Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Vaiva Rimeika. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Vaiva, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

Growing up, whenever someone asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, the answer was always undoubtedly “an Artist”. I am grateful to have parents, friends and colleagues who were, and still are, my biggest cheerleaders when it comes to my creativity. From school years ranging from lower elementary through college, I made decisions that would set me on the course to allow my career aspirations to take root. The short answer is that I can’t think of a time that I didn’t want to pursue a professional creative path. 38 years later, here we are.

Vaiva, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

My creative journey began on the corporate end of things. I graduated Columbia College Chicago with a BFA in Advertising Art Direction and worked at several small and medium sized design shops as Art Director and Designer in the Chicagoland and metro Detroit areas. I made the conscious decision to switch to Freelance Graphic Design in 2016 after having my son, so that I could raise him while simultaneously keeping my design skills sharp. When the world came to a halt during the pandemic, design projects became more scarce and days after days spent indoors became isolating. In April of 2020 I launched my small business, Vaiva Creative, and realized my artistic dreams as a Printmaker and Graphic Artist. I use my love for my Baltic and Scandinavian heritage to fuel the ideas behind my work along with other related subject matter. My main focus is creating linocut prints and digital fine art illustrations made available through my online art shop and various local art fairs, as well as select original commissioned art projects for clients.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

The goal of my creative journey to twofold. Lithuania is still a country that a lot of Americans don’t know much about and a large part of my identity steams from my cultural upbringing. Due to the subject matter I’ve chosen to portray through a large portion of my work, it is a way for me to stayed connected with my Lithuanian heritage and simultaneously share the myths, legends and history with the rest of the world.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

They say if you find a job you love, you’ll never work a day in your life. Being an Artist takes many years of perfecting skills, trial and error, and putting yourself out there with the risk of failure. For me the most rewarding aspect about being an Artist and business owner is the ability to be exactly who I want to be while doing something that I love.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.vaivacreative.com
• Instagram: @vaivacreative
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vaivacreative

Image Credits

All images were taken by me.