What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?
When I first started out as an artist, I put so much pressure on myself to figure everything out before I even picked up a brush. I thought I needed a strong concept, a cohesive collection, and a defined style — but the truth is, when you're starting out, you have no idea what your style is yet. You don’t really know what you like creating, how you like to work, or what your process even looks like.
That mindset became a huge creative block for me. I got so stuck trying to plan everything that I stopped creating altogether for a while.
Eventually, I decided to let go of all that and just start making. No overthinking, no big ideas — just putting paint on canvas and seeing where it went. That shift was huge for me. Because I did go to art school, I had a solid foundation to lean on when it came to things like composition and color, which helped when I needed to make decisions. But the real growth happened through the act of doing — and especially through self-evaluation. I would take the time to step back, look at what I’d made, and ask myself: What’s working? What’s not? What do I want to change next time?
I also gave myself permission to experiment. I’d go to the art store just to explore — picking up different textures, mediums, and materials I hadn’t used before, simply out of curiosity. That openness led me to my current style. I figured out which materials I really connected with and refined my process around them.
Looking back, I wish I hadn’t wasted so much time trying to come up with the perfect concept before creating. I wish I’d just started.
- Karriena