Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Terry Romero Paul. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Hi Terry, thank you for being such a positive, uplifting person. We’ve noticed that so many of the successful folks we’ve had the good fortune of connecting with have high levels of optimism and so we’d love to hear about your optimism and where you think it comes from.
The question of “Where do you get your optimism from?” is not easy to answer. I think certain traits are learned and other traits are inherent to our individual self. My earliest happy memories are spending time with my maternal grandmother who adored me and my brother. I spent countless hours with her while my mother was working. Many of those hours were spent sitting on her very plentiful lap while she read to me. I remember one fairy tale book in particular with extraordinarily beautiful and detailed illustrations, which was my favorite. I would feel very loved, protected, and engaged. She gave me a freedom to be myself and explore my imagination. Now, did my optimism come from the safety of her love or did she unleash the optimism that was already there. An interesting question. The chicken or the egg?
Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
I am an oil painter living in the Los Angeles area. I started painting with watercolors and acrylic paint until I took a class using oil paints and I fell in love with that medium over 25 years ago. I love the blending ability and the buttery texture that moves so beautifully. It does take a long time to dry which can be a disadvantage especially if you are painting on a deadline, but it is an advantage because you have a long time to move the paint in an expressive way, which I love.
What I am most excited to share with you is a new series of abstracted landscapes and florals that I developed during the Covid lockdown. I had been thinking of exploring something different for a while, but it was during this isolation that I allowed myself to experiment using this new method. I felt deep sadness during this most difficult time. I was (as many were) depressed by the terrible loss of life and the isolation from family and friends. My real tears morphed into drips of thinned oil paint on the canvas . After many layers of multiple-colored drips, I would use opaque pieces of color to represent the light that I felt would come. From there a landscape or floral image would appear in a very organic way, to make what I hoped was a joyful and optimistic statement.
At this point I want to go back to your original question about optimism, I believe, perhaps it can be a choice.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
Looking back I think the most impactful qualities of my art journey was associating myself with creative and positive fellow artists. People who can give you constructive feedback and supoort when needed. Being an artist can be very lonely at times while working by yourself in your studio. I would suggest joining an art organization, group or club to be with like minded people. This is where you can network and bounce ideas off of each other. Joining art organizations turned my art life around. It was where I met some of my best friends.
I also think that in the beginning of your art career it is easy to become disappointed with your progress and want to give up. I would tell you that if something is not working pivot and try a new way of looking at it or a new medium. Also take classes or workshops from artists you admire. Being an artist is hard work and success, whatever that is, doesn’t come over night. Find your inner muse and don’t give up.
Okay, so before we go, is there anyone you’d like to shoutout for the role they’ve played in helping you develop the essential skills or overcome challenges along the way?
There have many helping hands along my art journey. I credit my family first. My generous husband and children for all of their support and encouragement. I am lucky to have this kind of love and acceptance. Second, I would like to give my mentor Serge Michaels a lot of credit for his amazing direction and advice. I found him at the Associates In Art School, in Sherman Oaks, CA. Unfortunately, it is no longer in business, but at the time it had a huge array of talented professional teachers. It was a buzz of creative talent. I started taking background painting for animation from Serge, who worked for Disney at the time. After taking his classes I worked for a short time as a background painter until the genre switched from hand painting to computer painting. I went back to school to learn this new medium but I did not enjoy working on the computer. I pivoted to fine art using oil paints which was also taught by Serge Michaels. He taught me to not give up and to paint what I loved, and paint miles and miles of canvas. Which I think I have done. I paint every day because it brings me joy and honestly because it feels like I have no choice.
Contact Info:
- Website: http://www.trpart.com
- Instagram: #trpart
- Facebook: #Terry Romero Paul
Image Credits
Donna Fink credit for my photo
