Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Sherell Chillik. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Sherell, appreciate you joining us today. Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.
I’ve always been interested in the arts. It wasn’t until I was in 8th grade that I realized that there were contemporary artists making a living from their work. I attended a fine arts high school, Detroit School of Arts, and the College for Creative Studies in Detroit. In high school, I realized I was a painter. I was drawn to subjects that were personal to me and not so much works that were art for art’s sake. The skills that were most essential I didn’t truly learn til after college. They included story-telling, figure painting, perspective, anatomy, understanding value, networking, and the business side of the arts. During my time in college, I didn’t think I’d be able to graduate due to how expensive private art school was. I eventually graduated but I’d do things differently if I could go back in time. There are so many more cost-effective ways to be an artist now.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
My name is Sherell (Sha-rell) but my close friends call me Rell. I am a fine artist, and painter, from Detroit MI. I’ve been creating art for over 10 years. I teach private acrylic painting and drawing classes. I create traditional figure and portrait paintings with acrylic and oil mediums. My work explores portraiture and biblical texts’ relationship with postmodern times. Through portraiture, I navigate through the natural world with a spiritual lens. I use family and social media acquaintances as references. My narratives are created from biographical stories surrounding my Christian spiritual journey. I explore themes of loneliness, isolation, pain, messages hidden in plain sight, blackness, and violence within church culture. My palette is dark, saturated, and heavily inspired by Renaissance painters.
I have spent all my life creating art, so there was no other option to explore other fields. I started with commissions and working art-related jobs. There is no guide to becoming a professional artist so I had to pave my own path. I’ve participated in multiple artist residencies, art fairs, art competitions, exhibitions, and art party gigs to make a living. I’m most proud of myself for not giving up, even though I want to sometimes. Nothing about being an artist is easy but support is what kept me going.
Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?
Early on in my creative journey, I wish I had spent more time networking, showing work in gallery spaces, traveling, and writing. Resources for writing grants, proposals, and artist statements are crucial. I spend more time writing than creating art.
Travel is where I thrive most as a creative. I’ve created my best series of paintings during residencies. Also being physically present in art spaces has been more successful for me than on social media. I underestimated how important it is to be in the room with other creatives.
Is there mission driving your creative journey?
I believe we all have natural and or spiritual gifts. I’ve been presented with mine early on in my life and it’s the reason I must see this art career through. Knowing what your purpose is doesn’t make life easier, from my experience, it has made life much harder. Understanding that creating art is my purpose is what drives my creative journey. The ultimate goal is to make a consistent living from art. This would include teaching along with my art practice.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.rellrepublica.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rellrepublicaarte
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RellCHILLIKFineArt
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@RellRepublica/featured
Image Credits
All work is created by Sherell Chillik.