We recently connected with Sharon Graves and have shared our conversation below.
Sharon, 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 always knew there was an artist inside of me but as a mom of 4 active kids, it seemed that ship had sailed. When I was 48 I was diagnosed with a serious auto immune disease where I was no longer able to work and I went downhill very quickly. I was not approved for a double lung and possible heart transplant and was sent home to get my affairs in order. My affairs were already in order so I decided to finally let the artist in me come out and I started learning to paint. I was awful and wanted to give up but I really felt there was an artist inside and my expected timeline was getting shorter by the day. I found an art teacher and took a 4 day workshop. I spent a boatload of money but I came home with what I thought was a beautiful painting and enough knowledge and confidence that I could actually be an artist. That was 23 years ago.
Sharon, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I struggled as a beginning artist finding instruction at the beginning level, There was plenty of info out there if you knew some things, but if you didn’t even know what brush to buy or the different types of paint, there was little to no info. This was before the internet. I swore that if I ever did get “it”, I would teach every beginning painter I could help.
I created the Beginner’s Painting Club just for those people. It is a monthly membership where monthly members receive new lessons on Fundamentals of Art, Elements of Art and Step by step painting classes.
I’m most proud of the Elements of Art section of the Beginner’s Painting Club. It came to me after thinking about the best way to break down specific lessons. I teach 4 different types of paintings, landscape, florals, still life, and seascapes. Each of those types of paintings have specific elements inside. For example, landscapes have rocks, trees, clouds, water, mountains, grasses cabins and I could go on and on. In Elements of Art, you can go to the type of painting you want to create, and then you scroll to the item you want to learn, such as rocks. There you will find a 10-15 minute lesson on just that particular subject. I’ve never seen anything like it and I believe it is the best part of the club. It allows the student to create their own paintings using the elements of that type of art.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
I’m an artist first and an art teacher second and I love it when people look at my work and are inspired by things in nature and its beauty. Beautiful flowers and dramatic sunsets and water reflections are some of my favorite things to paint.
As an art teacher I love to see the light come on when people begin to learn a concept or when they are proud of the piece they just created. I teach in person paint and sip type classes also and there almost always is a person there who hasn’t painted since they were 15 because their high school art teacher said they were no good and should give up. Here they are in their 50’s discovering that they really can paint.
My job as an art teacher for beginners is help them acquire the knowledge and the confidence to move forward in their art journey. It is absolutely thrilling to see someone take back their art power.
Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?
After 5-6 years of painting daily I had enough knowledge to begin to help people start their own art journey. I began a blog of my weekly activities about how to get started as a beginner. I posted about the very basics of different types of brushes, paints, supports, and other supplies. I wrote about how to create simple art and make it more complex with time.
I started shooting videos and that was crazy hard for me. I had no idea how to make a video, edit a video, or how to upload a video. I’m older and none of this came easy to me. It probably took me 10 times longer than a younger person who didn’t grow up with party line for a phone.
I began posting on Facebook and Instagram as they came available and I became aware of them. That sounds crazy even saying that now. It was so scary the first time I published a photo of my art. It took me 3 days to hit the publish button.
My growth has been slow in most cases, but Instagram is my most efficient way of promoting and selling my art. I do love my YouTube channel though. It is one of the funnest parts of my business even if my growth there has been like pulling teeth. I created a ton of terrible videos in the beginning and then finally I invested in myself to learn how to make better videos and grow my channel.
I will always be painting and improving my art so I will always be teaching others how to get started and move their art journey forward.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.paintingwithacrylics101.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kypaintster/
- Teaching Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/paintingwithacrylics101,
- My art Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/finenatureartbyslgraves/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pwa101sharon-durbin-graves-046a9789/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0bUUAP2ba8GnbVzUkz1W7A
- Other: https://www.sharondurbingravesart.com