Variety in Upstate, New York. He asked if I wanted to display my work in his store. For me, this marked the start of an exciting period.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I first became passionate with art in high school. My instructors were outstanding and gave me a great starting point for developing as an artist. I decided to take classes in the business curriculum once I started college in order to broaden my knowledge, which ultimately led to a degree in Business Management. I took this action with the hopes of expanding my own art business in the future. I worked in the health insurance sector for several years while also establishing my side business as an artist. I spent weekends and evenings creating new works of art in my studio. I started taking part in Tristate local events and selling my artwork online. These included selling my work at several coffee shops in Hoboken, New Jersey, as well as participating in local pop-up events and art markets. I currently live in Scottsdale, Arizona and I sell my artwork locally at events at Anthropologie and West Elm as well as markets such as Junk in the Trunk Vintage Market and the Phoenix Flea. This past year, I have been a vendor at the High Street Farmers Market on Sundays. It has been amazing to get to know so many people in the community who either live here or who are just visiting. Seeing how my artwork has affected people has been really fulfilling and I bring this knowledge to my studio every time I create a new piece. Every encounter and relationship feed my enthusiasm and inspiration even more. I use acrylic paint as this is my favorite medium to work with. I believe what sets me apart is my technique in using acrylic paints on watercolor paper. I capture high resolution images of my work and send to the print shop. Then they create fine art prints on a giclee paper which I later sell to my customers. I am most proud of the impact I have on customers as they relate to the pieces I have created. I am also proud of how I have been able to adapt to changing environments as I have moved across the country while still being able to grow my following and connect with my customers.
Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?
Soon after my husband’s death in 2022, I moved across the country from our home in Hoboken, New Jersey to Scottsdale, Arizona where I only knew family. I have always enjoyed sharing my art with my community and I knew that my spouse would not have wanted me to stop. I had previously created whimsical taxes, cityscapes or compositions influenced by Hoboken but now I was starting fresh. I was influenced by the mountains and thought the midwestern landscape was beautiful. I decided to try painting some of the landscapes I saw and update my portfolio. I learned that I could begin again at any moment and that it is impossible to know exactly where your journey will take you. I recently received a nomination for Best Artist from Phoenix Magazine and I am thrilled about the opportunities that lay ahead.
We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?
I began sharing my artwork on Instagram on a regular basis. I would use fliers I made for local pop-up shops to promote forthcoming events. I would carry business cards to events so that people could take them and follow along. Businesses would frequently reshare on their platforms once I tagged them and the cross-promotion would help us both increase our followers. After I became a young widow, I began sharing a little bit of my experience with people by using the hashtag “young widow” while I was in mourning. As I became more exposed to a different kind of community than I ever could have anticipated, I realized that my follower count was rising. Today, I do not worry about how many followers I have; instead, I focus on being true to myself and sharing my narrative which has expanded as I have developed as an artist, mother, and widow. My recommendation would be to concentrate on how you can influence just one person and not place as much emphasis on how many followers you have. Everything else is secondary as long as it ultimately brings you joy.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.shannonharfosh.com
- Instagram: @shannonharfosh
