The story so far: A very short history of how we got here

Part One: A taste for the art biz

At the tender age of 6 I started my very first business. It was called Art Cloud and it sold painted rocks and sticks to friends of my parents.

I diligently set out my stall every morning and instructed my mother what to do and say if anyone should stop by to make a purchase.

However, being that we lived in a lonely cottage on top of the moors in almost total isolation, very few customers ever stopped to buy a rock, and Art Cloud folded after about a week.

But the damage was done, the seeds sown. Exchanging art for money seemed like a glittering jewel in the crown of my burgeoning prospective portfolio career (I already had my heart set on being a stripper, a showjumper, and a farmer).

Part Two: Be careful what you wish for

Wouldn’t it be nice if life went in a straight line from A to B, and we could do everything we wanted?

That certainly wasn’t the case for my art career, which didn’t end up coming into being until my early 30s, and even then only by accident.

I had started a personal illustration project called The Gratitude Project (I know, I know, it sounds cringeably earnest now, but it was the early 2010s - things were different back then). Anyway, every week I wrote a thank you letter, accompanied by a hand-lettered illustration, which I sent out to various people who had had an impact on my life. Some were living, some dead, some celebrities, some family members. They ranged from artists to scientists, business people to musicians, authors to thinkers.

I resolved to do one a week for a full year, and as well as sending these packages out to the actual person, I also posted them on a blog.

The project took off like a rocket.

Within a few short months I had garnered quite a bit of attention online. There was a bunch of articles written about my project, which spawned a handful of copycats. Then there was a book of the project, and a solo exhibition of my art.

Suddenly my inbox was full of emails from journalists, agents, fans, and (most surprisingly of all to me) a whole lot of requests for my drawings.

And that’s how I started exchanging art for money as a freelance illustrator. Which was lovely. A dream come true, right? I mean, it was lovely that people wanted my drawings, but it never really sat right with me that I had to draw what they wanted, in the way that they wanted.

I was being creative to other people’s specifications, and ultimately I just couldn’t sustain it.

Not to mention it would take me so long to get the projects done that my hourly rate was next to nothing. And whilst I did end up with running a print and product shop as well, I eventually realised that I didn’t really want to be a shopkeeper either.

I don’t mean to sound churlish. I really don’t.

I was, and still am, so grateful to everyone who commissioned me, and to everyone who bought a print or a pillow or a t-shirt from me. I worked on some really wonderful and exciting projects, but after a few years I was so burnt out I could hardly see straight. Plus my personal art practice had dried up to nothing, and so in 2018 I decided to throw in the towel and shut up shop.

It was time to reclaim art just for myself.

Part Three: It’s a different wish this time, honest

It didn’t take long for my personal creative practice to be reignited after closing my illustration business, and I’m really happy with where I am with my work now. It feels true and honest and very ‘me’.

And that brings us up to date, and the threshold upon which I now stand. I turn 42 this year and deep in my heart I still have this unfulfilled yearning to be an artist in public again.

So here I am.

I have absolutely no idea what’s going to happen next, the only thing I can be sure of is that I am going to give this my all and see where it takes me.

I’m filled with a weird combination of complete terror and unbelievable joy, and every time I talk or think about what I’m doing I can’t stop doing happy dances all over the house.

Here’s where you come in

Here’s the deal: I’m going to share it all with you here. Every week, I’ll give you an update of exactly what I’m doing to move my art career forwards, along with what’s working and what isn’t.

If it works, feel free to emulate it, and if it doesn’t, consider it a cautionary tale. You’re welcome.

I’m doing this partly as a way of keeping myself accountable and keep track of my progress, and partly because I think we all too often see results divorced from process, and I don’t think that’s wildly helpful for our collective psyche.

Wish me luck!