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

Alright, Tara thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

I was 35 years old when I started doing chalk art at home during the shutdowns of the 2020 Pandemic. Outside of a couple art electives in high school and college, I have no formal training. On top of that at that time, I had two kids under two years old (also at home with daycares closed), and a full-time job to manage.

But from that very first chalk drawing, I knew I wanted to do this and get better. I didn’t have the time or money to invest in formal trainings or art school, so I decided to teach myself. I picked up a few tips from books and social media, but mostly learned by doing – testing different theories, ideas, and tools through my work on my driveway. When I participated in my first chalk art festival a year later, I was intentional about meeting the other artists and observing them while we worked. You learn a lot by doing, but I also learned from those who openly shared their own techniques.

I was an amateur artist in that first festival, and by staying consistent with bettering myself and taking risks in my work, while building and maintaining a network of artists; it has helped me quickly grow to the professional level.

Today, I share a lot of my own tips on social media. There are a lot of aspiring chalk artists out there, many of which don’t live near chalk art festivals or have direct access to professional artists like I had early on. I had a lot of help from others to get to where I am, so try to help others get there too.

Tara, 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?

Hi there! My name is Tara, and I’m a self-taught artist based in the Twin Cities (aka Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN). I loved coloring, creating and drawing as a kid, but unfortunately fell into the belief that I “couldn’t make a living as an artist” and shifted my focus to other careers as a teen.

After earning two Bachelor of Arts degrees in Business Management and Sociology from Hamline University, and building a successful career in HR and Talent Development, I discovered my passion for chalk art at home during the pandemic shut downs in 2020. I was working full time and caring for my two kids under two (also at home because of daycare closures) at the time.

What started as a fun pastime with my kids, and shifted to creating and sharing inspirational images and quotes with my neighborhood, turned into a thriving business, with requests pouring in for chalk art for birthday parties, graduations, and more.

Word spread around the community and my local chalk art allowed me to create the first-ever chalk art mural for the Hopkins Raspberry Festival. I went on to participate in several chalk festivals, gaining more experience and recognition for my work. This has led to more opportunities to spread joy through chalk art across Minnesota and the US, expanding to murals, corporate events, and street paintings for cities/neighborhood associations.

My passion for chalk art and my extensive experience in talent development inspired me to share my journey and unique approach with others on social media so other aspiring chalk artists can achieve success as well. Additionally, I teach chalk art workshops and camps to inspire our youngest artists and encourage them to follow their artistic dreams.

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

The hardest part about starting something new mid-career is you have to get used to rejection again. Early in my corporate career, there was plenty of rejection from recruiters and hiring managers as I fought for experience, a job, or that next promotion. Similarly with chalk festivals or gaining clients, you have to have a strong enough portfolio of work to showcase your skill and style.

It was difficult for me to show case that early on with my chalk art because I didn’t have that much large-scale work to show in my portfolio. Because of that, I couldn’t showcase my skills and capabilities enough, so I got rejection letters and heard some “No’s”.

I felt the same as I did early in my corporate career. I knew I had the skills and capability to be there, but that wasn’t as clear from the outside looking in.

Instead of letting those rejections get me down or make me stop what I was pursuing, they really motivated me to take more risks. In early 2023, I received my worst rejection letter to-date. It hurt to not get accepted, but it didn’t break me. I ended up turning it around and used it as motivation – and 2023 turned out to be my best year ever in work, events, and revenue.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.

Not at all. If anything, I think we’re all in the same boat and can relate to each other’s struggles. We all struggle with the same things at different stages of our work. As things progress, we’re given a unique set of challenges or road blocks, and we each must find a way to overcome them.

Imposter syndrome, time management, general skill, credibility, networking. We’re all faced with things like these and more regardless of being a creative or not.

The difference doesn’t come between creatives vs. non-creatives, but rather from the individual. Will you let the challenge get you down and defeat you? Or will you overcome it and work through it? That’s where you’ll find your differences.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.TaraAiken.com
• Instagram: @TheTaraAiken
• Facebook: @TheTaraAiken
• Youtube: @TheTaraAiken
• Other: TikTok: @TheTaraAiken