Are artists born or made? To help answer this question, we asked some of the most artistic folks we know to tell us about how they knew they were going to pursue an artistic or creative path. We’ve shared highlights below.

Bingjing Sun

Embarking on a professional artistic path is a reflection of how passion and the pursuit of one’s genuine calling can be truly transformative. For nearly a decade, I dedicated myself to a career in financial analysis, a path that provided stability and growth. However, throughout those years, a persistent flame of creativity burned within me. Read more>>

Vivian O’Phelan

Ever since I was a child, I knew I was an artist. I’ve always had a bright and unique ability to come up with creative ideas for anything, especially things I made. I was also the kid who cooked outdoors for her family and friends all the time. As I grew, I realized how good I was at it and decided in high school that I wanted to pursue this. Read more>>

Carl Kravats

I decided to go to art school because my art teacher thought I had some talent, not me, him. As a Junior in High School, I was making something out of plaster-of-Paris in his class, and it started to look like a rat. So, I said, “Okay, this is a rat.” (I had no idea what I was doing). I went looking around the room for something to use for a tail. I saw a whisk broom, (you know, the kind witches fly around on), and plucked a “whisk” from it, stuck it up the rear of the “plaster-of-Paris rat”, and voila, a tail. Read more>>

Taniya “Tee”

I always knew I had a big personality. Growing up I was always told how much of a talker I was and sometimes was told I “talked too much” or like my mama would like to say “You are loquacious”. I never really put much thought into it and continued being a kid, playing sports and doing what kids do. Read more>>

ZOFi

Visual art has been something I’ve always done since childhood. My first decision to pursue art came during my high school years. Read more>>

Randall Cole

I think I’ve always had an idea even as a child of who I wanted to be. I always loved watching movies and listening to music with my parents and siblings growing up, there was something so captivating about how much a movie or a song can change the way you think and give you a different perspective on life itself. I’ve always found that more valuable than other subjects in school but didn’t necessarily know how to make it a reality. As I got older I realized that this is something I have to do for myself, so that’s exactly what I did. Read more>>

Michael Hunte

I’ve always had a deep appreciation for creativity and the arts from a young age. I remember being drawn to colors, shapes, sounds, and the beauty in the world around me. My passion for expressing myself through various artistic mediums intensified as I grew older. There wasn’t a specific moment when I knew I wanted to pursue a creative path professionally; it was a gradual realization that my love for art wasn’t just a hobby but something I wanted to make a central part of my life. Read more>>

Zach Wilkinson

When I was around 12-13 years old I discovered electronic music and was completely infatuated with how it was made. I remember our school gave us MacBooks and I jailbroke it to be able to download FL Studio and I was always in class trying to make something I found Interesting. My biggest inspiration at the time was Skrillex and Pendulum. Read more>>

Yang Wei Han

I spent four years getting an undergraduate degree in journalism. The working pattern of journalism did not fit me well. The industry is all about time sensitivity. It upset me to think that a report I write will never be read a week after it is published. I had this simple wish that I could have the freedom to create things that express, or represent myself and last longer. Read more>>

Rong Xu

I have known since kindergarten that I had a hard time concentrating on many things, except for painting. It was the only activity that could keep me quiet for a while. I told my parents that I wanted to be a painter in the future, not only because of my own interest but also because of my misunderstanding that painting could make a lot of money (lol). However, I don’t regret my decision to work in the art field. In fact, I believe that being an illustrator is the best career path for me. Read more>>

Madstone Rowan

When the pandemic hit a few years ago, I was already in a state of professional limbo. I had lost my full time job and was doing consulting work – and then the anxiety and depression came on full blown. Something told me I needed to pay attention to my creative self. That was a part of me that I had put on hold for quite some time. So I began to dive into my music. I linked up with Barb Morrison (they/them), a producer – and they became my music mentor. Read more>>

Pej Ahmadi

I always had it in the back of my mind but allowed comfortability and safety take the wheel and it led to my major mood change and I lost my smile. That was until I rediscovered it waking up one morning at the age of 34 years old and everything changed from that moment. Read more>>

Samuel Silva Sanches

I figured out my gift when I was around 5 years old. It’s a funny story because one of my teachers asked me to draw a woman, and I remember in this painting the woman was laying down posing holding a vase on her head, and I drew exactly the same, and the teacher was so surprised she brought me to the principal of the primary school. I was afraid if I did something wrong, but they celebrated with me this draw I did, and because of that, I started to develop my gift, starting as a storyboard and artist drawing comic animations. Read more>>

Shabba Noah

Coming from Nigeria, a culture filled with music and dance it most certainly influenced me. From the time I was a child I knew that I wanted to pursue music. Read more>>

Michelle Antonorsi

My mother raised me and my sisters’ with so much creativity. We were always drawing and doing crafts for entertainment. I think because of this, art has always been part of my life, I always new it was something I wanted to pursue but I didn’t have a vision of what my artistic path could be. I actually studied architecture, against my architect mother’s recommendation because I thought it would be creative enough and allow me to earn a good living. Read more>>

Marcus Cole Balkissooon

When I was 13 I got introduced to drums through my cousin, which helped plant the seed of my musical passion. By the age of 16 I got FL Studio from a friend. As soon as opened the program and got into producing/remixing songs the feeling was so right. It was almost instant from that point, that I knew I wanted to purse music for my entire life. Read more>>

Nora Freetly

For as long as I can remember, I’ve been interested in anything and everything that is creative, artistic, and performative. From a young age, I was taking art requests and crafting gifts for loved ones. I would memorize our favorite scenes from movies like Pink Panther or Liar Liar and preform them for my friends as entertainment when we needed a laugh. Although it has always been my ultimate dream, I didn’t consider pursuing my creative passions professionally as being a choice I could make until I grew an online audience. Read more>>

Nikki Banner

In high school, I was certain about my desire to pursue an artistic path. At the age of 17, I flew to Los Angeles with my parents to participate in an acting and modeling competition. I performed a monologue and walked the runway for agencies to potentially sign with. I receieved 16 callbacks from various industry professionals, all echoing a similar sentiment. Read more>>

Tolan Shaw

Writing and performing music was always just a thing I did as an “extracurricular” activity. In high school, it was playing in high school rock bands. For my senior project I recorded a full album with my band, and that was my first taste of writing and recording my own stuff. The summer after graduating high school and before college I joined a band that sort of changed my trajectory in music, and gave me a taste of what doing it professionally could look like. Read more>>

Kia M.

I was an inquisitive the pre-teen (11) who loved and enjoyed reading anything I could get my hands on, “genre” was never an issue! Because my favorite authors often provided a mental escape from my reality, it was then I knew I would pursue a creative path professionally through my pen. It was fate! If I could read it, I could write it! I wanted the opportunity to influence, encourage, and inspire the next generation of hopefuls. just like me! Read more>>

Britt Michaelian

I was a creative kid and don’t remember a time when I wasn’t making art. Art was always my favorite class in school and always something I did to avoid doing homework in other subjects. I loved to doodle, draw, paint, make sculptures, and give gifts of my art to my loved ones for their birthdays and holidays. However, my father was not a big fan of me pursuing art as a career. He thought art was a great hobby, but he wanted me to pursue a “real” career. So, my journey as an artist was not a straight line. It looked more like a scribble. Read more>>

Britt Fabello

I knew as a teenager that there was no other option for me if I wanted to feel fulfilled and so I went off to study studio art as well as graphic design in college. Art has always felt a part of me. It embodies every aspect of my life. I’m grateful to get to be in this space for my career. Read more>>

Shanny Slay

I always knew I would be in this industry but didn’t know exactly how. As a child I use dance (which was something I’ve always loved to do) would have been the door opening but it was actually modeling. I was in the industry on and off for 12 years. I came back in 2020 as a creative director and visual artist and I haven’t looked back. Read more>>

Julio Guerra

I don’t think I had an idea or direction let alone a path to having an artistic professional path, as a young child I loved to draw and doodle anytime I got the chance and never really thought it would translate into the real world given that I came from two immigrant parents my father a construction worker and mother a maid from south central LA. Having very little to no knowledge in any path besides the ones we were familiar with. Read more>>

Ciara Dominique

I knew I had to go down a creative/artistic path when I couldn’t see myself doing the same thing everyday. That’s not to knock those who find security in consistency – I just knew myself well enough to know that it would feel more restricting than freeing. I feel as if everyone has their own internal compass pointing them towards their purpose and while the unraveling of mine has felt like a lot of side quests more than main missions – I’m lucky to have stumbled into various artistic ventures that all allow me to tend to different parts of myself. Read more>>

Lara Marks

Ever since I can remember I’ve been driven to tell stories. When I was ten, I even wrote a ‘novel’ inspired by Enid Blyton’s Malory Towers. I called it Flaming Towers – to be original. However, I’d say it was probably around the time I graduated Oxford when I seriously started to consider a profession in storytelling. Read more>>

Aparna Kaushik

I never had in my mind that I will be making my passion as my profession when I was growing up. and honestly I never planned to make this as my profession. It all happened very organically in 2005 when a parent approached me to teach dance for her daughter, and I agreed immediately, after that there was no looking. Read more>>

Neil Nayyar

Neil Nayyar: The Making of an Artist Read more>>

Bonnie Zahn Griffith

At age 5 I declared I was an artist. Even though I pursued a career in medical interventional Radiology, I always practiced my art with work being shown in a few galleries and studied with instructors as time permitted. Because I worked for a medical equipment manufacturer, I traveled extensively and took advantages of as many art exhibits and workshops around the world as free time allowed. Read more>>

Audrey Chou

I knew I wanted to be an artist since the age of 3. I started with learning different things like piano, ballet, and drawing in a young age, and the one thing that followed me for my whole life as my main career focus is visual arts and following up with dance since middle school. I have never stopped drawing and making art since then, and had slowly found my practice that involves the engagements and methodologies of different fields that i have experienced with, such as media, technology, and performance for now. Read more>>

Hunter Richling

I think I’ve always known I’d work in a creative industry; it’s where I’ve always felt the most freely myself. I started drawing around five years old and I haven’t put the pencil down since, other than when exchanging it for a tattoo machine, of course. Figuring out what specific professional direction to go in took time. I dabbled in makeup, clothing and interior design before finding home in a tattoo shop. Read more>>

Alexandra Mayr-Gracik

I knew I REALLY wanted to be a jewelry designer the moment I saw a customer looking in the mirror when she tried one of my pieces on and watching her whole face light up with joy. Fashion design hadn’t been my real passion after losing my ability to dance, but I always new that I wanted a life motivated by love. Read more>>

Alison Reynolds

I’ve known that I wanted to be a musician and singer since I first started playing and writing songs. Which was while I was in elementary school. Read more>>

Ray Eden

I wanted to become a magician as a teenager. My earliest childhood memory is seeing a magician at the Ashland County Fair in Ohio. The magi changed a woman into a tiger. That moment in time was the spark that created an ember that finally took flame when I was sixteen. From that moment, I worked towards doing magic professionally. Read more>>

Vando Davis

My journey into the world of art began later in life when my son, at the age of 14, became involved in day trading. I observed that he was often stressed during trade sessions and needed a way to relax. To address this, I suggested the idea of engaging in abstract style painting as a means to release tension. Initially intended as a simple relaxation method rather than a creative pursuit, this suggestion unexpectedly became a consuming passion for me. Now, seven years later, I find myself fully immersed in the world of art, embracing my identity as an artist. Read more>>

Adriana Vecchioli

Oh, I knew I wanted to pursue an artistic path from a very early age, about 3 or 4. Growing up between the picturesque city of Paris and Italian shores, I was surrounded and inspired by culture and Mediterranean beauty. Read more>>

My Cousin Vinny

It all started when I got my first set of turntables and a DJ mixer as a birthday gift from my parents. I was 12 years old and also just discovered pirated music production programs like Sony Acid Pro and Fruity Loops. From there I became obsessed! I was a 7th grade kid going to record stores digging for vinyl, practicing DJing in my room and making beats on my computer and I just knew something special was happening. Read more>>

Christine Carlson

Growing up in Minnesota, my fascination with creativity started at home. My mom sewed many of my clothes, sparking my interest in fashion. I vividly remember crafting Barbie outfits from leftover fabric scraps and even knitting miniature sleeping bags—a playful dive into the world of making things. While we didn’t have fashion magazines, the Sunday paper was a simple joy, with those Sears and JCPenny fashion ads that caught my eye. Read more>>

Marta Carvajal

I started as an artist with 7 year old. For me was a safe space, protecting me from the adversity. In my early childhood I lived a violent divorce. I was very sensitive child, and I felt invisible. I found relief when I was creating, a sense of conection with god and my inner self. Read more>>

Ruby Valentinw

As a kid/teenage, art saved my life. I was a competitive dancer & visual artist. I loved looking at beautiful images in magazines and on tumblr. However, I didn’t have any creative role models in my personal life growing up. When I entered university, I had no idea I would end up working in a creative field, because it seems unrealistic without any connections or training at the time. Read more>>

Des Mulrooney

I started out as an athlete, when I was getting injured in track and field consistently, the only way I could stay cool and relevant at my school was to be funny and joke about my situation. Some people peak in high school, I peaked in 8th grade. I was a basketball star in middle school, but once my basketball career fell off, all I could do was joke with friends about how I lost all my popularity. That’s when I wanted to become a comedian. Read more>>

Shaun Skerchock

I knew I should pursue my love of art when I was three years into nursing school and not succeeding. Art was always a passion for me as I’ve been drawing since a childhood. I took the more traditional path of finding a “secure” career however, that wasn’t for me. This is when I decided to lean into art as my profession. No matter what! Read more>>

Monica McDowell

Ever since I was a child, I’ve loved art. But it wasn’t until my late 20’s that I decided to really immerse myself in it. I became involved with cosplay and making my own costumes, and over time I realized how much I enjoyed creating wearable art. I’ve always seen myself being an artist, but art has never been seen as a “real” job. But seeing so many other people pursuing their dreams in the arts eventually inspired me to take that leap for myself! Read more>>

Nick James

Since my school days, it was clear to me that a creative and artistic journey was my calling. Art and music were the only subjects that truly captivated me. People often wonder why I choose to perform music while also teaching art. To me, it’s a beautiful harmony between the two! Both mediums hold a special place in my heart, and naturally, I find joy in both teaching art and performing music professionally. I feel incredibly fortunate to embrace both passions in my career! Read more>>

Mandi Christine Kerr

I knew I was a creative since I was very young. I think the earliest memory I have, I may have been about five years old listening to music in the back of our family car. I told my dad I wanted to be a singer. I loved to memorize the words in the songs blasting on the radio and then make them my own as I sang along. It always felt like such a releif to even do something simple creatively like singing to top 40 hits at the back of my dads head. I needed to get it out and express myself in that way. Read more>>