We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Winston Harrell. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Winston below.
Hi Winston, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.
I first learned I wanted to be an artist when I lived in Chicago in 1972. I was about 14 years of age. I remember submitting my artwork to an art competition posted in the TV Guide magazine ( drawn the Priate ). I recall sending one of my hand-drawn images by mail to the art contest. Surprisingly, I won the contest and was offered a full 2-year commercial Art scholarship with Art Instruction schools in Minneapolis Minnesota.
The Art course was completely learned via the postal service. The study included a 24-month program teaching young artists the basic fundaments of Art and illustration. Unfortunatley my parents refused to let me enroll in the program fearing that it was scam and that they would be responsible for payments.
Much later in life after relocating to Atlanta Georgia in 1997 I revisted Art instruction Schools where I recieved my certificate in Commercial Art and illustration. This 2 year correspondence course gave me new insight into the world of Art and illustration and sparked my interest in illustration and graphic design.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I started my art career as an artist in 1972 by participating in the Mayor Daily summer youth program for inner-city youth. The program focused on teaching inner-city youngsters the value of earning their first paycheck through the creation of community Murals and local artwork. The art program taught me the value of hard work and how to create and construct a canvas and mix acrylic paints. I also learned the value of working with others. I began class at 10 am and finished by 4 pm each day 5 days a week.
This position fueled my interest as a creative mind and in 1995 I enrolled in Le Cordon Bleu of Chicago. I completed
the 2-year comprehensive course in Culinary Arts and food service management and I learned the finer points of teamwork and customer service.
After completing my training in Culinary Arts I returned to School while living in Atlanta Georgia and completed the 2-year course in Visual Communications and Graphic Design at Westwood College Midtown Atlanta Georgia.
These two degrees supported my lifestyle and gave my life purpose and meaning. Later in 2001, I opened my home-based personal Chef service in Atlanta Georgia called ” My Artistic Cafe “. Working at ” My Artistic Cafe ” helped me fine tune my skills as a manager and culinary professional. In this role, I discovered my ability to multi-task and connect with the community by networking and socializing with others.
I am most proud of my ability to never give up on my Dreams. In 2011 I returned to School once more to receive my BA in illustration and graphic design at the Art Institute of Phoenix Arizona. This program helped fine tune my graphic design skills and taught me how to combine my skills as a Chef and as an illustrator.
We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?
I started my at-home catering company in Chicago right after I completed Culinary training at Le Cordon Bleu of Chicago. My goal was to provide affordable catering to the local gay and African American communities. I sought to create food that resembled home-cooked meals. It took me 3 years before I developed a regular client base and menu. In Chicagoland, I later learned how to better utilize my business and catering skills. Later after moving to Atlanta, I converted my catering company into an online home decor company and art business.
My advice to anyone starting their own home-based business
#1 Do your research- know who your customer is, and don’t do anything on commission or verbally without a contract
#2 Keep up with current trends in business
#3 Follow your heart and be kind a courteous to your customers
#4 Post something about your business every day on Social Media and make your content engaging
#5 Network with other artists and support their efforts
#6 Dont overwork yourself get enough rest and relaxation
#7 Be Flexible
# Let your customer come to you
In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?
The best thing that society can do to support artists is to share and follow every artist on Social Media. In many many instances, artists are not recognized due to a lack of exposure on Social Media. Follow share and like each post that you see and leave a comment for every artist. I currently have 11k followers on my Instagram page.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://chefontherun.artstation.com/
- Instagram: winston_harrell
- Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/winstonmharrell